By Michael Guerin
Winning any races with your mates is one of horse racing’s great joys.
Winning a Group 1 is even more special.
Two long-time friends combined both into the same first when We Walk By Faith stormed to victory in the Taylor Mile at Alexandra Park on Friday night.
The NZ Derby winner is trained by Hayden Cullen and wife Amanda and was driven by Matthew White, with Hayden and Matty having known each other since they were 16-year-old lads growing up in Cambridge.
But remarkably this was definitely their biggest win together because it is their only win together. Of any sort.
“I don’t think Matty has driven a winner for me before,” says Cullen.
“In fact, I don’t think he has even driven a horse for me in a race.
“I don’t really know why. We have been great mates since we were 16 and he is a very good driver.
“So to share this tonight is very cool.”
For the second year running after the Mach Shard’s stunner last season a horse has come from near last to win the Taylor Mile and paid huge money, We Walk By Faith getting out to $35 with the bookies.
He was good in his last two starts, the City of Auckland Free-For-All and off a handicap in a Country Cups race he couldn’t win at Cambridge last week.
“Missing the big race last week when so many other horses had a hard run probably did us no harm,” says Cullen.
“But it was still a big win and a great drive by Matty.”
Cullen is now also a believer in the “Menangle Boost” the lift in performance many horses get after racing at Menangle, something he has seen twice in the last month with feature race wins like last night and Don’t Stop Dreaming in the City of Auckland.
“Luke McCarthy told me in Sydney it would happen, this horse would be better when he went home,” said Cullen.
“I think he is going to get better yet and maybe reach his peak in six months as he love it when the speed is on in races.”
Like most Derby winners We Walk By Faith should end up a Cups horse but before then he will join stablemate Don’t Stop Dreaming in the Messenger on April 25 while longer term he is eligible for the A$2.1million Eureka in Sydney being Australian-bred.
The win continued a great autumn for the Cullens who have now become one of the leading strike rate stables in the country albeit without wanting to get too big.
Republican Party was a huge second after appearing to strike the winner’s sulky wheel at the 400m while Rakero Rocket was strong in third and Merlin luckless in fourth after finding a mid-pack gap in the home straight about 5cm too narrow to sneak through.
His trainers Barry Purdon and Scott Phelan and driver Zachary Butcher needed no such luck in the $75,000 NZBS Harness Million Trot as Meant To Be started this season where he left off in 2024.
The big fella worked straight around the field to lead after 600m and easily held stablemate Higher Power in a performance that makes it hard to see him beaten in the Northern Trotting Derby in two weeks.
The night’s other trotting feature saw a cunning Ben Hope drive give him the biggest win of his training career when Muscle Mountain won the Lyell Creek Trot.
Hope only started training with father Greg last week so last night’s Group 2 was their most important win together and the young man earned it by being brave enough to hand the lead away on the hot favourite with a lap to go.
Muscle Mountain had led and had Queen Elida on his back so Hope opted to let Not As Promised stroll past him at the bell, putting Queen Elida three back but giving himself the passing lane.
It was a gutsy move but one that paid off and will leave Muscle Mountain with juice in the tank and feeling good for the two big races ahead so Hope’s daring may yet pay more dividends.
