Sale-topper breaks his maiden
The 3-year-old Capitalist colt Capital Theatre, a son of the Casino Prince mare Theatric, broke his maiden on Tuesday at Newcastle for Team Hawkes and jockey Joshua Parr. It was the colt’s fourth start, backing up two previous placings at Newcastle and Kembla Grange.
Capital Theatre was bred by Richard McClenahan and sold by Kitchwin Hills at the 2021 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale. He proved a sensational sale-topper when selling for $625,000 to George Moore Bloodstock and Team Moore Racing in Hong Kong.
Capital Theatre winning at Newcastle | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
He is from the Pierata family through his third dam November Song (NZ) (Zabeel {NZ}), which also includes the G3 Skyline S. winner Ashokan (More Than Ready {USA}).
Raceday double for Capitalist
Off the back of Capital Theatre’s maiden win at Newcastle, Capitalist filly Euros, a daughter of the Duporth mare Gone To Paris, gave the Newgate stallion a tidy raceday double on Tuesday. Euros was a maiden winner at the third time of asking.
The 3-year-old filly was a $300,000 yearling at the 2021 Inglis Classic Sale when sold by Highgrove Stud to B K Racing and Breeding, in whose colours she has raced through her three lifetime starts. She is closely related to the multiple times stakes-placed filly Aristocratic Miss (Foxwedge).
Te Akau stranglehold on Karaka Million
The last six winners of New Zealand’s richest 2-year-old race, the Karaka Million 2YO, have emerged from the Te Akau Racing stable, and the David Ellis-owned operation is looking good to continue that grip in 2023 with the stable, now in the hands of trainer Mark Walker, parked in the top two spots on the race's order of entry.
Rhetorical (NZ) (Snitzel) is there alongside Viva Vienna (NZ) (All Too Hard). The former is a back-to-back winner with a third place in stakes company, while the latter was a dominant winner at Te Rapa on November 5.
David Ellis
The 2023 R. Listed Karaka Million 2YO will occur on January 23, and this weekend could change the order of entry significantly with the Listed Challenge S. at Pukekohe on Saturday.
Legarto looks to Karaka Million 3YO
Last Saturday’s G1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas winner, the undefeated filly Legarto (NZ) (Proisir), has been pointed at the R. Listed Karaka Million 3YO on January 23. Her Guineas victory on Monday made it four straight wins on the trot for the filly when she charged home to win by 4.75l.
“She’s eligible for the Karaka Million (3YO), so that’s a good target to work towards,” said her co-trainer, Ken Kelso. “We’ll get her home now, give her a break and then get her ready for the Karaka Million 3YO.
Legarto was a NZ$90,000 yearling purchase for Ancroft Stud from the Book 2 draft of Highline Thoroughbreds at the 2021 New Zealand Bloodstock Premier Yearling Sale.
Letzbeglam returns
Cambridge Stud’s G2 Blue Diamond Prelude (Fillies) winner Letzbeglam, a daughter of Snitzel, is bidding to add to her black-type record this weekend at Pukekohe in the G3 Counties Bowl over 1100 metres. It will be the first time the 5-year-old mare has been seen since her unplaced run in the G2 Dane Ripper at Eagle Farm in June.
“She spelled in Queensland and then we brought her home,” said trainer Lance Noble. “Instead of putting her in foal, the decision was made to keep her in work and I’m glad because she’s come up really well. She’s had a couple of trials and gone really nicely, and I think she’s in pretty good nick to go boldly fresh-up.”
Letzbeglam winning the G2 Blue Diamond Prelude (Fillies) | Image courtesy of Bruno Cannatelli
Possible future options for Letzbeglam this season include the G1 Railway S. at Te Rapa on New Year’s Day.
Pike for The Astrologist
Leading light William Pike, recently returned to Western Australia after a stint on the east coast, has been confirmed for the 6-year-old gelding The Astrologist (Zoustar) in the G1 Winterbottom S. at Ascot on November 26. The Astrologist is trained by Leon and Troy Corstens at Flemington, and he also holds an entry for the 1400-metre G3 The Gold Rush on December 10.
The gelding was last seen when sixth behind Roch ‘N’ Horse (NZ) (Per Incanto {USA}) in the G1 Champions Sprint on the final day of the Cup carnival, and this season his best effort has been a third to Argentia (Frankel {GB}) in the G3 Rising Fast S. on October 29.
Bowman cleared for first HK meeting
Sydney jockey Hugh Bowman arrived in Hong Kong last Sunday for a stint with the Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC), but after a family member contracted COVID-19, the star rider was forced into mandatory isolation and will miss his first scheduled meeting on Wednesday night at Happy Valley.
However, according to a statement from the HKJC, Bowman has been cleared to ride at this Sunday’s Sha Tin meeting, which features a pair of Group 2 features in the lead-up to next month’s Hong Kong International Races.
Hugh Bowman | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
“The HKJC has been informed that the Department of Health has terminated the isolation order issued to jockey Hugh Bowman’s family member yesterday that caused the jockey to be categorised as a close contact,” the statement read. “Accordingly, jockey Bowman will attend trackwork from Wednesday and be able to be declared for rides at the race meeting to be conducted on Sunday, November 20.”
Forsman keen at Karaka
Trainer Andrew Forsman is hoping that this week’s New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run Sale, arguably the best Group 1-performing of all breeze-up sales worldwide, will unearth new future stars for his Cambridge stable. The sale has previously delivered him the likes of Mongolian Khan, a son of Holy Roman Emperor (Ire), and Turn Me Loose (NZ).
“There are a lot of quality horses here this year and we’re lucky at Cambridge that a lot of them are prepared at the track, so we have the advantage of seeing how they behave in the build-up to the sale,” Forsman said, as reported by Racing.com. "We definitely give the most value to type and pedigree and I think then you can be a little bit forgiving on their breeze-up. You just have to read into it a little bit.”
Andrew Forsman
Forsman has enjoyed excellent success this season so far in Australia with Mr Maestro (NZ) (Savabeel), a winner of the Listed Super Impose and G3 Caulfield Classic, while She’s Licketysplit (NZ) (Turn Me Loose {NZ}) won the G2 Edward Manifold S. before her third in the G1 Thousand Guineas.
Tassort fillies retained by Emirates
Emirates Park has revealed it will retain some of its well-bred fillies in support of its sire Tassort, who is serving his third book of mares this spring in partnership with Newgate Farm. Emirates Park General Manager Bryan Carlson said it was a show of support by the stud’s principals, Hussein and Nasser Lootah.
“By keeping these beautiful fillies we’ll give him (Tassort) every chance,” Carlson said. “We’ll spread them around with the top trainers in Sydney and Melbourne. These types are very forward, quality-types of fillies.”
Tassort | Standing at Newgate Farm
Tassort’s first yearlings will hit the sale ring this January, with the 2023 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale offering eight by the stallion from vendors Kingstar Farm, Fernrigg, Sledmere, Newgate, Telemon Thoroughbreds, Alexia Fraser Bloodstock and Noble Bend Farm.
Carif retired
The 7-year-old gelding Carif, a Think Big Stud-bred son of So You Think (NZ) from the Thorn Park dual Group 1 winner Norzita (NZ), has been retired. In a 47-race career that started at Hawkesbury in 2018 and finished with an unplaced run behind Soulcombe (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in the G3 Queen Elizabeth S. at Flemington 10 days ago, Carif won three races and was placed 10 times for over $800,000 in prizemoney.
The gelding’s sole black-type victory was in the Listed Sandown Cup in 2020, but he was Group-placed on multiple occasions for co-trainers Peter and Paul Snowden.
Sunline Trust Scholarship opens
New Zealand Thoroughbred Marketing (NZTM) has opened applications for the 2023 Sunline Trust International Management Scholarship, which was established some 20 years ago by the New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association (NZTBA) to send one motivated young person on a knowledge and skill-set learning experience each year.
Last year, owing to COVID, the scholarship was not awarded, and next year’s scholarship, which usually sends the successful applicant to Ireland, England and America, will not include America owing to border controls.
Applicants for the scholarship must be under 30 years of age, be motivated and have a strong general knowledge of the thoroughbred industry, and the successful applicant will be bound to work in New Zealand for 12 months on return. Applications with a covering letter and CV can be emailed to nztba@nzthoroughbred.co.nz by 5pm NZT on Sunday November 27.
Saxon Warrior leads the way at Goffs November Foal Sale
Helped in no small part by the success of Victoria Road (Ire) at the Breeders' Cup, the progeny of Saxon Warrior (Jpn) played a starring role on Day 1 of the November Foal Sale at Goffs on Monday.
Not only did Saxon Warrior top the session when Ballyhimikin Stud signed for a colt drafted by Kildallan Farm for €88,000 (AU$135,600), but the Coolmore Stud shuttler was also responsible for three of the top four foals on the day.
The second most expensive Saxon Warrior through the ring on the day was a colt from Collegelands Stud who was knocked down to KCS Bloodstock for €65,000 (AU$100,100).
The overall trade was also strong. The aggregate was up 3 per cent to €3,529,000 (AU$5,436,800) and the average also rose 6 per cent to €20,399 (AU$31,400) while the median fell by 3 per cent to €15,000 (AU$23,100).
Payne stallion for Iran
Michelle Payne’s Frankel (GB) 4-year-old Serlik, who never made it to the track, is on his way to Iran for owner Sardar Azmoun, reports Racing.com. The horse, who won an 800-metre barrier trial in 2021, will stand at his owner’s burgeoning stud farm.
“He (Azmoun) has built beautiful stables in Iran, has really good systems over there for his breeding and is really into it,” Payne said. “He’s excited to get him (Serlik) over there.”
Serlik as a yearling | Image courtesy of Inglis
Azmoun was recently named in the Iran squad for the upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar but landed himself in hot water over comments about the death of activist Mahsa Amini.
Kilner ambitions to ride again
In a short feature with Ladbrokes, stricken jockey Leah Kilner, whose race fall at Grafton in July left her with serious, life-altering injuries, has admitted she still has ambitions to ride at a competitive level. Kilner has to wait two years for any medical approval to return to the jockey ranks, but she’s hopeful it will happen eventually.
“Her recovery is exemplified by this positiveness,” said Kilner’s former boss, trainer Robert Heathcote. “This attitude that I’m going to get better and I’m fine. I’ve seen Leah break down a couple of times in moments of sadness, but there’s that attitude that I know she’ll be back. They’re not going to keep her down.”
