Year: 2025

Kevin Myers should never be underestimated when he takes a team of horses to the West Coast, and neither should his apprentice Lily Sutherland, who included the Recreation Hotel Greymouth Cup (2000m) in her five-win haul on Sunday with Kick On (NZ) (Per Incanto). The 20-year-old hoop rode out her claim at Otaki on Boxing Day, but that hasn’t slowed her progress in the slightest, riding winners at New Plymouth and Tauherenikau in the subsequent days. Prior to the Omoto meeting, Sutherland was the favourite for the jockey’s challenge and…

Dual Group One winner Ceolwulf (NZ) (Tavistock) is scheduled to kick off his campaign in next month’s Apollo Stakes. It is just under six weeks until Ceolwulf is scheduled to make his return to the races and trainer Joe Pride says the dual Group One winner is shaping up as a “bigger, stronger horse” heading into the autumn. Ceolwulf announced himself as one of the rising stars of the Australian turf last spring when he claimed back-to-back Group One wins in breathtaking fashion over the Randwick mile in the Epsom…

Riccarton trainer Mike McCann kicked off his week on the West Coast in emphatic style at Omoto on Sunday, taking out the Westland Racing Club Miss Scenicland Stakes (1500m) with progressive mare Sprocket Rocket (NZ) (What’s The Story). The daughter of What’s The Story had found the winner’s enclosure over 2000m back in September, and since, had produced consistent performances in strong Rating 75 fields. Dropping back to the 1500m, Sprocket Rocket had opened at $14 with TAB bookmakers, but the added benefit of apprentice jockey Ruvanesh Muniandy’s three-kilogram claim…

Ciaron Maher is likely to resist testing Mrs Chrissie (NZ) (Per Incanto) at the Flemington 1200 metres for the first time in next Saturday’s Gr.3 Standish Handicap (1200m), instead setting his sights on a Listed race over a shorter trip on the Australia Day weekend. The speedster will most likely next run on January 25, in either the A$175,000 Adams Stakes (1000m) at Caulfield or the A$120,000 Durbridge Stakes (1100m) at Morphettville, which gives her a touch over four weeks between runs after her Christmas Stakes second placing on Boxing…

Guy Heveldt, Jayne Ivil and Bruce Sherwin review a super day of racing from Trentham, highlighted by the Group 1 TAB Telegraph and New Year’s Day racing at Ellerslie. Reflect on the career of retired jockey Opie Bosson and Noel Harris’ New Year’s Day honours. Weigh In, January 5

Roger James and Robert Wellwood have spent plenty of time in the three-year-old spotlight in the last couple of seasons, and the Cambridge trainers unveiled another bright prospect in Saturday’s Thames Valley Insurance 3YO (1150m) at Te Aroha. James and Wellwood’s star performers Prowess (NZ) (Proisir) and Orchestral (NZ) (SavabeeL) have combined to win the last two editions of the Karaka Millions 3YO (1600m) and Gr.1 Vinery Stud Stakes (2000m), along with a Gr.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) and a Gr.1 Bonecrusher New Zealand Stakes (2050m). Those are enormous shoes…

Star filly Captured By Love (Written Tycoon) continued her preparation towards another Group One goal with an impressive exhibition gallop at Te Aroha on Saturday. Captured By Love capped off a successful spring campaign when taking out the Gr.1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) in November, a contest that was tipped to be a match-race between the daughter of Written Tycoon and Alabama Lass (Alabama Express), the latter finishing second. Alabama Lass joined Captured By Love in the 1000m gallop between races, where by instruction, jockey Matt Cartwright guided the…