A $1 million Gr.1 Al Basti Equiworld Dubai New Zealand Oaks (2400m) path is on the cards for Waverley filly Twisted Love (NZ) (Vanbrugh) following her debut win in the Agfirst (1650m) at her home track on Wednesday.
While Oaks campaigns are nothing new to Thurlow, having trained Beyond The Fort to a runner-up result in the 2019 edition of the Classic, this one will have added sentimental value for the South Taranaki horseman, with Twisted Love being owned by his daughters Emma and Jamie.
The siblings purchased the daughter of Vanbrugh out of Seaton Park’s 2023 Book 2 New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sale draft for $17,000, and Thurlow said they have been impressed with her from day one.
“My daughters bought her and they just loved the way she walked,” Thurlow said. “We went through a lot of horses at the sale, and she was just a lovely mover and she fitted their budget.
“We have always thought that she was a good horse, but it has just taken a while for her to mature enough, and she is still probably not quite there. She is a big horse, so we have had to be very careful with how we have handled her.
“She is the one filly we nominated for the Oaks. We always thought she was an Oaks type of filly so that’s what we will be aiming for.”
Twisted Love went into her debut off the back of a runner-up effort in a 1000m trial at Foxton a fortnight ago and Thurlow was confident of a bold showing on Wednesday, and she duly delivered, running home late from the back of the pack to score a half length victory over Girl Talk (NZ) (Zed).
“It actually went almost to script because we knew that from gate one at the mile start at Waverley can be very difficult if you are not a really fast beginner, so we knew she would probably get back,” Thurlow said. “Craig (Grylls, jockey) did a really good job, he planned it out pretty well and once she got to the outside, she has got a lovely, big stride and got there pretty easily in the end.”
Thurlow said Twisted Love is a very similar filly to Beyond The Fort (NZ) (Niagara), and he will likely follow her blueprint into the Oaks and look for one final mile lead in to the rich Trentham feature.
“We will probably just give her another mile somewhere, but we haven’t worked it out yet,” he said. “We won’t be rushing, we have got time, she is a filly that won’t need a lot of racing.
“She went into yesterday off a jump out and a trial and was very impressive. We know that we can take our time with her and find a nice race with her.”
Thurlow is excited his daughters have a quality filly on their hands, with the sisters enjoying the sport outside of their busy farming schedules.
“They enjoy it (racing) and they like dabbling in it,” he said.
“They have got their own business where they rear a lot of calves and have got their own farms they run. They are doing well in life.”
It was a pleasing day of results for Thurlow, who scored a treble on the eight-race card, with stablemates Rebel Agent (NZ) (Complacent) and Steal My Thunder (NZ) (Derryn) winning the Wanganui Well Drillers (1650m) and Lowe Environmental Impact (1400m) respectively.
Meanwhile, he was active at New Zealand Bloodstock’s National Yearling Sale earlier this week, purchasing two fillies, both by freshman sire Wild Ruler.
Thurlow went to $60,000 to secure lot 624, the filly out of a half-sister to stakes winner Bello Beau, from Mapperley Stud’s draft, and went to the same figure to secure lot 644, the filly out of a half-sister to Group One winner MacO’Reilly, from Ardsley Stud’s draft.
“I bought a couple of fillies by Wild Ruler and we are happy with them. We will get them home, break them in and see where we end up,” he said.
“He (Wild Ruler) is a Snitzel horse and he is a very good horse. They (progeny) are only yearlings and he has had a good start at Newgate, so he is a real chance.”
