New Zealand-bred gelding With Your Blessing (NZ) (Vadamos) took his career earnings past A$500,000 with an emphatic victory in Saturday’s A$160,000 Macquarie St Social Handicap (1300m) at Randwick.
The six-year-old has now had 28 starts for six wins, nine placings and A$521,955 in stakes for his big group of owners.
Placed in only one of his seven appearances between January and August last year, With Your Blessing has returned to peak form this time in with two wins from three starts so far in his 2025 preparation. He won a Benchmark 78 handicap over 1100m at Randwick on January 4, then finished a close fourth in a Benchmark 88 over 1200m at Rosehill on February 1.
With Your Blessing had never won in three previous attempts over further than 1200m, but the step up to 1300m on Saturday held no fears. After sitting on the outside of the leader for expat New Zealand jockey Alysha Collett, With Your Blessing took command in the straight and quickly put the result beyond any doubt.
Collett began to ease him down in the final few strides and he cruised to victory by a length and three-quarters over fellow Kiwi-bred galloper Bunker Hut (NZ) (Savabeel).
Trainer John Thompson was quick to praise Collett, who has picked up two wins from three rides on With Your Blessing.
“The horse is going great, and credit to Alysha as well,” Thompson said. “She’s done a great job with this horse. Every time she’s ridden him, he’s run well.
“Back to Randwick today, he goes well here and you were confident a long way from home. The horse was travelling very well all the way and let down like a very nice horse.”
With Your Blessing completed a race-to-race double at Randwick for the Collett family. Alysha followed in the footsteps of her brother Jason, who won the Gr.2 Apollo Stakes (1400m) on Fangirl (Sebring) just 40 minutes earlier.
Alysha Collett was impressed by With Your Blessing’s performance.
“They don’t normally come that easy,” she said. “The plan wasn’t to sit outside the leader, but when we were presented with that option, it seemed to be the best one. He relaxed beautifully in that position. He can be a bit wary when he’s amongst horses, so it worked out really well for him.”
With Your Blessing was bred by the Hawkins family’s Llanhennock Trust and is by Vadamos out of the Darci Brahma mare Super Trouper (NZ). Herself a five-race winner from a 28-start career in the Llanhennock colours, Super Trouper is a half-sister to the stakes-placed Lim’s Dashing.
With Your Blessing is the best of four foals to race so far for Super Trouper, who is also the dam of the four-time Australian winner Super Alana (NZ) (Belardo). Super Trouper has an unnamed two-year-old filly by Ole Kirk.