Newhaven Park purchases two-time Group 1 winner Mo’unga

Cover image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan

Newhaven Park has seized the rarest of opportunities by securing the best-performed colt by Savabeel, dual Group 1 winner Mo’unga (NZ).

Bred by Waikato Stud, Mo’unga is by the seven-time Champion New Zealand Sire from the unraced O’Reilly (NZ) mare Chandelier (NZ).

He was purchased by Aquis Farm for NZ$325,000 at the 2019 New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka Yearling Sale (Book 1).

Ahead of Saturday’s G1 All Aged S. at Randwick, where he is well-fancied to add another elite-level victory, Mo’unga has had 15 starts, for five wins and five minor placings, banking winnings of just over $1.8 million.

Mo’unga notched his maiden Group 1 triumph as a 3-year-old, in last year’s Rosehill Guineas in March, before adding a second in the Winx S. in August.

Speaking to TDN AusNZ, Newhaven Park Principal John Kelly said they were rapt to secure the classy entire.

“Newhaven Park has purchased Mo’unga. Everyone has worked really hard to get the deal done and we are delighted to have bought him,” Kelly said.

“Everyone's excited going into Saturday; we all have expectations that he’ll run a great race.

“We are going to syndicate him with some old and new clients, and we still have a few shares left.

“Aquis have retained a share in him; they’re going to come on the journey with us, so that’s great.

“We are very excited about it; we think with him being a son of Savabeel, out of an O’Reilly mare, he offers a great opportunity for Australian breeders. He’s a beautiful outcross that’s worked very well with the Australian mares that have gone to New Zealand.”

In search of more riches

“We intend to race him on for another year, so that’s the upcoming spring and next autumn,” said Kelly.

“We still think he has a lot to offer as a racehorse. When he comes back in the spring he will still be trained by Annabel.”

Mo’unga will run for the new ownership group in the All Aged and his jockey, Tommy Berry, will wear Aquis’ colours for the final time. Post-Saturday, Mo’unga’s jockey will be in Newhaven’s renowned black-green sash, red sleeves and white cap.

At this stage, a tilt at the G1 Cox Plate in the spring isn’t on the radar. Mo’unga ran fourth in last year’s Cox Plate beating home Group 1 stars Probabeel (NZ) (Savabeel) and Captivant (Capitalist).

“We think he’s a 1400 metre to miler and they’re the races we’ll be targeting with him,” said Kelly.

Mo’unga’s brother was the Sale-topper at this year’s New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka Yearling Sale, with Annabel Neasham Racing and Tony Fung purchasing the colt for NZ$1 million.

Runs on the board

Kelly said Newhaven Park is a big believer in Mo’unga’s sire Savabeel.

Remarkably, Savabeel is the sire of 27 Group 1 winners and 125 stakes winners (across 12 countries), taking his earnings to almost NZ$143 million, while his progeny has amassed in excess of over AU$63 million in Australia alone.

Including Mo’unga, Savabeel has produced six Group 1 winners this season - Probabeel (NZ), Noverre (NZ), The Chosen One (NZ), The Perfect Pink (NZ) and Savy Yong Blonk (NZ) - more than any other sire in Australasia.

“We’re very big fans of him, we think that he’s an outstanding stallion,” he said.

“He’s one of the leading sires in the Southern Hemisphere and continues to do it year after year. His horses perform in the best company.

“We’ve already got one son of Savabeel (Cool Aza Beel) and now we’re lucky enough to have two.”

Gallery: Savabeel's Group 1 winners this season

Confidence in young sire

Kelly is referring to Cool Aza Beel (NZ), who will stand at Newhaven Park for $18,100 (inc GST) during the 2022 season.

Raced by Te Akau, Cool Aza Beel won four of six starts, including the R. Listed Karaka Million 2YO and G1 Sistema S.

Cool Aza Beel is completely free of Danehill (USA) blood, hailing from the famed ‘Tennessee family’ that has produced G1 winners Malaguerra (Magnus), Seabrook (NZ) (Hinchinbrook), Aloha (Encosta De Lago) and the ill-fated Libertini (I Am Invincible).

He was well-received last spring, covering 114 mares.

“We’re very excited to see his foals, they’re coming this spring,” Kelly explained.

“(Cool Aza Beel) is out of a very fast Australian family. He’s out of a Testa Rossa, out of a Red Ransom, out of a Bletchingly mare; that’s very good blood for Australia.

“He was a top 2-year-old, he won his trial in August and won his first race in September, then he raced through.

“He won the Karaka Million and then backed up and won the Sistema… that’s a really good horse

“He’s a very good-looking horse, very much in the mould of an Australian 2-year-old, but with that Savabeel in him.

“We think he’s a great chance to make it as a stallion.”

Sire on fire

Newhaven Park also has Xtravagant (NZ) on the roster for 2022.

Fresh from a brilliant season on the track, where his progeny has enjoyed tremendous success, the son of Pentire (GB) will command a fee of $27,500 (inc GST).

Bred by Rich Hill Stud, Xtravagant won six of his 12 starts, including two Group 1s (the 2015 New Zealand Guineas and 2015 Waikato Sprint), amassing more than $400,000 in earnings.

He was crowned Champion 3-Year-Old Colt in New Zealand and is the highest-rated 3-Year-Old in New Zealand since the great Bonecrusher (NZ) (Pag Asa).

Xtravagant is having a great run of late, with the Ciaron Maher and Dave Eustace-trained 3-year-old Lavish Girl, winning a BM70 at Flemington in December, before scoring a brilliant victory in the G1 Angus Armanasco S. at Caulfield in February.

“We’re thrilled with him. Most people would’ve thought he was a little bit obscure when we got him, but he was an outstanding racehorse, bordering on freakish,” Kelly commented.

“We thought he was the right fit for Australia, being free of Danehill blood.

“We couldn’t be happier with how he’s going.”

Lavish Girl is from Xtravagant’s first crop and was bred and sold by Newhaven Park.

Another 3-year-old, the Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young-trained gelding He’s Xceptional, has won two races, including the Listed McKenzie S. at The Valley, while Tony and Calvin McEvoy’s 2-year-old Xtravagant Star was successful on debut at Geelong, before taking out the R. Listed Inglis Millennium at Randwick.

“When you get horses with the class of Lavish Girl, Xtravagant Star and He’s Xceptional… they’re winning the big autumn races in Sydney and Melbourne; that’s what good stallions need to do, and he’s started out on that path,” Kelly explained.

“We know he’s got a long way to go, but we feel that he’s pretty promising.

“His winners-to-runners ratio is very good and where he sits on the table of second-season sires indicates he’s going well.”

And the Bob and Sandra Peters-owned 3-year-old Devoted was a Northam winner at his first time at the races, and has since run third in the G2 WA Guineas.

Xtravagant currently sits fourth on the second-season sires' list, with earnings in excess of $2.4 million.