November, the last month of spring, has been massive for Rich Hill Stud, whose stallions are in huge demand – and for good reason. Their month began on Melbourne Cup day when Defibrillate (Shocking) returned from a successful Australian campaign to land the Balmerino Stakes (Gr 3, 2050m) at Pukekohe. By the same sire, Hezashocka... Read More

Glowing from a successful Ready to Run Sale, the next focus for the New Zealand bloodstock industry is the annual Karaka yearling sales, set for late January and early February and the Kiwis have wasted no time in adding to an already first class spring. That glow is burning bright at Rich Hill Stud whose... Read More

Over the next few days, buyers’ focus will alter, from buying yearlings to buying two-year-olds. In essence, the difference is between walking (yearlings) and running (breeze-up two-year-olds), criteria that requires a change of tack. Within that, many judges will also suggest that “how” may have as much importance as “what”, meaning that judges look for... Read More

This time next week, many of the trainers present at Flemington’s Champions’ Day will have crossed “the pond” to New Zealand, hoping to uncover the next VRC Champion. Their reasoning is sound. The Kiwis are casting a spell, being responsible for five of Saturday’s winners. This time last week, Kiwi Chronicles devoted much of the... Read More

A recurring theme of big race winners, just in time for NZB’s Ready To Run Sale later this month, continues to play out. Saturday, within the space of forty minutes, New Zealand-based Almanzor (Wootton Bassett) sired the winner of the Victoria Derby (Gr 1, 2500m), Savabeel (Zabeel) sired the winner of the world’s second richest... Read More