Cover image courtesy of Georgia Young Photography
Proxima Dea (Tarzino {NZ}) took her unbeaten record to five wins, adding a Group 1 victory to her record when victorious in Saturday’s G1 Spring Champion Stakes. She looks a strong chance to extend her tally in the coming weeks in the G1 Victorian Oaks.
A full sister to G1 Queensland Oaks victress Gypsy Goddess (NZ), Proxima Dea was bred by Transtasman Breeders and offered by North Bloodstock at the 2025 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale.
On the buyer’s sheet, Proxima Dea was purchased for $300,000 by Ciaron Maher Bloodstock however, the sale fell through later when Maher couldn’t on-sell shares in her, and her breeders took her back.
“She had plenty of interest (at the sales). Ciaron Maher and his group liked her because they are obviously horse people and they could see she was a stayer,” North Bloodstock’s Mick Malone said.
“I spoke to Ciaron and they were pretty keen on it. I told them what the reserve was going to be, and they were happy with that. I said the owner might keep some whack of it.
Mick Malone | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“As it turned out, they didn't sell down enough (of her post-sale), and by then the owners were pretty excited about her, as she'd had a couple of preps at Ballarat. They'd had a bit of luck with Montefilia with David (Payne), so they moved her there. It was all very amicable, and everyone was happy, and no problem.”
An ugly ducking, or just misunderstood?
Trainer David Payne won the 2020 G1 Spring Champion Stakes with Montefilia (Kermadec {NZ}), who was coming off a last start win in the G1 Flight Stakes that year. She was raced by Caroline Vincent, Kathlyn Docherty and Leanne Paligorov. Vincent features in Proxima Dea’s ownership alongside Hugh Docherty and Andy Giles.
“She was very immature. A light little filly,” trainer David Payne said of Proximea Dea.
“She's nothing to look at, to be honest. She's still very immature. She will develop a little bit more, but she's never going to be a big strong horse. She hasn't got the frame (to be strong).
“She's got everything else. She's got the action and the will to win. She surprised me along the way, and it's been a nice surprise.”
“She's (Proxima Dea) got everything else. She's got the action and the will to win. She surprised me along the way, and it's been a nice surprise.” - David Payne
David Payne | Image courtesy of The Image is Everything
Proxima Dea began her career winning a Randwick 2-year-old race over 1400 metres in July, before adding a win over a mile at Gosford, then over 1800 metres at Rosehill, both in August.
Given a short let-up, she returned in October to win the G3 Gloaming Stakes before Saturday’s G1 Spring Champion Stakes over 2000 metres.
Proxima Dea | Image courtesy of Inglis
Payne has won the Spring Champion Stakes twice before with Montefilia, who went on to add two more Group 1 races as an older mare, and Ace High who won the G1 VRC Derby at his next start. He placed in the G1 Australian Derby in the autumn and won the G2 Hill Stakes at four, as well as running fourth to Winx (Street Cry {Ire}) in the G1 George Main Stakes. He now stands at stud in New Zealand.
The South African connection at the sales
A lunch at the Magic Millions carnival one January introduced Vincent and her husband Richard Kurland to several people who had small shareholdings in horses, and this lunch began their journey from racing fan to racing owner. With friend Hugh Docherty, they put together a short list for the sale.
“We did our homework. We wanted a staying horse to run in the Melbourne Cup. It was a pipe dream,” Kurland said. He, like Payne, moved here from South Africa.
“We did our homework. We wanted a staying horse to run in the Melbourne Cup. It was a pipe dream.” - Vincent Kurland
“On our list was a filly who we felt was a bit special, and we went to our trainer and asked what he thought, and he said the horse was no good. We knew no one else in racing, but we looked around and saw David Payne who was fairly legendary in South Africa.
“He looks at the horse, he comes back, he says, all right. I said, I've only got $100,000 to spend. He bid on her and she got knocked down for $130,000, and then she went on to win four Group 1 races.”
Montefilia | Image courtesy of Sportpix
Montefilia earned $4.5 million from her seven victories, and was sold at the 2023 Inglis Chairman’s Sale to Yulong for $3.4 million.
Redoute's Choice makes another wonderful broodmare
Both Proxima Dea and Gypsy Goddess are out of the unraced Redoute's Choice mare Invisible Coin, who has left six winners in total, also including the four-time winner and Listed-placed Bitcoin (NZ) (Tarzino {NZ}). Carolyn Vincent paid NZ$7000 for Invisible Coin via Gavelhouse Online in 2020.
“With the money we earned (from the Flight and Spring Champion), we went to Gavelhouse and bought a few mares. We decided we would be the masters of our destiny and breed stayers, rather than buy at the sales,” Kurland said.
“Gypsy Goddess was a foal at that stage. She went on to perform and even her (Invisible Coin's) foal called Bitcoin has won over hurdles. It was obvious we were into a nice staying family. Gypsy Goddess was doing well, so we thought why not try and replicate her.
“She went on to perform and even her (Invisible Coin's) foal called Bitcoin has won over hurdles. It was obvious we were into a nice staying family.” - Vincent Kurland
“Tarzino is a magnificent looking stallion. And once she was in foal, we brought her back to North Bloodstock. But the mare wasn’t doing well, so Proxima Dea ended up on a harness horse as a nanny mare. She was rather small.”
Gypsy Goddess | Image courtesy of Trackside Photography
It’s the only indication that Kurland gives about Proxima Dea’s much debated physical type.
“I'm a student of Latin, so I named her. It means The Next Goddess, not another goddess like I’ve seen in some places,” Kurland said.
“David Payne is a master programmer. He keeps his horses nice and fit and sound and doesn’t overdo it with them. She’ll have a nice long rest after the Oaks and then the autumn carnival, and as Zac Lloyd said, the world is her oyster.
“If we don’t become too adventurous programming-wise, she can extend her winning run. The best is still to come as she is so lightly framed. She can carry herself, without pressure and without overwork for a fair period of time.”
After Gypsy Goddess won the Queensland Oaks, Invisible Coin was put through an Inglis Digital Sale in July 2025 where Paul Willetts Bloodstock paid $200,000 for her. She’s now based at Three Bridges Farm in Victoria where she’s had a yearling colt by Anamoe and delivered a Cylinder colt in September.
Invisible Coin | Image courtesy of Inglis
Invisible Coin is a full sister to the Group 1 winner Cheeky Choice (Redoute's Choice) and is related to the Listed-winning sprinter Blondeau (I Am Invincible).
“The only one word to describe it is unbelievable. Because you have two favourites for the Oaks, like we had with Montefilia and now with Proxima Dea with our small broodmare band,” Kurland said.
The choice to breed stayers has always been a deliberate, targeted plan for Vincent and Kurland.
“We only breed five or six mares a year to race for ourselves. The value (in stayers) is there for the world to see, but somehow they don't want to. But that's good for us because our few horses are there in the staying races.
“It is unbelievable that it can happen to us twice.
“To have two horses, who are very similar, comes from planning. I don't think that's a coincidence.”
The opposing opinion on type
North Bloodstock’s Mick Malone concedes that Proxima Dea didn’t have the prettiest head as a young horse, but otherwise he had no complaints about her type.
“She had a head that looked like it should be on a bigger horse, but there was no point where we thought she was ugly or didn’t like her,” Malone said.
“Everyone keeps saying she’s ugly and I just don't get it. She was a really nice foal, then she went through a bit of an ugly weanling stage like many do, but when she went to the sales, she was a beauty.
“Everyone keeps saying she’s (Proxima Dea) ugly and I just don't get it. She was a really nice foal... but when she went to the sales, she was a beauty.” - Mick Malone
“She was everything her pedigree was. She looked like a filly that was going to take a bit of time and get over a trip. As soon as you breed a horse that looks like it might take longer than the Magic Millions 2YO Classic or the Golden Slipper, they all want to bag it and say, it’s immature or backwards.”
Proxima Dea | Image courtesy of Inglis
Her sire Tarzino (NZ) won the G1 VRC Derby and he’s the sire of 10 stakes winners, four at Group 1 level including Proxima Dea’s full sister Gypsy Goddess. Willydoit (NZ) won the 2025 G1 New Zealand Derby, while Jungle Magnate (NZ) won the G1 South Australian Derby.
“She was definitely not a Snitzel type or a Fastnet Rock looking horse, but nor should she be. She looked exactly what her breed was, with a beautiful action. She had the best attitude. I do a bit on the treadmill with them (during yearling preparations), and her stats on the treadmill from her heart rate were awesome.
“Amazingly, she won at two, which was bloody amazing. Class horses, they're just fast, they're just good, and they’ve got heart.
“I went through all my old updates on her and my last update was, ‘She's exactly what her pedigree says she should be, but she's actually extremely athletic, quite light on her feet, and you just wouldn't know what she'll do.’ That's exactly what I said pre-sale.
“She always had this really great attitude, just ate, loved life.”
North is building a solid record
From the same draft as Proxima Dea came 3-year-old colt Zafar (Snitzel), who won the Listed Champagne Stakes on debut in New Zealand.
“We've been running three years, and we've had her and Ole Dancer and King Of Pop,” Malone said. Ole Dancer (Ole Kirk) won last spring’s G1 1000 Guineas, while King Of Pop (Farnan) won the G3 Black Opal at his second start.
“In the same race, we had Scarole. He did a lot wrong early, but he's a good horse. Ciaron loves him, says he’s a pig but he just works him hard, and he might go to the Derby.”
Ole Dancer | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Scarole (Ole Kirk) was sold at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale for $160,000 to Ciaron Maher Racing and Flying Start Syndications. He ran sixth in the G1 Spring Champion Stakes, having run third the start prior to Proxima Dea in the G3 Gloaming Stakes.
“At the same meeting, we had another horse Punxsutawney Phil who ran second in the Listed race and was unbeaten before that. We've got some nice horses coming through, and with the 2-year-olds, we're getting good feedback, so I'm happy with the way we're raising them.
“I said when I bought North that I would give up if I don't breed Group winners off this country. If Kitchwin can do it, this farm can do it, just the shape of it, the trees, the hills that we run them on, it just feels right.
“I said when I bought North that I would give up if I don't breed Group winners off this country. If Kitchwin can do it, this farm can do it.” - Mick Malone
“Environment is so important, and then you do what you've always done and hope to get results.”
Scarole | Image courtesy of Racing Photos
Raising an unbeaten Group 1 winner certainly points to something good in the grass at North Bloodstock. The jury might be out on whether she’s an ugly duckling or has always been a beautiful swan in disguise, but one thing is for sure. She has passed the one test that truly matters. The winning post.
