Global Group Three double for Go Racing

[Wandering Eyes]

New Zealand-based syndicator Go Racing celebrated a black-type double last week, with Group Three winners in Australia and Ireland, highlighting the success of their dual hemisphere strategy.

Five-year-old gelding Etna Rosso was a brave winner of the Gr.3 Newcastle Gold Cup (2300m) in New South Wales on Friday.

“It was just a good tough staying run,” Go Racing’s Matt Allnutt said. “You could see that he got clearly headed in the straight, but he rallied, fought back and was quite comfortable on the line, so it was a good run from him.”

He is now on an Australian Group One path with Friday’s win automatically qualifying him for the A$750,000 Gr.1 The Metropolitan (2400m) on October 5, with the A$5 million Gr.1 Caulfield Cup (2400m) and the A$8.56 million Gr.1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) his longer term targets.

Etna Rosso was successful on debut in Ireland as a three-year-old, stakes placed at his second start and then finished fifth in the Gr.2 Queen’s Vase (2847m) at Royal Ascot, giving his New Zealand-based ownership group a once in a lifetime experience before heading to Australia.

He kicked off his Australian campaign in February and Friday’s win was his third down under. He broke the track record at Warwick Farm in his first preparation and shapes as an exciting stayer in Australia.

“He looks to be a really talented stayer, and he has an exciting season ahead of him,” Allnutt said. “He’s still young but he’s showing what a good horse he is already.”

Several households across New Zealand were wide awake and tuned into the racing at Gowran Park in Ireland at 3am on Sunday morning as their three-year-old filly Je Zous powered home to win the Gr.3 Denny Cordell Lavarack and Lanwades Stud Fillies Stakes (1902m).

“It was a really good victory from her and to be fair it was a thoroughly deserved win,” Allnutt said. “She’s been super consistent all the way through her career.”

A winner and stakes placed as a two-year-old, Je Zous has shown great promise this season, placing twice at Group Three level and finishing fifth in the Gr.2 Ribblesdale Stakes (2400m) at Royal Ascot and then sixth in the Gr.1 German Oaks last start. 

Go Racing Director Albert Bosma said that while official plans are yet to be confirmed, Je Zous will head to the Waller stable in search for Australian black-type at some stage before being sold as a broodmare prospect. 

Both horses were purchased from the United Kingdom in partnership with Blandford Bloodstock agent Stuart Boman, who has been instrumental in Go Racing’s recent success.

“Stuart has been a really big help to us over the last few years,” Go Racing’s Matt Allnutt said. “He’s a very good bloodstock agent and a really good guy who we’ve been lucky to partner with and our association with him has really strengthened Go Racing and added another string to our bow.”

Go Racing’s strategy is to buy young horses in Europe and race them there as two and three-year-olds, targeting black-type races, from the stable of Joseph O’Brien in Ireland. Then the horses are transferred to champion Sydney trainer Chris Waller to take advantage of the lucrative prize money on offer there.

“We’re really excited to be giving our owners the best of both worlds,” Allnutt said.

“They have the chance to race horses up in Europe where they’re aimed at the best races, they’ve been able to go to Royal Ascot and watch their horses run, and then we bring them down to Australia where they’re trained by the best in the business in Chris Waller.

“It’s a formula that’s proving very successful. Albert (Bosma, Go Racing director) has put a hell of a lot of work into it to get it off the ground and Stuart has been an instrumental part of the plan, presenting us with these horses, it’s just going from strength to strength.”

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