Mark Walker Champion Trainer Again

With the 2018 Singapore racing season coming to a close on Sunday, Mark Walker has claimed the title of Champion Singapore Trainer for the second time - to add to his five New Zealand Trainers' Premiership titles!

It was fitting that Te Akau trainer Mark Walker added to his winning tally on the last night of the season in Singapore, and that the winner Black Quail (4 g Coats Choice - Sefidi, by Bigstone) has such a close association with the stables.

Winning the title for the second time in three years, Walker had 87 firsts, 82 seconds, 73 thirds, 76 fourths, and can now have a short reprieve before the new season begins on 1 January.

A $20,000 yearling purchase from the draft of Berkley Stud at Karaka, Black Quail is owned by the parents of Te Akau (NZ) co-trainer Jamie Richards, Paul and Leanne Richards, and Bill and Sandra Duell.  He is raced under their banner Natuzzi Racing with Natuzzi, also by the stallion Coats Choice (Redoute's Choice), a headline act and multiple Group One placed sprinter for trainer Paul Richards. Natuzzi has won 12 races and over $500,000 in prize money.

Following a second and two fifths, Black Quail was ridden assertively by Te Akau apprentice Zawari Razali in the $65,000 Initiation 1200 metres, on the turf, and he lengthened to a winning advantage at the 200m after racing three wide on the pace. It was nothing if not a gutsy performance and he returned $8.40 & $2.90 on the NZ TAB.

“It was a huge effort, three deep on the speed and he kept going, and the folks are over the moon with the win,” said Jamie Richards. “He'll have his shoes off now and be hand walked for a month, building into the new season and he's a horse with the scope to go on.”

Paul Richards said: “It was very exciting. We'd hosted a street Christmas party during the day and it was a great result.  I said to Leanne at the 800m, when we were watching the race, “he can't win tonight”. He can't sit three wide on the pace and still win, but he did and stuck really well.

“We bought him at the yearling sales to win a trial and onsell, but he had three seconds and a third and couldn't quite win because he was immature - he was just slow developing, so we sent him to Mark (Walker) in May.

“He was a nice yearling and although I thought he would come to it a little bit quicker, he has taken time. But he's now developing into a nice animal.  He's really gone ahead and talking to Mark last night he said the horse should be even better again after a break. He said that usually in their second prep they acclimatize better, so Mark was quite bullish about him as a horse that could hold his own in Class 4, or maybe Class 3.

“Mark said his run on Singapore Gold Cup Day was the run of a horse that back in a straight Maiden was always going to be a good chance.

“We're very happy to have a horse in Singapore. When you compare stake money to the costs, it's a no brainer. There is the one off cost of travelling them up there and the training costs are a little dearer than here (NZ), but costs like vet fees are all subsidised, there is no local transport needed and in relevance to the stake money you're racing for it's a good equation.

“Mark has said that pedigrees don't matter too much and the main thing is adapting to the way of life, being boxed and acclimatizing to the conditions.”

Richards said Black Quail is named after the Black Quail wine estate in Bannockburn, Central Otago.

“We have named the odd horse after a wine, which Leanne and Sandra are quite partial to, and Bill and I don't mind one either. Leanne came up with the name,” Richards said.

“We'll get up there to see him race in his next prep. I've stayed overnight in Singapore, on my way to Malaysia, when I used to go up there and ride but never actually been to the races there.  It will be also good to catch up with Gus and Karen Clutterbuck (assistant trainer and administration manager for Te Akau in Singapore). I rode for Karen's father Pat Corboy (famous for training Grey Way to win 51 races, from Washdyke, Timaru) many years ago, and they're great people.

“Mark has really got the system worked out in Singapore, knows how to work the ratings and he's doing a great job.”

Richards said the plan in the future was to a have horse racing for the whanau (including Jamie and his sister Libby) in Singapore.

“When they were kids I always used to buy a family horse and even though I still paid them wages (for working at the stables) it went towards their university education and got them started. We had a couple that we'd pay $10,000 - $15,000 for and on sold them for $40,000 to Macau.”