4 Win Saturday - Qali Quality Filled

The fourth of Te Akau's four Saturday winners came at Ellerslie - the most impressive winner on the card, Qali Al Farrasha (4 m Almanzor – Nucleonic, by Burgundy) resumed stylishly in the $55,000 Sistema Rating 75 1400 metres on Saturday at Ellerslie.

Although the winner of only one race, when impressing over 1600 metres last season, Qali Al Farrasha had matched the best three-year-old fillies when close second (neck) in the Group 3 Sunline Vase 2100m on Derby Day (2 March) at Ellerslie, was a game third in the Group 1 New Zealand Oaks 2400m at Trentham, and ended her campaign after travelling abroad for the Group 1 Australasian Oaks 2000m at Morphettville.

She had quickened to advantage on straightening and kept going well for a close second when trialling on 8 October at Matamata, and trainers Mark Walker & Sam Bergerson elected to apply blinkers for her first-up assignment.

The race went like clockwork, when beginning well from barrier four for Irish jockey Joe Doyle, Qali Al Farrasha was handily placed on the inner, appeared firmly held on the bridle inside the 600m, and once let stride she pinned her ears back to race clear by three lengths.

For a mare that exuded vast amounts of quality as a three-year-old, to see her return to racing with such vigour surely augurs well for some mouth-watering races ahead.  

It was also a very good resuming performance by stable-mate Zantabulous (Almanzor), as the five-year-old grey mare had Qali Al Farrasha in her sights throughout and ran home strongly for fourth.

A winner of three races to 1600 metres and a genuine performer, Zantabulous shapes to appreciate stepping up in distance.

“Qali Al Farrasha went to Adelaide for the Australasian Oaks, but unfortunately drew the outside and things didn’t work out, but, gee, she spelled brilliantly at the farm (Te Akau Stud), where Deane Lowcay, our equine manager, and the team there had her looking really good for when she came back into training,” Walker said.

“We’ve just brought her along nice and slowly and since she’s turned in the coat she started to really do well, and assists trainer Nicole Shailer had her looking in great order at the stables. 

“I think she’s in for an exciting preparation, as a middle-distance mare that can win like that over 1400 metres first-up. There was a lot to like about the way she won and how well she’s developed.”

On Good4 footing, Qali Al Farrasha ran 1400 metres in 1:24.2, last 600m in 34.1 (approx.), and paid $5.10 & $2.60 on the NZ TAB tote.

Bred and owned by David Ellis CNZM and David and Matthew Peacocke (Weston Lea Bloodstock), her Te Akau trained dam, Nucleonic (Burgundy), impressed winning on debut over 1200 as a two-year-old, while grand-dam Mexican Rose (Volksraad) was Champion 2YO & 3YO in Singapore, having first impressed winning two of her three starts in New Zealand.

“Wasn’t that a great win?” Ellis said. “We were pretty excited to see her back racing, especially after the potential she showed last season and I’m thrilled that she’s got another confidence building win on the board.

“Greg Tomlinson (Nearco Stud) and I bought Mexican Rose. We sold two O’Reilly colts out of her for good money and her weanling topped the sale in 2016.

“The Peacocke family has had a lot of success with Te Akau, racing Avantage among others, and has a long family involvement in racing.

“She was a pretty smart filly Nucleonic, and is doing a fantastic job at stud, she’s produced some really good progeny.”

The same combination bred and owned South Island Champion Two-Year-Old Nucleozor, the year younger brother to Qali Al Farrasha, who displayed as much potential as any two-year-old last season in New Zealand. He became the ninth Welcome Stakes (Listed, 1000m) winner for the stable while remaining unbeaten in all three starts. Such was the talent of Nucleozor that he was subsequently sold to race in Hong Kong.

Walker added that the two-year-old colt by Hello Youmzain (Kodiac) out of Nucleonic is pre-training in Australia, on his way to the Te Akau stables at Cranbourne (Victoria). 

Since Nucleozor, who is now a three-year-old, Nucleonic has produced two colts by Cambridge Stud stallion Hello Youmzain, who carried the colours of Brendan & Jo Lindsay (Cambridge Stud) to victory in the prestigious Diamond Jubilee Stakes (Gr. 1, 1200m) at Royal Ascot.

Hello Youmzain (Kodiac) is an extremely well bred colt on the Danehill (Danzig) sire line, out of a Shamardal (Giant’s Causeway) mare, he won two Group One sprint races on his way to becoming a leading European sprinter.

Nucleonic will be represented by a Hello Youmzain colt at the January Karaka Book 1 sale.

Qali Al Farrasha was strapped by Murala Mallesh. 

Photo credit - www.raceimages.co.nz