Month: June 2021

The 2000m journey of the Listed McKell Cup will present different challenges for a pair of stablemates, but their trainer remains hopeful one of them can come away with a win.  Pre-race favourite Stockman (NZ) (Tavistock) will have to handle a significant distance drop while for stablemate Brutality (Shamus Award), it is a rise in journey that presents unchartered waters as he extends beyond a mile for the first time.  Stockman is coming off a solid third over 2400m in the Listed Winter Cup (2400m) two weeks ago and with plans to back him up in next…

A small field and the chance to land a confidence-boosting win have convinced trainers Robert and Luke Price to give Gr.1 Spring Champion Stakes (2000m) hopeful Verbek one more run before tipping him out for a winter break.  The two-year-old has finished runner-up at his past three starts, the latest when placed behind Volcanic Rock in the Listed The Phoenix (1500m) in Brisbane during a hit-and-run trip that the trainers hope can prove the making of the youngster.  “A trip away is so valuable for a horse, especially at that age,” Robert Price said.  “The thing about the trip away…

The 2020/2021 season will live long in the memory of Jamie Richards. The Matamata trainer, who heads Te Akau’s racing operation, sits atop the New Zealand Trainers’ Premiership with 157 wins and nearly $6 million to his credit this term. While dominant in New Zealand, Richards also experienced success across the Tasman, posting four wins, courtesy of Probabeel (NZ) (Savabeel) in the Gr.1 Epsom Handicap (1600m), Gr.3 Bill Ritchie Handicap (1400m), Gr.3 Geoffrey Bellmaine Stakes (1200m), and Gr.1 Futurity Stakes (1400m). While still reflecting on a phenomenal season, a number…

Sam O’Malley is pretty chuffed with how his season has gone so far. The Central Districts apprentice jockey has racked up 30 wins in the saddle so far, more than double his previous best tally, and he noted his third-placing aboard Deerfield in the Gr.1 Captain Cook Stakes (1600m) as a major highlight. He will once again partner the Chrissy Bambry-trained gelding at Awapuni on Satuday in the Winstone Wallboards 1100, and he believes he is a big chance on the Heavy11 surface. “I reckon he is going to be…

Another chapter in the incredible story of a Marlborough high country farming couple is playing out through the recent achievements of the talented young stayer Peecee Pussycat (NZ) (Pure Champion). Last Saturday at Te Rapa the leggy three-year-old provided the second leg of a bookend double for Cambridge horseman John Bell. Peecee Pussycat’s win in the final race followed stablemate Palm Springs’ success in the opening event and took Bell’s tally as a trainer to 100 wins. Peecee Pussycat, whose last four starts have produced two wins and two seconds,…