International Success for Karaka Graduates

New Zealand Bloodstock celebrated 26 Group 1 wins last season, the most of any sales company in Australasia. The new season has started off in fine fashion as well with seven Group 1 winners already.

Much of the success has been on the international stage. Australia has always been a happy hunting ground for kiwi thoroughbreds and that tradition continued at major carnivals in 2015. New Zealand provides just 5.5% of the racing population in Australia, yet won 26% of Group 1 races over the Melbourne and Sydney Carnivals last year.

Melbourne Spring Carnival

The 2015 Melbourne Spring Carnival was outstanding for New Zealand bred and sold thoroughbreds, with six Group 1 victories.

The pinnacle of Australasian racing, the Group 1 Melbourne Cup, was captured by Karaka graduate Prince of Penzance (NZ) (Pentire), beating a star-studded international field for trainer Darren Weir and rider Michelle Payne. The son of proven kiwi sire Pentire was a NZ$50,000 purchase at the 2011 Karaka Premier Sale from Rich Hill Stud.

Another Karaka graduate, Mongolian Khan (Holy Roman Emperor), was successful in the Group 1 Caulfield Cup giving Karaka graduates the Melbourne/Caulfield Cup double.

Mongolian Khan was purchased by Waikato Bloodstock for NZ$140,000 at the 2013 Karaka Select Sale. He was then purchased by Mr Lang Lin’s Rider Horse Group at the 2013 NZB Ready to Run Sale for NZ$220,000. With victories in the Group 1 New Zealand Derby and Group 1 Australian Derby as well, the Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman trained entire has won over $4 million in prizemoney.

The Chris Waller trained Preferment (NZ) (Zabeel) captured the Group 1 Turnbull Stakes at Flemington, repeating the victory of another Karaka graduate, Lucia Valentina (NZ) (Savabeel), in the same race the previous season. The son of Zabeel was already a Group 1 winner at Flemington having won the Group 1 Victoria Derby last season. Preferment was purchased by Chris Waller for NZ$190,000 at the 2013 Karaka Premier Sale from Cambridge Stud.

Following in the footsteps of Preferment and winning this season’s Group 1 Victoria Derby was Tarzino(NZ) (Tavistock). The son of boom young kiwi sire Tavistock became the seventh NZ bred to win the Group 1 Victoria Derby in the past 10 years. Purchased for just NZ$45,000 by Rick Connolly Bloodstock at the 2014 Karaka Select Sale, the Mick Price trained galloper has already amassed over A$1m in earnings from just six starts.

NZB Ready to Run Sale graduate Turn Me Loose (NZ) (Iffraaj) was victorious in the Group 1 Emirates Stakes, culminating a brilliant campaign that saw him win three consecutive stakes races in Victoria. The son of Haunui Stud sire Iffraaj was purchased by Todd Hartley for NZ$52,500 at the 2013 NZB Ready to Run Sale.

Globetrotting kiwi Criterion (NZ) (Sebring) won the Group 1 Caulfield Stakes after returning from the United Kingdom and Hong Kong. Following his Group 1 win, Criterion went onto finish second in the Group 1 Cox Plate and a luckless third in the Group 1 Melbourne Cup.

The Group 1 winning feats of kiwis began in Sydney in the spring with Kermadec (NZ) (Teofilo) victorious in the Group 1 George Main Stakes, the second successive New Zealand winner of the race after Sacred Falls (NZ) (O’Reilly) was triumphant in the previous season. Kermadec was purchased by Guy Mulcaster for NZ$260,000 at the 2013 Karaka Premier Sale.

Sydney’s “The Championships” Carnival

The new “The Championships” has become the highlight of the Sydney Autumn Carnival and has been fruitful for NZ bred or sold horses since its inauguration two years ago, winning 50% of the Group 1 races during the two days of racing.

A winner at both years of The Championships was Criterion with victory in the Group 1 Australian Derby in 2014 before racing to a dominant win in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes last season, the world’s richest 2000m race on a turf worth prizemoney of A$4m. His victory came on the back of Dundeel (NZ) (High Chaparral) winning the same race 12 months earlier.

The Group 1 Australian Derby was won by New Zealand Horse of the Year Mongolian Khan, becoming the first horse since Bonecrusher 30 years ago to win both the Group 1 New Zealand Derby and Group 1 Australian Derby. It continued New Zealand's great record in the race with NZ bred or sold horses have won seven of the last nine runnings.

Karaka graduate Kermadec continued the strong record of kiwi-bred winners in the Group 1 Doncaster Mile. NZ bred horses have won seven of the last eight Doncaster Miles, the world’s richest mile race on turf. It was the second successive year Chris Waller has trained a kiwi to win the race with Sacred Falls, a NZ$160,000 purchase that Karaka Premier Sale, victorious in the 2014 edition.  

Another Karaka graduate, Gust of Wind (NZ) (Darci Brahma), flew to victory in the Group 1 Australian Oaks for ex-pat kiwi trainer John Sargent. The daughter of Darci Brahma was purchased by Apollo Ng for NZ$90,000 at the 2013 Karaka Premier Sale.

The first year of The Championships saw Rising Romance (NZ) (Ekraar) race to victory in the Group 1 Australian Oaks, meaning the same four races have been won by kiwis in both years of The Championships.

Earlier in the Sydney Autumn Carnival, three-year-old Volkstok’n’barrell (NZ) (Tavistock) completed a hat-trick of wins by NZ bred horses in the Group 1 Rosehill Guineas, with six of the last eight runnings of the race going to kiwis. Another son of Tavistock, the Donna Logan trained galloper was purchased by his trainer for NZ$50,000 at the 2013 Karaka Select Sale from Seaton Park.

Rounding out the Carnival was the NZ bred Pasadena Girl (NZ) (Savabeel) with victory in the Group 1 Champagne Stakes.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong’s Champion sprinter Aerovelocity (NZ) (Pins) made history as the first Hong Kong trained horse to win three Group Ones in three different countries, all achieved within six months.

A son of Waikato Stud based stallion Pins, Aerovelocity created history becoming the first foreign trained horse to win the Group 1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen at Chukyo Racecourse in Japan. Aerovelocity continued his world sprinting dominance in the Group 1 KrisFlyer International Sprint with a brilliant front-running performance to win his second leg of the 2015 Global Sprint Challenge in May.

His first Group 1 came in the Group 1 Hong Kong Sprint in 2014 when he announced himself to the world stage at the Hong Kong International Meeting. He was unable to defend his title in 2015 due to being injured, therefore bypassing the US$1m bonus for winning three legs of the Global Sprint Challenge.

Aerovelocity was purchased by trainer Paul O’Sullivan for NZ$120,000 at the 2010 Karaka Premier Sale from Windsor Park Stud.

Singapore

NZ bred horses have won the most races in Singapore in 2015 with over 40% of the winners being sourced from New Zealand. Kiwi horses also won the most stakes races with 14 black-type races won by 10 horses.

Karaka graduate War Affair (NZ) (O’Reilly) was magnificent last year, capturing four Singapore Group 1 races. Last season’s Horse of the Year, Champion 3YO and Champion Miler, returned as a four-year-old to win the Sgp-1 Kranji Mile, Sgp-1 Raffles Cup, Sgp-1 Lion City Cup and the Sgp-1 Singapore Patron’s Bowl. The son of O’Reilly has won 14 of his 20 starts, with five of them coming in Singapore-Group 1 level.

War Affair was purchased at the 2012 Karaka Premier Sale for NZ$70,000 by David Ellis from Trelawney Stud.

After finishing second in the first two legs of Singapore’s 3YO Challenge, Affleck (NZ) (Battle Paint) got his day in the sun when he triumphed in the Sgp-1 Singapore Guineas, the last leg of the Challenge. The son of Battle Paint was crowned the Champion 2YO of Singapore in 2014.

Macau

New Zealand galloper Gold Alloy (NZ) (Testa Rossa) captured the first leg of the Macau Triple Crown, the Listed Macau Guineas, beating another NZ-bred Bobo So Cute (NZ) (Savabeel) by a short head. Gold Alloy was unbeaten in his five starts in Macau, until running second in the Listed Macau Derby. Bobo So Cute was Macau’s leading prizemoney earner last season with M$1,515,000 from seven wins in 10 starts.

Another kiwi to win at Macau’s highest level was Pak Lok Angel (NZ) (Lucky Unicorn) with victory in the Listed Macau Star of the Sand Stakes (1700m), a race he won by a convincing three-length margin. Pak Lok Angel was purchased at the 2012 Karaka Select Sale for NZ$18,000 by Legends Bloodstock Ltd.

New Zealand Bloodstock’s National Yearling Sales Series will take place from 25 January – 31 January at Karaka. The catalogues can be viewed online or can be requested from reception@nzb.co.nz.