A short time ago, To Bravery Born (NZ) (Snitzel) was unlikely to get a shot at making the $1 million TAB Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m) field, but the colt took his opportunity at Ellerslie on Sunday with a commanding victory in the Trackside.co.nz (1200m).
To Bravery Born was a comfortable winner of the first juvenile race back in August and was later set to run in the Listed Counties Challenge Stakes (1100m) on November 23, before an injury took him out of contention.
His trainers Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson had almost come to the conclusion that the son of Snitzel wouldn’t be making the Karaka Millions this year, but a swift recovery had To Bravery Born fit and ready to add to his $14,375 haul, the intention of much of Sunday’s field.
Among the runners chasing a Millions spot was race-favourite Tale Of The Gypsy, who closed at $2.20 over the Te Akau runner ($4.80) and the big mover in the market, southern visitor Miss Ziggy ($6.50)
Jumping from the outside barrier, Tale Of The Gypsy was kept four-wide early outside of Fat Cat, before the pair pushed forward to take up the lead. Meanwhile, jockey Craig Grylls let To Bravery Born find his feet at the tail of the field, tracking Miss Ziggy into the straight before pulling out into the centre of the track.
Tale Of The Gypsy hit the front early on straightening but To Bravery Born was coming rapidly, storming over the top at the 150m and keeping his rivals at bay comfortably by 1 – ¼ lengths. The minor placings were hotly-contested, with Daylight Robbery gaining the all-important second position by a nose to the winner’s stablemate Dare To Proisir, and then just a head separated fourth and fifth placegetters Tale Of The Gypsy and Miss Ziggy.
Grylls had plenty of praise for the unbeaten colt, who now is assured of a start on January 25 with over $40,000 earned in two race-day appearances.
“It was great, from the draw we were going to go back and we ended up right back,” he said. “They went hard for the first furlong, then they steadied it up and made it a real sprint home.
“He’s angled out at the top of the straight and probably got there a bit soon if anything. He got there a lot quicker than I thought he was going too. It was a good win.
“He’s the type for it (Karaka Millions), he’s a real running two-year-old type. He won the first two-year-old race of the season, and now, he’s backed that up again with another one.”
Bergerson was ecstatic after the race, particularly when explaining the unique road back to the races for To Bravery Born.
“He had a bit of a strange prep to get to today, he was ready to go at Pukekohe but he twinged a muscle, so we thought his Karaka Million was over,” he said, “But, he bounced back remarkably well.
“Coming in without a trial, we were scratching our heads as to how he was going. Mark and I were talking this morning and we thought maybe he’s just a race-day horse as he’d been quite laidback at home.
“He relaxed lovely, it’ll be interesting to hear what Gryllsy thinks, up to 1200 as well off no trial. It was a really good effort. He’ll take a lot of improvement from that, he sprinted really well and probably came to the end of it in the last little bit.
“He’s a really nice horse going forward.”
To Bravery Born has joined Gr.2 Eclipse Stakes (1200m) winner Too Sweet atop of the TAB Futures market for the Karaka Millions 2YO at $4, with fellow Te Akau runner La Dorada ($5) back in third-favouritism.
A $200,000 purchase by David Ellis at the 2024 Karaka Yearling Sales, To Bravery Born was bred by Nearco Stud and offered through Curraghmore’s Book 1 draft.