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Prestige Cup hopes for emerging stayer; Cuneen opens winning training account; Powerful win from Megalomaniac;
Prestige Cup hopes for emerging stayer
Trainer Paul Harris is eyeing major staying targets this season with his promising mare Wannabe 'N' Paris and longer-term would dearly love to travel further afield to Australia.
The Rangiora-based horseman prepared the daughter of Reliable Man to claim top honours in Sunday's Cromwell Cup (2030m) and confirm plans for a northern campaign.
"She deserved that, she's been a model of consistency and punched way above her weight in some really nice races," Harris said.
"It was a very, very good ride and I said to Kavish (Chowdhoory) I've put the blinkers on and she may dwell at the start so, if she does, just ride her conservatively and it worked out beautifully."
Harris has now set his sights on the Gr.3 NZ Campus Of Innovation & Sport Wellington Cup (3200m) at Trentham on January 29.
"The Wellington Cup will be the main aim now and I'm not ruling out a crack at the Auckland Cup (Gr.2, 3200m) as well," he said.
In 2003, Harris campaigned his Gr.1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) Hustler and Gr.3 New Zealand Cup (3200m) winner Mike across the Tasman with mixed results and has hopes Wannabe 'N' Paris can make her mark there in the future.
"We went to Queensland with them and unfortunately Mike broke down before the Brisbane Cup (then Gr.1, 3200m). Everyone has dreams and I've said to the owners this is the first horse since I took Mike and Hustler to Australia that I believe can end up there as well," he said.
"If you reach for the stars and you come up short you are still a few miles in front of most people so why not have a dream of the Melbourne Cup (Gr.1, 3200m) next year.
"It may become a reality and I do think she is a very, very high-class stayer and whatever she's done, she will be a better horse in 12 months."
Cuneen opens winning training account
Racha Cuneen has added another string to his racing bow with the Group One-winning jockey posting his maiden success as a trainer.
The Riccarton-based horseman prepared Stop Yelling to dead-heat for first in Sunday's Otago Farm Machinery Maiden (1400m) at Cromwell and, for good measure, was also in the saddle.
"I've got four in work and it's not easy, but I really enjoy it. It gives more insight into the horses and it was a good feeling to get my first winner," he said.
Cuneen enjoyed a successful first riding stint in New Zealand with Group One wins in the 2016-17 season aboard La Diosa in the New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) at Riccarton and Signify in the Telegraph (1200m) at Trentham.
He moved to Victoria in early 2018 to freelance out of Cranbourne before returning home earlier this year for what was meant to be a fleeting visit.
"I came back to New Zealand to renew my passport and driver's licence and had my flights booked to go back," Cuneen said.
"They then closed the border and went into lockdown so I stayed here. I'm happy doing what I'm doing at the moment.
"Hopefully, I'll get a few more nice horses to train and continue riding. I enjoy both sides of it."
Stop Yelling was his fifth race day representative and while he expected a good showing from the son of Proisir, victory came as a pleasant surprise.
"I wouldn't say I was that confident, but he had been working okay. The judge said it was a dead-heat so it was better than running second," he said.
Powerful win from Megalomaniac
After two photo finishes in the first two races at Cromwell on Sunday, Megalomaniac gave the judge a breather with a dominant three-and-a-quarter length win in the Wingatui Function Centre (1400m).
Under a positive ride from Kozzi Asano, Megalomaniac found the front from the widest barrier (13), he was then able to dictate the tempo and never looked in doubt putting on a show for the large crowd in attendance.
"Kozzi rode him super," trainer Andrew Carston said of his stable apprentice who has been on loan to Tony Pike in the North Island.
"He had a good day and picked up a couple of winners. It was great to have him down here and to get one for us."
Carston wasn't surprised to see the four-year-old gelding, who came into the meeting off a second placing last start pick up his maiden win.
"He's a nice horse and he nearly won during Cup Week so I was expecting a good run. He'd been knocking on the door for a while," he said.
Megalomaniac is raced by Carston along with Jeff and Tanya McCall and the Pussy Galore Syndicate and he has now won one and placed in four of 12 starts.
"I do think he's a horse that will win more than one and he seems to be going the right way," Carston said.
"He'll probably run again at Ashburton in a couple of weeks' time, depending on how he comes through the run and trip away but there's plenty of racing coming up over the holidays so we can pick and choose."
Megalomaniac is by South Canterbury-based Willow Glen Stud's sire Pure Champion, who had two winners on the day with Tyler Eight also successful.
Williams to test Victorian waters
Grant and Alana Williams confirmed on Monday that exclusive ties with leviathan owner Bob Peters are to be cut in 2022 so to welcome outside clients and to open a satellite stable in Victoria.
Western Australia's leading stable, which has won two Group One races over the past fortnight for the millionaire owner's Peters Investments, issued a press release on Monday to say they that while they will still train for the owner, they are to welcome new clients into their stable and will no longer train full-time for Peters.
"From January 2022, Williams Racing will be refocusing their stable client structure to welcome the opportunity for new owners to be part of one of Australia's most successful racing stables over the last decade," the release said.
"Previously, the Williams Racing stable has predominantly trained for one client Peters Investments, who's horses have enjoyed incredible and sustained success.
"However, Grant and Alana now believe the time is right to change direction with their stable to allow a more diverse client base to enjoy the thrill of racing their horses under the Williams Racing banner."
The Williams team has trained nearly 600 winners for Peters Investments since they began their partnership in 2014 with Group One winners including the likes of Arcadia Queen, Delicacy, Celebrity Queen and Regal Power, in addition to Graceful Girl, who won the Gr.1 Winterbottom Stakes (1200m) last weekend and Western Empire, who won the Gr.1 Railway Stakes (1600m) the weekend prior and the New Zealand bred son of Iffraaj will be a short-priced favourite to land Saturday's Gr.1 Kingston Town Classic (1800m).
In that time, they have boasted a strike-rate of an extraordinary 26.4 percent.
While no training centre has been named as yet in Victoria, the dominant husband and wife training team confirmed they will have a presence in Victoria from early in the new year.
"As a part of Grant and Alana's commitment to future success, Williams Racing will be opening a boutique Melbourne satellite stable to complement their Perth operation," the release said.
"Having already had substantial experience and success racing horses in Victoria, they believe the opening of a Melbourne stable will allow their horses to maximise the opportunity to race and win at the elite level and give their horses their best opportunity to tap into the wonderful prizemoney racing horses in Victoria offers."
Peters said he was content to continue the association with the Williams stable.
"If that is what they want, I am happy," he told Perth's TABRadio on Monday. "I'll adjust to whatever people want.
"By the sound of this morning's announcement, it looks like they are happy to train some for us and it's up to them as to how many and we've made it common knowledge that we will be spreading the news ones around when they come back in."