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Good Weekend For Karaka Graduates

3 minute read

Karaka graduate Five To Midnight broke through for his first stakes win in Saturday’s Listed Hawke’s Bay Gold Cup at Hastings.

Five To Midnight wins the Hawkes Bay Cup
Five To Midnight wins the Hawkes Bay Cup Picture: Race Images Photo

The Lisa Latta-trained runner had previously run second in the Listed New Zealand St Leger (2500m), second in the G3 Manawatu Classic (2000m), third in the Listed Feilding Gold Cup (2100m), third in the G3 Manawatu Cup (2300m), third in the G3 City of Auckland Cup (2400m), fourth in the G2 Avondale Cup (2400m), fifth in the G1 Auckland Cup (3200m) and second in the G2 Awapuni Gold Cup (2000m).

On Saturday he claimed a well-deserved win when he ran down the leaders and raced away to win by two lengths.

“I’m so happy with that,” said his Sydney owner Kevin Pratt, who races Five To Midnight under his Kamada Racing banner.

“We thought he could win a good race this season, but he’s been a bit unlucky at times. This was it for him for this season, and it’s great to see him win it.”

Five To Midnight was bred by The Oaks Stud, who offered him at the 2014 Karaka Select Sale. Trainer Lisa Latta bought him for $165,000.

Now the winner of five of his 22 starts, Five To Midnight has earned prize-money of $186,960.

Runner-up Maygrove (Authorized) is also a Karaka graduate, bought for $110,000 at the 2012 Select Sale. He has won seven races and more than $374,000 in stakes.

THE famous Mufhasa colours were again to the fore at Hastings on Saturday where Bostonian, a relative of the two-time New Zealand Horse of the Year, continued the perfect start to his career.

Among Mufhasa’s ten G1 victories were Makfi Challenge Stakes and Windsor Park Plate successes on the Hawke’s Bay course, which yesterday was the stage for Bostonian (Jimmy Choux x Keep Cheval by Keeper ) to show he had inherited a good measure of the family ability.

Out of a half-sister to Mufhasa, the Tony Pike-trained youngster was a debut winner at Avondale last month and was just as impressive when claiming the Fasttrack Insurance Juvenile.

“He’s a very laid-back horse with a great temperament for a two-year-old,” said Pike, who prepares Bostonian for David Archer. “He’s only going to improve again from here. He’s going to make a nice Guineas horse in the spring.”

The recent history of the Fasttrack Insurance 2YO at Hastings means that the winner will always face lofty expectations.

The last two winners have been Xtravagant and Bonneval, who both went on to dual Group One success in their three-year-old year.

Talented Darci Brahma mare Bonniegirl greatly enhanced her value as a broodmare with a first stakes win in Saturday’s Listed NZB Finance Sprint at Hastings.

Bonniegirl was third in last year’s NZB Finance Sprint and fourth in the G3 Taranaki Breeders’ Stakes.

A half-sister to G3 winner So Wotif (Iffraaj), four of Bonniegirl’s wins had come in a fresh-up stateand trainers Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman used that trait to great effect when they placed her in Saturday’s race for the first start of a new campaign.

Bonniegirl stretched out impressively in the last 200m to hold out a fast-finishing Underthemoonlight (El Hermano) to win by a short neck.

Bought by Baker for $85,000 at the 2013 Karaka Select Sale, Bonniegirl has now had 16 starts for six wins, earning $111,285 for her owner, the estate of the late Ian McCarrison.
Racing and Sports

Hastings

Saturday, 15th April 2017

6
15:25
(local)

Winning Edge Hawke's Bay Cup (LR)

WT: 53kg Type: OPEN
NZD $75,000
2200m TURF HEAVY
6
15:25
(local)
NZD $75,000
2200m HEAVY

Winning Edge Hawke's Bay Cup (LR)

WT: 53kg Type: OPEN

This Listed event over 2200m was one of the weakest if not the worst line up ever assembled for this Hawke’s Bay Cup and just ten runners went to the post. Only three runners could be considered actual Open Class and six of the runners had not even won a race this year so far. The track today at Hastings was a strange wet ground presented and not one single leader turning for home won, which is rather rare at this venue. Five To Midnight after running honest races this year so far without saluting found the softest blacktype race today and won accordingly after a good sit handy on the inner. The 4yo has always been a length or two inferior in the Summer Cups contested this year but today was the easiest line up he has met for sure and by a big margin as the depth was non-existent. He worked off third turning in and led at the 150k before drawing away the closing stages to score by two lengths in 2:19.58. It was his fifth win in twenty-two starts so his success rate is not that good but he can improve on it as should be a fully mature 5yo next season. His consistency and honesty however is not in doubt with him being in the first five at the line sixteen times so far. Maygrove ran a sound second under 60kg and the 3kg he gave to the winner was too much for the 6yo that has won just a single race this season so far and it came back in October. He sat handy then made a move across the top and tried to outstay this dubious line up only to be overtaken inside the final 200m. Balham set the pace and tried to rally once headed but third beaten almost two and a half lengths was his lot at the line. The 6yo has not won a race this season so far and been placed (including today) just three times in twelve outings. Pacorus ran another head-scratching fourth beaten just over five lengths. He was having his fifth start this campaign and year but has not paid a dividend yet which is staggering as last year he won seven races between January and October. Endean Rose ran on for a distant fifth beaten just over nine lengths and is better ridden closer. Pure Lord plugged away the inside but was beaten ten lengths and the 4yo mare has won a Benchmark 75 prior so was jumping multiple classes today. Cheeky Boy was racing out of his grade and was wide working handy for much of the race so had to stop the run home and did. Sopraffina could not handle rising multiples grades and Tiffany’s was outclassed while Clarify was dreadful dropping right out and is to be spelled unsurprisingly. This was a poor field and had little to no depth so the quinella of Five To Midnight and Maygrove was not a surprise as they were the two best runners in the race. This very race one year ago saw a 4yo mare winning that would take out the G1 Auckland Cup (3200m) this year in Chenille. The fourth finisher in this race a year ago was Jacksstar and he would finish third in the G1 Auckland Cup. Maygrove finished seventh in this race a year ago with 60kg but today was second at the same weight showing the dramatic drop in depth.



FP Horse, Age & Sex
Sire & Dam
Jockey
Trainer
SP
WT
1st 2. HOME BY MIDNIGHT (NZ) 4yo G
DOMESDAY (AUS) - FASTNET LADY (AUS)
DANIELLE JOHNSON
LISA LATTA
$2.9
57kg
K A Pratt

Sales Information

2nd 1. MAYGROVE (AUS) 6yo G
AUTHORIZED (IRE) - LADY ZHIVAGO (NZ)
MATTHEW CAMERON
MURRAY BAKER & ANDREW FORSMAN
$6.9
60kg
Jml Bloodstock Ltd (Mgr: L Petagna) & P W O'Rourke

Sales Information

3rd 9. BALHAM (NZ) 6yo G
DON EDUARDO (NZ) - FIFTY FIFTY (NZ)
MARK DU PLESSIS
DAVID & EMMA HAWORTH
$12.4
53kg
D McK Duncan & S L Malcolm & J D Taylor
4th 3. PACORUS (NZ) 5yo G
TAVISTOCK (NZ) - ZA TIARA (NZ)
VIKTORIA GATU
CHRIS WOOD
$6.6
57kg

Sales Information

5th 7. ENDEAN ROSE (NZ) 6yo M
SAVABEEL (AUS) - PRETORIA (NZ)
ALYSHA COLLETT
IAIN KENNEDY
$18.1
53kg

Sales Information

6th 11. PURE LORDE (NZ) 4yo M
DARCI BRAHMA (NZ) - NOSTALGIC (AUS)
LISA ALLPRESS
GRAHAM RICHARDSON
$10.1
53kg

Sales Information

7th 6. CHEEKY BOY (NZ) 6yo G
LUCKY UNICORN (AUS) - TRISTINE (NZ)
DONI PRASTIYOU
BRUCE WALLACE & ALLAN PEARD
$10.3
54kg
8th 8. SOPRAFFINA (NZ) 5yo M
HIGH CHAPARRAL (IRE) - SOPRA TUTTO (NZ)
DARRYL BRADLEY
STEVEN RAMSAY & JULIA RITCHIE
$16
53kg
9th 12. TIFFANY'S (NZ) 6yo M
HIGH CHAPARRAL (IRE) - VICKY (AUS)
SAMANTHA COLLETT
TONY BAMBRY
$54.5
53kg

Sales Information

10th 10. MR CLARIFY (NZ) 4yo G
SAVABEEL (AUS) - CLARETA (AUS)
SHAUN M MC KAY
PETER MCKAY
$7.1
53kg

Sales Information

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