Author: NZRacingDesk

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…

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD NEWSLETTER

Fresh off a pleasing Melbourne campaign, the Peter and Shaun McKay-trained Wolfgang (NZ) (Puccini) will head to Ellerslie on Tuesday where he will contest the Gr.3 Balmerino Stakes (2000m). The six-year-old son of Puccini finished sixth in the Gr.2 Herber Power Stakes (2400m) before running fourth in the Gr.3 Geelong Cup (2400m), and has thrived since returning to New Zealand. “I was intending to put him out for three or four days, but first day out he started bucking and kicking and carrying on, so he came straight back in…

The well-renowned colours of The Oaks Stud will feature across two feature Trans-Tasman meetings this week, kicking off with Antrim Coast (NZ) (Roc De Cambes) lining up in the Listed Furphy Plate (1800m) on Melbourne Cup Day at Flemington. A homebred son of resident sire Roc De Cambes, Antrim Coast flourished in the latter stages of his three-year-old term, finishing second to Orchestral in the Gr.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) before winning the Gr.2 Alistair Clark Stakes (2040m) and finishing fourth in the Gr.1 South Australian Derby (2500m). Antrim Coast…

Last year’s Melbourne Cup Day concluded in success for Mark Walker in the Gr.3 Hong Kong Jockey Club Stakes (1400m), a race he will chase back-to-back crowns in on Tuesday with Kiwi mare Quintessa (NZ) (Shamus Award). Walker won the mare’s feature with Group One winner Skew Wiff, a memory he looks back on fondly. “It’s massive to win any race on Melbourne Cup Day, the atmosphere is electric with 100,000 people there, so it would be nice to get a winner this year if we can,” he said. Walker…