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Because Harness Racing Australia has applied a stallion tax which the studs just pass on to the breeders.  Plus they implement a book limit of 150 mares.

Frankie Dettori brought the curtain down on his career in the saddle by claiming Group 1 glory in Brazil on Sunday.  His final appearance in the saddle at Gavea racecourse could not have begun any better when Dettori came from the rear to score aboard Speak Alpha on the undercard, a success that prompted his trademark flying dismount celebration.  The fairytale finish was completed when Dettori partnered Bet You Can to victory in the Grande Prêmio Estado do Rio de Janeiro, the Brazilian 2,000 Guineas, securing the first leg of Brazil's Triple Crown. “I can rest now, whatever else happens today,” Dettori told Racing Post after his opening win. “I couldn't have asked for a better way to finish. From the minute I got on the horse, it felt phenomenal. It's a great place to finish – trust me. I'm very happy.” The post Dettori Bows Out From The Saddle With Classic Glory In Brazil appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Frankie Lor Fu-chuen is confident Regal Gem can capitalise on his light weight and clinch the DBS x Manulife Million Challenge crown in the series finale at Happy Valley on Wednesday night. Leading the Million Challenge on 42 points, Regal Gem will carry only 116lb when he faces several leading series rivals in the Class Two Blue Pool Handicap (1,200m). The annual Million Challenge is for runners of all races Class Three and above from September 10 until Wednesday night, with points awarded to...View the full article

the first new zealand race starter,by king of swing is running on thursday at addington.Fanfare its name. its won each of its 4 trials so far,so looks promising. its a half brother to minstrel and some other handy horses. The dam is a mach three mare that it looks like the butts have bred 11 foals from the 16 yer old mare,so she already been a good producer. king of swing certainly a wonderful racehorse and seemingly very intelligent.  will be interesting to see how fanfare goes. king of swing was $5000 plus gst last year in nz,$8000 plus gstin aussie. aussies obviously expected to pay the higher stud fee even though he's based there. Not sure how that works.

yes hrnz thinking has been,,because they're aren't many 2 year olds around to race, they need to encourage more and to achieve that the answer has been large bonuses,increased stakes and this year pay 90 of them $5000 just to start,even if they run a tailed off  last.  thats how hrnz think. its consistent with their thinking when it comes to north island harness racing. Up there they don't have enouigh horses to fill the fields, so HRNZ think the answer to that is more races. so theres that consistency in hrnz policy,that is ,the less horses you have available,the more racing you put on for them and the more you give them higher stakes to aim at. now clearly anyone can see that has not been working whatsoever and never made any sense in the first place,but they get points for consistency,even if its stupid. then hrnz's answer to the ATC financial worries is,don't worry,keep going as you are,because we've got your back and we will throw a few million into your financail hole,because we  believe the population of auckland is going to all of a sudden have a change of heart and start supporting the harness product in auckland.And hrnz will budget $20m to build a training complex on a property that they don't even own. then  HRNZ has said to cambridge,well,we know your in deep shit financially,but what does impress us is you only owe hrnz about 1.2-1.5 m,now thats pretty dam good when we compare you to ATC..So look,we know the slot races you ran added significantly to your debt,so hey,we have a solution to that. Lets have HRNZ run those slot races and take the financial hit,that way the good aussie horses can come and take even more nz harness indutsry money back to australia for their billionaire owners.. again pretty consistent thinking by hrnz. then there was nz  sires bonuses. What they did there was say to people,breed to a nz sire and we will pay you  bonuses when they race and win in years to come.But ,thers a catch,we may cancel those bonuses before you ever race.For unknown reasons,many seemed silly enough to think they may be getting a bonus for their foals sired by nz sires in the future,but no they wont,as very predictably, hrnz cancelled those. But your right brodie,not much point saying the same thing repeatedly as even we get tired of reading our own posts. as to the 2 year old race programmed for southalnd this week.My guess was they would get zero nominations. I based that on it appears they have no qualified 2 year old in southland yet.  and the $12,000 stake.at addington. Points to hrnz at least showing some common sense by reducing the stake by 20% due to the small number of starters. But even a $12,000 stake seems ridiculous given it will generate no turnover whatsoever. It will be interesting to see whether the 20% is smoke and mirrors. In other words, will they be reducing the winning stakes by 20%,or is the 20% reduction just what would have come off anyway,due to not haveing any also rans to pay staring money. In other words ,unless they reduce the winning stakes,then they  really are just playing with people.

Another chapter in the career of one of Sir Brendan and Lady Jo Lindsay’s most treasured broodmares was written at Ellerslie on Saturday when Liguria won the Gr.3 Colin Jillings 2YO Classic (1200m). The Lance Noble-trained filly is a grand-daughter of Zonza, who was bred by the Lindsays nearly 20 years ago and has since established her own dynasty. In 2007 they sent their Gold Brose mare Sonet to champion Cambridge Stud stallion Zabeel, producing the filly who was to become Zonza. Trained by Roger James, she carried the Lindsay colours to five wins headed by the Gr.3 Ladies Day Vase (1600m) at the 2013 Caulfield Cup meeting. Zonza has surpassed those racetrack achievements by producing three stakes winners – Gr.1 Queensland Derby (2400m) winner Pinarello, Gr.2 Matamata Breeders’ Stakes (1200m) winner Vernazza and Listed Counties Challenge Stakes (1100m) winner Bavella. Vernazza, who followed her Matamata Breeders’ Stakes win with second place to Karaka Million winner Cool Aza Beel in the Gr.1 Sistema Stakes (1200m), is now the dam of Saturday’s Colin Jillings 2YO Classic winner Liguria, the result of her maiden mating with champion Australian sire Snitzel. After finishing fourth on debut at Ellerslie on Boxing Day, the member of Noble’s Karaka-based racing string stepped up to stakes company. That win capped a memorable week for the Lindsays after their Cambridge Stud draft had topped vendor standings at the 100th National Yearling Sale. “Zonza and J’Adane were the two standouts in Brendan and Jo’s early foray into bloodstock, so both mares will always hold a special place,” Cambridge Sud spokesman Scott Calder said. “Unfortunately we lost Vernazza after she had produced just two fillies, but the stud has retained Liguria as well as her yearling by Proisir. “Zonza is 17 and still breeding, and has a lovely Chaldean filly at foot, while we also have Bavella and Zonza’s unraced Tavistock daughter Zazon in the broodmare band.” Noble, the Lindsays’ private trainer, claimed a notable result early in his tenure when he returned to his former home track to win the 2020 Matamata Breeders’ Stakes with Vernazza and he hopes to follow the same path with Liguria on Saturday week. “It’s a credit to Lance and the whole team on the Karaka farm to win another feature race,” Calder said. “She ran well in her first start on Boxing Day and showed huge improvement the way she hit the line on Saturday. “The Matamata Breeders’ Stakes is a race that Lance has a genuine attachment to given he trained on the track and was also on the club committee. It’s great to think that he now has the chance to write another chapter in what is already a wonderful story.” View the full article

Bill Thurlow endured his share of trials and tribulations with Whangaehu before the stayer’s latest show of form at Ellerslie. The Waverley trainer, who operates in partnership with Sam O’Malley, was delighted with the son of Proisir’s effort on Saturday to finish third over 2200m. Whangaehu came from the back of the field with a stout run under 61kg, conceding seven kilos to the Stephen Marsh pair of Sinhaman and Kiwi Skyhawk. “Hopefully, we’ve got him back where he should be and it hasn’t been easy, so we were very happy with him,” Thurlow said. That performance elevated the seven-year-old to an $8 second favourite for next month’s Gr.2 Auckland Cup (3200m). “It’s working out well and we’ll be trying to get him to the Cup. He’ll go to the Avondale Cup (Gr.3, 2400m) next, so he’s going to have to go to Ellerslie three times,” Thurlow said. “It’s a lot of travelling from where we’re based, but there’s no good lead-up races down here. It’s just the way the calendar is.” It will be Whangaehu’s second crack at the Cup after he finished seventh in the 2024 edition. “He went quite a good race, but he was a bit sharper and keener then and he’s got more dour since,” Thurlow said. Whangaehu was second-up in his preparation on Saturday after two unplaced efforts during the spring. “We thought we had him not far away, but he wasn’t quite clicking and not clearing the gates very well,” Thurlow said. “When we looked back at his races, they were over a mile and he’s never been a horse that’s been able to jump and sprint away from the gates. “He needs time to get into his rhythm and when you get up in grade in those mile races on good tracks they do jump and run but then put the brakes on and a horse like him gets flat-footed and makes it quite difficult.” Whangaehu’s return to form was encouraging on a bittersweet day for the stable after Field Of Gold was pulled up in the Douro Cup (1600m) at Trentham and subsequently humanely euthanised. “It was very said, he was just an absolute gem of a horse,” Thurlow said. “He was another one we thought we had got right. He was really working so well and then that happened, it was a great shame for everyone.” Field Of Gold was successful on four occasions, including victory in the Gr.2 Waikato Guineas (2000m) and placed in the Gr.1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m), Gr.2 Auckland Guineas (1600m) and Gr.3 War Decree Stakes (1600m) when trained by Tony Pike. He subsequently joined Thurlow as an older horse to add to his winning record and more recently finished in behind the major players in the Gr.2 Manawatu Challenge Stakes (1400m) and Gr.3 Phar Lap Trophy (1600m). View the full article

Luigi Muollo has been involved with the family of his foundation mare Explosive for more than two decades, and it continues to produce for the Novara Park principal. On Saturday, Special Sakura, a fourth generation of a branch of that family, secured black-type when taking care of a handy field to win the Listed Fulton Family Stakes (1500m) at Ellerslie. Bred and raced by Muollo, Special Sakura’s victory was a great result for his Waikato farm, with the four-year-old mare becoming the third individual stakes winner for Novara Park resident stallion Staphanos, joining Group One winner Pignan and Basilinna. Entrusted to the care of New Plymouth trainer Janelle Millar, Muollo said Special Sakura has shown plenty of ability in her prior nine starts and he wasn’t surprised by her 1-3/4 length victory on the weekend. “She has always shown a huge amount of ability and has been well placed by Janelle,” Muollo said. “She finished second to Hinekaha a few starts back and look at what she has gone on to do (win the Gr.2 Cal Isuzu Stakes, 1600m, and finish runner-up in the Gr.3 Aotearoa Classic, 1600m). The form has stood up around her and we knew she had run times very fast before. “She probably could have gone for stakes races a bit earlier, but we have shown a bit of patience to get her right and now she has got it all ahead of her.” Special Sakura’s victory has not only increased her value as a broodmare prospect, but also her immediate family, with Muollo still breeding from her dam, Mia Mamma, and he owns several of her siblings. “It is valuable for me owning Special Sakura, her mum, Mia Mamma, another half-sister called Speedy Swey and another two-year-old in Janelle’s stable who I have leased to Janelle that is a full-sister to Special Sakura,” Muollo said. Special Sakura is also a half-sister to Special Swey, who went on to win the Gr.3 Rough Habit Plate (2000m) for trainer Chris Waller. “Special Swey was a very smart horse and I sold him to my brother after he won a race here by four lengths,” Muollo said. “He ended up winning the Rough Habit Plate impressively. “There are not many mares around who have had three foals to race for two black-type winners. “Mia Mamma is in-foal to Sweynesse to get a full-sibling to Special Swey.” Special Sakura’s victory comes quickly off the back of New Zealand Bloodstock’s National Yearling Sales, and while Muollo only offered a couple of yearlings himself, preferring to retain some to race, it was a pleasing one for Staphanos, with his colt out of Group One winner Quintessential selling to Australian trainer Mick Price for $140,000 in the Book 1 session. “It was a very good result,” Muollo said. “I have kept a number of fillies myself and not enter them in the sale because the fillies have got a very good strike-rate, especially on Group One winners and performers to runners. He (Staphanos) is tracking well.” View the full article

Addington Thursday and Rangiora Friday.