New Zealand weekly breeding round up

Once again, we highlight some of the harness racing breeding successes from around the country for the week ending the 4^th of September.

Leading Pacing Sire: Captaintreacherous, Bettor’s Delight, Art Major | 3 winners

Leading Trotting Sire: Dream Vacation & Majestic Son | 2 winners

Leading Pacing Broodmare Sire: American Ideal, Christian Cullen, Bettor’s Delight | 2 winners

Leading Trotting Broodmare Sire: Sundon | 5 winners

Leading Breeder: Woodlands Stud NZ

Another big weekend on the breeding front for the countries leading breeder with three winners coming across three different meetings all from their resident stallions.

Kicking things off was My Copy (Highview Tommy) in the last race of the card at Alexandra Park on Thursday.

The three-year-old son of Highview Tommy is a half brother to New Zealand Cup winning pacer, Copy That, being out of the Live Or Die mare, Lively Nights.

It was his first race day win at just his fourth attempt and the manner in which he staved off the opposition after leading up in the 2200m affair suggested it won’t be his last.

Having purchased his older half-brother for just $4000 from the national weanling sale at Karaka, owner Debbie Green followed the same script in securing My Copy out of the Woodlands Stud draft for just $3000 in 2019.

Magic Four (Bettor’s Delight) won his second race in as many starts from his Woodend Beach base at Addington Raceway on Friday night.

MAGIC FOUR REPLAY

He was able to work forward off the mobile and find the lead where he rattled off a very tidy 1:56.3-mile rate for the 1980m journey proving far too good for his opposition.

It was the gelding’s fourth win from just 14 starts. His Mach Three dam, Caribbean Blue, has now produced four foals, all winners, with 25 wins and 37 placings for over a quarter million dollars in stakes.

Last but not least was the debutant, Sirius (Sweet Lou), who on the back of some tidy trial form was sent out the odds-on favourite in the first on the card at Ashburton on Sunday.

Camping off the speed early, the three-year-old son of Sweet Lou was set alight by Sarah O’Reilly down the back straight to get outside the leader and grind his opposition into the dust, racing away to win by two and a half lengths.

Sirius is the final foal from Fake Left mare, Star Empress, who has also produced the well-performed American Ideal mare, American Empress. The winner of 20 races was twice Group One placed in New Zealand before being exported to North America where she has since clocked a 1:51 mile rate and racked up over $300,000 in stakes.

His half-sister Steel The Light (Falcon Seelster) is also the dam of Cup Class pacer, Steel The Show, and up-and-coming three-year-old filly, Lady of The Light, both of whom are by Bettor’s Delight.

18: The number of breeders in the ownership of winners from the 35 races around the country last week in New Zealand.

4: The number of siring quinellas across the weekend.

Champion sire Bettor’s Delight bred the quinella in the 4^th on the card at Alexandra Park when Advance Party was able to come from three the fence and down Kahlua Flybye in a new New Zealand record for two-year-old fillies in her race debut over the 1700m. She is the third winner in as many foals from former glamour pacer, Democrat Party (American Ideal), and looks set to follow in the footsteps of her talented siblings.

Muscle Hill bred the quinella in the next race on the card at Alexandra Park when Rain Mist And Muscle and Sacred Mountain went to war up the stretch with the latter prevailing by the barest of margins. Incredibly it was Muscle Hill’s 18^th winner on the season from just 29 starters.

Father Patrick continued his superb year as the countries leading sire of two-year-old trotting winners when he sires the quinella in the two-year-old trot at Ashburton.

Gold Bullion, the first foal from the countries leading trotting mare in Gold Chain, was able to come from back in the field to down another debutant in The Ivy League who is the first foal from Group One-winning mare, Habibti Ivy.

GOLD BULLION REPLAY

The countries leading trotting sire, Majestic Son, produced the quinella in race eight at Ashburton when Sassy Star and Tres Magnafique fought out the finish.

After leading up from the mile marker, Sassy Star was far too strong for the opposition taking her record to two wins from 14 race day starts.

1: The number of breeder, owner, trained and driven winners over the weekend.

Usually, a milestone reserved for the legendary Waikato horseman, Luk Chin, Ben Hope was able to register his second success of this unique accomplishment at Ashburton on Sunday with his debutant trotter, Latrell (Dream Vacation).

Latrell is the second foal out of the Love You mare, Unyielding Spirit, who is owned by the popular young Canterbury horseman.

Chin was only half a neck away from adding to his own tally of breeder, owner, trained and driven winners on Thursday night with Voronov (Orlando Vici). He was edged out by another runner which he bred, owns, and trains with Sean McAffrey doing the driving behind bonny mare Safrakova (Monarchy).

16: The number of foals produced by the 2013/14 New Zealand Broodmare of the Year, Love To Live.

Remarkably the daughter of Live Or Die has produced all 16 of her live foals by 16 different sires, which include three-time New Zealand Cup winner Terror To Love, and Sunday’s Ashburton winner, Tower Of Love (Johny Rock).

She, unfortunately, slipped in 2018 to Western Terror in what would have produced a full brother or sister to Terror To Love, however it wasn’t to be.

5: The number of winners sired by New Zealand-bred colonial sires over the weekend.

Auckland Reactor (2), Changeover, Stunin Cullen, and Highview Tommy were all victorious as sires flying the flag of the New Zealand breed.

Glamour pacer and now dual hemisphere sire Lazarus is making a good fist of doing the same in North America with the son of Bettor’s Delight now up to 26 winners from his debut crop.

He currently sits in 9^th on the USTA 2yo sires’ ladder by earnings.

by Brad Reid, for Harnesslink