Cover image courtesy of Waikato Stud
The world-renowned operation was named Sir Patrick and Justine Lady Hogan New Zealand Breeder of the Year, collecting the Kiwi breeding industry’s supreme award for an extraordinary tenth time.
Their headline act was homebred hero I Wish I Win (NZ) (Savabeel), who races in the Waikato Stud colours and won four of his seven starts this season including the G1 TJ Smith S. and the $10 million Golden Eagle. The exciting 4-year-old also finished second in the G1 Lightning S. and third in the G1 Newmarket H.
Other notable Waikato Stud graduates this season included G1 Australian Derby victor Major Beel (NZ) (Savabeel), G1 Empire Rose S. winner Icebath (NZ) (Sacred Falls {NZ}) and G1 Queen of the Turf S. heroine Atishu (NZ) (Savabeel).
Legendary Waikato Stud stallion Savabeel also spent plenty of time in Saturday night’s spotlight, claiming his eighth Centaine Award (for worldwide progeny earnings) and seventh Dewar Award (for combined Australian and New Zealand progeny earnings).
Savabeel | Standing at Waikato Stud
Savabeel sits in third place on the Australian sires’ premiership this season, with 95 winners from 182 runners, eight individual stakes winners and total earnings of $18.35 million – trailing only I Am Invincible ($22.9 million) and So You Think (NZ) ($18.8 million).
Waikato Stud principal Mark Chittick was joined on stage by members of his family, and he described the landmark season as a team effort.
“Waikato Stud is a big family and a big group,” he said. “It takes a whole community to run it and to get the results. I’d love to have everyone (from the stud) up here on stage. It is such an incredible night. Everybody puts in a huge effort, and we appreciate it immensely. It’s been a great year.”
Harry, Pippa, Mark, Garry and Mary Chittick of Waikato Stud at the Property Brokers National Thoroughbred Breeding Awards on Saturday | Image courtesy of Christine Dawkins
Proisir’s rise to prominence
While Savabeel continued his dominance of the Centaine and Dewar Awards, he was denied a ninth consecutive Grosvenor Award for champion New Zealand sire. That honour instead went to the new kid on the block, Proisir.
The Rich Hill Stud sensation had a record-breaking season, becoming the first sire in history to have total New Zealand progeny earnings in excess of NZ$4 million. His current total is NZ$4,151,650, which has him well clear of the second-placed Savabeel’s NZ$2,668,235.
Proisir | Standing at Rich Hill Stud
Proisir’s 47 winners from 89 runners on New Zealand racetracks included eight individual stakes winners, who between them recorded 15 wins at black-type level.
Proisir sired no fewer than five Group 1 winners during the 2022/23 season – Dark Destroyer (NZ), Pier (NZ), Legarto (NZ), Levante (NZ) and Prowess (NZ). Both Legarto and Prowess replicated their Group 1 feats in Australia, winning the Australian Guineas and Vinery Stud S. respectively.
Hong Kong star named Horse of the Year
The Seton Otway Horse of the Year was the superstar Hong Kong sprinter Lucky Sweynesse (NZ) (Sweynesse), whose dam Madonna Mia (NZ) (Red Clubs {Ire}) was named Eight Carat Broodmare of the Year.
Lucky Sweynesse began the season as a highly promising winner of five of his seven starts, but yet to be tested at stakes level. His 4-year-old season marked a rapid rise through the ranks, culminating in a share of third place on the Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings.
From 10 starts this season, Lucky Sweynesse recorded eight wins – equalling the all-time record for a season in Hong Kong.
One of Lucky Sweynesse’s only defeats came in the G1 Hong Kong Sprint in December, where he was hopelessly blocked in the straight and finished a luckless sixth in his first attempt at the elite level. But he soon set that record straight, putting together a sparkling treble in the G1 Centenary Sprint Cup, Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup and Chairman’s Sprint Prize. Those three races make up Hong Kong’s Speed Series, and Lucky Sweynesse became the first horse to sweep all three since the great Silent Witness (El Moxie {USA}) in 2005.
A son of Novara Park stallion Sweynesse, Lucky Sweynesse was bred by Novara Park principal Luigi Muollo in partnership with Paul Dombroski and Allan Sharrock.
Muollo was represented at Saturday’s awards by Don Edwards, who reported that Madonna Mia is again in foal to Sweynesse and will be going to Savabeel in the upcoming season.
A season of Australian excellence
The huge haul of New Zealand-bred Group 1 successes during the 2022/23 season was underpinned by a remarkable run of results on an Australian stage that is more lucrative and competitive than ever.
Of the 75 races run at Group 1 level in Australia this season, 21 were won by New Zealand-breds. That works out as a success rate of just over 28 per cent, despite making up only eight per cent of Australia’s racehorse population.
Those Australian Group 1 heroics came across the full spectrum of ages and distances.
Militarize (NZ) (Dundeel {NZ}) made his mark in 2-year-old ranks, winning the ATC G1 Sires’ Produce S. and Champagne S., while no fewer than nine Kiwi-bred 3-year-olds won at the elite level in Australia – Affaire A Suivre (NZ) (Astern), Dunkel (NZ) (Dundeel {NZ}), Kovalica (NZ) (Ocean Park {NZ}), Legarto, Major Beel, Pennyweka (NZ) (Satono Aladdin {Jpn}), Prowess, Ruthless Dame (NZ) (Tavistock {NZ}) and Sharp ‘N’ Smart (NZ) (Redwood {GB}).
Gallery: A selection of New Zealand-bred stars who won at Group 1 level in Australia this season.
I Wish I Win and Roch ‘N’ Horse (NZ) (Per Incanto {USA}) won elite sprint races, while Mr Brightside (NZ) (Bullbars) was a headline act among milers with a defence of his G1 Doncaster H. crown.
New Zealand-breds typically come into their own over staying distances, and Explosive Jack (NZ) (Jakkalberry {Ire}) and No Compromise (NZ) (Pins) held up that end of the bargain with their victories in the Sydney Cup and Metropolitan H. respectively.
Many of those successes came courtesy of Waikato Stud, including a rare TJ Smith S. and Australian Derby double on the opening day of The Championships at Randwick with I Wish I Win and Major Beel.
“When we see the outstanding results of these horses on the big screen tonight, and there are horses from all over the country and breeders from all over the country, it is very heartening,” Mark Chittick said.
“When we see the outstanding results of these horses on the big screen tonight, and there are horses from all over the country and breeders from all over the country, it is very heartening.” - Mark Chittick
“I know how much we enjoy and get carried away about winning any race, let alone Group 1 races, and I hope everybody else is as proud of breeding horses like that as we certainly are.
“Seeing New Zealand-breds winning Doncasters, Derbys and Oaks as well as Group 1-winning 2-year-olds and sprints – man, New Zealand is bloody good at it (breeding thoroughbred racehorses) and we should be really, really proud.”
Jeffries honoured for Group 1 pair
The New Zealand Small Breeder of the Year award is restricted to breeders with a broodmare band of five or fewer, and Warwick Jeffries was an unsurprising winner after producing two Group 1 winners during the season.
The Tauranga breeder made an impact in early spring, with Dark Destroyer landing the season-opening G1 Tarzino Trophy at Hastings. But the best was yet to come from 3-year-old filly Legarto.
Warwick Jeffries, flanked by his family, received the New Zealand Small Breeder of the Year Award from Novara Park’s Don Edwards at the Property Brokers National Thoroughbred Breeding Awards on Saturday | Image courtesy of Christine Dawkins
Trained by Ken and Bev Kelso, Legarto won five of her six starts during the season. Her four black-type successes included a 5l romp in the G1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas, followed up in the autumn by a breathtaking late charge to capture the G1 Australian Guineas at Flemington.
Jeffries had no hesitation in naming the latter as his highlight of the season.
“Just like Ken Kelso, we were really proud of her and thought she’d run a good race, couldn’t get out and she was going to be running fourth or fifth,” he said. “That last 100 metres was just, ‘Holy heck!’ My heart was racing. I don’t know how she did it, but she’s outstanding.”
Brad Molander won the Mary Lynne Ryan Young Achiever award, while Rich Hill Stud principal and New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association president John Thompson was named the NZTBA Personality of the Year.
