Month: April 2024

Consistent three-year-old Beau Brummell (NZ) (Embellish) commenced a successful journey south for jockey Warren Kennedy, who picked up a trio of winners at Phar Lap Raceway on Wednesday. Kennedy has made regular visits to the South Island this season to partner Te Akau Racing’s Riccarton-based contingent, while also in pursuit of the jockeys’ premiership, which he currently leads by 14 wins with 104, to Michael McNab’s 91. Beau Brummell has also made his presence felt this season, with five starts for two victories and a fourth placing in the Listed…

Key strategic changes across the two equine codes headline the 2024-25 New Zealand racing calendar released today. Following on from a strategic partnership between TAB NZ and Entain Australia and New Zealand that commenced in June last year, the two organisations and three racing codes in New Zealand have taken the opportunity to revamp the calendar. Next season’s calendar features include: -An increase of 27 Sunday meetings for thoroughbred racing, including 14 double thoroughbred meetings on Sundays. -A revamped thoroughbred summer feature calendar (previously announced in January). 46 extra harness…

Ben and Ryan Foote will be represented by a pair of stakes contenders at Te Rapa and are expecting bold showings from the duo. The father and son training partnership’s feature race hopes on Saturday rest with Nancy She Wrote (NZ) (Wrote) in the Gr.2 Travis Stakes (2000m) and Rayet (NZ) (Tivaci) in the Gr.3 Inglis Sales Cambridge Breeders’ Stakes (1200m). The former has been in good recent form in the lower grades and was narrowly beaten two runs back by subsequent Gr.2 Awapuni Gold Cup (2100m) winner Nereus (NZ)…

Sam Mynott has been ticking up the air miles over the Tasman Sea this week and she is hoping it will all be worth it when she lines up her first horse in Australia on Saturday. Imwonderfultonight (I Am Invincible), who races as Wonderful Tonight in Australia, has been a stable flagbearer for Mynott, highlighted by her maiden stakes success at Otaki earlier this month when taking out the Listed City Of Napier Sprint (1200m). Mynott was rapt with the result, with Imwonderfultonight having been stakes placed on three previous…

Promising filly Bedtime Story (NZ) (Per Incanto) will be looking for a fairytale ending to her three-year-old season when she heads to Te Rapa on Saturday to contest the Gr.3 Inglis Sales Cambridge Breeders’ Stakes (1200m). The daughter of Per Incanto has been in pleasing form for trainers Guy Lowry and Leah Zydenbos, winning three and placing in two of her six starts, with her only unplaced run coming last start when fourth in the Gr.2 Wellington Guineas (1400m). She has been freshened since that run and Lowry is hopeful…

Islington Lass (NZ) will face the sternest test of her career at Otaki and Allan Sharrock is more than confident Proisir’s daughter can rise to the challenge. The five-year-old has marched through the grades in double quick time to earn a crack at black-type in Thursday’s Listed TAB ANZAC Mile (1600m) with leading rider Michael McNab to reunite with the mare. The in-form Islington Lass has an awkward barrier (15) to contend with, but Sharrock is looking skyward for help in negating that potential drawback. “She has drawn out wide,…