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Curraghmore grads celebrate at Awapuni

Curraghmore graduates brought up a winning double at the Marton Jockey Club's Cup meeting at Awapuni on Saturday. First to enter the winner's circle was Blue on Black (Camelot x Arlington Rock) who was resuming after an eight month spell. The Anne Herbert-trained four-year-old jumped cleanly in the Southern Rangitikei Veterinary Services 1400 and travelled one off the leader under Trudy Thornton. Once on the straight he responded to Thornton's urgings and strode clear of his rivals to hold off a...

Private Thoughts picks up Randwick win

A missed opportunity for a provincial win has had a silver lining for Private Thoughts (Snitzel) who has instead racked up a metropolitan victory at Randwick. Private Thoughts was supposed to run at Gosford on Tuesday but the meeting was called off after two races because of extreme heat. Trainer John O’Shea fortuitously kept her in the Yulong Australia Handicap (1000m) at Randwick on Wednesday and the filly delivered to give the stable the middle leg of a winning treble to start the new year ...

Three-year-old to conquer Caulfield

Curraghmore graduate Conqueror (Fastnet Rock x Diademe) will be racing for a trip to New Zealand for a rich sales-restricted race when he returns from a short break at Caulfield on Saturday. The Lindsay Park Racing-trained Conqueror will run in a benchmark 78 race over 1400m on as a lead-up to the $1 million Karaka Million 3YO Classic (1600m) at Ellerslie on January 25. Former Lindsay Park stablemate and fellow Curraghmore graduate, the recently retired Long Leaf, won the Ellerslie feature race ...

Taroni tops at Ellerslie

Curraghmore graduate Taroni (Showcasing x Alagant Satin) secured her spot in next month’s Karaka Million with a win in the Stella Artois 2YO (1100m) at Ellerslie on Boxing Day. It was the second start for the daughter of Showcasing who was relegated to second on debut in November for causing interference. This time nothing was left open for dispute with the two-year-old filly racing in fourth spot before hitting the front 200 metres from home. She then let down nicely to win in effortless fash...

Weaponry wins at Tauranga

Southland Guineas winner Weaponry recorded his fourth career win for the Te Akau Weaponry Syndicate on Friday at Tauranga.Taking luck out of the equation in a small field of five, jockey Chelsea Burdan had Weaponry outside the leader and although tackled in earnest at the 200m, he lifted stylishly to justify favouritism in the Rob Pinny Realty R72 (1400m). On footing rated Dead4, he ran the 1400m in 1:23.8 and paid $2.50 & $1.30 on the NZ TAB tote. “He was very good the other day Awa...

Weekend Wrap Up- December 9 2019

It was a successful weekend at the track for Curraghmore graduates with three runners recording victories. Nerve not Verve (Shocking x Bilancia) was the first to score when successful at Moonee Valley on Friday night. The four-year-old mare was bred by Graeme Hunt, co-breeder of Efficient, and purchased by Bruce Perry out of Curraghmore’s 2017 New Zealand Bloodstock select draft for $60,000. Like Tofane, she is another Curraghmore graduate delivering for the Ballymore Stable. Nerve not Verve a...

Defeat not an option for Wakefield winner

Cambridge visitor Not An Option showed he will be a force to be reckoned with in the juvenile features this season when he produced a powerful finishing burst to take out the Gr.2 Platinum Homes Taranaki Wakefield Challenge Stakes (1100m) at Trentham. The regally bred Not A Single Doubt colt is from multiple stakes winning mare Chintz and turned plenty of heads when he made a winning debut at Pukekohe back in September when successful over 800m. Patiently handled by trainer Tony Pike, Not An Opt...

Weekend Runners- 6.12.2019

Good luck to all CM grads running this weekend:MORNINGTON FRIDAY Race 4 Ladbrokes Back Yourself Maiden P., A$23000 1200m Fezforsure (NZ) 2013 (G. by Pour Moi-Ferazzure) (trainer: D J Cave) SINGAPORE FRIDAY Race 9 Class 4 H., S$50000 1200m Beer Garden (NZ) 2016 (G. by Proisir-There's No Doubt) (trainer: Zl Mok) AUSTRALIA SATURDAY Newcastle JC- Race 4 Jarrad Mitchell Construction Maiden P., A$33300 900m Private Thoughts (AUS) 2016 (F. by Snitzel-Tip the Wink) (trainer: J A O'Shea) Pakenham RC- Rac...

Failure isn’t an option for gun Pike colt

There's no denying Cambridge trainer Tony Pike's strong personal attachment to a two-year-old he believes is his best chance of winning a Karaka Million yet. Pike will produce exciting Not A Single Doubt colt Not An Option in Saturday's Gr.2 Platinum Homes Taranaki Wakefield Challenge Stakes (1100m) at Trentham, the unbeaten two-year-old's next step towards a start in the $1 million Karaka Million (1200m) at Ellerslie on January 25. And while it's the ability that has seen Not An Option win twic...

Pike has options for Curraghmore graduate

Cambridge trainer Tony Pike has a few races in consideration for smart two-year-old Not An Option (Not A Single Doubt). The winner of his only raceday start at Counties, Not An Option won a trial at Cambridge on Tuesday over 800m and looks one of the early lamplighters amongst the juvenile division.   “I was really happy with his trial,” Pike said. “Obviously, the first time he trialled back in August he was a bit fired up on the speed but won. Then he led on the fence on race...

AUDIO: Jamie Richards

Trackside Radio’s Des Coppins speaks with trainer Jamie Richards after In A Twinkling’s win in the Gr.3 Counties Cup (2100m) on Saturday. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN...

In A Twinkling stars in Counties Cup

A brilliant front-running ride by Opie Bosson aboard In A Twinkling saw the pair combine to take out the Gr.3 Ssangyong Counties Cup (2100m) on Saturday. Sporting the tangerine and blue colours of Te Akau Racing, In A Twinkling and Bosson dictated play from the moment the field for the Group Three feature race left the starting gates. Allowed some soft sectionals throughout the middle stages, Bosson upped the tempo on the Fastnet Rock four-year-old with 600m to run and immediately had his neares...

Manolo Blahniq Railway bound

Manolo Blahniq (NZ) (Jimmy Choux) will make the trip to Perth to run in Saturday’s Gr.1 Railway Stakes, with connections confident he will gain his spot in the A$1million 1600m feature. The six year-old was scratched from Saturday’s Sandown Stakes (1500m) on the morning of the race, but trainer Tony Noonan is confident the small setback won’t impact on his Railway’ chances. “I wasn’t happy with his blood picture, I was happy with him but I wasn’t happy with what his blood work was ...

Weekend Runners- 16.11.19

Good luck to all CM runners racing this weekend:AUSTRALIA SATURDAYIllawarra TC- Race 6 Southern IML Pathology H., A$35000 1200m Power Lift (NZ) 2015 (G. by Power-Highflying) (trainer: R & L Price) Sandown- Race 4 Sandown S. Gr.3, A$160750 1500m Manolo Blahniq (NZ) 2013 (G. by Jimmy Choux-Floramour) (trainer: A W Noonan)                  Race 7 Sandown Guineas Gr.2, A$251000 1600m Conqueror (AUS) 2016 (C. by Fastnet Rock-Diademe) (trainer: D & B Hayes ...

Karaka Million option for Conqueror

Could Curraghmore produce another Karaka Million 3YO winner?Three-year-old Conqueror (Fastnet Rock) could follow in the footsteps of stablemate and fellow Curraghmore graduate Long Leaf (Fastnet Rock) and target the Karaka Million 3YO Classic (1600m) after he contests the Gr.2 Sandown Guineas (1600m) on Saturday. Long Leaf won the Ellerslie million dollar feature in January, two starts after a Sandown Guineas placing and Lindsay Park co-trainer Tom Dabernig said the rich sales-restricted race on...

Tofane strikes at Flemington

Tofane scored her second consecutive Group Three victory when successful at Flemington on Saturday. Jockey Dwayne Dunn steered the Mike Moroney-trained Tofane to a 1-1/4-length success in Saturday's Gr.3 Furphy Sprint (1100m) for mares at Flemington, bringing up a winning double on the program for the jockey. Tofane defeated Pippie with Miss Iano another three quarters of a length away third. "It's been an excellent day," Dunn said. "I thought I had some really good chances coming into today and...

Weekend Runners - 2.11.2019

AUSTRALIA SATURDAY Rosehill- Race 5 TAB H., A$125000 1200m Lisdoonvarna (NZ) 2014 (F. by Super Easy-Axislass) (trainer: Ms A Turner & M Poletti) Newcastle JC- Race 6 Roberts Legal Maiden P., A$35000 1850m Tyrrhenian (NZ) 2015 (G. by Ocean Park-Italian Princess) (trainer: J G Sargent) Flemington-  Race 1 TAB S. Gr.2, A$302000 1200m Long Leaf (AUS) 2015 (C. by Fastnet Rock-Frustrating) (trainer: D & B Hayes & T Dabernig)                   &nbs...

(LONG) Weekend Wrap Up- 29.10.19

In A Twinkling caught punters napping on Labour Day at Te Rapa winning with a defiant performance in the NZB Ready to Run Sale Nov. 21 – 22 Rating 82 (2100m). Beaten a nostril in the G.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) before finishing fifth in both the Gr.2 Tulloch Stakes (2000m) Gr.1 ATC Derby (2400m) in Sydney, In A Twinkling was only a one-win horse but lumbered with 61-kilos. “He was very well within himself and it’s always a thrill to see a slightly out of form horse come back into form wi...

I'm Incredible lands Queen Elizabeth II Cup by a nose

I’m Incredible’s unbelievable run at the highest level keeps soaring to another dimension after he held sway in an outstanding field of some of Kranji’s best stayers to land the S$800,000 SING.Gr.1 Queen Elizabeth II Cup (1800m) on Sunday in Singapore. Although the winning margin was razor-thin, the Lope De Vega five-year-old was racking up his fifth win in a row in the second Leg of the Singapore Triple Crown series, with the last two wins coming at Group Three level in the Committee’s ...

Tofane claims Group Three win at Caulfield

A week after a filly in her family raced to a Group One win at Randwick, four-year-old mare Tofane (NZ) (Ocean Park) has claimed a valuable stakes race victory of her own at Caulfield. The Mike Moroney-trained Tofane unleashed a powerful turn of foot under jockey Dwayne Dunn to sweep past her rivals at the business end of Saturday's Gr.3 Bass Strait Beef Steaks (Northwood Plume Stakes), winning the 1200m race for mares by a length. Lightly raced Tofane was runner-up at Group Two level in the Euc...

Weekend Runners- 12.10.2019

Good luck to the connections of CM grads running this weekend:AUSTRALIA SATURDAY  Emerald JC- Race 5 Bentleys Country Cup Challenge H., A$15000 1850m Calypso Bay (NZ) 2012 (G. by High Chaparral-Alagant Satin) (trainer: J H Manzelmann) Hamilton RC- Race 4 Callaghan Motors H., A$22000 2200m Entirely Perfect (NZ) 2009 (G. by Pentire-Clarissa) (trainer: B I Stanaway) Caulfield- Race 2 Weekend Hussler H. L, A$175500 1400m Manolo Blahniq (NZ) 2013 (G. by Jimmy Choux-Floramour) (trainer: A W Noona...

Same again for Age Of Chivalry in Toorak Handicap

Nothing changes for Age Of Chivalry despite Saturday’s Gr.1 Toorak Handicap (1600m) at Caulfield being his first run over 1600m. Curraghmore graduate Age Of Chivalry has relished 1400m at his three previous runs, which have produced two wins and a fighting second to Begood Toya Mother in the Gr.1 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes last time out. Sportsbet has Age Of Chivalry as an $8 chance to win the Toorak Handicap at his first go at a mile but co-trainer Simon Zahra said the gelding’s on-pace racin...

Another Oaks filly for Sargent?

Trainer John Sargent has a happy knack for producing quality three year-old fillies that invariably run well in Oaks races and we may have seen a contender for the Gr.1 VRC Oaks at Warwick Farm on Monday.By Declaration of War (USA), who sired this year's Gr.1 BRC Queensland Oaks winner Winning Ways, Aspect Ratio showed her class two starts back when second in the Gr.3 ATC Ming Dynasty Quality and broke the ice for her first win in this 1600 metre maiden. She travelled smoothly back in the f...

Cup week spoils lure He Kin Fly

Christchurch trainer Neill Ridley will get a tangible assessment of his chances with He Kin Fly in the Gr.2 Coupland's Bakeries Mile (1600m) during New Zealand Cup week after the son of Darci Brahma runs at Riccarton on Saturday. The seven-year-old gelding will tackle the Coupland's Bakeries Mile Trial (1400m) as a stepping stone towards the Group Two feature on November 13 and has pleased Ridley in his lead up. He Kin Fly was no match for Melody Belle when he finished 12th resuming in the Gr.1 ...

Weekend Runners- 27.9.19

AUSTRALIA FRIDAY Moonee Valley- Race 2 Bill Stutt S. Gr.2, A$201500 1600m Conqueror (AUS) 2016 (C. by Fastnet Rock-Diademe) (trainer: D & B Hayes & T Dabernig) SINGAPORE FRIDAY  Race 7 Class 2 H., S$85000 1200m Sacred Sham (NZ) 2013 (G. by O'Reilly-Mexican Rose) (trainer: M W Walker) AUSTRALIA SATURDAY Dawson JC- Race 4 Phipps Family Trust H., A$8550 1400m Granola State (NZ) 2013 (G. by Cape Blanco-Tip the Wink) (trainer: R T Hay) Twin Hills RC- Race 4 Twin Hills Cup, A$12050 1300m Calypso ...