Group 1 Glory for Shadows Cast (NZ)

Shadows Cast (NZ) (Per Incanto), who was passed with a $10,000 reserve at the 2014 South Island Sale, became a Group 1 winner with a sparkling performance in front of a big crowd at Trentham on Saturday.

The six-year-old scored an outstanding victory in the $200,000 Harcourts Thorndon Mile (1600m), boosting his career earnings to $423,202 – more than 42 times his reserve at the South Island Sale.

Ridden by Jason Waddell for trainer Mark Oulaghan and popular Wellington owner Ron Cunningham, Shadows Cast broke quickly from his wide gate and slid straight into second spot.

The gelding drove clear at the top of the straight and bravely withstood the late run of Wyndspelle (NZ) (Iffraaj) to score by a neck.

“I always thought he was up to winning a Group One,” Oulaghan said. “His last run (winning the Group 2 Manawatu Challenge Stakes over 1400 metres) was very good and probably the best of his career, so he has followed on from there.

“He was a little bit erratic earlier on, but with a little bit of time he has really grown up and come to it as a racehorse.”

Shadows Cast has now won 10 of his 33 starts, with Saturday’s Group One win sitting alongside his Group Two victories in the Coupland’s Bakeries Mile (1600m) and Manawatu Challenge Stakes.

“I’ve had some nice horses and trained a few good ones, but nothing beats a Group One win,” Cunningham said.

“I rated him quite highly today based on his trial on Tuesday. Darryl Bradley rode him there and gave me a lot of confidence.

“I’ve been in the game a long time and have quite a few around me, but this means a great deal.”

Shadows Cast joins Signify (NZ) (Perfectly Ready), who won the Telegraph (1200m) in 2017, as a Group 1-winning graduate of the South Island Sale in recent seasons.