Always back the horse named self-interest, son. It'll be the only one trying
It was only a few years back that the leading stud Alabar paid a reputed $2 million to secure the southern hemisphere stallion rights to Ride High, the then boom pacer who had won just a single Group 1. The plan of course was to turn the super fast pacer into a super sire. It […]
The Bettors Delight x Smart Dreaming colt sold for $340 000 yesterday at the Christchurch sale set a record price for a yearling buy in either NZ or Australia, and was $80 000 more than the All Stars paid for its full brother Don’t Stop Dreaming in 2021. But what sort of bargains does it […]
The record price of $340 000 paid by the TAB Racing Club for the Bettors Delight x Smart Dreaming full brother to Don’t Stop Dreaming that set the yearling sales ring alight in Christchurch yesterday has made us wonder what happened to the top priced lots from the NZ sales over previous years. Here’s a […]
There was one unsold yearling at the Christchurch sale today that should have been snapped up in an instant, and would have been if the NZB auctioneers had done their form and spruiked it right from the lectern. It’s lot 175, a well conformed colt by Art Major out of the Bettors Delight mare Hannah […]
The first day of the NZB Standarbred yearling sales has just ended at Christchurch, and the most striking thing to come out of it has been the massive number of lots that were passed in. By my quick count there were 122 lots for sale in the draft today. 53 of them didn’t reach their […]
Lot 188 – Bay colt Bettors Delight x Idolise This little bloke is by the champion sire out of U4 Jessie Pepper family, which in my view is the best female line in the business. Recent superstars members of the family include King of Swing, Test of Faith, Belle of Montana, Bettor Twist, Father Patrick, […]
A major scandal has erupted at the NZB Standardbred Yearling Sales in Christchurch involving a yearling, a leading breeder, a prominent South Island trainer, the biggest owner in New Zealand, and a mendacious dummy bid strategy to scheme him. The leading owner is Steve Stockman, the proprietor of Stonewall Stud (pictured sitting exactly where the […]
Lot 157 – Black colt Bettors Delight x Galleons Cheer A gorgeous looking colt (see picture above) by the greatest sire of the modern era, out of the female family of the greatest Kiwi pacer ever Cardigan Bay. More recent members of the clan include Hands Down, Duke of Cornwall, Glenferrie Hood, Franco Nelson, and […]
Lot 131 – Bay colt Downbytheseaside x Delicata A half sister to Chase Auckland by a son of Somebeachsomewhere who set world record times and was US 3yo of the Year. The N22 dam-side family runs deep, with 584 individual black type winners including old school champions Christian Cullen,Rip Van Winkle, Don’t Retreat, Welcome Advice, […]
Buyer at sales of either equine racing breed should take firm notice of what O’Brien has to say, for he knows. Double check your shortlist buyers at Christchurch today. Make sure that your selections match the Irish genius’s criteria. Summing up his views on breeding, O’Brien says: “When you train horses and work with them […]
