The first Group One race of the 2020-21 Australian racing season is the immediate target for trainer John Sargent with Brandenburg (NZ) (Burgundy). The three-year-old colt continued preparations towards the Group One weight-for-age Winx Stakes with a barrier trial at Randwick on Tuesday. Brandenburg went around in a 1080m heat on the Polytrack, finishing fourth under jockey Hugh Bowman in the trial won by the Peter and Paul Snowden-trained Creator. Sargent elected to run Brandenburg on the Polytrack on Tuesday rather than wait until Friday for one of the three…
Month: July 2020
NZ Racing and Breeding News – 26 July 2020
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Promising filly headlines winning double for Ridley
Trainer Neill Ridley produced a winning double on his home patch on Saturday with promising filly Ataahua Dreamtime (NZ) (Tavistock) the headline act for the Riccarton Park local. The Tavistock three-year-old had produced an eye-catching debut effort when running on strongly for second to Walkthisswey (NZ) (Sweynesse) earlier in the month and went one better on the weekend to break her maiden status. Bred and raced by Jeanette Brown, Ataahua Dreamtime had won twice at the trials before her raceday debut with Ridley keen on the long-term prospects of his charge. “She…
Emotional victory for winning syndicate at Avondale
A relationship forged over many years in the racing game together bore further fruit on Saturday when the Stephen Marsh-trained Letz’av Bubbles (NZ) (Showcasing) broke her maiden status at just her third raceday start. Letz’av Bubbles is raced by the Shirl’s Girls syndicate, a group comprising friends and family of Shirley Vincent, who bred the Showcasing filly along with her husband Murray, son Craig and good friends Karen and Kevin Fursdon. The syndicate was put together by Shirley’s daughter Karyn, the Administration Manager at Rich Hill Stud, and is named in…
Travelling Light on target for Te Rapa feature
Outstanding three-year-old Travelling Light (NZ) (El Roca) will head to Ruakaka next week as she continues her preparation for a raceday return in early September. Trainer Ben Foote is delighted with the El Roca filly, who won five of her seven starts in her first campaign including the Gr.1 Levin Classic (1600m) and will use the trip north and a run at the trials meeting scheduled for August 4 to fit her for her spring campaign. Foote and part-owner Col MacRury have a four-race programme earmarked for Travelling Light starting with…
NZ Racing and Breeding News – 27 July 2020
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Stars set to step out at Randwick trials
New Zealand horses Probabeel and Melody Belle are some of the feature race contenders scheduled to continue preparations towards their new-season returns at a star-studded set of barrier trials at Randwick. Tuesday’s barrier trials session has attracted several Group One winners among the entries along with a number of other well-performed horses being readied for feature races in the new season which begins from the start of August. In the opening heat of the morning over 850m on the Kensington track Group One winners Con Te Partiro, Dreamforce and Kolding are…
Hannam breaks femur in trackwork accident
Popular central districts jockey Robert Hannam faces another extended stint on the sidelines following an injury in trackwork this week. Less than three years after an ankle injury that put him out of action for eight months, Hannam has again broken a bone in his leg. “I was just on my way back off the track after riding trackwork, it was quite early on Thursday morning and it was quite a windy morning,” the 54-year-old said. “The horse just got a bit of a fright and ended up kicking me…
Surprise return to Alexandra Park
By Michael Guerin It was the same season but a different world the last time Copy That and Winterfell both graced Alexandra Park. The two pin-up horses find themselves at the headquarters of Auckland harness racing tonight for the last meeting of the season in the middle of winter, something their connections couldn’t have dreamed off the last time they were both there. That was December 14, the night Winterfell became the Inter Dominion Trotting champion and Copy That suggested he was the best three-year-old pacer in the country with…
Herlihy leads northern resistance
By Joshua Smith, Harness News Desk The blue army of Mark Purdon and Natalie Rasmussen’s stable will begin its northern assault at Alexandra Park on Wednesday, but Purdon’s brother-in-law Tony Herlihy will be out to lead the northern resistance. The South Auckland horseman will line-up five runners at the Auckland track and he is hoping to finish the season in winning fashion. Inter Dominion Trotting Champion Winterfell will lead the charge for the Purdon-Rasmussen team when he contests the Lonestar Alexandra Park Now Open Handicap Trot (2700m) where he will…