Hero ready to go
Shadow Hero (Pierro) will make his Hong Kong debut for new trainer David Hayes at Sha Tin on Sunday.
The winner of the G1 Spring Champion S. and G1 Rosehill Guineas for Mark Newnham, he is already touted as a leading contender for next year’s G1 Hong Kong Derby.
“If he’d stayed in Australia, he’d definitely have been a top class weight-for-age horse so I’m really excited to see race and progress toward some pretty big goals,’’ Hayes told Racing.com.
“All his build up to his return has been very pleasing. He’ll go second-up into international day and next year I reckon we’ll see him in one of the big ones.’’
Shadow Hero
Top stable addition
The Harrovian (Fastnet Rock) will make his first appearance on Saturday for Toby and Trent Edmonds at Doomben where he will bid to continue a lengthy winning streak.
The 7-year-old won 15 races for previous handler Stephen Massingham and is unbeaten in his last nine appearances.
While The Harrovian will have to carry 59kg in the Listed Sky Racing Tattersall’s Recognition S., he is used to hefty imposts and four starts back he won a handicap at Cairns under 67kg.
The Harrovian’s main target this preparation is the Listed Bernborough Plate at Eagle Farm on Boxing Day.
Top Group 1 future
Trainer Phillip Stokes is confident Instant Celebrity (Not A Single Doubt) can succeed at the highest level.
"I think she's a Group 1 horse. No doubt. I don't say that very often, but I do rate her as a Group 1 horse," he told Racing.com.
"We're giving her a good break just to do some maturing, so she'll be out for another four, five or six weeks.”
Instant Celebrity won her first four starts, including the G2 Tranquil Star S. and suffered her first defeat when third in the G1 Thousand Guineas.
Instant Celebrity
Payne's Jericho bid
Ballarat trainer Michelle Payne will put Jukila’s (NZ) (Lucas Cranach {Ger}) stamina to the ultimate test on Sunday in Australia’s longest race, the Jericho Cup.
Jukila was one of her first purchases after gaining her trainer's licence and bought for NZ$36,000 at the New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run sale through family friend Kevin Myers.
"I was looking for a Lucas Cranach because I thought he was a really tough horse in his racing days," Payne said. "He was always going to take a long time to mature and he was probably pretty far from being ready to run."
The Jericho Cup, Australia's longest flat race, is a gruelling 4600 metre staying test held over the Grand Annual Steeplechase course at Warrnambool.
Khufu ready
Cambridge trainer Tony Pike will introduce punters to a colt at Ellerslie on Saturday that could one day become their darling.
Khufu (American Pharoah {USA}) will debut in the Eagle Charters 1100, with Pike hoping the youngster can showcase the ability that he has showed in his work and trials.
"He's very promising. He's shown us plenty of the track," Pike said.
"He won his first trial nicely at Ruakaka then got stuck in the mud a bit at Matamata at his second trial, but he's a big, strong horse and he'll get back to a better track at Ellerslie on Saturday and barring bad luck, we think he should be right in the finish,” Pike said.
Khufu when sold through New Zealand Bloodstock earlier this year
New online sale
New Zealand Bloodstock has announced a further expansion of its online selling platform with a new addition to the selling calendar.
The National Online Yearling Sale on February 3 is a newcomer to the National Yearling Sale Series and will take up a fully digital format to be conducted on Gavelhouse Plus.
Managing Director Andrew Seabrook has been buoyed by the current landscape of online thoroughbred auctions, emphasised by the online bidding participation at last week’s NZB Ready to Run Sale, which was responsible for 31 per cent of Sale turnover.
All Lots offered in the National Online Yearling Sale are eligible to be nominated for NZB’s lucrative Karaka Million Series.
Entries for the 2021 National Online Yearling Sale are open now and will close on Wednesday 6 January 2021. To enter the Sale, visit NZB’s online portal.
High expectations
Ballymore Stables rates 3-year-old colt Grip (Exosphere) highly and is hoping he can show his class at Ellerslie on Saturday when he lines-up in the G3 Trevor Eagle Memorial 3YO.
He recorded his maiden victory at Pukekohe last start and Pam Gerard, who trains in partnership with Michael Moroney, believes he will be very competitive in his first stakes assignment.
Grip
“We are pretty happy with him and he has shown us he has got some potential,” she said.
“He is still quite green, he has a lot to learn, but he did it easy enough. He probably got lost out in front when he got there a bit too soon. It was a good effort.”
Grip has drawn barrier 13 for Saturday and Gerard said that is an ideal gate for him.
“It’s not the worst place for him,” she said. “He likes to get back and run home. Even if he is three-wide with cover midfield, that’s not a bad place for him.”
Almanaara to stud
Almanaara (Ire), a half-brother by Shamardal (USA) to Dark Angel (Ire) and a winner in Ireland and Dubai, will take up stud duty in 2021 at Mickley Stud in North Shropshire.
Bought as a yearling by Sheikh Hamdan for 370,000 gns (AU$710,000), the now 7-year-old Almanaara broke his maiden over 1400 metres at Tipperary as a 3-year-old for trainer Dermot Weld before being transferred to the Dubai stable of trainer Doug Watson. He won three Meydan handicaps over 1200 and 1400 metres.
“We are very pleased that Almanaara is standing here at Mickley Stud,” said Mickley’s Richard Kent. “He is a kind, well balanced horse who we thought would be a very suitable stallion when we saw him winning in Dubai back in January.
Sustainable blueprint
The Board of New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) has announced a number of key decisions and initiatives that were recently agreed upon at its November Board meeting.
“I’m excited by the options we have in front of us to create a vibrant future and implement actions to energise, excite and set up a sustainable future, in line with our own way of thinking and considerations from the Messara Report,” NZTR Chairman Cameron George said.
“Our priority was to ensure we continued with Bernard Saundry as CEO until July 31, 2022. This enables the Board to build on existing relationships for the greater benefit of the industry in the short to mid-term, while a number of other actions are being managed into place for the longer term.”
In addition to Saundry’s extension, the Board resolved to undertake an organisational review of NZTR. This will include but is not limited to structure, capability, resource, culture, and location.
