Reputabelle (NZ) Shoots for Outright Lead in NZB Southern Filly Series
8 April 2022
If classy Riccarton filly Reputabelle (NZ) (Pins) lives up to her warm favouritism in the Listed NZB Insurance Stakes (1600m) on her home track this weekend, her connections will have one hand on the New Zealand Bloodstock Southern Filly of the Year Series trophy.
Saturday’s $60,000 feature is the third leg of the four-race series, and Reputabelle shares the lead with Art De Triomphe (NZ) (Vadamos) on 7 points apiece. With spring star Art De Triomphe currently on the sidelines, another 7 points on Saturday will put Reputabelle in a commanding position in the 2021-22 Southern Filly Series. The only other runners in Saturday’s field to have earned points so far are Sorrento (NZ) (Iffraaj) and Just Maybe (NZ) (Tivaci), who have picked up 4 and 2 points respectively.
Trained locally by Michael and Matthew Pitman, Reputabelle was unplaced in all of her first three starts but has been unstoppable since then. She has won all of her last three races, culminating in a spectacular win by almost six lengths in the Listed NZB Airfreight Stakes (1400m) at Wingatui last month.
But there is also no shortage of quality among her opponents this weekend. North Island raider Unusual Countess (NZ) (Unusual Suspect) has already been a stakes winner at this track, capturing the Listed Champagne Stakes (1200m) on debut as a two-year-old last May.
Belle Of The Ball (NZ) (Savabeel) has shown bright promise in the north for the powerful Te Akau Racing team, while Above The Clouds (NZ) (Turn Me Loose), Mazzini (NZ) (Turn Me Loose), Champagnes On Me (NZ) (All Too Hard) and Divine Sava (NZ) (Savabeel) are all last-start winners.
Saturday’s NZB Insurance Stakes is worth 7 points to the winner, with 4 for second and 2 for third. The filly with the highest total at the end of the series will be crowned the Southern Filly of the Year, earning a trophy as well as an insurance policy from NZB Insurance to the value of $50,000 plus GST.
The NZB Insurance Stakes will be run as Race 6 at Riccarton on Saturday, with a start time of 3.14pm.
2022 Listed NZB Insurance Stakes (1600m) Field
| # | HORSE | DRAW | COMMENTS | SALE | PURCHASER | TRAINER | JOCKEY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Reputabelle | 10 | Something clicked into place for Reputabelle (NZ) (Pins) in January of this year, and the Riccarton filly has been flawless ever since. Unplaced in all of her first three starts, she has quickly turned the corner with three wins in succession. The last of those was the Listed NZB Airfreight Stakes (1400m) at Wingatui on March 5, where she romped home by five and three-quarter lengths, soaring straight into an equal NZB Southern Filly Series lead with 7 points. | Michael & Matthew Pitman | Tina Comignaghi | ||
| 2 | Unusual Countess | 15 | Astute trainer Fraser Auret sent Unusual Countess (NZ) (Unusual Suspect) down to this venue to make her career debut in the Listed Champagne Stakes (1200m) in May of last year, and she made the trip well worthwhile with a strong win. She has yet to win in three appearances as a three-year-old, but finished second behind quality filly Bellacontte (NZ) (Burgundy) in the Listed Fillies' Stakes (1200m) at Wanganui. She will be ridden on Saturday by Wiremu Pinn, who teamed up with Auret to win last month's Auckland Cup (3200m) with Uareastar (NZ) (Jakkalberry). | Fraser Auret | Wiremu Pinn | ||
| 3 | Burgie | 8 | Wingatui filly Burgie (NZ) (Ghibellines) has shown bright promise in her short career, finishing first and second in her first two races before stepping straight up to stakes class. She struggled in the soft track conditions when unplaced in the Listed Gore Guineas (1335m), then made an eye-catching late run for fifth in the Listed NZB Airfreight Stakes (1400m). She was a last-start second at this track on March 26. | Brian & Shane Anderton | Corey Campbell | ||
| 4 | Shameless Tart | 5 | Shameless Tart (NZ) (Shamexpress) cost her trainer Andrew Carston $15,000 at Karaka 2020, and she has already more than repaid that investment. Her 10-start career has produced a win, three placings and $27,142 in stakes, headed by a runner-up finish in the Listed Dunedin Guineas (1500m). She also ran fourth in the Listed NZB Airfreight Stakes (1400m). | Karaka 2020, Book 2 | AJ Carston, $15,000 | Andrew Carston | Terry Moseley |
| 5 | Above The Clouds | 12 | Bought for just $9,000 from Book 2 of Karaka 2020, Above The Clouds (NZ) (Turn Me Loose) finished second in both of her first two starts, then ran sixth at Ruakaka before breaking through with an emphatic last-start maiden win at Rotorua on March 3. | Karaka 2020, Book 2 | RR Manning, $9,000 | Ralph Manning | |
| 6 | June Bug | 7 | Ascot Park trainer Sally McKay has been a two-time NZB Southern Filly Series winner in the last decade with Showemup (NZ) (Showcasing) and Courte Zarindi (NZ) (Any Suggestion). Her runner this time around is June Bug (NZ) (Highly Recommended), who has had four starts to date, headed by a three-length maiden win at Riverton in January. | Sally McKay | Dylan Turner | ||
| 7 | Mazzini | 1 | Turn Me Loose filly Mazzini (NZ) was a $90,000 purchase from Book 1 of Karaka 2020. She has had three races so far, finishing fifth and sixth in her first two races before winning at Wanganui on February 24. | Karaka 2020, Book 1 | GC Cotterill, $90,000 | Peter Didham | Samantha Wynne |
| 8 | Sorrento | 4 | Sorrento (NZ) (Iffraaj) has 4 points to her name in the NZB Southern Filly Series, courtesy of a second placing in the Listed Canterbury Belle Stakes (1200m) in September. Since then she has finished fifth in the Guineas Trial (1400m), fourth in the Group Three War Decree Stakes (1600m), eighth in the Group One New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) and seventh in the Listed NZB Airfreight Stakes (1400m). | John & Karen Parsons | Lisa Allpress | ||
| 9 | Taimate Diva | 11 | The second runner in this year's race for local trainer Andrew Carston, Taimate Diva (NZ) (Telperion) was an impressive maiden winner over this course and distance on February 25. In her only start since then, she finished fourth over the same trip at Wingatui. | Andrew Carston | Kavish Chowdhoory | ||
| 10 | Champagnes On Me | 9 | All Too Hard filly Champagnes On Me (NZ) has been a consistent performer all season, never finishing outside the first four in six races dating back to September. The most recent of those was the most significant, winning a maiden race at Rotorua on March 3. | Ralph Manning | |||
| 11 | Divine Sava | 6 | The Go Racing colours have already been carried to a win during this season's NZB Southern Filly Series, with Art De Triomphe (NZ) (Vadamos) capturing the Listed Canterbury Belle Stakes (1200m) in the spring. Their hopes in this Saturday's race rest with Divine Sava (NZ) (Savabeel), who they bought for $220,000 from Book 1 of Karaka 2020. Second in a strong two-year-old race at Te Rapa around this time last year, Divine Sava has finished in the top five in all but two of her nine starts this season. Her consistent run of form was rewarded with an overdue last-start maiden victory at Rotorua. | Karaka 2020, Book 1 | Go Racing, $220,000 | Stephen Marsh | Courtney Barnes |
| 12 | Zacat | 13 | Talented Zacinto filly Zacat (NZ) has picked up a win and three placings in an 11-start career to date, and she finished only two lengths from the placegetters when sixth in last month's Listed NZB Airfreight Stakes (1400m). | Neil Coulbeck | Chris Johnson | ||
| 13 | Just Maybe | 2 | Trained and ridden by Kylie Williams, Just Maybe (NZ) (Tivaci) earned 2 points in the NZB Southern Filly Series with her third placing in last month's Listed NZB Airfreight Stakes (1400m). She has had six starts overall for a win and a placing. | Karaka 2020, Book 2 | Richardson Racing, $87,500 | Kylie Williams | Kylie Williams |
| 14 | Pickens | 3 | After taking a while to find her groove, Belardo filly Pickens (NZ) has come of age in her last couple of starts with strong second placings at Wingatui and Gore. | 2019 May Sale | CK Hunter, $20,000 | Terry Kennedy | Shankar Muniandy |
| 15 | Belle Of The Ball | 14 | The highest-priced yearling purchase in this field, secured by Te Akau Racing's David Ellis for $300,000 at Karaka 2020, Belle Of The Ball (NZ) (Savabeel) has shown bright promise in her three-race career to date. She ran on strongly from well back to be fourth on debut in February, then ran third at Pukekohe before flying home for second at Matamata on March 30. | Karaka 2020, Book 1 | DC Ellis, $300,000 | Mark Walker | Joe Kamaruddin |