Bargain buy Daylight Robbery out to steal Millions

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Te Akau trainer Mark Walker believes Super Seth (Dundeel) could become a huge name in New Zealand breeding, as the young Waikato Stud sire shapes up to make his presence felt in Saturday’s Karaka Millions 2YO (RL, 1200m) at Ellerslie.

But while Walker will saddle the stallion’s $190,000 daughter La Dorada – as a likely second-favourite behind $200,000 stablemate To Bravery Born (Snitzel) – the cheapest horse in the race might yet upset them both and provide Super Seth with his most glorious day so far.

Daylight Robbery (Super Seth) cost all of $10,500 as a yearling, bought from Waikato Stud via New Zealand Bloodstock’s National Online Yearling Sale on Gavelhouse Plus last year, by small-time trainer Gavin Sharrock.

Based on the Stratford racetrack at Taranaki, Sharrock has 14 horses in work, has never won a major race, still rides fast work at 67, and was reluctant to leave home this week for the Karaka Yearling Sale inspections because – Tommy Woodcock style – he wanted to keep a close eye on the horse who could change his life.

He also still can’t believe he acquired this hulking second crop son of Super Seth for the size of a half-decent quaddie. He thinks there might have been a mistake involved, but he’s not asking questions, and he knows that – at a quote of around $23 on Friday – he has a live chance in “a million dollar lottery”.

“Have I ever had a starter in this race?” he said. “Mate, I’m the first trainer ever from Taranaki to have a starter in this race.”

Daylight Robbery debuted with a heavy track second over 1100 metres on December 5 before winning by 1.5 lengths over the same course on December 27. Both races were at New Plymouth, which isn’t far from Sharrock, which is a good thing as he had to take two horses there the second time.

“It was only a three-horse field, and that was after I had to put another one of mine in to keep the race going,” Sharrock told ANZ Bloodstock News.

Daylight Robbery then ran a 1.3 length second behind To Bravery Born over 1200 metres at Ellerslie, digging deep when he had looked like fading in the last furlong, in a run which gives Sharrock considerable hope for Saturday.

“He had a big blow afterwards, so I think we’ll see some improvement this time,” the trainer said. “I think we might see three or four lengths improvement in him, so with any luck we should be right there in the finish.”

Daylight Robbery has now earned double his yearling price, but the $NZ550,000 ($A497,000) first prize from the Karaka Millions would represent quite some ROI. While horses can often be bought surprisingly cheaply east of the Tasman, this one was surprising to the extent that a few people thought something was wrong.

The colt fifth foal out of New Zealand Group 2 winner Villifye (O’Reilly) had been entered for last year’s Karaka Yearling Sale before a mishap leading to a cut hind leg meant he was passed in short of his $70,000 reserve. He bobbed up again on Gavelhouse Plus two months later. Sharrock struck, not believing his luck.

“I liked the breeding, and I liked his video, and so I set an auto bid at $12,000,” Sharrock said.

“But then, I couldn’t believe no one else was bidding on the horse. He passed the reserve at $10,000, and at $10,500, I got him. I didn’t even have to go to $12,000.

“After the sale went through, Waikato rang me straight away trying to buy the horse back. I don’t know – they obviously saw there was a mistake in the reserve or something. Whether they left a nought off and it should’ve been a $100,000 reserve, I don’t know. But the mare’s last four yearlings sold well at Karaka [average $182,500].”

Obviously, Sharrock wasn’t for selling. He had an impeccably bred colt and – just as importantly – a good story.

“I was talking to a mate of mine, Bob Brown, about the sale and he said, ‘Jeez – that’s daylight robbery getting a horse for that money’,” Sharrock said. “I said, ‘That’ll do – sounds like a good name’.”

And then there’s the almost spooky sign that convinced Sharrock that he and the horse were meant to be together.

“I watched his Karaka yearling video a hundred times, and every time right at the end, he winks at me,” he said.

It’s not a tall story. There is indeed a flicker of the eyelid at the end of the clip (Lot 518 from last year’s Karaka, if you’re interested). Whether he turns out to be the next Winx is another matter, but Sharrock – who co-owns him with long-term associate Cliff Erb – at least feels he has an undeniable chance on Saturday.

“I’m as confident as I can be. You don’t know until you’re put under that extreme pressure, but he’s certainly going the right way,” said Sharrock, whose major successes have been Vancooga’s (Proisir) second in the 2020 New Zealand Oaks (Gr 1, 2400m) and Soldier Boy’s (Proisir) fourth in the 2022 New Zealand Derby (Gr 1, 2400m).

“He’s looking good, mate. I’ve got a live ticket in a 14-ticket lottery. He’s doing everything right, peaking at the right time, and galloped absolutely brilliantly yesterday [Thursday]. I do still ride the odd gallop, but not with this bloke – I’m a bit heavy for him. I leave that to the girls.

“I’m happy with where he is. We just need a bit of luck from gate nine, but I’ve got a bloody good jockey on in Warren Kennedy. There should be a bit of speed on, so they’ll stretch out a bit, and if we’re midfield one or two off the fence it should be OK.”

Sharrock is a fan of Super Seth’s stock.

“I like them. This fella is magnificent,” he said of Daylight Robbery, whose half-brother by Noverre (Savabeel) is offered by Waikato at the Karaka sale next week as Lot 390.

“If he wins tomorrow, he’ll go to the paddock for a couple of weeks and then I’ll have a go at the Sires’ Produce Stakes with him. He’d love the 1400 metres.”

Walker, too, is bullish about the prospects of Super Seth, New Zealand’s champion first-season sire last term. The eight-year-old’s first crop has yielded 19 winners from 51 runners and four stakes winners, while his second has two winners from four runners, in La Dorada and Daylight Robbery.

La Dorada debuted with a win against the males over 1100 metres at Waikato in November, before a first-up second in Ellerslie’s Eclipse Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m) on New Year’s Day, behind Too Sweet (Satono Aladdin), who’s also among the top three in betting for Saturday’s race.

“Super Seth as a sire is doing wonderful things, and I think he’s got a massive future for the New Zealand industry,” Walker told ANZ.

“We love them in the stable, they just eat and sleep, and I think he’s going to be big for the New Zealand industry. It was a good move getting him over from Australia. The record of Caulfield Guineas winners as stallions is pretty good isn’t it?”

Walker and Te Akau boss David Ellis were keen to buy the yearling La Dorada at Karaka last year, having had her dam in the Group 2-winning and Group 1-placed Gold Fever (Savabeel).

“She wasn’t a big filly but she was fairly athletic. We had the mum in the stable, so we knew it was a good, tough family. We knew it was not a big family, which probably put a few people off,” he said.

Walker, who co-trains with Sam Bergerson, was impressed with the first-up second of La Dorada, who’s drawn perfectly in gate five for Craig Williams on Saturday.

“It’s quite tough going 1200 metres after a break, so we were more than happy with her, and I think Craig Williams will suit her down to the ground,” Walker said.

Still, Walker was ebullient on the chances of his favourite To Bravery Born, who’ll be ridden by another Australian in Blake Shinn and has gate two.

The colt won New Zealand’s first two-year-old race of the season, over 800 metres on a heavy track at Wanganui. His Karaka Millions plans had then looked shaky when a shoulder muscle injury enforced a spell, but he resumed in fine style with that win over Daylight Robbery on January 12.

“He was a bit underdone into that run because of that pulled muscle earlier on, hence the reason he was running two weeks before this race,” Walker said, “but he’s come out of that run really well.

“He went into that first-up run without a trial or anything, and he won pretty convincingly, so that gives us confidence, plus he worked well on Wednesday.

“He’s by Snitzel – they’re generally good, sound, tough horses – and he’s got a great brain on him and he’s coped really well.”

To Bravery Born is the second foal out of Milunka (All Too Hard), a dual winner and half-sister to four stakes winners. They include Te Akau full siblings by Darci Brahma (Danehill) in New Zealand 1,000 Guineas (Gr 1, 1600m) heroine Kahma Lass and former Singapore Polytrack Horse of the Year Distinctive Darcy.

“He was a lovely, athletic yearling, probably just half a hand too small at the time, but he grew like we thought he would,” Walker said. “And he’s starting to look quite a valuable colt at the moment.”

Te Akau are looking to restore order in this edition of the Karaka Millions. They won the race seven years in a row until it was taken out last year by the Stephen Marsh-trained Velocious (Written Tycoon).

The tangerine army also has $16 chance Belle Du Monde (Zoustar), and first emergency Dare To Proisir (Proisir), but Walker is leaning towards To Bravery Born.

“I think you’d probably have to go for the colt,” he said. “Just the way he won the other day, that was pretty impressive after that break. Plus he worked really well on Wednesday.”