Author: NZRacingDesk

Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott are not short of sprinting talent in their Matamata stable, with four runners set to contest Saturday’s Listed Legacy Lodge Sprint (1200m) at Te Rapa. The Waikato racecourse has been a happy hunting ground for each of their quartet, particularly so for Little Bit Of Love(NZ) (Time Test), a winner in three of his four starts at the venue in his last campaign. “He had quite a winning sequence there over the winter months, and he’ll have to quicken on the fast ground, which we’re…

Love Poem’s progress this preparation earned the gifted filly an earlier than anticipated flight to Christchurch to bolster Stephen Marsh’s hand in the Gr.1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) at Riccarton. The daughter of Snitzel put up a compelling argument to join stablemate Kiwi Skyhawk in Saturday’s Al Basti Equiworld Dubai-sponsored Classic and their Cambridge trainer can’t split the pair. “They have both done super jobs, I think it will come down to luck in the running,” he said. “It wasn’t always the plan to run her, but we thought…

South Australian raider Fancify(NZ) (Niagara) took her career to new heights with a first black-type success in Tuesday’s A$200,000 Gr.3 Hong Kong Jockey Club Stakes (1400m) at Flemington. The daughter of Niagara became the second New Zealand-bred to win the Melbourne Cup Day feature in as many years, following in the footsteps of Waikato Stud homebred Skew Wiff 12 months ago. Fancify arrived at Flemington on Tuesday as the winner of six of her 12 career starts, including a last-start success at Murray Bridge last month in which she set…

El Vencedor(NZ) (Shocking) is making a habit of picking up major victories at Ellerslie, adding the Gr.3 Balmerino Stakes (2000m) to his burgeoning record at Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup Day meeting. El Vencedor had a breakthrough five-year-old season last term, winning the Gr.3 Eagle Technology Stakes (1600m) and denying star mare Legarto with a tearaway victory in the Gr.1 Bonecrusher New Zealand Stakes (2000m) at the venue in March. Resuming over 1400m in early September, El Vencedor showed positive signs ahead of the Gr.1 Arrowfield Stud Plate (1600m) and Gr.1 Livamol…

Talented New Zealand-bred gelding Gringotts(NZ) (Per Incanto) delivered a big payday for his connections with victory in Tuesday’s A$3 million Big Dance (1600m) at Randwick. The lucrative race was the eighth win of a 16-start career for Gringotts, who has placed on another seven occasions. He has now banked A$2.48 million for an ownership syndicate headed by Ozzie Kheir and John O’Neill. A creditable second placegetter in the Gr.3 Bill Ritchie Handicap (1400m) and the A$1.5 million Alan Brown Stakes (1400m) in his two lead-up runs, Gringotts was sent out…

New Zealand-bred gelding Cloudland(NZ) (Swiss Ace) proved a handful for James McDonald at Flemington on Tuesday, but the champion jockey was in a forgiving mood after they had claimed top honours in the Subzero Handicap. The Gerry Harvey-bred son of resident Westbury Stud stallion Swiss Ace downed his fellow greys in the 1400m event after giving McDonald a hard time before barrier rise. “He’s a quirky bugger and he was pretty hard work going down to the gates,” he said. “He tried to buck me off, which I wasn’t pleased…

Shaune Ritchie and Colm Murray had hoped to be chasing the Flemington riches on Tuesday, but after the Melbourne Cup dream was dashed, their promising filly Costae(NZ) (Ribchester) provided a nice consolation with an impressive victory in the TAB 1400 at Ellerslie. The Cambridge training partnership had a runner in the A$8 million staying showpiece until last Friday, when their Gr.3 New Zealand Cup (3200m) and Gr.2 Auckland Cup (3200m) winner Mahrajaan was vetted out of the Melbourne Cup. Turning their focus to the domestic meeting, Costae was having her…

The Listed TAB Trophy (1800m) on Melbourne Cup Day at Flemington has been a good race for emerging Kiwi-breds, and Opening Address(NZ) (So You Think) continued that trend in the A$175,000 feature on Tuesday. Last year’s edition of the three-year-old race was won by Warmonger, who was having just the third start of his career. That son of War Decree went on to win the Gr.1 Queensland Derby (2400m) by 10 lengths in June, and he was also runner-up in the Gr.1 South Australian Derby (2500m). Opening Address, meanwhile, was…

Cambridge gelding Witz End(NZ) (Savabeel) booked his plane ticket south to Christchurch later this week following victory in the Powerturf 1500 at Ellerslie on Tuesday.  The Savabeel gelding jumped well and was taken straight to the front by jockey Matt Cartwright and the pair didn’t relinquish their advantage, holding on for a half-length victory over the fast-finishing Skyman.  The four-year-old has swiftly made his way through the grades, having now won four of his eight career starts, and was runner-up in the Gr.2 Hawke’s Bay Guineas (1400m) last season, and…