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By Chief Stipe · Posted
Since 1857, horse racing has been a prominent feature here at Ellerslie, firmly establishing our heritage as a cornerstone of New Zealand’s rich thoroughbred racing history. Among our many group race features, the Manco Easter Handicap has emerged as one of the jewels on our calendar with this year celebrating the 150th running of this time-honoured race. With the race set to be run as part of our Easter Handicap Day on Saturday 20 April, let’s saddle up and journey through time to explore a chapter of the race’s storied legacy. The Easter Handicap, first run in 1864, holds the distinction of being one of the oldest horse races in New Zealand. The inaugural race, held on Easter Monday, attracted a crowd eager to witness the prowess of the finest thoroughbreds of the time. The event quickly gained popularity, becoming a staple in the country’s racing calendar. The crowd in the straight after the Easter Handicap at Ellerslie on 29 March 1902 Over the decades, the Easter Handicap has seen its fair share of legendary moments and outstanding performances. Horses like Kindergarten (a two-time winner), Tudor Light, Grey Way, Sedecrem, El Gallo, and Foxbridge have left an indelible mark on the race, etching their names into New Zealand’s racing lore. However, it was a ‘little known’ racehorse by the name of Sleepy Fox for whom the lens is on today. This was a horse who most certainly did not sleep on the job with the gelding dominating the race an incredible four times in succession in the mid-1940s, earning admiration from fans and experts alike. While the gutsy gelding has been described by some as not a “champion… but out of the top drawer” of trainer Tom Verner’s stable, there is no doubting his astonishing feat most definitely deserves a spot in the race’s history books. Sleepy Fox’s journey to Easter Handicap glory began with an unassuming start, with the then three-year-old not placing in the 1943 edition. However, he quickly emerged as a force to be reckoned with when securing a win in the 1944 feature by an impressive five lengths carrying a weight of 8 stone (approx. 51kg in modern day metrics) under the guidance of Joe Williamson. The following year saw him defy expectations again, this time with jockey Ian Galvin aboard where he shouldered a hefty burden of 9 stone 5 (59.5kg) to clinch the coveted title. His path to glory, however, was not without its trials. A trip to Australia that saw initial triumphs in the Canterbury Stakes and Chelmsford Stakes earn him acclaim as a rising star. It wasn’t to be however, with a sudden decline in form leaving him a mere shadow of his former self with commentary on his return home to New Zealand describing the gelding as “like a skeleton”. Miraculously, just six weeks later, Sleepy Fox defied the odds, emerging victorious in the 1946 Easter Handicap. A true showcase of the horse’s mettle, he carried a staggering 10 stone 2 (64.5kg) to victory – 20kg more than second placegetter, Prince Revel. One year later the now seven-year-old horse returned for his fourth and final Easter Handicap victory. Despite being given 9 stone 13 (63kg), Sleepy Fox rose to the occasion with the race favourite taking out the win and reaffirming his status as perhaps the race’s most beloved champion. Owned by Eliot Davis in partnership with Oliver Nicholson, president of the Auckland Racing Club from 1933 to 1945, Sleepy Fox’s legacy endures as a testament to the indomitable spirit and unwavering determination that defines the essence of the Easter Handicap. The Verner name too has lived on with the race, with Tom’s son Ray producing a Turfcutter-Pheroz Jewel quinella in the 1974 edition, and Ray’s son Kerry then training the winner of the 1991 edition with the aptly-named Ray’s Hope before going on to win it again as an owner with Zayyad in 2000. Turfcutter-Pheroz Jewel quinella in the 1974 edition, and Ray’s son Kerry then training the winner of the 1991 edition with the aptly-named Ray’s Hope before going on to win it again as an owner with Zayyad in 2000. The 150th running of the Group III Manco Easter Handicap will take place here at Ellerslie on Saturday 20 April 2024. General admission is free with the first race kicking off at about 12.30pm. -
The Casinos have a much larger limit for the AML than what the NZ TAB are falsely using here! The $1k limit that the NZ TAB are using has got nothing to do with Anti Money Laundering, or they would be using the correct limit in terms of the NZ law!! -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Waitak will jump from barrier 10 in Saturday’s $5 million The Quokka (1200m) in Perth. Photo: Kenton Wright (Race Images) An omen barrier may prove the key to Waitak’s success in a star-studded line-up for Saturday’s $5 million The Quokka (1200m) in Perth. The son of Proisir is trained by Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott, and the latter flew from their Matamata base to Western Australia to be present at the Breakfast With The Stars promotional event, where he drew barrier 10 for the Group 1 Railway (1200m) winner. While the gate assists Waitak’s racing pattern of settling back and showing his sharp sprint late, it also has acted as a springboard for many of Wexford’s great victories, more recently Molly Bloom’s Group 2 Eight Carat Classic (1600m), and Dragon Leap’s Group 2 Foxbridge Plate (1200m). “It’s been a very lucky number for our stable with good results as number 10, and barrier 10,” Scott said. “My birthday is actually on the 10th as well. “For Waitak, it suits him as he can go back and settle in, and possibly be in the open to get home late. It should give him an opportunity to open up in the straight.” Earlier on Wednesday morning, Waitak and travelling representative Erin Leighton galloped on the course proper at Ascot Racecourse with Scott watching on. “He worked yesterday morning on the course proper on nice soft ground and we couldn’t have been more pleased with how he moved through his gallop. Erin was really pleased, she said he felt quite explosive so we couldn’t be happier with his work,” he said. “He’s handled the travel and recovered well, his appetite is good and he’s consuming a good lot of feed. “He’s sound and very well within himself, and he’s continued to thrive over here in the warmth.” With temperatures reaching as high as 33 degrees in Perth this week, Scott has been wary of the four-year-old’s routine in contrast to the Kiwi climate. “We’ve brought his work back a fair bit with the heat, as well as with his long trip over, you can’t quite do as much as you would back home in cooler temperatures. It’s just been a matter of ticking him over,” Scott said. “We’re under no illusion that it’s going to be a very strong field, but he’s going as well as he can which is the exciting part. They’ve done a great job of building the race up so it’s all go for Saturday.” Waitak and jockey Kyle Wilson-Taylor will represent Trackside Media in the $5 million slot race, and he has shortened into +2500, with glamour local mare Amelia’s Jewel heading the market at +250 with horse racing bookmakers. Horse racing news View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
New Zealander rider Michael McNab has answered the call to partner Maharba (Pride of Dubai) in the Hareeba Stakes at Mornington. With the potential of a jockey shortage at Mornington, trainer Grahame Begg and owner Gary Towzell got on the front foot in the search of a jockey for Maharba at Mornington. The three-year-old runs in the Listed Hareeba Stakes (1200m) on Saturday, but longer-term Wagga-based Towzell has his eyes on a feature race at home next month. With that in mind, Wagga-based jockey Danny Beasley was offered the mount at Mornington with the view to riding Maharba in the Wagga Town Plate (1200m) on May 2. After initially accepting the offer, Beasley contacted Begg on Monday to turn the Mornington ride as he was unable to get a flight to and from Melbourne on Saturday in time for a near full book of rides at Wagga the following day. It was a scramble for Begg afterwards to find a jockey, eventually contacting leading New Zealand rider Michael McNab who is in Melbourne to partner Nereus (NZ) (Savabeel) in the Listed Mornington Cup (2400m). “Jockeys were always going to be a premium on Saturday,” Begg said. “I thought I had a jockey, especially with a jockey shortage with those going to Perth and Sydney, but he was unable to make it, which made it a bit tickly, so we were left scrambling around. “He’s owned in Wagga by Gary Towzell and he wants to have a runner in the Town Plate, so that’s why he asked me to book Danny Beasley. “I asked him to come and ride him on Saturday to get the feel of him, but it’s fallen through. “I did read a story that Michael was coming over to ride in the Mornington Cup, so I was straight on the phone.” That jockey merry-go-round has added to the frustration Begg has had with Maharba this campaign. Begg was rueing the lack of suitable three-year-old sprinting options for the gelding during the autumn and was eyeing off the Country Discovery (1200m) at Yarra Valley on Good Friday. However, Maharba missed a run there when he was an emergency while on Saturday the gelding has drawn gate 13 in the 15-horse field. “He missed that run at Yarra Valley, which was disappointing, but he’s had a 1000-metre jump-out, so he all’s good to go, but he’s drawn a poor gate,” Begg said. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Group 3 winner Grand Impact is ready to get his career back on track in the Hareeba Stakes (1200m) at Mornington on Saturday. Grand Impact burst onto the racing scene in spring 2022, winning his first three starts including the G3 Blue Sapphire Stakes on a Heavy track at Caulfield. His co-trainers Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr then threw him in the deep end when they ran him in the G1 Coolmore Stud Stakes and he finished 12th, but only 5.25 lengths adrift of winner In Secret. He then didn’t race again until a month ago, when he finished fifth behind Extratwo over 1200 metres at The Valley on March 23, with Price saying at the time that the four-year-old stallion would improve with the run. “He was always going to be vulnerable with his race fitness and that tightened him up nicely,” Kent Jnr said of the performance. “We’ve given him a month between runs to get fitter and he’s going quite well at home.” Kent Jnr pointed out that Grand Impact is still an entire and can still be a bit wayward. “We’d like to see him do it on race day still. We’re happy with the horse but we’d love a bit of rain,” he said. The stable will also saddle up the five-year-old mare Party For One, who will also be suited by a wet track according to Kent Jnr. View the full article
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