Weather bombs and heavy rains mean that winter is well underway and racing is suddenly presented with deep tracks that mean your horse will need to be fit and tough to slog through the bog. “When the going gets tough, the tough get going,” is the old adage and Grangewilliam Stud’s Zed (Zabeel) had a... Read More

Apart from Entriviere (Tavistock), whose spirited finish from last to be just a half length away third in the Doomben 10,000 (Gr 1, 1200m), the Kiwis and Kiwi-breds again found their niche in two of Saturday’s longer races for the three-year-olds.  Time and patience was evident in the South Australian Derby (Gr 1, 2500m) in... Read More

Disappointments are common in racing. Ask any owner. Ellerslie’s New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka Million (RL, 1200m), run in late January, is a case in point. Not the race itself, but the connections of the two runners that were last and second last across the line are unlikely to have fond memories of the day. Then... Read More

The two New Zealand stakes race winners this week are taking a time out, one permanently. The first, Two Illicit (Jimmy Choux), is heading for the breeding paddock. The second, Bonny Lass (Super Easy) is headed for a well earned rest. Both scored decisively, in Te Rapa’s Travis Stakes (Gr 2, 2000m) and Cambridge Breeders’... Read More

Queensland sunshine beckons for two of the three stakes winners from Pukekohe’s Saturday meeting, while the third made a huge impression. Although we have not seen the New Zealand Derby (Gr 1, 2400m) winner, Asterix (Tavistock), since that race on March 5, another son of the much missed stallion Tavistock (Montjeu) has all the makings... Read More