Month: February 2024

Expat New Zealand trainers Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young know what it takes to win a Derby in Australia, and now they are setting their sights on Sydney with the unbeaten Immediacy (NZ) (Tarzino). The Kiwi-bred son of Tarzino extended his perfect record to three-from-three with a dominant performance in Saturday’s A$300,000 Gr.2 Stow Storage Autumn Classic (1800m) at Caulfield. Immediacy’s super-impressive win prompted his trainers to look ahead to the Gr.1 Rosehill Guineas (2000m) on March 23 and Gr.1 Australian Derby (2400m) on April 6. Busuttin and Young won…

All roads now lead to the Gr.1 Sistema Stakes (1200m) for Captured By Love (Written Tycoon), after the talented juvenile maintained her unbeaten status in the Gr.2 J Swap Contractors LTD Matamata Breeders’ Stakes (1200m). Local powerhouse stable Te Akau Racing have been victorious in the last two editions of the Breeders’ with Zourion (NZ) (Zoustar) (2023) and Maven Belle (NZ) (Burgundy) (2022) and headed to Matamata on Saturday with a top chance of scoring a three-peat. A daughter of Written Tycoon, Captured By Love had formed an impeccable record…

Underrated mare Saint Alice (So You Think) added valuable winning black-type to her blossoming career record when she took out the Listed Matamata Veterinary Services Equine Kaimai Stakes (2000m) in a blanket finish. The Peter and Dawn Williams-prepared six-year-old looks to have come of age in her current campaign with a win at Tauranga over 1600m two starts back followed by a gritty run for third in the Gr.3 Taranaki Cup (1800m) earlier in the month. In an even field where betting was dominated by Awapuni visitor Manifique (NZ) (Savabeel)…

A fruitless summer saw Savaglee (NZ) (Savabeel) slip under the radar in this season’s two-year-old crop, but that all changed with a brilliant upset victory in Saturday’s Gr.3 Fairview Matamata Slipper (1200m) on his home track. The blue-blooded colt is by Savabeel out of Glee (NZ) (O’Reilly), who is a full-sister to the dam of Orchestral (NZ) (Savabeel) and a three-quarter-sister to the dam of Daffodil (NZ) (No Excuse Needed). Savaglee was bought by The Oaks Stud for $400,000 at Karaka last year, and he looked worth every cent of…

The opening race at Caulfield on Saturday was named in honour of an iconic New Zealand-bred champion, and it was fitting that Dunkel (NZ) (Dundeel) won it with some of the stamina and toughness that top-flight Kiwi stayers are renowned for. The A$150,000 Vale Verry Elleegant (2000m) was given its name after the 11-time Group One winner sadly died due to foaling complications earlier in the week. Dunkel’s one Group One victory in last year’s South Australian Derby (2500m) is no comparison with Verry Elleegant’s (NZ) (Zed) full-to-the-brim trophy cabinet,…