Rotorua Double - 1st Leg Unfazed

From the last crop of champion stallion Zabeel (Sir Tristram), Unfazed (3 f Zabeel - Faze, by Stravinsky) made her third start a winning one in the Pomare Electrical 1400 metres on 18 January at Rotorua.

“It makes me very proud for Te Akau to have the last ever Zabeel filly and be chosen by Sir Patrick and Cambridge Stud to train her,” said Te Akau principal David Ellis.

In the colours of Sir Patrick & Justine, Lady Hogan, Unfazed received a lovely trip from barrier one, three back the inner, and once rider Michael McNab found room in the straight she quickened at the 200m before racing away by nearly four lengths.

Running the 1400 metres on Good3 footing in 1:23.9, last 600m in 35.1, Unfazed returned luxurious odds of $19.70 & $4.90 on the tote and $18.00 & $5.50 fixed.

“We own the filly and race her on lease with others, including some of the Super 15 referees, and they'll all be absolutely and utterly over the moon,” said Sir Patrick, of the team comprising Jamie Tout, Matthew Bell, Bryce Lawrence, Glen Jackson, Mike Fraser, Alan Muir, and Mark & Chrissy de Lacy.

“Marcus (Corban) suggested to the referees, when they came to visit Cambridge Stud, that they get together and race a filly with us and they said they'd like to do that, so that's how it started.

“There were only five foals born in the last crop of Zabeel. I couldn't be more pleased and she looks pretty handy to me.”

After making headway over 1200 metres on debut at Te Aroha, in November, Unfazed never had things go her way when casting a plate on 24 December at New Plymouth.

“I had a talk with Steve (Autridge) and Jamie (Richards) the next day,” Sir Patrick said. “For a young three-year-old filly by Zabeel, a bit immature they are at that age, I said I don't think we should put her out on a bad experience and rather give her another start and hope she has better luck.

“But, I think the best three-year-old filly in the country is the Matamata filly (Volpe Veloce) and don't know if you could point the finger and say there is a second best, so I'm not sure we shouldn't be having a very close look at the races coming up for these fillies because second, third, fourth, in a three-year-old group race is pretty special value on a broodmare.

“I'm not sure if the trainers will agree or not, but if she came out of the race without batting an eyelid I'm starting to think that now would be the wrong time to give her a spell, especially as she won it pretty impressively and did it like a staying filly.

“She's not a big filly, although always shown Steve and Jamie some promise. But the main thing they've done to manage her is that they have been very patient, which has certainly impressed me.

“They've given her time and after seeing her potential in a trial win at Te Teko they advised me not to rush her and let her mature and I think that has certainly been the answer.

“They've worked out to space her starts and while possibly not a filly that you could dish it up to her too often and I think they are planning her particular training very, very well.  They certainly put a lot of planning and thought into her, and trainers have a lot of horses, and I think it's a great attribute to Steve and Jamie that they have been able to provide individual training and map the future of any horse to the best advantage of the horse.

“So, the big plus is they have put the horse first, foremost, in her preparation which is proving to be very successful and as an owner I certainly couldn't be happier.”

Sir Patrick also said that the racing career and deeds of his mare Abidewithme (Redoute's Choice), dual Group Two winner and Group One placed, with prize money over $450,000, was a tribute to the planning, training, and management that Te Akau offers.

“I have had horses with Te Akau for years and years and I'm lucky to have a mare that has been kept in pristine training condition, in Abidewithme, and a young filly by Zabeel and they're getting the best out of her,” Sir Patrick said.

“Racing horses is a great game and it's exceptionally exciting, but to add to that excitement, whether your horses are winning or losing, communication with owners and clients is absolutely imperative and I have to say that Te Akau, in my opinion, is better than anyone else at doing that.

“I think that communication with owners, whether you're winning or losing, is so important to keep interest and know that you are part of racing horses.

“As we know, not all horses win, not all horses are exciting, but it's always exciting to have a horse, no matter whether it's a good horse or an average horse. The excitement comes from the owner getting good communication about their horse and Te Akau is certainly the best at doing that.”

“Communication is top of the list for me,” he said.

Te Akau Racing Manager Brad Taylor said: “She's a filly that Sir Patrick owns that we've always had an opinion of and like I said pre-race, ‘just put a line through her last run', she is better than that and today she showed her true ability.

“It was a lovely ride by Michael (McNab), he got her out at the right time and she put them away pretty easily.”

Although holding a nomination for the $300,000 Wellfield New Zealand Oaks (Gr. 1, 2400m) on 18 March at Trentham, Taylor said “I don't know about the 2400 this early, but we'll get her home and see how she does before we make any decisions”.

Unfazed was strapped by Melissa Ford.

Photo credit - www.raceimages.co.nz