First Stakes Success for Thewayyouare

Promising two-year-old Prince Mambo (NZ) delivered a strong win in the Listed $50,000 Reid & Harrison (1980) Ltd Slipper (1200m) at Matamata on Saturday to provide the first stakes success for his young sire Thewayyouare (Kingmambo).

Prince Mambo (NZ) successful in the Listed Reid & Harrison (1980) Ltd Slipper at Matamata.

Owned by the Go Racing My Way Syndicate managed by Albert Bosma, Prince Mambo has some high-profile names in his ownership including New Zealand cricket captain Brendan McCullum and All Black legend Sir Colin Meads.  Bosma purchased Prince Mambo for $22,000 from Windsor Park Stud at the 2013 Karaka Select Sale.

Prince Mambo finished seventh in the $1m Karaka Million at his last start, where he was unsuited by the wet track and also received interference from a falling runner.

Ridden by Sam Spratt for trainer Stephen McKee, Prince Mambo started from barrier 6 on Saturday, settling behind the two leaders who set up a good early speed. On entering the straight, the leader Rockfast (Fastnet Rock) kicked away from the field and Prince Mambo showed strong determination to chase down the leader to hit the line a winner by half a length from Rockfast, with Riding Shotgun (NZ) (Iffraaj) in third, giving Karaka graduates the trifecta.

“I did think he would run well, he was prepared for that race,” remarked McKee. “He had worked good for a couple of weeks beforehand. I did think about going to Taranaki but I waited the extra week and I thought he was a good strong chance.

“I looked at the horse with Albert at Karaka, I thought he was a lovely horse and we got him for $22,000 late in the Sale. He was always a nice type of horse that looked like he would run.

“At this stage we will go to the Group 1 Diamond Stakes. In the two runs he has had at Ellerslie he’s had no luck. I think he is slightly better left-handed but I would still like to take him there and take our chances. If he draws well I think he will be a good chance.”

It was the second win in the short five-start career of Prince Mambo that has earned the Go Racing My Way Syndicate $55,860 in prizmoney.

Go Racing has enjoyed great success with their two-year-olds in recent seasons, also racing last year’s Karaka Million and Group 1 Diamond Stakes winner Ruud Awakening (Bernardini).

Bred by Alchemy Family Trust & Windsor Park Stud Ltd, Prince Mambo is the first New Zealand stakes winner for Windsor Park Stud stallion Thewayyouare (ex Maryinsky, by Sadler’s Wells), a winner of the Group 1 Saint-Cloud Criterium International (1600m).

Karaka graduates won all three stakes races at Matamata on Saturday with Lady Royale (NZ) (Captain Rio) capturing the Group 2 $100,000 J Swap Contractors Matamata Breeders’ Stakes and Princess Kyoto (NZ) (Shinko King) winning the Listed $50,000 Marks Ewen & Associates Kaimai Stakes.