The emergence of the Victorian-based Taken (NZ) (Ardrossan) is another winning story for a New Zealand breeding and ownership group established to support the three-year-old’s young sire.
The Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr-trained son of Ardrossan made it four wins on the bounce when he carried 60kg to victory at Flemington last Saturday.
He was bred by the Dewar Partnership, established to promote the Waikato Stud stallion through the early stages of his career.
“Taken has come a long way and is out of a good staying family and has taken a while to mature,” bloodstock agent Bruce Perry said.
The Dewar Partnership included Perry and wife Anna, David and Nicki Wilson from Auckland, Max Brown of Queenstown and Mt Maunganui resident Tony Joyce.
The Perrys, Wilsons and Brown were also involved in Ardrossan during his racing days, which featured four wins including success in the Gr.3 Concorde Handicap (1200m) and a placing in the Gr.1 Waikato Sprint (1400m).
“We’ve actually wound the Partnership down now, it’s done its job,” Perry said.
“It was put together to help to get the horse up and going. We bought nine mares and bred from them and we’ve done really well, it’s been great.
“We bred Beau Dazzler, who is a three-quarter brother to Taken and so is Toretto, and Sunday’s Serenade in Hong Kong with Jamie Richards has won a couple and a few other nice horses as well.”
Beau Dazzler (NZ) (Ardrossan) has won the Gr.3 Grand Prix Stakes (1800m) and Listed Phelan Ready Stakes (1000m) for trainers Tony and Maddysen Sears while Toretto (NZ) (Ardrossan) is a two-time winner and multiple stakes placegetter for Hollie Wynyard.
They are out of the Pentire mare Pwerfect, whose half-sister Katherine Wright is the dam of Taken.
Another son of Ardrossan and Pwerfect was sold for $100,000 earlier this year at Karaka to trainer Johno Benner and has been named Butler Cabin.
“He’s very happy with the way he’s going and we’ve got a lovely Ardrossan filly that we’re going to retain and probably race as a partnership,” Perry said.
“We sold a number of the mares last year and the only one we kept was Pwerfect, who didn’t meet her reserve, and she’s in the Broodmare Sale with an early cover to Ardrossan.
Taken began his career with Cambridge trainer Sam Mynott and was sold privately to Price following a trial win at Tauranga last season.
“Hopefully, he will kick on for the stallion who had small early crops and his bigger ones will come on stream next season and the year after so we’re hoping he can go to another level,” Perry said.