1. Curlin (Smart Strike-Sheriff’s Deputy)

2. Street Sense (Street Cry-Bedazzle)

3. Hard Spun (Danzig-Turkish Tryst)

  Keeneland Sale Graduate Curlin Wins Preakness Stakes

Curlin became the 16^th Keeneland yearling sales graduate to win the Preakness Stakes (G1) when he rallied to catch Street Sense in the 132^nd running of the classic on 19 May 2007. By Smart Strike out of the Deputy Minister mare Sherriff's Deputy, Curlin was purchased for $57,000 by Ken McPeek, agent, at the 2005 September Yearling Sale. The colt was consigned by Eaton Sales, agent. Curlin is the sixth Preakness winner sold at a September Sale, joining War Emblem (2002), Real Quiet (1998), Hansel (1991), Spectacular Bid (1979) and Canonero II (1971). Curlin races for the partnership of Stonestreet Stables, Padua Stables, George Bolton & Midnight Cry Stables, and is trained by Steve Asmussen.

(Keeneland Sales News)

  Major Race Results – Singapore

a winner for TBNSW members

1. Why Be (AUS) (Success Express(USA)-Charybdis) bred by TBNSW members Mr L Tall & Mrs S Tall

2. Capablanca (AUS) (Scenic(IRE)-Ahava) bred in WA

3. Zinly (NZ) (Danasinga-La Cent)

The Group 1 Singapore Airlines International Cup 2000 metres

1. Shadow Gate (JPN) (White Muzzle-Fabulous Turn)

2. Cosmo Bulk (JPN) (Zagreb-Iseno Tosho)

3. Doctor Dino (FR) (Muhtathir-Logica)

1. Coquerelle (Zamindar-Cracovie)

2. Believe Me (In The Wings-Golden Wings)

3. Anabaa’s Creation (Anabaa-Premiere Creation)

The Group 1 Prix D’Ispahan 1850 metres

1. Manduro (Monsun-Mandellicht)

2. Turtle Bowl (Dyhim Diamond-Clara Bow)

3. Stormy River (Verglas-Miss Bio)

Caspar Fownes maintains his lead in the Trainer’s rankings having recorded 53 wins, 50 second placings, 45 third placings, 44 fourth placings and 46 fifth placings from 500 starters. David Hall is in 6^th position with 33 winners, 27 second placings, 19 third placings, 25 fourth placings and 19 fifth placings from his 298 starters. John Moore is in 8^th position with 28 winners, 30 second placings, 35 third placings, 36 fourth placings and 47 fifth placings from 448 starters. John Size is in 10^th position with 26 winners, 27 second placings, 23 third placings, 32 fourth placings and 28 fifth placings from his 327 starters.

Douglas Whyte continues to lead in the Jockey’s rankings and now holds a 3 win advantage having recorded 71 wins, 76 second placings, 52 third placings, 63 fourth placings and 45 fifth placings from 533 rides. Brett Prebble is in 2^nd position with 68 winners, 51 second placings, 28 third placings, 34 fourth placings and 37 fifth placings from his 412 rides. Danny Nikolic is in 11^th position with 24 winners, 20 second placings, 28 third placings, 25 fourth placings and 35 fifth placings from his 361 rides. Shane Dye is in 13^th position with 20 winners, 14 second placings, 18 third placings, 18 fourth placings and 24 fifth placings from his 282 rides.

Current to 20 May 2007.

  Buoyant Results at the 2007 New Zealand Bloodstock National Weanling Sale

A busy day of selling at Karaka on 6 May 2007 saw 188 of the 252 lots on offer sell for $2,335,150 with an average of $12,421 and a pleasing 85% clearance rate. The results reflected improvements on last year's Sale right across the board, with the average up 9% from $11,406, the median up 17% from $6,000, the clearance rate up from 84%, and turnover up from $2,304,000 with 14 fewer horses sold this year. Marketing Manager Petrea Vela confirmed it was buoyant trade throughout the day. "We are very pleased with the solid day of selling we've had at Karaka today. Good quality horses were consistently commanding good money and combined with the increased median and healthy clearance rate has meant a very successful result for the industry." The Sale got off to a flying start with three of the top lots of the day coming in the first half hour. Topping the sale at $115,000 was the Elusive City filly out of Zabelette at Lot 11, a half-sister to last season's Group 1 Brisbane Cup winner Art Success (Pentire). Offered by Curraghmore Stud, the filly was purchased by New Zealand Bloodstock as agent. Just a few lots later was the second highest price of the day, with Lot 17 fetching $75,000. The colt, also from the Curraghmore Stud draft, is by Danehill's dual Group 1 winning son in Spartacus whose oldest New Zealand-bred crop are just yearlings. Out of Zabeel mare Alpine, the colt is a half-brother to stakeswinner Vercors (Catbird) and current performer Huluava (Pins). A large crowd of predominantly domestic buyers competed hotly for the wide selection on offer with Joe Barnes's J & I Bloodstock Ltd the leading individual buyer of the day with five weanlings bought for $147,000. He paid a top price of $60,000 for Lot 46, a Pins colt out of unraced Centaine mare, Centaine Gu Li. The leading vendor for the second year in a row was Gordon Cunningham's Curraghmore Stud which sold 17 weanlings for an aggregate of $495,900 and an average of $29,171, in addition to laying claim to the top two lots of the Sale. This is just the second year that the weanlings have been offered at a dedicated Sale with New Zealand Bloodstock's National Broodmare & Mixed Bloodstock Sale now conducted in July. The statistics for the New Zealand Bloodstock National Weanling Sale are as follows:

  

Year	2007	2006
Catalogued	252	271
Sold	188	202
Clearance	85%	84%
Average	NZ$12,421	NZ$11,406
Median	NZ$7,000	NZ$6,000
Aggregate	NZ$2,335,150	NZ$2,304,000

The top ten Lots for the sale were:

(New Zealand Thoroughbred Marketing Ltd)

1. Astronomer Royal (USA) (Danzig-Sheepscot)

2. Creachadoir (IRE) (King’s Best-Sadima)

3. Honoured Guest (IRE) (Danehill-Wind Silence)

The Group 1 Poule d’Essai des Poullches (French 1000 Guineas) 1600 metres

1. Darjina (FR) (Zamindar-Darinska)

2. Finsceal Beo (IRE) (Mr Greeley-Musical Treat)

3. Rahiyah (USA) (Rahy-Meiosis)

  Major Race Result – Japan

The Group 1 Victoria Mile 1600 metres

1. Koiuta (Fuji Kiseki-Violet Love)

2. Asahi Rising (Royal Touch-Asahi Mercury)

3. Daring Heart (Sunday Silence-Daring Danzig)

   Hong Kong Update

Caspar Fownes maintains his lead in the Trainer’s rankings having recorded 53 wins, 49 second placings, 44 third placings, 43 fourth placings and 46 fifth placings from 486 starters. David Hall is in 6^th position with 33 winners, 25 second placings, 19 third placings, 24 fourth placings and 17 fifth placings from his 289 starters. John Moore is in 8^th position with 28 winners, 28 second placings, 34 third placings, 36 fourth placings and 47 fifth placings from 438 starters. John Size is in 10^th position with 25 winners, 27 second placings, 23 third placings, 31 fourth placings and 28 fifth placings from his 319 starters.

Douglas Whyte has extended his lead in the Jockey’s rankings and now holds a 4 win advantage having recorded 69 wins, 74 second placings, 51 third placings, 59 fourth placings and 42 fifth placings from 516 rides. Brett Prebble is in 2^nd position with 65 winners, 46 second placings, 28 third placings, 32 fourth placings and 34 fifth placings from his 396 rides. Danny Nikolic is in 11^th position with 24 winners, 20 second placings, 25 third placings, 25 fourth placings and 34 fifth placings from his 346 rides. Shane Dye is in 13^th position with 19 winners, 14 second placings, 18 third placings, 17 fourth placings and 24 fifth placings from his 274 rides.

Current to 12 May 2007.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club’s (HKJC) format of attending the world’s best yearling sales to source yearlings to resell as Griffins at the Hong Kong International Sale held in December is a concept that is paying dividends as seen by recent results. Last week three individuals purchased by the HKJC from the William Inglis & Son Easter Yearling Sales saluted, beginning Wednesday with GREAT ACHIEVEMENT (2003 Easter, $200,000) winning the main event of the night at Happy Valley which was followed by a double at Sha Tin on Saturday in the shape of 3YO gelding NORTHERN HERO (2005 Easter, $150,000) and DEMINER (2004 Easter, $450,000). It was a big week for Inglis graduates overall in Hong Kong, notching seven winners including half the card at Happy Valley. The HKJC added the Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale to their shopping list last sales season, signing for four colts before returning to Sydney for a spree at Easter that accounted for eight colts at a tick over $3million. Not only did the HKJC play a large part in the success of the 2007 William Inglis & Son Australian Easter Yearling Sale, but also the likes of John Moore, Willie Leung of Magus Equine, Apollo Ng, George Moore Bloodstock, Asian Bloodstock Services, K H Mak, G Sanders Bloodstock, L Lok and agents acting for leading trainers Casper Fownes, John Size and David Hall were among the many purchasers for Hong Kong interests. After noting those leading buyers, it comes as no surprise to see that just under ten percent of the colts sold through the auction ring were purchased to do their future racing in Hong Kong.

(Inglis Updates)

  Joint Future for the TBS and NZISS Incentive Schemes

The NZ Thoroughbred Bonus Scheme (TBS) and the NZ Incentive Scheme Series (NZISS) are to be brought under the same umbrella to strengthen both incentive schemes for the benefit of owners and breeders in New Zealand. Both schemes work independently on the basis of pooling nomination fees and in the case of the TBS, receive seeding funds from the industry to support bonuses, which are added to stakes and targeted at certain categories of races. Only nominated horses to these incentive schemes can win these bonuses. The NZ Racing Industry Board originally supported the introduction of the TBS, which was continued by the NZ Racing Board, by providing seed funding of $480,000 for each of three years from the start of the 2003/04 season through to the close of the 2005/06 season. On conclusion of this support, NZTR, in its capacity as owner of the TBS, agreed to continue to fund it through the 2006/07 enrolments with further funding of $480,000 on condition that the long-term future of the scheme would be determined before the close of this season. The NZISS was launched in 1997 by Cambridge Thoroughbred Lodge and is operated by NZ Livestock Ltd (NZLL). Discussions between the owners of the two schemes, NZTR and NZLL, were initiated last year to see if a joint approach could be explored. Agreement has now been reached, which will guarantee the schemes not only continue for the benefit of breeders, owners and the thoroughbred code generally but also are strengthened. The first step in this new arrangement is the bringing together of a committee to oversee an agreement which will see NZTR fulfil it‘s obligations to the TBS. The committee will comprise three members - the Chairman of NZTR, Guy Sargent (or NZTR's nominee), the owner of the NZISS, Ada Parnwell (or NZLL's nominee) and a third independent member, to be agreed and appointed by them. The committee's overriding role will be to ensure that the schemes are run for the maximum benefit of the NZ thoroughbred racing industry. Entries to the schemes prior to 1 September 2006 will operate in the same way. However, the committee may direct any surplus from TBS entries to fund two special bonus races of $50,000-00 in the 2006/07 season and up to five special bonus races in each of the next two seasons, subject to funds being available. Entries accepted after 1 September 2006 and before 1 September 2007 will be held by NZTR and come under the direction of the TBS Board of Management. The NZ Thoroughbred Breeders Association will continue to operate the TBS with respect to all TBS entrants accepted prior to 1 September 2007, until the TBS's obligations under NZTR and the TBS committee are met i.e. 31 July 2010. NZLL will continue to operate the NZISS, and from 1 September 2007 NZLL will operate all future TBS crops with the support of NZTR.

(New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing)

  Sprinters to attone for the loss of Australian bred contender in 1890 English Derby

Possibly the only Australian bred horse to contest the world's most famous race, the English Derby, has been Kirkham, a colt who was prominent in the early stages of the1890 running of the event but was unplaced. He was one of three horses bred by one biggest breeders and owners of the time, James White, and all were got at his Kirkham Stud near Camden, NSW by Victorian Derby and Melbourne Cup winner Chester. Like many of the landed gentry of the time, keen to demonstrate to the Poms that the lowly colonials could show them a thing or two on their own turf, White bred the three horses to northern hemisphere time and boated them to England for a tilt at the Derby. Kirkham was the only one that made the field. Also one of Australia's biggest property owners, including a number holdings in the Hunter Valley, among them Edinglassie, Belltrees, Segenhoe and Timor Station, White may have been the only Australian breeder to get as far as the Derby with an Aussie in the quest fame. Although a small number of other Australian bred horses in the first 200 years of settlement contested races in England, classics were outside their ambit because they were produced to southern hemisphere time. Also the trip to England was a long one by boat. The appearance of Australian bred horses in European classics, including the English Derby, could become more common in the future as some top sires are given books of mares here to northern hemisphere time after completing their southern hemisphere duties. For instance Arrowfield Stud's wonder Danehill sire Redoute's Choice should have more than 20 foals here in the 2008 summer who could be eligible for the 211 English Derby. There is likely to be a strong representation by progeny of Australian used sires in the 2007 English Derby to be run in early June, but their sires are among the dual hemisphere used brigade and their contestants produced in Europe or America. One Australian bred current three-year-old (southern hemisphere season time) who could run in big races in England this year is the October 28, 2003 foaled Secret Savings colt Mutawaajid, but like Choisir was in 2003, he will be treated as a four-year-old. Now a leading first season sire from use at the Coolmore studs in Ireland and the Hunter Valley, the Newcastle owned and trained Danehill Dancer colt Choisir was the pioneer of an new era for Australian breeding and racing, one which sees horses from here contesting major European races. They can get there in 24 hours by plane as against the month or more it took by boat up until the 1970s. The big sprints at the glamour Royal Ascot carnival in late June could see a history making contingent of Australians come up against each up in one or both of the two big sprints at the five day carnival, the Golden Jubilee Stakes-Gr.1 and King's Stand Stakes-Gr.2. Both races were won in 2003 by Choisir and last year a six-year-old - a seven-year-old in England - Australian gelding who cost his owner and trainer Joe Janiak $1,250 as an untried two-year-old, won the King's Stand and, sent out favourite, was third in the Golden Jubilee. Three Australian trained performers, Takeover Target, Falkirk and Glamour Puss, ran in that renewal of the King's Stand. Takeover Target is booked to have another crack at the Royal Ascot sprints next month and could be up against the Australians Mutawaajid (being transferred by his breeder and owner, His Excellency Nasser Lootah, owner of the Emirates Park Stud at Murrurundi, Hunter Valley, to a leading trainer in England) and Australian trained Bentley Biscuit and Miss Andretti. A son of former Coolmore shuttle sire Peintre Celebre and Tycoon Joy, a Last Tycoon mare from the magnificent Denise's Joy family, Bentley Biscuit suggested awesome ability when he overpowered Takeover Target in the closing stages of the Group1 BTC Cup over 1200m at Doomben on 12 May 2007. It was his third successive Group 1 win in under five weeks. Coincidentally, Bentley Biscuit was foaled and reared on Edinglassie, the Hunter River bordered property near Muswellbrook on which the James White family bred many good horses.The tradition at Edinglassie, the base now for one of the Hunter Valley's leading farms catering for outside breeders, continues. Run by very experienced horseman Michael Talty, Edinglassie has been the source in the past two years of four Group 1 winners, the races including the 2005 and 2006 renewals of the Caulfield Guineas.

(This article courtesy of Brian’s Russell’s Racing & Breeding News)

A filly by CLODOVIL and a colt by INVINCIBLE SPIRIT shared top billing at the inaugural Tattersalls Guineas Breeze Up Sale when they both realised 90,000 guineas on a day when 76 lots sold for a total of 2,129,000 guineas at an average of 28,013 guineas and a median of 23,000 guineas. Lot 38, the grey filly from the first crop of DANEHILL's Group 1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains winner CLODOVIL, out of the MANILA mare TROPICAL PARADISE set the early benchmark for the day when knocked down for 90,000 guineas to Newmarket trainer Ed Dunlop. Dunlop, who was stood alongside Blandford Bloodstock's Richard Brown secured the filly, who was consigned from John Cullinan's Horse Park Stud, after a protracted bidding duel with Stetchworth Park Stud principal Bill Gredley. The sale provided a windfall for her owners who purchased the filly for ?15,000 at last year's Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale. The first crop of the GREEN DESERT stallion INVINCIBLE SPIRIT included a world record thirty-five individual two-year-old winners last year headlined by the Group 2 winning pair CONQUEST and CAPTAIN MARVELOUS and his progeny have understandably been in great demand since and so it proved with lot 63, the bay colt out of the NISHAPOUR mare SHABARANA. Consigned from Mark Dwyer's Oaks Farm Stables, the half-brother to the Grade 2 winner SHANAWI was knocked down to locally based agent Anthony Stroud for 90,000 guineas after he saw off the efforts of McKeever St Lawrence's Oliver Gaisford-St Lawrence. Like the CLODOVIL filly who topped the sale earlier, the son of INVINCIBLE SPIRIT will be joining Newmarket trainer Ed Dunlop at his Gainsborough Stables base. Late in the afternoon Carmel Stud principal Peter Morgan purchased a daughter of CAPE CROSS for 72,000 guineas. The half-sister to the Listed placed HOVERING is out of the GONE WEST mare ORLENA, herself a half-sister to the Group 1 1000 Guineas third VISTA BELLA and a daughter of the multiple Group winning COX ORANGE. The daughter of CAPE CROSS, who was consigned to the sale from Jim Ryan's Milltown Stables in Ireland, is set to join trainer Clive Cox at his Beechdown Farm Stables near Lambourn. At the conclusion of the inaugural Tattersalls Guineas Breeze Up Sale, Tattersalls Chairman Edmond Mahony commented; "In the context of this year's European breeze up market we would have to be satisfied with today's sale. 2002 was the first time that the Tattersalls Craven Breeze Up Sale, which is Europe's premier two-year-olds in training sale, achieved an average in excess of 30,000 guineas and today's inaugural Guineas Breeze Up has produced returns at a similar level with an average of 28,013 guineas and a top price of 90,000 guineas. "In common with the earlier breeze up sales the market has again been selective, but as usual two-year-olds that breezed well found a good cross section of buyers at all levels and we were encouraged to see new faces from throughout Europe in particular a good number from Greece and Spain."
(Tattersalls Media Release)

  Major Race Results – United States

1. Street Sense (Street Cry-Bedazzle)

2. Hard Spun (Danzig-Turkish Tryst)

3. Curlin (Smart Strike-Sheriff’s Deputy)

The Group 1 Kentucky Oaks 9 Furlongs

1. Rags To Riches (A P Indy-Better Than Honour)

2. Octave (Unbridled’s Song-Belle Nuit)

3. High Heels (E Dubai-Ornate)

  Hunter Valley horseman wins Kentucky Derby with son of Darley shuttle sire

Ian Wilkes, a horseman raised on a dairy farm between Muswellbrook and Denman in the Hunter Valley, was responsible for the preparation and presentation of Street Sense, the son of the Darley Stud shuttle sire Street Cry who romped to a 2.2 and 5.8 lengths victory in America's greatest race, the Kentucky Derby conducted over 2000m, at Churchill Downs at the weekend. Although he is not the official trainer, that distinction belonging to veteran mentor Carl Nafzger, Wilkes runs the powerful 60 horse racing stables and is poised to take complete control on Nafzger's impending retirement. It is a move that could see Wilkes become one of America's leading trainers. The stable has now been represented by two Kentucky Derby winners, the first being back in1990, a year it was taken out by Unbridled, a horse who like Street Sense's sire Street Cry is by a son of Mr. Prospector. At the time Ian Wilkes was on his first visit to America and was used by Nafzher as Unbridled's track worker. He had gained considerable experience earlier in Australia, working with Paul Sutherland and Vic Thompson Jr. in Sydney and spending two years with the Hayes family at Lindsay Park in South Australia. Ian is a son of Ray Wilkes, a former Muswellbrook district dairyfarmer with a love of racing and breeding who now resides in Sydney and who has a small number of mares making their home at Di Hill's Foxes Hollow Stud at Oakdale near Camden.The Wilkes, mum and dad, Ian and his brother Craig, a successful trainer at Port Macquarie, had a lot of fun in the early 1990s with a son of Zoffany they purchased out of a Sydney Summer yearling sale for $4,000. Named Native Dawn and trained by Jack Gallagher, then at Coonabababran, he won 14 races including the Queensland Cup and Lord Mayor's Cup in Brisbane and the Lismore, Coonabarabran, Moree and Orange Cups. This year's Kentucky Derby winning Street Sense is the first performer to take the double of this Classic and what is now considered America's greatest event for two-year-olds, the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. He is one of five stakes winners to date in the first crop of Street Cry, a son of Danehill's relation Machiavellian who was a winner of five races including two Group1s, the Dubai World Cup and in America the Stephen Foster Handicap. He ran third in the American Breeders' Cup Juvenile. Street Cry stands the 2007 season at Darley in Kentucky on US$50,000, but is to be available in Australia next season at their Victorian stud on $16,500. His first crop here are two-year-olds and his second includes nine lots in the catalogue for the Hunter Valley Breeders yearling sale at Scone on May 20 and seven listed for the Magic Millions National Yearling sale to he held at the Gold Coast on June 12, 13 and 14. Street Sense, the American star who has put him on the map in that country as a sire, is the first foal of Bedazzle, a handy non-stakes winning filly by the Northern Dancer sire Dixieland Band and from Majestic Legend, an His Majesty Listed winner out of Long Legend, a half-sister to the grandam of one of the most successful dual hemisphere sires, Coolmore's Danehill Dancer, and also a close relation to Mr. Greeley, a high class American sprinter and sire who was neglected by Australian breeders when he visited Victoria in 1996, being used over only 26 mares. Since then Mr Greeley has risen in America to a fee of US$75,000 and to have ten Group1 winners to his credit. One of these is Finsceal Beo, last year's champion Eurpean two-year-old filly and the winner on Sunday of the English One Thousand Guineas, in the process becoming the first of their Guineas winners of either sex to break one minute 35 seconds for the mile (1600m). Street Sense is the second Kentucky Derby winner in four years by a Darley shuttle sire made available for use by Australian breeders. The other winner is Smarty Jones, a half-brother to Sippin' Bourbon, a son of Hennessy starting his career as a sire at George Fraser's Ilala Stud, Scone. Smarty Jones is by Elusive Quality, a setter of new world record time for a mile is listed to visit Darley's Hunter Valley complex for the fifth successive year in the coming season. His fee is $137,500.

(This article courtesy of Brian’s Russell’s Racing & Breeding News)

  Major Race Results – United Kingdom

1. Cockney Rebel (Val Royal-Factice)

2. Vital Equine (Danetime-Bayalika)

3. Dutch Art (Medicean-Halland Park Lass)

The Group 1 1000 Guineas 1600 metres

1. Finsceal Beo (Mr Greeley-Musical Treat)

2. Arch Swing (Arch-Gold Pattern)

3. Simply Perfect (Danehill-Hotelgenie Dot Com)

  Hong Kong Update

Caspar Fownes maintains his lead in the Trainer’s rankings having recorded 52 wins, 48 second placings, 42 third placings, 40 fourth placings and 45 fifth placings from 472 starters. David Hall is in 5^th position with 33 winners, 24 second placings, 19 third placings, 24 fourth placings and 14 fifth placings from his 284 starters. John Moore is in 8^th position with 28 winners, 27 second placings, 33 third placings, 34 fourth placings and 47 fifth placings from 429 starters. John Size is in 11^th position with 24 winners, 26 second placings, 23 third placings, 31 fourth placings and 28 fifth placings from his 316 starters.

Douglas Whyte continues to lead in the Jockey’s rankings with a 3 win advantage having recorded 68 wins, 72 second placings, 51 third placings, 59 fourth placings and 41 fifth placings from 507 rides. Brett Prebble is in 2^nd position with 65 winners, 45 second placings, 28 third placings, 31 fourth placings and 32 fifth placings from his 389 rides. Danny Nikolic is in 11^th position with 23 winners, 20 second placings, 24 third placings, 25 fourth placings and 34 fifth placings from his 337 rides. Shane Dye is in 13^th position with 19 winners, 14 second placings, 18 third placings, 15 fourth placings and 24 fifth placings from his 268 rides.

Current to 9 May 2007.

1. Able One (NZ) (Cape Cross(IRE)-Gardenia(NZ))

2. Joyful Winner (AUS) (El Moxie(USA)-Northern Tycoon) bred in NSW

3. The Duke (AUS) (Danehill(USA)-Mer Du Sud(IRE)) bred in NSW

The Group 1 Audemars Piguet Queen Elizabeth II Cup 2000 metres

1. Viva Pataca (GB) (Marju(IRE)-Comic)

2. Vengeance of Rain (NZ) (Zabeel(NZ)-Danelagh)

3. Admire Moon (JPN) (End Sweep(USA)-My Katies)

  Able One Steals Champions Mile From the Front

Hong Kong outsider Able One led from start to finish to virtually 'steal' the Champions Mile in a triumph for Hong Kong with John Moore training the victor and the runner-up, Joyful Winner. Able One was superbly rated by Irishman Mick Kinane to lead through the first 800 metres in an ambling 49 seconds and then sprint home the closing 800 metres in a slick 45.5 seconds to give his pursuers little chance. That was the story of the race with the beaten jockeys, virtually to a man, declaring the lack of pace the reason for the failure of their mounts. "The other jockeys were sleeping out the back," declared Moore. Winning rider Kinane, in contrast, was very much awake and outgunned his colleagues to secure Able One's fourth victory in ten starts in Hong Kong and his third from four 1600 metres starts on right handed tracks. "I couldn't believe how they let Able One dictate the race from the front," trainer John Moore said. "Mick said he had plenty of horse under him and once he kicked he got to the line very strongly. To run one-two is a dream." Moore, while still highly competitive, has not enjoyed his best season in Hong Kong with the stable 'under a cloud' after the equine herpes virus outbreak. It was little wonder he was overjoyed after the Champions Mile...and, of course, the icing on the cake was to come. Able One was Moore's second Group one winner of the season and, just 40 minutes later, he had a third with Viva Pataca taking the Audemars Piguet QEII Cup with Kinane again in the saddle. Kinane said that Moore had left any tactics entirely to the jockey's discretion in the Champions Mile. "We felt there wouldn't be much pace in the race and coming back after a mile and two furlongs in the Derby and a disappointing run last time, John said to me to suit myself and lead if possible. We went an even tempo and he was enjoying himself. He quickened well about two and a half furlongs out. I thought then that if the rest of them are just watching me, they might not be able to get to me," Kinane said. Moore has much to celebrate now and much to ponder in terms of major races with his quinella horses. "To run one-two with Joyful Winner is a dream. I guess we have the invitation to run in the Breeders' Cup now and we'll have to think about it. Maybe racing the other way around would cure Able One's tendency to hang," Moore said. Runner-up Joyful Winner was the best of the closers in a race dominated from the front. "He must have run some very good late sectionals, " said jockey Darren Beadman, "but the mile just tests him." Most attention pre-race centred on South African visitor Linngari and the local improver Good Ba Ba but they finished sixth and fifth respectively. Linngari and Good Ba Ba settled off the speed which dented their prospects while the other well fancied contender Floral Pegasus was forced to track wide. Joyful Winner, with Darren Beadman up, finished best of the beaten brigade to run second while The Duke completed a Hong Kong tierce to finish third after trailing Able One in the run. Linngari's trainer Herman Brown was disappointed but took defeat well. "He needs cover so you have to go back and as it turned out he got further back than we'd have wanted. After the first 800 metres you could see he couldn't win,' Brown said. Good Ba Ba's winning run came to an end. "Olivier (Doleuze) followed Floral Pegasus and he travelled well enough but the tempo of the race was against him. I'd say you could run that race three times with the same horses and you'd get three entirely different results," said trainer Andreas Schutz.

(The Hong Kong Jockey Club)

  Viva Pataca storms to Audemars Piguet QEII glory

Viva Pataca bounced back to his superb best to win the Audemars Piguet QEII Cup at Sha Tin this afternoon. The achievement can be measured by the fact that in second and third were the horses that won the world's richest turf races in Dubai last month: the mighty Hong Kong star, Vengeance Of Rain, and Japanese champion, Admire Moon. Winning jockey Michael Kinane does not smile as often as some, but even he could not contain a huge grin after his horse had seen off the latter two champions - not least because it followed on from his shock victory aboard Able One in the Champions Mile. And, of course, both horses were handled by John Moore, who had been forced to stomach a slightly less than vintage season before his stable's recent turnaround. Viva Pataca, owned by Stanley Ho Hung-sun, prevailed by one and three-quarters of a length verdict from Vengeance Of Rain, whose rider Anthony Delpech was surely on the mark when he commented that he was beaten by a fresher horse. Moore echoed these sentiments, saying: "It might have been a good thing that the horse had missed Dubai. We came here a fresher horse than Vengeance of Rain but the way we've sprinted home here to beat two Group One horses makes him something pretty special. "Another help has been the application of the hood which has made him focus. But most of all I want to thank Mick Kinane who has done a beautiful job." Kinane said Viva Pataca was "nicely relaxed" in transit although the jockey - a veteran specialist at winning the world's greatest prizes - thought that he might have gone too soon, snatching the lead a furlong out off Sir Ernesto who had led "at as slow a pace as I could go," according to his rider, Felix Coetzee. Viva Pataca and Vengeance Of Rain are likely to clash next in the Gr.1 Champions & Chater Cup over 2400 metres on June 3. Longer term, Moore is planning a raid on the Cox Plate in Melbourne. "I would love to win a Gr.1 race in Australia before I retire and that could be the race for him," he said. Nigel Gray, Head of Handicapping and Race Planning at the Hong Kong Jockey Club said Viva Pataca would probably rise to an international rating "of about 120" having been 115 pre-race. Admire Moon was forced to cover ground from his wide gate and never threatened to reproduce the telling kick that decided the Dubai Duty Free last month. "The horse was in good form but it was a disadvantage to break from the outside position but that's racing. He's been out of Japan for a long time and maybe needs to get back home. It would be nice to come back to Hong Kong in December again," jockey Yutaka Take said. The Hong Kong-based quinella in the Audemars Piguet QEII Cup followed the home team filling the first three places in the Champions Mile. A good day for the Hong Kong Jockey Club was capped by an attendance of over 42,000 - up by 20 per cent on the same programme last year. Betting turnover also rose by 11 per cent.

(The Hong Kong Jockey Club)

  Hong Kong Update

Caspar Fownes maintains his lead in the Trainer’s rankings having recorded 51 wins, 48 second placings, 41 third placings, 38 fourth placings and 44 fifth placings from 459 starters. David Hall is in 5^th position with 33 winners, 24 second placings, 19 third placings, 23 fourth placings and 14 fifth placings from his 278 starters. John Moore is in 8^th position with 27 winners, 26 second placings, 33 third placings, 33 fourth placings and 46 fifth placings from 421 starters. John Size is in 11^th position with 24 winners, 26 second placings, 22 third placings, 30 fourth placings and 28 fifth placings from his 310 starters.

Douglas Whyte continues to lead in the Jockey’s rankings with a 3 win advantage having recorded 66 wins, 70 second placings, 49 third placings, 57 fourth placings and 40 fifth placings from 491 rides. Brett Prebble is in 2^nd position with 63 winners, 41 second placings, 27 third placings, 30 fourth placings and 32 fifth placings from his 373 rides. Danny Nikolic is in 11^th position with 22 winners, 18 second placings, 23 third placings, 25 fourth placings and 31 fifth placings from his 326 rides. Shane Dye is in 13^th position with 18 winners, 14 second placings, 17 third placings, 14 fourth placings and 24 fifth placings from his 262 rides.

Current to 1 May 2007.

  Red Ransom and Octagonal sires represented by NZ sale foals

A feature of the National Weanling Sale to be conducted by New Zealand Bloodstock at the Karaka next Sunday, May 7 is the appearance among the 250 lots of first crop representatives of sons of two Hunter Valley sires. Both at stud in New Zealand, they are Octasong, a product of the Woodlands Stud based Zabeel giant of Australian racing Octagonal, and Handsome Ransom, one by Vinery Stud's world-wide respected visitor Red Ransom. A winner of the Canberra Black Opal Stakes, second in the STC Golden Rose and third in the AJC Hobartville Stakes, Handsome Ransom was bred in NSW by Sydney businessman K.J. Pooley and is from Bianca Lancia, one of the very few daughters of world champion racehorse and sire Mill Reef used in Australia. Bred at Bowral in NSW by Dr. J.D. Woolridge, the Octagonal sire Octasong is from a mare, the Western Symphony product Songline, who after he acquired her from New Zealand was represented by a filly produced there who became one of the all time greats of Australian racing, Sunline. She won 31 races and was named a record three times Australian Horse of the Year. The achievements of Sunline, a daughter of Desert Sun, a son of the Danzig sire Green Desert now standing at Eliza Park in Victoria after starting off in New Zealand, underline the lottery of horse breeding. She is one of only two winners out of the eight foals and six runners from Songline. The other, Sunline's younger brother Flaring Sun, won one race, a Seymour maiden. Represented by two foals in the New Zealand weanling catalogue, the Octagonal sire Octasong was unplaced in his only four starts, but this is not an impediment to getting winners. A good two-year-old in Queensland at this time is Degenda, a winner at Eagle Farm and of the valuable Capricorn 2YO Classic at Rockhampton. He is from the second crop of Private Agenda, an Octagonal sire from the Centaine Group1 winner and good producer Kapchat who was unplaced at his only start. Private Agenda is at Nick and Mary Nolan's Noralla Stud, Gladfield Valley, Warwick, Qld. A near neighbour of Noralla is the Basil Nolan family's Raheen Stud and it also has an Octagonal sire with a metropolitan winner to its credit. This sire is Anglia, a horse who was unraced but who is impressive to look at and in breeding. He is nearly a three-quarter brother to Dr Grace, an outstanding Australian racehorse by Octagonal's grandsire Sir Tristram who was emerging as a very good sire at the Woodlands Stud in the Hunter Valley when he died prematurely. Dr Grace and Anglia are from the same Twig Moss mare English Wonder, a winner of the South Australian Derby. Another unraced son of Octagonal who has had winners, albeit from very restricted opportunity, is Strands, a Woodlands Stud bred son of the Sanction AJC Dequetteville Stakes winner Tendrils. He is John Todd's Allandale Park Stud at Hobbys Yards near Bathurst, NSW. Strands, Anglia and Private Agenda were the first of the Octagonal sons to go to stud. They all had their first seasons in 2002 and their oldest progeny are three-year-olds.

(This article courtesy of Brian’s Russell’s Racing & Breeding News)

2006 - 2007 Overseas News Archives

2005 - 2006 Overseas News Archives