Favourites Draw Side by Side in TAB Karaka Millions 2YO 

Favoured fillies Velocious (Written Tycoon) and Bellatrix Star (Star Witness) have strengthened their status as headline acts for Saturday’s $1m TAB Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m) after drawing neighbouring midfield gates for the 17th running of the lucrative juvenile feature.

In a spectacular barrier draw beamed on to Auckland’s Sky Tower on Wednesday night, Velocious landed gate seven and Bellatrix Star gate six. With the emergency Damask Rose (NZ) (Savabeel) drawing the inside barrier, the favoured pair will both move in by one gate if there are no scratchings.

Velocious is trained by Stephen Marsh for syndicators Go Racing. The same combination teamed up to win this race in 2013 with Ruud Awakening (Bernardini). Go Racing paid $190,000 to buy Velocious from the draft of breeders Inglewood Stud at Karaka 2023, and she has had three starts for two stylish wins, a Group Two placing and $106,500 in stakes.

Bellatrix Star was offered by Phoenix Park at Karaka 2023, where she was bought for $80,000 by Te Akau Racing’s David Ellis in partnership with Fortuna Racing. Ellis and Fortuna joined forces to win this race with the great Melody Belle (NZ) (Commands) in 2017. That started an extraordinary streak of Karaka Millions-winning two-year-olds bought by Ellis at Karaka, which now stands at seven in succession – Melody Belle, Avantage (Fastnet Rock), Probabeel (NZ) (Savabeel), Cool Aza Beel (NZ) (Savabeel), On The Bubbles (Brazen Beau), Dynastic (NZ) (Almanzor) and Tokyo Tycoon (NZ) (Satono Aladdin).

Bellatrix Star has strong credentials to join that honour roll, recording two wins and two placings from four starts to date including an impressive last-start success in the Group Two Eclipse Stakes (1200m).

Bellatrix Star heads a five-strong team in this year’s race for Te Akau trainers Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson. They also have a potential X-factor colt in Cool ‘N’ Fast (NZ) (Savabeel), who is a full-brother to the 2020 Karaka Millions 2YO winner Cool Aza Beel and was a bold winner on Boxing Day in his only start to date. He has drawn gate four and will be ridden by five-time Karaka Millions 2YO winner Opie Bosson.

When Stars Align (NZ) (Zoustar) and Damask Rose also boast perfect one-from-one records and are drawn gates nine and one respectively. Te Akau’s other runner is Maracatu (NZ) (Ardrossan), whose three-start career has produced a win, a second and a fourth and who has drawn 11.

Beau Dazzler (NZ) (Ardrossan) was a Listed winner in Brisbane last month and will attempt to join Sister Havana (NZ) (General Nediym), Ockham’s Razor (NZ) (Any Suggestion) and Hardline (NZ) (Showcasing) as the fourth Australian-trained winner of this race. But he will need a slice of luck from gate 14.

If the emergency Damask Rose is scratched, the speedy Savaglee (NZ) (Savabeel) will start from the inside gate. Notably, gates one and 14 have produced the most winners in Karaka Millions 2YO history with three each (a success rate of 18.75%).

The TAB Karaka Millions 2YO will be run as Race 4 on the action-packed six-race programme at Ellerslie on Saturday, with a scheduled start time of 6.04pm.

2024 Final Field:
TOTAL STAKES NUMBER BARRIER DRAW NAME
BREEDING
TRAINER JOCKEY SALE
PRICE
VENDOR
PURCHASER
$147,150 1 14 Beau Dazzler
B. C Ardrossan x Pwerfect
Tony & Maddysen Sears Robbie Dolan Book 2
$85,000
Mapperley Stud Ltd
Paul Moroney B/stock / Catheryne Bruggeman / Sears Racing
$63,000 2 8 So Naive
Br. C U S Navy Flag x Altai Rose
B Wallace & G Cooksley Joe Doyle Book 2
$37,500
Kilgravin Lodge
Wallace T/breds
$56,650 3 15 Poetic Champion
Ch. G Super Seth x Regally Blonde
Tony Pike Craig Grylls Book 1
$80,000
Haunui Farm
$46,000 4 4 Cool ‘n’ Fast
Br. C Savabeel x Cool ‘n’ Sassy
Mark Walker & Sam Bergerson Opie Bosson Book 1
$340,000
Hallmark Stud
DC Ellis CNZM (BAFNZ)
$32,950 5 2 Savaglee
B. G Savabeel x Glee
M Moroney & P Gerard Mark Zahra Book 1
$400,000
Waikato Stud Ltd
The Oaks Stud
$24,700 6 11 Maracatu
B. G Ardrossan x Cortado
Mark Walker & Sam Bergerson Blake Shinn Book 1
$190,000
Mapperley Stud Ltd
DC Ellis CNZM (BAFNZ)
$23,000 7 9 When Stars Align
B. C Zoustar x Shenandoah
Mark Walker & Sam Bergerson Michael McNab Book 1
$400,000
Wentwood Grange
DC Ellis CNZM (BAFNZ)
$22,200 8 12 Full Force
B. G Cosmic Force x Jawhara
J Benner & H Wynyard Ryan Elliot Book 1
$135,000
Kilgravin Lodge
Benner Racing
$12,075 9 5 Force of Law
B. C War Decree x Back Date
M Moroney & P Gerard Matthew Cameron Book 2
$50,000
Inglewood Stud
Ballymore Stables / Paul Moroney B/stock / Catheryne Bruggeman
$167,700 10 6 Bellatrix Star
B. F Star Witness x Alana’s Party
Mark Walker & Sam Bergerson Warren Kennedy Book 1
$80,000
Phoenix Park
DC Ellis CNZM (BAFNZ) / Fortuna Racing
$106,500 11 7 Velocious
Ch. F Written Tycoon x Parmalove
Stephen Marsh James McDonald Book 1
$190,000
Inglewood Stud
Go Racing
$19,760 12 13 Sunrise
B. F Charm Spirit x Daily at Dawn
John Bary Wiremu Pinn Book 2
$30,000
Windsor Park Stud
TFI / John Bary
$17,600 13 10 Macaluso
B. F Savabeel x Chiaretta
Andrew Forsman Masa Hashizume Book 1
$600,000
Elsdon Park
Forsman Racing / Andrew Williams B/stock / Bevan Smith B/stock
$13,300 14 3 Hard Attack
Br. F All Too Hard x Vitriolic Attack
Steven Cole Sam Spratt Book 1
$100,000
Westbury Stud
Steven Cole Racing
$10,360 15 (B1) 1 Damask Rose
B. F Savabeel x Sombreuil
Mark Walker & Sam Bergerson   Book 1
$200,000
Milan Park
DC Ellis CNZM (BAFNZ)

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