Category: Gallops

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD NEWSLETTER

Expat Kiwi jockey Logan Bates returned home to record his biggest moment in racing when scoring his first elite-level success aboard Jigsaw in the Gr.1 Sistema Railway (1200m) at Ellerslie on Saturday. The 24-year-old hoop has been making a name for himself in Victoria under the tutelage of his employer Cindy Alderson, who trains Jigsaw, and he was rapt to bring up the milestone in her silks. “It means everything,” Bates said. “I remember before I even started riding, Cindy and I had a conversation and she said one of…

For those looking for a succinct summary of the result in the $1.5 million TAB Karaka Millions 3YO (1600m) at Ellerslie, the answer was very simple – Well Written first, daylight second. The unbeaten daughter of Written Tycoon was not just a red-hot favourite for the event, she was the horse that so many of the massive on-course crowd had specifically come to see, and she didn’t disappoint as she let rip with 200m to run and simply powered away from a quality field to win by an ever increasing…

Letham Stud stallion Unusual Suspect was credited with his second stakes winner when Anemacore lived up to his long-held potential and pre-race favouritism with victory in Saturday’s A$160,000 Listed Coastline BMW Sunshine Coast Cup (1400m). Ridden by Michael Rodd for trainer Shaun Dwyer, Anemacore had only three horses behind him with 300m to run but produced a powerful finishing burst to get up and win by a length and a quarter. Anemacore has now had 20 starts for six wins, nine placings and A$364,760 in stakes. But a series of…

NZB Kiwi slot holder The King’s Men had massive grins on their faces following Belle Cheval’s victory in the Gr.3 Cambridge Stud Almanzor Trophy (1200m) at Ellerslie on Saturday. A day prior they made the announcement that they had secured the Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson-trained filly as their representative for the $4 million Champions Day feature in March, and their choice was quickly vindicated. The daughter of Savabeel jumped away well from her inside barrier and settled three back on the fence for jockey Craig Williams. The leading Australian…

Queensland trainer Liam Birchley continued his great association with the TAB Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m) when recording his third win in the juvenile feature at Ellerslie on Saturday. He had previously won the $1 million race in 2010 with Sister Havana before doubling his tally in 2015 with Hardline, while he also finished runner-up in the race in 2009 with Sarge In Charge. He returned to New Zealand with two contenders for his year’s running, including Dream Roca and Vanzadee, and it was the former who gave Birchley his third…

The addition of blinkers and a super ride by Opie Bosson resulted in Tuxedo taking out the first $1 million race on Karaka Millions night at Ellerslie, the Gr.3 Elsdon Park Aotearoa Classic (1600m). The Shaune Ritchie and Colm Murray-prepared four-year-old has always shown massive promise and was a dual stakes winner during his three-year-old campaign before resuming with two meritorious performances in Group One company in the spring. Given a break after finishing sixth in the Gr.1 Howden Insurance Mile (1600m) at Te Rapa in September, the son of…

Byerley Park conditioner Barbara Kennedy made her first foray to the South Island on Saturday a successful one as her handy mare Pour The Wine dominated her rivals in the closing stages of the Listed Speight’s Timaru Stakes (1200m) at Riccarton. The Daniel Nakhle-bred and part-owned daughter of Telperion had been struggling to recapture her form of old that had seen her finish in the top three in 13 of her 31 starts, and it had been nearly two years since she had featured in the winners’ enclosure. A last…

A clever ride and some good old-fashioned kiwi grit resulted in Savabeel filly Acer (NZ) (Savabeel) collecting her maiden victory in some style as she took out the Listed Grangewilliam Stud Oaks Prelude (1800m) at New Plymouth. Consistent rain during the week and some heavy showers earlier in the day presented a very testing Heavy10 track surface, which had many struggling to cope with conditions a long way from the winning post. Wexford Stables pair Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott prepare Acer, who appealed as one who would get through…

Up-and-comer Taken (NZ) (Ardrossan) recorded his sixth win from only 12 career starts with another impressive performance in the A$150,000 A Caulfield Kind Of Summer Handicap (1700m) at Caulfield on Saturday. The New Zealand-bred gelding made a big impression with his progress through the grades last year, stringing together five consecutive victories at Pakenham on April 24, Sandown on May 24, Flemington on June 7, Flemington on June 21 and Caulfield on November 15. That winning sequence came to an end when he was unplaced in the A$1 million Supernova…