Mana Nui (NZ) Magic in Guineas

Imposing colt Mana Nui (NZ) (No Nay Never) produced a performance to match his looks in Saturday’s $110,000 Group Two Dundeel at Arrowfield Hawke’s Bay Guineas (1400m) at Hastings, emerging as one of New Zealand’s standout spring three-year-olds. 

Bought for $165,000 from Book 1 of Karaka 2020, Mana Nui has now won two of his three starts and $72,700 in stakes for prominent owner Tony Rider, with the promise of a whole lot more to come.

A last-start maiden winner by almost three lengths at Te Rapa, Mana Nui came up against some of the cream of the three-year-old crop for the first time on Saturday – and he made an emphatic statement.

Ridden by Vinnie Colgan, Mana Nui took up a handy position in fifth and one off the rail, albeit with a tendency to race fiercely through a large part of the 1400-metre feature.

But Colgan pushed the button in the straight and Mana Nui went into full flight, stretching out boldly down the outside and getting up to win by three-quarters of a length from the last-start stakes winner Wakari (NZ) (Vespa).

“We ended up in a nice spot, and he cruised up nicely in the straight and was quite powerful in the finish,” Colgan said. “He’s still very green and very raw, but the ability is there.”

Trainer Chad Ormsby suggested that Mana Nui is now likely head to Christchurch for next month’s Group One New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m), which has been won by all of the last three Hawke’s Bay Guineas winners – Madison County (NZ) (Pins), Catalyst (NZ) (Darci Brahma) and Aegon (NZ) (Sacred Falls). 

“He’s always had the looks, and now he’s putting in the performances on the track as a racehorse too,” Ormsby said.

“He pulled pretty hard coming across the corner and down the side, and I was starting to shake and sweat a little bit, but this is a quality horse and there’s more in store for him. I was really happy to see him attack the line the way he did.

“He’s nominated for the 2000 Guineas, and we’ll have a few conversations over the next week or so. We’ve got to start getting pretty serious with him now. There might be some good races for him in Australia too.”

Mana Nui was purchased at Karaka 2020 by Rogerson Bloodstock, who also bought Saturday’s Hawke’s Bay Guineas third placegetter Drum Major (NZ) (Epaulette) for $140,000.

Vendor	Milan Park
Purchaser	Rogerson Bloodstock (Waikato)
Breeding	No Nay Never – Alpine Julz
Sale	Lot 425, Karaka 2020 Book 1, $165,000
Bred by	T V Rider