Te Akau Season of Success - Historic 100th Group 1

In Te Akau's 2024/25 season of success - another massive highlight was celebrating Return To Conquer, the unbeaten son of Snitzel, bring up the historic 100th Group 1 win for the tangerine team ...

On a day that will forever be etched into New Zealand racing history, 8 March at Ellerslie, Te Akau Racing soared to a milestone achievement. With $8.2 million in total stakes on offer - the richest day our industry has ever seen - it was fitting that the country’s leading stable reached an extraordinary landmark. 

Return To Conquer (2 c Snitzel – Vaujany, by Lonhro) delivered a performance for the ages to capture the $550,000 Group 1 Sistema Stakes (1200m) and in doing so, secured Te Akau’s 100th Group One victory.

The magnitude of the moment was not lost on Te Akau principal David Ellis CNZM. His journey with Group 1 success began nearly four decades ago, when Cosmetique (Barcas) - a horse he bought and owned - won the 1986 Group 1 Easter Handicap at Ellerslie. 

Since then, the stable’s rise has been nothing short of phenomenal, with an astonishing 68 Group 1 wins amassed over the past nine years alone.

“I’m very emotional,” Ellis said in the birdcage moments after the win. 

“I never thought I’d get emotional, but for some reason I am. If you told me this could happen when I first got involved in horse racing, I’d have said it was impossible. But it’s now a reality.”

Return To Conquer’s victory also marked Te Akau’s 401st domestic stakes' success, adding even more weight to this historic achievement.

Under the guidance of Champion Victorian rider Blake Shinn, the colt produced a performance that oozed class. Settling comfortably in midfield, Shinn bided his time before easing the colt into clear air on the home turn. From there, Return To Conquer surged to the front inside the 200m, holding off the late challenge of Landlock with a head to spare - a thrilling finish befitting the occasion.

On Soft5 footing, he clocked 1:11.4 for the 1200 metres, with his final 600m in approximately 35.2 seconds. Sent out as the raging favourite, he justified every bit of the $1.70 & $1.20 support on the NZ TAB tote.

The Sistema Stakes' win continued Te Akau’s dominance in this prestigious juvenile race, formerly known as the Diamond Stakes. The stable has now lifted the trophy eight times, beginning with Maroofity  in 2003 and most recently with Sword Of State in 2021. The stable has also claimed four of the last five editions, underscoring its unrivalled success with two-year-olds.

Owned by the Te Akau 2024 Stallion Breeding Syndicate (managed by Karyn Fenton-Ellis MNZM), Return To Conquer was a standout at the Magic Millions' Gold Coast Yearling Sale, where David Ellis CNZM secured him for a$1.3 million from the draft of Blue Gum Farm.

“We thought he was the best Snitzel colt in the sale when we bought him and could not fault him in any way,” Ellis said. “There was spirited bidding, but we were determined to bring him home - and he’s justified every bit of our belief.”

His pedigree reads like a who’s who of Australian bloodlines. By four-time Champion Sire Snitzel (Redoute’s Choice), whose influence on Australian racing is immeasurable, Return To Conquer is out of Vaujany, a Lonhro (Octagonal) mare whose lineage is steeped in class. Lonhro himself was Champion Three-Year-Old, Champion Miler, and Horse of the Year, winning 11 Group Ones. 

His dam Vaujany is a three-quarter sister to stakes-performed sprinter Andermatt (Snitzel), and her dam Portillo (Red Ransom) was a top-class filly who won the Group 2 Surround Stakes (1400m) and placed at Group One level. This blue-blooded colt also carries the influential Danzig (Northern Dancer) cross through both sire and dam lines, further enhancing his breeding credentials.

Unbeaten in four dazzling starts, with $534,750 in prizemoney already banked, Return To Conquer is shaping as a future star not only on the racetrack but also in the breeding barn. Now temporarily based at Te Akau's Australian stable, he is currently preparing for a jump out at Cranbourne, with his sights firmly set on even bigger Victorian Spring targets ahead.

Te Akau previous wins in the Sistema Stakes (Gr. 1, 1200m):

2021 – Sword Of State (Snitzel)

2020 – Cool Aza Beel (Savabeel)

2019 – Yourdeel (Dundeel)

2018 – Sword Of Osman (Savabeel)

2016 – Heroic Valour (Fastnet Rock)

2012 – Warhorse (General Nediym) (HK: Tougher Than Ever)

2003 – Maroofity (Maroof)