Hastings-trained Pakapunch stretches her neck out, under the urgings of jockey Masa Tanaka, to hold out her rivals in the Rating 65 race at last Sunday's Waipukurau meeting.
Last Sunday's Waipukurau Jockey Club's meeting proved a punter's graveyard with no winner on the nine-race programme paying less than $9 for a win; one returning a dividend of $47.70 and four others at $15 or more.
The club experienced a highly successful day, with a number of businesses staging Christmas functions on course and more than $7200 received from general admission gate charges.
Punters were rocked from the start when Amorata won the opening event at odds of 20 to one. The second race was taken out by Whipped, who returned a dividend of $9.40 and the following race saw the first starter How Perfect prevail and pay $47.70 for a win and $9.60 for a place.
The outsiders continued to roll in with Awatene (R4) paying $18.60, Pakapunch (R5), $9.40; Duplicity (R6), $13.60; Bang (R7), $15.30; Strolling Vagabond (R8), $11.40; and Don'stopgirl (R9), $17.
At the same meeting last year none of the eight race winners paid more than $14.00 and only two returned their backers a double-figure dividend.
One of the better supported winners last Sunday was the Hastings-trained Pakapunch, who recorded a gutsy all-the-way win in the $12,000 Rating 65 race over 1200m.
The Per Incanto mare drew two from the outside and had to be hunted out of the barrier by jockey Masa Tanaka to take an early lead. From then on she held a clear advantage over her rivals and, although put under siege in the final stages, she withstood all the challengers to win by half a length.
It was Pakapunch's second win from only five starts and she has also recorded a second placing.
The 4-year-old is trained on the Hastings track by Guy Lowry and Grant Cullen and is owned by her Cambridge breeder Tony Rider. He is part of the Pak N Save Syndicate that races the mare, with most of the other members being employees at his Hamilton supermarket.
It is basically the same syndicate that also raced the class racemare Irish Fling from the Lowry/Cullen stable, with her five wins including the 2014 running of the Telegraph Sprint at Trentham.
Pakapunch is out of the Flying Spur mare Cancun and a half-sister to the ill-fated Zedpak, a horse that won three races from only seven starts for Cambridge trainer Stephen Marsh but suffered a broken leg when taken to the 2015 Queensland Winter Carnival and had to be put down.
Pakapunch was the only Hawke's Bay-trained winner at Waipukurau, with Savuno (third in R4), Davey Crockett (second in R8) and Knight's Princess (second in R9) the only other placegetters from the region.
Off to NSW
Hawke's Bay couple Greg and Jo Griffin are on the move next year.
They have announced plans to relocate their Lime Country Thoroughbreds operation to Think Big Stud in New South Wales and plan to complete the move by February 15.
Established in 2007, Lime Country has operated out of a section of the former famous Okawa Stud in Hawke's Bay and has emerged as one of New Zealand's more prominent sales consignors of mares, weanlings, yearlings and 2-year-olds.
They will continue to offer their services of sales preparation, broodmare agistment and racehorse spelling at their new location.
Their new property at Think Big Stud is owned by successful owner Dato Tan Chin Nam, a close friend of the late Bart Cummings.
His roll of honour includes four Melbourne Cups, three Cox Plates, a Caulfield Cup, three Derbys and two Oaks with outstanding horses such as Think Big, Saintly, So You Think, Viewed, Catalan Opening, God's Own, Allez Wonder, Wonderful World, Faint Perfume, Norzita and Eurozone.
Nestled on the banks of the Wingecarribee River in the Southern Highlands of NSW, the 120ha Think Big Stud boasts a state-of-the-art foaling complex, surgery barn, yearling barn, quarantine barn, horse-walker, treadmill and 1200m turf track.
The farm will adopt Lime Country branding and while Think Big stands two stallions, they will be retired. The Griffins have no plans to stand stallions in the immediate future.
Lime Country's launch into the Australian market will be marked by the sale of a number of youngsters at the Australian Easter Yearling Sale in April. They will include the Think Big-bred Redoutes Choice colt out of Faint Perfume.
"We are honoured that Dato Tan and his family have entrusted us with their stud and horses that remain at the farm," Greg Griffin said.
"We have spent the last 10 years building our business in New Zealand and this is the next natural step forward for us. We already have some fantastic Australian clients who we will enjoy being closer to and we are keen to provide our clients in New Zealand and Asia and new clients from America and Europe, our services for their Australian interests, too."
The new partnership provides job security for a number of Think Big's staff, some of whom have been on the stud for years. Some Lime Country staff will also shift.
Mare now a worthwhile investment
Hawke's Bay couple Gerard and Vera Moughan's decision to buy the broodmare Royal Show for $16,000 at a 2013 mixed bloodstock sale looks set to reap big rewards.
The Deputy Governor mare was part of a dispersal sale offered on behalf of the late Jim Campin and was the winner of four races, including the Listed NZ Bloodstock Insurance Stakes at Wingatui and the Listed Gore Guineas.
At stud, Royal Show has left Folding Gear, a multiple Group race winner in Australia and two exciting young horses that competed at last Saturday's Wellington meeting at Trentham in Royal Success and Exhibit.
Royal Success, a 4-year-old by Savabeel out of Royal Show, resumed from a six-month break to record his fourth win in a row with a half-length victory in the $30,000 Rating 85 race over 1400m.
Exhibit (Iffraaj-Royal Show) followed up an impressive debut win over 1200m at Woodville in October with another good effort for fifth in the 3-year-old event over 1400 metres.
Royal Success was a $130,000 purchase by David Ellis at the 2014 national yearling sales and is trained by Stephen Autridge and Jamie Richards.
The Moughans bought Royal Show in foal to Iffraaj and Exhibit was the resultant foal.
They race the filly from the stable of Waipukurau-based David Goldsbury.
Gerard Moughan has tasted Group 1 success as co-breeder and part-owner of the 1997 Railway Handicap winner Kailey. He is hoping Exhibit can add to that record should she line up in the Group1 Randwick Meats Levin Classic (1600m) at Trentham in January.
Kawi returns home
Kawi was due back in New Zealand yesterday after his mixed results from his first Australian campaign.
The Allan Sharrock-trained 6-year-old's three-start visit to Perth brought fourth placings in the Group 1 Kingston Town Classic and the Group 2 Lee Steere Stakes with a sixth in between times in the Group 1 Railway Stakes.
Kawi is likely to resume his domestic career in the Group 1 NRM Sprint at Te Rapa on February 11, with a start in the Group 1 Haunui Farm Classic to follow a fortnight later.
NZ Oaks now the plan
Devise has a lot to live up to and the half-sister to the Group 2 winner and Group 1 placegetter Zurella has made an encouraging start.
The Oaks Stud's Darci Brahma 3-year-old won for the second time in her three-start career when she beat the older horses at Trentham last Saturday.
"I really love this filly," trainer Shaune Ritchie said. "I don't know if she's as good as Zurella, but she has got a better attitude.
"We were keen to take her to Trentham as we think she's an Oaks filly so we'll make a plan of attack for that."
The Oaks and Ritchie celebrated an outstanding result in the 2012 New Zealand Oaks when they completed the quinella in the classic with Artistic and Zurella.
Stallion's shock death
Waikato's Mapperley Stud has unfortunately lost the services of promising young stallion Atlante, who died following a freak accident last week.
Cambridge studmaster Simms Davison said he had been left devastated by the sudden loss of the Fastnet Rock stallion.
"He was outside his box when he reared up and slipped over and whacked his head when he came down. He just lost his balance and that was it.
"For a young studmaster it's a bitter pill to swallow - there's a lot of sweat and tears goes into these horses. I'm just gutted."
Atlante retired to Mapperley Stud in 2015 and Davison said the feedback on his first crop of foals had been hugely encouraging.
"He's been leaving some great types, it's just heart breaking."
A son of the Group-performed More Than Ready mare Readyforcatherine, Atlante began his career with Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman and at his fourth start he won the Listed Canterbury Stakes before he triumphed next time out in the Group 1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas.
He subsequently placed in the Group 2 Hobartville Stakes during a Sydney autumn campaign before joining John, Michael and Wayne Hawke's stable.
Atlante won the Listed Chandler Macleod Stakes and subsequently returned to Baker and Forsman for one more appearance before his retirement to Mapperley.
OPINION: Matariki not the only star in the sky.