Magnum, ridden by Danielle Johnson, staves off the late challenges by Ruby Armani and Shadows Cast to win the Listed 1400m sprint at Awapuni last Saturday.
Former Singapore galloper Magnum, part-owned by Havelock North's Jason Fleming, opened his winning account in New Zealand with a stakes success at Awapuni last Saturday.
The New Zealand-bred son of Per Incanto was too good for his sprinting rivals in the Listed $50,000 Bramco Granite & Marble Flying Handicap (1400m) and his connections are now keen to step the 5-year-old up in distance.
"I think a mile will be his go," trainer Lauren Brennan said. "We're looking at the Easter Handicap."
The Group 2 $100,000 Manco Easter Handicap will be run over 1600m at Pukekohe on April 21.
Bred by the Little Avondale Trust, Magnum was offered by the Masterton-based stud at the 2014 Premier Sale and sold for $100,000, with studmaster Sam Williams retaining a share. He is now one of eight people racing the horse, with Fleming and prominent bloodstock agent Michael Wallace among the other shareholders.
The horse was originally in Brennan's Cambridge stable and won three trials before he transferred to the Kranji operation of Michael Freedman.
He was successful three times for Freedman and, when he decided to return to Sydney, the gelding was taken over by Englishman James Peters who won a further race with him.
Joint issues resulted in Magnum returning home to his birthplace at Little Avondale Stud for a good break before Brennan took charge of the 5-year-old again.
"It's like he's never been away," she said. "He's got the best temperament in the world. He's the coolest horse to have around and he's got a great mind. We're rapt with him."
Magnum pleased connections with his resuming effort for second over 1200m at Ellerslie in February and, while then unplaced in the Group 3 Darley Stallions Plate (1200m) there at his next start, he didn't disappoint.
"He got well back and hit the line strongly that day," Brennan said
Magnum was ridden close to the pace by Danielle Johnson at Awapuni and, after hitting the front early in the run home, he staved off the late challenges by Ruby Armani and Shadows Cast to win by a long neck.
Magnum is by Little Avondale Stud's resident sire Per Incanto out of the Sound Reason mare Sound Lover, who was the winner of five races including a Group 3 race at Ellerslie and also finished second in the Group 2 Soliloquy Stakes at Ellerslie.
Sound Lover is a full-sister to Candide, who won both the Group 1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) and Group 1 New Zealand Oaks (2400m) during the 1987-88 season.
Deserved maiden win
Baxstreetboy, part-owned by Havelock North's Lester Drake and Neville Jackson, broke through for a deserved maiden win at last week's Whanganui meeting.
The Burgundy 3-year-old was resuming from a three-month break when he stepped out over 1340m and scored a runaway three-length victory over Lodi and Yakety Yak.
It was Baxstreetboy's fifth start and followed three seconds and a third earlier this season. He is trained at Awapuni by David Goldsbury, who also shares in the ownership along with his wife Anne.
The horse cost $7500 as a weanling at a 2015 Karaka Mixed Bloodstock sale and is out of the O'Reilly mare Strictly Time, who is a three-quarter sister to Tantamount (six wins). It is also the family of the group race winners Soltanto, Soliloquy and Solveig.
Lester Drake said Baxstreetboy lacks a bit of size, being not much more than 15 hands high, but has furnished into a stronger horse now and weighed 480kg when he raced last week.
"He's been knocking on the door but just wasn't finishing his races off and was getting a bit jarred up on the hard tracks so we turned him out for a break," Drake said.
"It's been the making of him and he likes the sting out of the tack so we can box on with him now."
He added winning jockey Johnathan Parkes was impressed with the horse's performance at Whanganui and wants to stick with the horse in the future.
Another highlight for Ormsby
Avantage's win in last Saturday's Group 1 $225,000 Courtesy Ford Sires Produce Stakes provided Waipukurau's Michael Ormsby with another huge moment in his long history of racehorse ownership.
Ormsby is a member of the Te Akau Avantage Syndicate, a large group of people brought together to race the filly by Te Akau principal David Ellis after he purchased the daughter of Fastnet Rock for $210,000 at last year's Karaka yearling sales.
Ormsby and his wife Helen have raced numerous horses over the years and have had tremendous results with jumpers. Between them they have shared in the ownership of eight winners of either the Grand National Steeples or Grand National Hurdles.
Michael Ormsby has been involved with Te Akau syndicates for the past two years and says he can't speak too highly of their operation.
"It's a tremendous outfit to deal with. No one knows who all the members are in each syndicate but we get emails just about every day keeping you informed on where the horses are at and where they are racing."
Avantage brought up her fifth win from only six starts when taking out last Saturday's 1400m feature at Awapuni and the only time she has been beaten was when she finished second to stablemate Sword Of Osman in the Group 1 Sistema Stakes (1200m) at Ellerslie on March 10.
Other Te Akau syndicate horses Ormsby has raced this season include the winners Irish Cream and Gris Dame, the latter also finishing third in the Group 2 $100,000 Eight Carat Classic (1600m) at Ellerslie on Boxing Day.
Avantage produced a stunning performance to blitz her rivals in the Manawatu Sires' Produce Stakes.
Rider Danielle Johnson was able to position the filly one off the fence in fifth spot and it was clear she was going to be the one to beat when she cruised up outside the leaders rounding the home turn. Once Johnson released the brakes she bounded to the front and dashed away to win by two lengths from Melt, with another three lengths back to third placed Sir Nate.
"She was very impressive, it's a huge thrill," winning jockey Johnson said.
"From the wide gate I got a nice run with the pace on all the way. I had a lot of horse underneath me and it was just a case of when to push the button."
Avantage's latest victory should assure her of being crowned champion 2-year-old for the season. She is trained at Matamata by the partnership of Stephen Autridge and Jamie Richards and will now be spelled and brought back early next season, with her main mission being the Group 1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) at Riccarton in November.
Second bleeding attack
Chopin's Fantaisie, bred by Taupo's Pat Lowry, resumed from an enforced layoff with a game win at Singapore last Sunday but will now be sidelined for another six months after he was found to have bled again during the race.
The talented Pins 4-year-old bounced back into the winner's circle in a S$100,000 Stakes B race over 1400m in what was his first start since he bled when finishing fifth in the Group 1 Raffles Cup (1800m) in October.
Trainer Michael Clements deserved plenty of kudos for producing Chopin's Fantaisie to win first up and the horse produced a tenacious performance, going head to head with Viviano all the way up the straight before getting the decision by a nose.
Chopin's Fantaisie was having just his eighth career start and has a record of six wins and a second. His stake earnings have now gone past the S$275,000 mark for his Singapore owners, the Jubilant Racing Stable.
The 4-year-old is by Pins out of the Oregon mare Golden Gamble and a full-brother to former Hong Kong Horse of the Year Ambitious Dragon.
The Hastings training partnership of Guy Lowry and Grant Cullen has an unraced 3-year-old full-sister to Chopin's Fantaisie in work at the moment.
Iffraaj strikes again
Haunui Farm's successful shuttle stallion Iffraaj secured his ninth individual Group 1 winner when Jungle Cat took out the Al Quoz Sprint (1200m) at Meydan in Dubai last weekend.
The Charlie Appleby-trained Jungle Cat produced a telling late burst to down Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (1000m) champion Stormy Liberal by half a length.
Iffraaj, who stands at Dalham Hall in Newmarket during the northern hemisphere breeding season, has sired 58 stakes winners in total.
His southern hemisphere Group 1 success stories include Australian Derby winner Jon Snow, Emirates Stakes winner Turn Me Loose and the New Zealand Derby and Rosehill Guineas winner Gingernuts.
Johnson to ride Kiwi Oaks hope
Chris Johnson has been confirmed as Savvy Coup's rider in the Group 1 Australian Oaks (2400m).
Co-trainer Michael Pitman said Hugh Bowman had been approached for the mount, but has opted to partner the Chris Waller-trained Unforgotten in tomorrow week's classic at Randwick.
Johnson has an outstanding record with Savvy Coup, who was on a flight to Sydney on Wednesday, having ridden her in four of her five wins including victory in the Group 1 New Zealand Oaks (2400m).
Football success has come without dollars and big egos at Napier City Rovers.