Te Akau Monday Update

David writes:

Windborne and Wolfwhistle capped off a really good day for Te Akau Racing in New Zealand on Saturday when they both won very impressively.  Te Akau horses raced well with our other starters being only half a head away from winning at Ellerslie, Trentham and Riccarton!  A real credit to Jason Bridgman, Pam Gerard and the whole team.

Firstly Wolfwhistle gave me a huge thrill - this was the second year in a row that Te Akau has won the Listed Spring Classic at Riccarton (last year with Viana).

The owners of this horse have been so patient, understanding and supportve and this lad has now rewarded them winning his first stakes' race with more to come.  Wolfwhistle who we know as "Falcon" is by O'Reilly out of the dual Group 1 winning mare Legs.

Windborne was our other very impressive winner, this time at Ellerslie and, having just her first start, there is plenty of improvement in her yet.

It was marvellous to see Cameron Lammas back in the winner's circle after nearly two years off after a terrible career-threatening accident.  Cameron is an outstanding horseman and rides work all morning for Te Akau, six days a week.

I was delighted for the Fortuna team who races this filly by Darci Brahma.  Two years ago I suggested that Fortuna Manager John Galvin go and have a look at a filly that Te Akau had bred and said she was a quality filly that he should think about buying for his team.  He bought the filly now called Darci's Dream for $45,000 and she has already won the Listed Canterbury Belle Stakes and this time next year will undoubtedly be making her presence felt in Group races.

At the sales this year, John said 'David I see you have a full sister to Darci's Dream in the sale'.  I said that yes we did and she would be a top class fily as she was one of the best we had bred.  He rather astutely bought the filly now named Windborne for $100,000.  There were three or four people bidding on her and they are all good judges so I was pleased John secured her as I knew we would have her to train.

So well done John and team who had a big collect after we told them we thought she would win first up for them.  The dam of these fillies, Sweet Dreams Baby, has an Alamosa colt in the sale this coming January and she is back in foal to Burgundy.

Rockfast went a super race at Trentham and he will have plenty of improvement yet for the Group 1 2000 Guineas.  Jamie Richards is looking after him at Otaki and he will cross Cook Strait on Tuesday bound for Christchurch.

We all also got a huge thrill to see King's Rock race so well to finish second at Ellerslie on Saturday.  As a five and six year old he will finish up winnining Cup races - he is getting stronger all the time.

Dan Miller, our outstanding apprentice, told me last week how well King's Rock had been working and, as usual, Dan was spot on.  Congratulations on the outstanding job you have done with King's Rock Dan!

Another spirited performance came from the resuming Bronte Lass at Riccarton.  She fought on very well to be narrowly beaten into third - I know her group of owners will be so pleased to see "Abby" return so strongly.

To cap off this superb day of racing in New Zealand we saw Hardcore Rock win the penultimate event at Kranji on Sunday night.  Another Karaka purchase by me, this son of Fastnet Rock was fresh up and ran a ripper of a race at good odds to win comfortably - a top training effort by Mark Walker.

Four other points from the weekend - we broke 70 yearlings in at the farm this year and it was a 2YO with the DE brand, the Te Akau Stud bred filly, to be our first juvenile winner.

Congratulations also need to go to Jason for the outstanding job he has done with Wolfwhistle.  This horse has had all sorts of issues and has been brilliantly handled.  We have a beautiful Savabeel colt out of Legs that I bought this year at Karaka.  This half to Wolfwhistle is now called Scrutinize - some very good judges have bought into him and I am picking Legs will be a top broodmare.

It was a huge result in Singapore too on Sunday with War Affair winning the $500,000 Group 1 Raffles Cup - and being on song for the Triple Crown.  This is yet another Group 1 winner that I have selected and purchased from the Karaka Sale - I bought him from Trelawney Stud for $75,000.

So all in all a truly outstanding weekend and we are now off to go racing at Te Rapa!