Funny Yarns

@Chief Stipe bought it for himself & filled it with his syndicate mates?

Three months after starting the season as a two-win horse with a rating of 70, Agera (NZ) (Complacent) stepped on to the big stage at Tauranga on Saturday and became a weight-for-age winner in the Gr.2 Gartshore Construction Tauranga Stakes (1530m). The $150,000 feature capped an incredible rise for the Complacent gelding, who came into his six-year-old season with 18 starts to his name for two wins, eight placings and $81,490 in stakes. From eight starts this season, Agera has recorded six victories and has added $259,500 to his career earnings. He began his breakthrough season with back-to-back wins on the Cambridge synthetic track in August, followed by a sixth under 62kg in a Rating 75 at Ellerslie in early September. Cambridge trainer Tony Pike stepped Agera up into open company for a 1600m race at Te Rapa on September 14 and came away with another win, followed by a fourth in the Russell & Yvonne Green Memorial (2000m) at Matamata on October 4. Agera has been unstoppable since then, winning the Listed Matamata Cup (1600m) on October 17, the Feilding Cup (2050m) at Tauherenikau on November 1, and now the Tauranga Stakes. “He’s won six from eight this season and has found a real purple patch of form,” Pike said. “To step up to weight-for-age today and win again is remarkable. He’s really had a fantastic season.” Pike has repeatedly planned to turn Agera out for a spring and summer spell when the tracks began to firm up, but an extraordinarily wet spring has led to a series of changes of plans and additional assignments. Agera has risen to meet every challenge. The Tauranga Stakes only came on to Pike’s radar when rain was forecast to hit Tauranga during the week. That rain sent the track rating down to Soft7 on Thursday, although it returned to Soft5 on raceday under blue skies. That late change of plans, along with the fact that many leading jockeys were at Riccarton on Saturday for the Gr.1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) and Gr.3 New Zealand Cup (3200m), handed a big opportunity to 18-year-old apprentice Sam McNab. In his very first ride in a black-type race, McNab took up a handy position in third along the rail before driving Agera through a narrow opening on the inside of front-runner Khafre (American Pharoah) at the top of the straight. Agera quickened and dashed to the lead with 150m remaining. A late challenge came from the strong-finishing Meaningful Star (Pivotal), but Agera responded to McNab’s urgings and held on by a short head. Pike took special satisfaction from Sam McNab’s success. The teenager’s father Chris McNab is Pike’s assistant trainer, while Sam’s premiership-winning brother Michael has also had a long and successful involvement with the stable. “This race was a bit of a late choice for us, just with that rain that came during the week, because he’s a horse who needs a little bit of rain,” Pike said. “With Riccarton on today as well, we were struggling to find a rider. We decided to give Sam the opportunity. It’s not that often you see a 3kg claimer riding in a Group Two weight-for-age race, but he’s riding really well and he’s done a great job. “It’s fantastic for the McNab family. Michael’s here today cheering him on, he’s rapt. “Sam probably only started riding 18 months ago, so it’s been a remarkable rise for him. He’s had massive support from his father Chris and brother Michael, and you’d have to say he’s got the breeding for a very successful career.” Agera’s incredible breakthrough campaign has come over a range of distances. He has won over as far as 2050m in the Feilding Cup, while Saturday’s race was reduced from 1600m to 1530m because of a burst water main near the 1600m start point. Pike joked that Agera’s victory came in track-record time. “We always thought a mile was probably his optimal distance,” Pike said. “He won a Feilding Cup last time over the 2050m. Going down to 1530m was probably not ideal, but he got the job done. He’s a versatile horse in great form.” View the full article

Southern mare Inflamed (NZ) (Ghibellines) used every inch of a sodden Riccarton racetrack to storm to victory in Saturday’s Listed Lindauer Stewards Stakes (1200m). Scenes seldom experienced on a New Zealand racecourse saw the meeting delayed shortly after the fourth race as hailstones the size of golf balls and torrential rain struck the venue in a violent 15-minute downpour that also had an accompanying thunder and lightning show. Raceday officials put the meeting back one race, and after jockeys agreed racing should continue, it was the Brian and Shane Anderton-prepared Inflamed who relished the revised Heavy9 conditions to down a handy field in the traditional sprint feature of the New Zealand Cup carnival. Rider Donovan Cooper didn’t panic when he found himself back last after the start and slowly brought the six-year-old daughter of Ghibellines to the very outside of the track as the field swung for home. Just as the Te Akau Racing pair of Trobriand (Kermadec) and Insatiable (NZ) (All Too Hard) looked to have things under control between the two of them, Inflamed appeared hard up against the outside rail and motored home to grab Trobriand in the shadows of the winning post for a stunning victory. Shane Anderon admitted that the initial plan had been to have the mare up on the pace but that option was taken away when she was tardy from the barriers. “The plan was to be on the pace, but she just fell out of the gates,” Anderton said. “What a great finish she had though, which was pretty exciting. “When the rain came it didn’t do her any harm as she goes on most ground. “Everything we have put Donovan on has gone alright and he is a very good rider. “Dad (Brian) is at home and he will be very excited.” A true product of the Anderton family’s White Robe Lodge breeding operation, Inflamed was bred by Brian Anderton and his late wife Lorraine and races in the same ownership. She is a daughter of their stakes-winning Gallant Guru mare Ortem Fire (NZ) (Emerald Fire) and has now won six of her 29 starts and over $239,000 in prizemoney. The downgrade in track conditions to the Heavy9 rating robbed the race of some interest with first-day Listed Pegasus Stakes (1000m) winner Platinum Attack (Santos) a late scratching. He was slated to start a warm favourite for the event. Riccarton is sheeted in hail after an extraordinary storm on New Zealand Cup Day. Photo: Race Images South View the full article

Former Irish galloper Rosso (Camelot) showed he will be a force to be reckoned with in some of the major staying races in New Zealand left to come this season when he took out the Rating 82 Racecourse Hotel & Motor Lodge Premier (2600m) at Riccarton with ridiculous ease on Saturday. Trained by Michael and Matthew Pitman, the five-year-old son of Camelot started his career in his native Ireland where he was successful in one of his five starts before being exported to the Australian stable of Anthony and Sam Freedman. He was subsequently offered on the Inglis Digital sale platform in early August, having gathered one placing from four starts, where he was purchased by Michael’s brother John for A$47,500 and made his way to New Zealand. Rosso made an immediate impression with an effortless win over 2200m at Ashburton in October, before finishing resolutely for fourth over 2000m on the first day of the Riccarton carnival last weekend for rider Sam Weatherley. Visiting expat Kiwi jockey Daniel Stackhouse took the mount on Saturday and produced a copybook effort on the $1.90 favourite, which saw him sit one out in midfield before easing his way around the field at the 500m to hit the front shortly afterwards. Stackhouse hardly loosened his grip on the reins as Rosso bounded clear of his rivals and jogged to the winning post nearly six lengths to the good of Moussaieff (NZ) (Redwood) and Steal My Thunder (NZ) (Derryn). Stackhouse, who had piloted Mystic Park (NZ) (Ocean Park) to success in the Gr.3 TAB Mile (1600m) on Wednesday for the stable, was impressed by the effort and predicted there was more in store for the horse. “I was travelling really good the whole way and all I had to do was get him out at the right time and let him come into it,” Stackhouse said. “We actually got out too early and he stargazed all the way up the straight, but he was just too good for them. “They pulled this horse out of Australia and have given him a new lease of life and with that bit more time, he is really coming to it.” Matthew Pitman was all smiles as he succinctly described the victory “He has just jogged in,” he said. “We were confident the first day, but from a wide barrier he settled back on a muddly-run speed and was doing good work at the finish. “We knew getting up to 2600m was the key and that bit of rain we had overnight was no trouble for him as he has a lot of class. “We will have to put our thinking caps on now as there are races like the Remutaka Classic (2100m) and Wellington Cup (Gr.3, 3200m) at Trentham and an Auckland Cup (Gr.2, 3200m) further down the line. We will have to see how he pulls up, but a trip north is definitely on the cards.” Rosso is raced by John Pitman under the South Island Racing Enthusiasts banner and sports his distinctive silks that feature the initials SIRE on both the front and back of the brightly coloured jacket. Rosso has now won two of his three New Zealand starts and three races overall. View the full article

Next month’s A$300,000 Listed Pakenham Cup (2500m) is on the radar for Skippers Canyon (NZ) (Belardo) after he collected his second Australian victory in come-from-behind style in the A$130,000 Sharp EIT Solutions Handicap (1700m) at Caulfield on Saturday. The Belardo gelding was imported by OTI Racing after 10 starts in New Zealand, including a maiden win over 2100m at Otaki in January. He also recorded three seconds and a third, along with a fourth in the $350,000 Remutaka Classic (2100m) and a fifth in the Gr.3 Wellington Stakes (1600m). Skippers Canyon then crossed the Tasman and joined the stable of Phillip Stokes, who gave him his first two Australian starts during the winter for a win over 1400m at Sandown on July 30 and a second over 1800m at Caulfield on August 16. Saturday’s Benchmark 74 handicap was the four-year-old’s first appearance since then, and he returned to action in impressive style. Skippers Canyon was ridden patiently by Lachlan Neindorf and was among the last to come around the home turn. Neindorf unleashed him down the outside of the Caulfield home straight and he reeled in Sigiriya Rock (Alabama Express) and Nearing Liberty (Impending) to win by a long head. “These OTI colours have been really good to me,” Neindorf said. “Very grateful for Terry Henderson and the team’s support, and it’s good to join up on a good day at Caulfield and get the job done. “I spoke to my form man this morning and we analysed the race really deeply. I thought we’d end up back there, like we did. He’s got a bad habit of missing the kick. It wasn’t the end of the world. I was aware that it could happen. “My job from that point was not to join the race until the 700m and then decide whether we were going to stay in and ride for luck if they’d gone slow, or I believed that they’d gone hard enough, to make a looping run, which they sort of did. “He travelled up nicely in my hands and then he was very good late. “I think he’ll be suited down to the ground when he gets up over longer trips, especially with his habit of missing the start. A race like the Pakenham Cup will be right up his alley.” Stokes confirmed that Skippers Canyon will now be set for the Pakenham Cup in four weeks’ time. “He’ll be aimed for that,” he said. “He’s come here and good order today. We told Lachie, ‘Whatever you do, don’t bomb the start.’ He’s got a real habit of doing that, this horse. Lachie’s gone to Plan B and given him a bit of room with a nice turn of foot. “He’s a very athletic horse, so he doesn’t take a lot of work. He’s clean-winded, which makes my job easy. He can go on any ground, so that is a plus. “He’ll run here in two weeks’ time, stepping up to the 1800m, and then on to the Pakenham Cup.” Skippers Canyon was trained in New Zealand by Opaki-based trainer Jim Wallace and was bred under his Ardsley Stud banner. From a 13-race career, Skippers Canyon has now recorded three wins and five placings and has earned A$164,155. View the full article