Month: April 2024

Zougotcha claims Group 1 Queen Of The Turf

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Zougotcha holds out Atishu in the Group 1 Queen Of The Turf. Photo: RacingNSW It was a Chris Waller-trained quinella in the Group 1 Queen Of The Turf (1600m) at Randwick on Saturday afternoon, with Zougotcha (+250) narrowly getting the better of stable companion Atishu (+270) in the shadows of the post. It makes it back-to-back Group 1 successes for the daughter of Zoustar after claiming victory in the Group 1 Coolmore Classic (1500m) on March 16 at Rosehill, ticking over her undefeated run to three wins on the trot…

Pride of Jenni Blazes to Historic 2024 Queen Elizabeth Stakes Victory

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Ciaron Maher‘s mare Pride of Jenni rewrote the record books with a breath taking performance in the 2024 Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Royal Randwick. Pride Of Jenni winning the 2024 Queen Elizabeth Stakes by over six lengths on the line. Photo: Steve Hart. In a display of dominance never witnessed before in a Group 1 race, Pride of Jenni absolutely demolished her rivals, leaving them in her dust to salute in the $5 million event over 2000m on Day 2 of The Championships. The six-year-old daughter of Pride Of Dubai…

Pride Of Jenni produces historical run to claim Queen Elizabeth

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Pride Of Jenni was in splendid isolation when claiming the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes. Photo: RacingNSW Declan Bates has produced one of gutsiest rides that we have ever witnessed on a racetrack aboard Pride Of Jenni (+600) as she ran her rivals in the ground in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick, giving Ciaron Maher his first win in the $5 million race. Everyone knew that Bates would lead aboard the six-year-old mare, but no one honestly thought that he would let her roll along in front…

Circle Of Fire outstays rivals in Group 1 Sydney Cup

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Circle Of Fire skips clear with the Group 1 Sydney Cup. Photo: RacingNSW Andrea Atzeni has made the worthwhile trip to Australia to the claim the Group 1 Sydney Cup (3200m) aboard Circle Of Fire (+450) at Randwick on Saturday afternoon. It comes on the one-week backup after the Ciaron Maher-trained gelding proved too strong in the Group 2 Chairman’s Quality (2600m) last Saturday, handling the Heavy track to score by a half-length on the wire. He was even more impressive on Saturday, with the son of Almanzor being caught…

Wonderful win for Mynott at Otaki

NZRacingDesk

If ever a horse deserved a big race victory it is the consistent sprinter Imwonderfultonight, and the mare got that result at Otaki on Saturday when she took out the Listed City Of Napier Sprint (1200m). Raced by Windsor Park Stud and Ben Kwok, Imwonderfultonight has come a long way in a short time since joining trainer Sam Mynott’s Cambridge stable having gone from winning a 1200m maiden at Hasting just over a year ago to running fourth in the Gr.1 Telegraph (1200m) back in January. Imwonderfultonight had five top…

Epee Beel win marks special milestone for Pitman

NZRacingDesk

Underrated filly Epee Beel claimed her first career stakes victory in the Listed NZB Insurance Stakes (1600m) on Saturday, and in doing so brought up a special milestone for co-trainer Michael Pitman as she became winner number 2000 in New Zealand for the Riccarton maestro.  The three-year-old daughter of Epaulette had been a model of consistency of late without standing on the top step of the podium, but she delivered when it mattered for Pitman and son Matthew as she fought off the challenges of Cambridge visitor Nepheti and local…

Matscot takes out inaugural Southern Alps Challenge

NZRacingDesk

The brand-new $350,000 TAB Southern Alps Challenge (1600m) was created with the goal of giving lower-profile southern stables their moment in the sun, and the inaugural running at Riccarton on Saturday could hardly have done that better. The race was won by the underrated local Matscot, whose trainer Sharon Robertson co-bred and part-owns the six-year-old with her partner Alan Reeves and fellow owner Ross Falloon. There are currently just six horses registered to Robertson’s Riccarton stable, which has been credited with a total of 44 winners since the 1994-95 season.…

Special win for Millar in Hawke’s Bay Cup

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New Plymouth trainer Janelle Millar secured the seventh black-type win of her career in Saturday’s Listed Hawke’s Bay Cup (2200m) at Otaki, and this one meant more than most.  Millar also co-bred and part-owns the emerging stayer Testify Me, who added Saturday’s $120,000 feature to his last-start success in the New Zealand St Leger (2600m) at Trentham last month. In an even more special twist, Testify Me races in the colours of her late grandfather, the highly successful Stratford trainer Jack Taylor.  “It’s made me quite emotional, especially with those…

Panic continues Freedman’s winning roll

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The in-form stable of Michael Freedman notched another stakes success during the Championships when Panic scored a narrow victory in the Listed South Pacific Classic (1400m) at Randwick on Saturday. Freedman sent out Manaal to win the Gr.1 Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) and Ducasse to win the Gr.3 Carbine Club Stakes (1600m) on Day One of the Championships and was quick to claim further stakes glory on Day Two. A three-year-old son of Time Test, Panic was always prominent throughout under jockey Tommy Berry and dug in late to stave…

Nucleozor delivers in Welcome Stakes

NZRacingDesk

The Listed Riccarton Park Function Centre Welcome Stakes (1000m) has been moved to a new position on the South Island’s racing calendar, but its first autumn running at Riccarton on Saturday brought no change to Te Akau Racing’s dominance of the two-year-old feature.  The Welcome Stakes was previously run during the New Zealand Cup carnival in November, when Te Akau won it with Maroofity (2002), Xbert (2005), Encosta Diablo (2009), Bespoke (2010), Sassy ‘N’ Smart (2015), Al Hasa (2017), Avonallo (2020) and Sky On Fire (2022).  That trend was widely…