-
Available Subscriptions
The Rest of the World
77,877 topics in this forum
-
- 0 replies
- 409 views
-
- 0 replies
- 413 views
-
- 0 replies
- 394 views
-
- 0 replies
- 405 views
-
- 0 replies
- 436 views
-
- 0 replies
- 461 views
-
- 0 replies
- 458 views
-
- 0 replies
- 412 views
-
- 0 replies
- 476 views
-
- 0 replies
- 499 views
-
- 0 replies
- 525 views
-
- 0 replies
- 515 views
-
- 0 replies
- 499 views
-
- 0 replies
- 471 views
-
- 0 replies
- 424 views
-
- 0 replies
- 914 views
-
- 0 replies
- 433 views
-
- 0 replies
- 721 views
-
- 0 replies
- 437 views
-
- 0 replies
- 450 views
-
- 0 replies
- 515 views
-
- 0 replies
- 469 views
-
- 0 replies
- 472 views
-
- 0 replies
- 421 views
-
- 0 replies
- 419 views
Announcements
-
Posts
-
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
VRC Derby aspirant Engine Of War (NZ) (Circus Maximus) made a winning Australian debut from the quarters of Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr when saluting at Sandown on Wednesday over 1500m. The son of Circus Maximus finished third at his only start in New Zealand for Andrew Forsman before being purchased by micro-share syndicator MyRacehorse. Transferred across the Tasman, Engine Of War showed good ability in two jump outs before his winning performance at Sandown. Ridden by Mark Zahra, Engine Of War sat behind a modest tempo and found enough to score from the fast finishing There Were Roses (NZ) (Darci Brahma), a fellow Kiwi import. “It was a good effort,” Kent Jnr said. “He raced fairly tractably. He’s a very big raw product. “He looked to get to the front fairly easily and then he didn’t know what to do and how to put the race away, but he’s only got upside. “The second horse was very good behind him. “He’s a very big, 16.2½ three-year-old and all leg. “I hope he stays, he looks like he should, so fingers crossed.” MyRacehorse sourced the horse through bloodstock agent Andrew Williams but Kent Jnr said their scouts had also identified the horse. “We were chasing him at the same time through our avenues, and it ended up that MyRacehorse bought him and we joined together after that,” Kent Jnr said. “He was purchased, had a five-week spell and he has then had a full preparation to this point. “I’m rapt for the owners and we’ve got some good clients on our side and of course, MyRacehorse they’re so good for this game. They would be more than half the crowd here today, you can always find your horse on course, just look for the mob. “He’s got to do everything right and I think every horse in this field was probably touted as a Derby type, so we’ll be aiming that way.” A graduate of last year’s New Zealand Bloodstock Ready To Run Sale, Engine Of War was originally purchased by Andrew Forsman for $50,000 from the draft of Ohukia Lodge. A son of triple Group One winning miler Circus Maximus, who resides at Windsor Park Stud, Engine Of War is out of the Lonhro mare Prove Your Worth, a daughter of stakes winner Kiss From A Rose. Runner-up There Were Roses was purchased after a third placing at her only trial for Samantha Finnegan at Waipukurau. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Daring Dame (NZ) (Almanzor) broke through for an elusive win when taking out the Kensington Tavern 1200 at Ruakaka on Wednesday. The four-year-old daughter of Almanzor had shown plenty as a three-year-old, placing in all four of her starts, but a win eluded her. She strengthened with a spell and pleased when winning her 950m trial at Cambridge last month, giving punters the confidence to back her into an even money favourite on Wednesday. From the ace barrier, she settled in the trail behind Man o’ Slew (NZ) (Reliable Man) where she enjoyed an economical passage before being presented three-wide down the straight by jockey Warren Kennedy. She hit the lead with the 100m to go and was able to hold out the late challenge of Zenzero Girl (NZ) (Belardo) to win by a nose. “Full credit to her for winning today,” Kennedy said. “The testing track obviously helped her chances a little bit. She was able to have a very economical run thanks to the draw. “I presented her at the 300m and she kicked up like she was going to win it quite well, but she flattened out and had a good look around. Even when she came back, she nearly dug in her toes and didn’t know quite where to go. “She is going to go 2000m-plus, she is exciting going forward.” Trainer Lance Noble was pleased with the win and said she had strengthened a lot since her three-year-old season. “I am really happy. Drawing one, Warren rode her a treat,” he said. “She has just strengthened up from three to four and I think she will get better as she gets over a bit more ground. “It’s spring time and once those fillies and mares start coming into form hopefully they can maintain it for a while.” In the race prior, stablemate Heloisa (NZ) (Hello Youmzain) recorded her third placing from as many starts, and Noble said she was unsuited by the Soft7 surface. “In that ground it probably found her out a bit in that last little bit, but I think she will be better once we get on better footing,” he said. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
The TAB Racing Club’s silks were to the fore at Ruakaka on Wednesday, with three-year-old filly Transcend carrying them to victory in The Homestead Sports Bar & Bistro 1200. The daughter of So You Think had one previous run as a juvenile, finishing runner-up to subsequent stakes performer Country Salon at Trentham in May, and readied for Wednesday’s first-up run with a runner-up trial performance over 950m at Cambridge last month. She caught the eye of punters, who backed her into $2.60 favouritism on Wednesday, and she duly delivered. Transcend jumped away well from barrier four under jockey George Rooke, who was able to find the rail and trail behind pacemaker Heloisa. The Lance Noble-trained filly was kept honest upfront by outsider Unrestrained, with the pair entering the straight on even terms. A gap presented between the pair, but Rooke was forced to navigate his charge three-wide, but once she found clear running room, Transcend showed a good turn of foot to run over the top of her rivals to score a three-quarter of a length victory over Unrestrained, with a further 1-1/2 lengths back to Heloisa in third. Rooke was pleased with the run, but said Transcend has plenty of improvement to come, with the filly still racing greenly. “She has got a lot more to come, with the prelim and mid-race she is still a little bit green, but I was really impressed with her last 400m,” he said. Colm Murray, who trains Transcend in partnership with Shaune Ritchie, echoed those sentiments. “She is still doing a couple of little bits wrong, but once he got her out into the clear she came home really well,” he said. “She has to improve on her ringcraft a wee bit, but there is plenty of time to do that, we will get there. “We will just get her home, see how she pulls up and go from there.” Transcend was initially pinhooked out of Rushton Park’s 2023 Inglis Great Southern Sale draft by Devcich Bloodstock for A$80,000, who subsequently offered her under their Henley Park banner at New Zealand Bloodstock’s 2024 Book 1 Yearling Sale draft where she was purchased by Murray and Ritchie in partnership with the TAB Racing Club for $150,000. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Group Two winner Tuxedo (NZ) (Tivaci) will test his talent at weight-for-age for the first time when he heads to Ellerslie on Saturday to contest the Gr.1 Proisir Plate (1400m). The Shaune Ritchie and Colm Murray-trained gelding had a pleasing three-year-old season last term, winning three of his six starts, including the Gr.2 Waikato Guineas (2000m), Gr.3 Wellington Stakes (1600m), and finishing runner-up to Damask Rose (NZ) (Savabeel) in the Karaka Millions 3YO (1600m). The son of Tivaci continued his winning ways first-up this season when victorious over 1400m at Ruakaka last month. “We are pleased we got that run into him,” Ritchie said. “The three weeks between races has worked out perfect for him. “Having a run over 1400m means he is rock hard ready for Saturday. He has performed well at Ellerslie, having run second to Damask Rose in a Karaka Million, so things are looking pretty rosy for him.” While upbeat about his gelding ahead of the weekend, Ritchie is aware of the big step up to weight-for-age level. “History tells us that four-year-olds have struggled a bit in the spring, especially straight into weight-for-age,” he said. “That is always in the back of your mind. Having said that, I don’t believe we have a dominant weight-for-age horse at the moment. “I think it does open up for a horse like him to be able to put his hand up and be a chance in this race. “We were encouraged by Treasurethe Moment (Alabama Express) who is a four-year-old and smashed them in the first Group One weight-for-age race (Memsie Stakes, 1400m) of the season in Australia. Four-year-olds can do it if they are good enough. “He has performed well at Ellerslie behind Damask Rose and she went an unbelievable run first-up (fifth in Gr.3 Cockram, Stakes, 1200m). She proved she is right up to the best four-year-olds there. “We are looking at the positives as best we can. Having said that, he is a high-quality horse and we are just hoping we can measure up and I am sure he will run well.” Stablemate Gate Crashers (NZ) (Almanzor)will also head to Ellerslie where he will be first-up in the Join TAB Racing Club 1600. The four-year-old Almanzor gelding had a light but lucrative autumn preparation where he placed over a mile at Matamata before winning over the same distance at Ellerslie in May. “His performance last time was very impressive,” Ritchie said. “He kept up a solid gallop through that whole mile. The difference this time is that he is first-up and I can’t remember the last horse we lined-up at a mile first-up, it is something we don’t do as a stable, we are generally quite light on them. “He went to Ruakaka and had a couple of solid gallops up there and did a lot of walking in the water and a lot of mileage. Ellerslie is where the money is and I believe he is a strong miler, so we thought we had him ready enough to get through it. “One thing he hasn’t had is a trial, but he is a pretty fair sort of galloper and I believe he will get through the grades through the spring. “Whether he is a bit vulnerable because of the lack of race fitness I guess is a fair comment to make, but having said that, he will be right there until the last furlong. “I don’t think he is the worst bet in the world, and he could be over the odds.” The stable will also be represented by Hot Line Bling (NZ) (Almanzor) in the Yourride 2200. “He is probably our value chance on the day,” Ritchie said. “His runs, albeit on the poly, have been super. “I love the way he moves, he gets down nice and low. He has always indicated that he would be a lovely stayer, being an Almanzor out of a good family.” Ritchie holds the one-win gelding in high regard and has lofty ambitions for him this spring. “He is a cracking individual, he is a really lovely horse,” he said. “He has got a nomination for the New Zealand Cup (Gr.3, 3200m), so we have got to be going very well or winning a race like this. “He is fit and he is ready to go. In his last run (when runner-up over 2000m at Cambridge), he missed the kick, he sat on the back of the gate, so we will ask for a man to go up with him. “If he jumps with them, he is going to take a lot of holding out one would think. That will be the key to his chances, but he has got 2100m to make up some ground. “I feel he deserves his chance at the big prizemoney.” View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Chad Ormsby’s confidence is growing in exciting sprinter Master Fay (Deep Field) as he counts down to the exciting sprinter’s first public appearance for the season. The Cambridge-based horseman couldn’t be happier with the Group-winning son of Deep Field, who will enjoy an outing at Ellerslie next Tuesday. “He’ll step out in a trial and he’s right on target, he’s an older horse now and he looks fantastic,” Ormsby said. “He’s bucking and kicking like a two-year-old, he’s really in his prime now. “We’ll have seven or eight at the trials and that will be our racing team for the summer months.” Master Fay was unbeaten at the trials here for Ormsby before he relocated to Hong Kong where he was a debut winner and subsequently returned to New Zealand without making another appearance. He won his first two starts for Ormsby, including success in the Gr.3 Concorde Handicap (1200m), and following a failed crack at the Gr.1 Newmarket Handicap (120m) at Flemington posted two further placings before a break. He hasn’t firmed up a program for Master Fay, but Australia is top of the wish list. “I haven’t got anything specific in mind yet, but I would really like to get back to Australia with him in the autumn or maybe the Brisbane carnival later on,” he said. “There’s plenty of water to go under the bridge and I’m really looking forward to seeing where he can take us.” Meanwhile, Ormsby is gearing up for a hefty involvement in New Zealand Bloodstock’s Ready to Run Sale in the spring. The catalogue was launched this week and features 23 entries from Riverrock Farm, operated by Ormsby and wife Aliesha. “It’s exciting and it’s the biggest draft we’ve ever had, we only normally have 15 maximum, so we’re going along with a number of extras,” he said. “Everyone has high hopes and we’ve got the right mix of New Zealand and Australian stallions. “We’ve got a couple of Savabeels, there’s not usually many of them around especially at this stage as most of them tend to sell really well as yearlings.” Riverrock will firstly offer Lot 17 out of the stakes placed O’Reilly mare O’Naturelle (NZ) whose two foals to race have been winners. The gelding is from the family of the Gr.1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) winner Pier, whose half-sister Maria Farina (NZ) (Contributer) is also a multiple black-type winner. Lot 323 is a son of Savabeel and the unraced Shamus Award mare Ethical Award whose sister Ethical Solution won on six occasions, including victory in the Gr.3 Bow Mistress Stakes (1200m). Riverrrock’s draft will also include representatives of champion sire Proisir, Almanzor, Satono Aladdin, Ardrossan, champion first season sire Hello Youmzain and Sword Of State. Youngsters by Australian-based stallions Alabama Express, Street Boss, Tassort, Xtravagant and Palace Pier also feature in the consignment. View the full article
-
-
Topics
-
