Racing: Glorious days at Karaka on cards

Photo / Thinkstock

Several high-class gallopers have raised profile of today's Ready To Run sales.

If timing is one of the key factors in racing, New Zealand Bloodstock's has been impeccable.

The Karaka thoroughbred powerhouse starts its two-day Ready To Run sales today after the greatest free advertising campaign imaginable in recent weeks.

The Ready To Runs have produced 16 different winners in five countries in the past 10 days, including Glorious Days in the Jockey Club Mile at Sha Tin on Sunday night.

The 5-year-old Karaka graduate downed Hong Kong's champion miler Ambitious Dragon in the group two event and now heads to the Hong Kong Mile next month.

His victory comes just days after another Ready To Run graduate Nashville was sensational winning the Coupland's Mile at Riccarton.

That adds to the trend of Ready To Run sales producing an average of 14 stakes winners a season for the past five years, with nine individual group one winners in that time.

The timing of the latest surge in Ready To Run sales success is not lost on NZB director Petrea Vela.

"It has been an amazing last couple of weeks," says Vela.

"And it just reaffirms the sale is the most successful for 2-year-olds in Australasia.

"It has produced a group one winner from every sale for the last 10 years and what has happened in the last fortnight has been the best advertisement we could hope for."

This week's catalogue features 407 lots - 370 of them colts and geldings - by 115 leading New Zealand and Australian sires.

The catalogue features siblings to 30 stakes winners and progeny from 19 stakes winning mares.

Among the highlights are a Sakhee's Secret half-brother to NZ Derby winner Silent Achiever.

The standard of breeze-ups held recently was consistently high, with a smaller gap between the naturals and the less mature lots than was apparent when the concept started.

The sale begins at 11am today.