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Lowland to answer stamina question

Belle du Nord’s (Reliable Man) ability to cope with a middle distance will be answered at Hawke’s Bay on Thursday. The Group One performer will run over ground for a second time in the Gr.3 Little Avondale Lowland Stakes (2100m) after her first attempt in the Gr.2 Sir Tristram Fillies’ Classic (2000m) gave little indication of her staying quality. “Johnathan (Parkes) came back and said she was travelling brilliantly on the turn, but when he let her have her head she just couldn’t cope ...

Distinctive Darci back to winning ways

Trainer Mark Walker’s decision to fit Distinctive Darci (Darci Brahma) with blinker-pacifiers proved to be spot-on after the Darci Brahma four-year-old landed the spoils in the S$125,000 Kranji Stakes A race over 1100m on Friday night. The two-time Singapore champion trainer was not too happy with the way Distinctive Darci had been dropping at the rear at his recent races, a pattern which did not help his cause, he thought. By the time he unwinds, the bird had already flown. With Walker’s ap...

Tulip blooms in Typhoon Tracy

Lindsay Park will plan Tulip’s (Pierro) feature race campaign in Sydney with confidence after the daughter of Pierro easily accounted for her rivals in Friday night’s Gr.3 Typhoon Tracy Stakes (1200m) at Moonee Valley. Under a strong ride from Kerrin McEvoy, Tulip travelled sweetly in the three-wide line with cover and quickened nicely when asked for an effort inside the final 400m, putting a length on tenacious leader and eventual runner-up True Excelsior.  Tulip is a $400,000 New Zeal...

Fork in the road for Tulip in Typhoon Tracy Stakes

David Hayes says Friday night’s Gr.3 Typhoon Tracy Stakes at Moonee Valley represents a “fork in the road” for high-class filly Tulip (Pierro). Tulip is the $3.10 favourite for the 1200m sprint and Hayes says punters will see a more relaxed filly than the one which finished fourth behind Booker when she resumed in the Gr.3 Kevin Hayes Stakes at Caulfield earlier this month. That race probably wasn’t run to suit but the jury was out on the daughter of Pierro when she got out to unleash a ...

Blinker-pacifiers to give Darci a Distinctive edge

Two-time Singapore champion trainer Mark Walker is hoping that blinker-pacifiers will do the trick on Distinctive Darci (Darci Brahma) in the Kranji Stakes A race over 1100m on Friday. The Darci Brahma four-year-old has been battling a little at his recent starts. Quite noticeably, he has been dropping back at the rear, and by the time he goes through his gears, the race was over. Walker has decided to fit the Dato Terry Lee-owned galloper with blinker-pacifiers in a bid to get him to follow clo...

Long Leaf favourite for G1 Blue Diamond

Long Leaf (Fastnet Rock) is the slight favourite in the Gr.1 Blue Diamond Stakes after the barrier draw for the A$1.5 million race for two-year-olds at Caulfield. Long Leaf is undefeated in three starts and was $7 with TAB fixed odds after coming up with barrier seven in a capacity field of 16 plus four emergencies for Saturday's 1200m-feature. Godolphin's Plague Stone has remained at $8 after drawing barrier six while Oohood was also at $8 after coming up with gate 10. Long Leaf is one of four ...

Break for Flying Feet

There is a tinge of disappointment in Joseph Waldron’s Te Awamutu stable after his Gr.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) hope Flying Feet (Ocean Park) has been forced to withdraw from the Ellerslie feature. The promising Ocean Park three-year-old is now in the spelling paddock after he was found slightly lame on Saturday morning, just before his tilt at the Gr.2 Avondale Guineas (2100m). “In a routine trot-up on race morning he wasn’t quite right,” Waldron said. “We got him checked out and t...

Tough Boss capable of Futurity win

Trainer Mick Price confirmed Mighty Boss (Not A Single Doubt) will continue on the plotted path for him - second-up into Saturday's Gr.1 Futurity Stakes (1400m) - after emerging unscathed from hisluckless Orr Stakes run. The Caulfield Guineas winner was beaten less than a length into seventh in the Orr behind Hartnell, and Price said the son of Not A Single Doubt was in good order to continue on his merry way towards peaking third-up in the Gr,1 Australian Guineas (1600m) at Flemington. "He's a ...

Almost Court shares spoils at Randwick

 Pacesetter Almost Court (Alamosa) had to settle for a dead heat with Emperor's Way at Randwick on Saturday. The duo could not be split in the Fairfax & Roberts Jewellers Handicap (2000m) after Emperor's Way, the $3.50 favourite, made a last-ditch dive at the line. Almost Court's co-trainer Paul Jones was satisfied with the outcome as the five-year-old gelding aims for the Canberra Cup.Almost Court was bred in partnership by Cambridge Hunt Ltd, B M Hancock and C McFarlane and was sold ...

Ritchie successfully executes another southern mission

Shaune Ritchie rolled back the years on Saturday when Global Thinking won the Listed ILT Ascot Park Hotel Southland Guineas (1600m). The Cambridge trainer won the event in 1995 with The Hyatt, but success this time around will have a much more lasting effect. “The Hyatt was a gelding and the key factor here was identifying a filly that is a length or two below the three-year-olds up north and turning her into a black type winner,” the Cambridge trainer said. “She’s cemented her broodmare...

Good surface overdue

The frustrated connections of Heroic Valour (Fastnet Rock) are praying for fine weather on the opening day of the next month’s Auckland Cup carnival. The four-year-old has already missed Group One opportunities this year in both the Railway (1200m) and the BCD Group Sprint (1400m), with wet tracks forcing his late scratching on both occasions. In between times, he finished strongly at Trentham to run fifth in the Gr.1 Telegraph (1200m). “He’ll trial at Taupo tomorrow and then run in the Da...

Mighty Boss ready to resume

Mick Price's Caulfield Guineas winner Mighty Boss (Not A Single Doubt) will resume in the Gr.1 C.F. Orr Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on Saturday. Taking on the older horses in the A$500,000 feature is naturally not going to suit the three-year-old, but Price is using it and the Futurity Stakes as a yardstick for his assault on the Australian Guineas. "He's had a really good prep - I can't help him too much more,” Price said. "If it was an average 1400-metre race, he'd probably go and win - but ...

AUDIO: Gordon talks about the sale of the Fastnet Rock x Diademe colt

Curraghmore's Gordon Cunningham talks to Jo McKinnon following the sale of the Fastnet Rock x Diademe colt for $1million at the NZB Book 1 auction. Click here to listen...

Tulip to run in Kevin Hayes

The Group One-placed three-year-old filly Tulip (Pierro), will make her return in the Gr.3 Kevin Hayes Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield on Saturday, with co-trainer Ben Hayes non-committal about the autumn plans for the filly. “She looks like she has come back bigger and stronger. All her work suggests she has come back as well (as previous campaigns), if not better,” Hayes said. “She trialled down the straight at Flemington last week and ran the quickest time and there was some high-class ho...

Caulfield double for Curraghmore

Curraghmore Stud graduates were in winning form at Caulfield on Saturday with both Paris Rock (Rock 'n' Pop) and Manolo Blahniq (Jimmy Choux) celebrating victories. Trainer Henry Dwyer is eyeing stakes company after Paris Rock maintained her unbeaten record with a strong win over 1400m. Graduating from victories at Geelong and Ballarat at her first two starts, Paris Rock took out the Ian Miller Handicap under a patient ride from Damien Thornton. Paris Rock scored a three-quarter-length win from ...

Charm Spirit filly heading to Perth

Perth bloodstock agent John Chalmers hopes a filly from the first crop of Windsor Park Stud shuttler Charm Spirit (Invincible Spirit) with a double cross of Sadler’s Wells (Northern Dancer) can develop into an Oaks filly. Chalmers went to $100,000 for Lot 807, a Curraghmore consigned daughter of European Group One winner Charm Spirit out of the placed mare Egeria (Daylami) who has had four foals to race for three winners including Melbourne metropolitan winner Freshwater Storm (One Cool Cat). ...

Bold showing to confirm Derby plans

A Gr.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) start is on the line for Flying Feet at Matamata on Friday. The son of Ocean Park is currently a $41 chance for the Vodafone-sponsored classic and excitement is mounting in the three-year-old’s camp. “To have a horse of his quality so early in my career is fantastic,” trainer Joe Waldron said. “As long as he runs up to expectations, he’ll be heading to the Derby and he’ll go to the Avondale Guineas first to have a look around Ellerslie.” Raised at C...

Book 1 sale a success

The new look format of New Zealand Bloodstock's yearling sales series is being hailed a success after total takings from Book 1 exceeded the entire sales week at Karaka 2017 with three days of selling to go. Curraghmore once again were rewarded for presenting a quality draft. The farm consigned the second top lot over all, the Fasnet Rock x Diademe colt that was sold to Mark Pilkington and Lindsay Park Racing for $1,000,000. Selling 20 of the 21 yearlings offered at auction Curraghmore finished ...

Aquis claim Zoustar colt

The appetite for the Widden Stud/Woodside Park-based sire Zoustar (Northern Meteor) continued on Monday at Karaka when Aquis Farm’s chief executive  Shane McGrath teamed up with Lindsay Park Racing and went to $460,000 to secure a colt by the stallion from the Curraghmore draft. The purchase follows Zoustar’s strong sale at book one of the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale earlier in the month, where 22 lots by the sire sold for an aggregate of $6,095,000 at an average of $277,045...

Cunningham not surprised by seven figure colt

Gordon Cunningham was expecting something special when Lot 156 entered the Karaka sale ring and the Curraghmore principal wasn’t disappointed. The son of Fastnet Rock was the subject of spirited bidding on Monday from all directions before he was knocked down to Mark Pilkington for $1 million. “He’s a colt with a great pedigree and the looks to match,” Cunningham said. “He’s got a great mind and attitude as well, he was always going to attract a lot of attention from the bigger playe...

Long Leaf stamps Diamond claims in Preview

Exciting colt Long Leaf (Fastnet Rock) is expected to go straight into the A$1.5 million Blue Diamond after maintaining an unbeaten start to his career in the colts and geldings Preview at Caulfield. Long Leaf won his two spring starts, including the Listed Merson Cooper Stakes (1000m) in November, and returned from a let-up with a stylish victory in Saturday's Listed 1000m race. After settling behind a line of three up front in the field of six, Long Leaf got the run through turning for home wh...

Waldron dares to dream with impressive Te Rapa winner

Fresh from saddling up his first Group race starter at Trentham yesterday, trainer Joe Waldron now has thoughts of the New Zealand Derby. Just months after taking out his permit to train licence, Waldron lined up his two-race winner Princess Dillon in the Gr. 3 Wellington Cup and took a lot of satisfaction out of the Dylan Thomas mare’s effort for sixth, less than five lengths from the winner Magic Chai. While Princess Dillon is enjoying a break, Waldron’s attention will centre over the next...

Long Leaf to begin Diamond path in Preview

Lindsay Park's assault on this year's Blue Diamond series will begin in the Previews at Caulfield. The stable had six runners in last year's Gr.1 Blue Diamond for juveniles, with five finishing in the first seven headlined by brilliant winner Catchy. Lindsay Park trainers David and Ben Hayes and Tom Dabernig also have a number of youngsters in Blue Diamond contention this year including stakes-winning colt Long Leaf who resumes in Saturday's colts and geldings Preview (1000m). Long Leaf, a $750,...

Nicks That Click – Two Champions Combine

A proven mix is represented in Curraghmore's Book 1 draft in Lot 25, the filly by Fastnet Rock out of the Group Two placed Amory Lane (Galileo).A new Group One winner last weekend has added further fuel to the fire that has ignited from this nick which might seem obvious, but has still surprised with its formidable potency. A mix of Sadler's Wells and Danehill in a pedigree has always been a recipe for success and delivered some of the world's best racehorses including Frankel and Minding so it ...

Guineas-bound Boss set WFA challenge

Caulfield Guineas winner Mighty Boss (Not A Single Doubt) will get the chance to test himself in the New Year's opening Group One weight-for-age events, before looking to do the major Guineas double. He caused an almighty boilover to win the Guineas in the spring as a 100-1 shot, but trainer Mick Price won't be stopping now with his blonde-maned colt - setting him a task against the best horses going around this autumn before a third-up tilt at the A$1million Australian Guineas at Flemington. "H...