Waitak takes to sprinting in a big way
Magnificent seven for jockey Kennedy as Proisir’s four-year-old son adds to sire’s reputation
Kiwi stayer-turned-sprinter Waitak showed his need for speed in the Railway (Gr 1, 1200m), once again demonstrating the versatility of his reigning champion New Zealand sire Proisir (Choisir).
The rejuvenated four-year-old, who ran in a New Zealand Derby (Gr 1, 2400m) and Queensland Derby (Gr 1, 2400m) last season, landed the biggest win of his career in yesterday’s Group 1 sprint at Pukekohe, his second win at stakes level.
Trainers Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott’s decision to revert to short-course distances has reaped rewards with back-to-back victories this campaign, the gelding taking out the Railway with one and a quarter lengths to spare.
Bonny Lass (Super Easy) finished runner-up, finishing a length and a quarter behind the winner, while Mercurial (Burgundy) was three quarters of a length away in third.
“After his first-up win for the season we said he may just be a short track horse and took a punt today, and it came off,” O’Sullivan said. “Trying to make him run in a Derby last year, we certainly got that wrong.”
O’Sullivan won the Railway five times as a jockey, but until yesterday the Group 1 had eluded him.
“Out of all the races that I personally wanted to be a part of winning as a trainer, it was certainly the Railway, and it has eluded me. This is Andrew’s third,” said O’Sullivan, speaking of co-trainer Scott’s previous two training victories in the race.
Waitak’s jockey Warren Kennedy, who settled his mount at the rear of the field, enjoyed a stellar day in the saddle, riding seven winners including four of the five stakes races on the ten-race Pukekohe card.
“Everyone, myself included, believed the six furlongs with these type of sprinters in the race, they might run a bit too quick for him,” Kennedy said.
“He jumped out really well and he was out the back where I thought he would be, but he was really comfortable in his run.
“They split open like the red sea in front of me and when I really asked him to run, he knuckled down and sprinted home. He gave me a really good sprint home, he ran past them like they weren’t there.”
Now a winner of four of his 18 starts, Waitak was placed at the highest level at two, finishing third behind Maven Belle (Burgundy) in the 2022 Manawatu Sires Produce Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m). Maven Belle ran fifth in the Railway.
Last season, Proisir ended the eight-year reign of Savabeel (Zabeel) as New Zealand’s leading stallion and during the 12-month period he sired five individual Group 1 winners including the recently retired Prowess, whose top-flight deeds helped him become the first Kiwi stallion to achieve earnings of more than NZ$4 million in a single season.
Retained to race by his breeder Colin Devine, Waitak’s Group 1 triumph was a welcome tonic for his owner whose exciting four-year-old is the first of two foals out of Repo Bay (Shocking), herself a two-time winner, and the first black-type winner in his first three dams. Waitak is Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m) winner Shocking’s first Group 1 winner as a broodmare sire.
Devine, who raced three-time Group 1 winner Miltak (McGinty) in the early to mid-1990s, has a two-year-old brother to Waitaki named Crackercol while Repo Bay was served by Staphanos (Deep Impact) in 2023.
O’Sullivan, who rode Miltak to win the 1994 Auckland Cup (Gr 1, 3200m), said: “Also [it’s great] for Colin Devine and all his family, it is great to have him onboard. He is not keeping the best of health, but I am so delighted for him.”
Proisir, whose service fee surged to NZ$70,000 (plus GST) in 2023 and attracted the support of numerous Australian breeders, has 35 yearlings catalogued in Book 1 of the upcoming New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka Yearling Sale while a further three are lotted in Book 2.
Four Proisir colts and a filly will be offered at next week’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale on the Gold Coast.
Bellatrix Star provides Te Akau with fifth Eclipse Stakes
Te Akau’s bid for an eighth straight Karaka Millions 2YO (RL, 1200m) win received a timely boost on New Year’s Day when Bellatrix Star (Star Witness) caused an upset in the Eclipse Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m) at Pukekohe.
In doing so, the Fortuna Racing-owned Bellatrix Star lowered the colours of her highly touted Blue Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) contender Move To Strike (I Am Invincible) and the Stephen Marsh-trained Velocious (Written Tycoon).
Ridden by an in-form Warren Kennedy, Bellatrix Star settled last in the field of eight but she was able to track up into the race rounding the home turn and she was able to get off the back of Move To Strike in the straight to score by a long head. There was a length back to Velocious with the trio clearing out by eight and a quarter lengths to the fourth-placed So Naive (U S Navy Flag).
“Warren got her to relax really nicely,” said co-trainer Mark Walker.
“She didn’t have all favours last start and showed today by riding her further back, and off the speed, that she had a really good turn of foot.
“She’s peaking at the right time for the Karaka Millions, and that’s always been her target.”
Kennedy said the race panned out well for his filly after it initially didn’t go as scripted.
“I got shuffled back early on and probably would have gone to the inside if I could have but I saw Opie (Bosson) on Move To Strike go wider and make a bit of room so I tracked him through,” Kennedy said.
“She had good momentum when I pulled her to the outside and she gave me a lovely kick.
“She has been a bit fierce in the past but was lovely and relaxed today which was the key as it gave her plenty for the finish.
“It was a lovely win, very courageous and now she is doing things right, she will be a good chance for the Karaka Millions if she can reproduce what she did today.”
The previously unbeaten Velocious, who defeated Bellatrix Star in the Counties Challenge Stakes (Listed, 1100m) on November 25, retains favouritism at $4 million for the Karaka Millions at Ellerslie on January 27 alongside equal favourite Cool ‘N’ Fast (Savabeel), a Te Akau-raced brother to 2020 winner Cool Aza Beel.
Bellatrix Star is third in the betting at $5.50.
Less certain is the immediate plan for the Walker and Sam Bergerson-trained Move To Strike.
“I think the (Soft7) track favoured [Bellatrix Star], but the second horse also went really well and we’ll let the dust settle before deciding what we do with him,” Walker said.
Te Akau’s stunning run of success in New Zealand’s sales-restricted race started in 2017 with champion Fortuna-owned filly Melody Belle (Commands) winning the race and the operation’s streak continued last year when Tokyo Tycoon (Satono Aladdin) won the sought after race.
Elite fillies Avantage (Fastnet Rock (2018) and Probabeel (Savabeel) (2019) also feature on the Karaka Million honour roll for Te Akau as does Cool Aza Beel, On The Bubbles (Brazen Beau) (2021) and Dynastic (Almanzor) (2022).
“This is the first Group-winning two-year-old we’ve had since Melody Belle,” Fortuna Racing’s John Galvin said.
“We only paid $80,000 for her and she won on debut, hasn’t been disgraced in her last two starts, and to win a Group 2 at her fourth race day start is extremely valuable for her future.
“It was a lovely ride by Warren [Kennedy], very important black type for the filly and whatever she does from here on in they can never take this victory away.”
The breakthrough stakes win for Bellatrix Star at her fourth race start also provided an important pedigree update for her Victoria-based breeders Rob Dunnett, Mark Pilkington and Peter Lord.
Bought by Te Akau’s David Ellis for Fortuna Racing at NZB Karaka Yearling Sale, the Phoenix Park-consigned filly is the best of two winners out of Alana’s Party (Exceed And Excel) who was purchased for $17,000 by agent Pilkington at the 2021 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale carrying Bellatrix Star.
Alana’s Party’s Royal Meeting (Invincible Spirit) colt is set to be offered at the Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale through the Newhaven Park draft in March. He had also been catalogued for this month’s NZB Karaka Yearling Sale, but he sustained a foot abscess, which prevented him from catching his flight to New Zealand.
The mare has a Nicconi (Bianconi) colt born in October and she was covered by Dundeel (High Chaparral) in mid-November.
Bellatrix Star provided Te Akau with its fifth Eclipse Stakes, having won it last year with Trobriand (Kermadec) and previously with Imperatriz (I Am Invincible), Warhorse (General Nediym) and Te Akau Class (Masterclass).