Australia beckoning Bona Sforza

A trip across the Tasman is on the cards for Central Districts filly Bona Sforza (Written By) following her win in the Listed NZB Insurance Stakes (1600m) at Riccarton on Saturday.

The victory came a year to the day after she won the Listed Welcome Stakes (1000m) at the same meeting, and trainer Samantha Finnegan was pleased to have last year’s winning jockey Ace Lawson-Carroll back in the saddle following his return from injury.

“I am so happy for him,” Finnegan said. “When he won on her this day last year it was his first stakes winner and when I saw him back riding I was straight back on the phone.”

While based in Manawatu, it was the fourth trip Finnegan has made to Christchurch with Bona Sforza, and they have proven to be fruitful campaigns, netting two stakes wins, a runner-up result in the Listed Canterbury Belle Stakes (1200m), and fourth placing in the Gr.1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m).

Bona Sforza’s liking for Riccarton is obvious, but Finnegan believes her strong record at the track is more to do with the firm surface it has provided in all but one of her four outings there.

“She just needs a firm track,” Finnegan said. “She has only had a firm track three times, when she has won and when she ran fourth in the Guineas, in what was probably one of the best stakes races of the year.

“She just loves a Good track and they (Riccarton) present a beautiful track. It was firm yesterday, but it has always got a great cover of grass. It handles a lot of racing and it is a beautiful track to race on.”

While Bona Sforza has a love affair with Riccarton, Finnegan revealed Saturday’s contest was Plan B, with the filly initially set to head north to Te Rapa on Sunday, but Cyclone Vaianu altered that plan.

Finnegan got a sense of déjà vu as she was also forced to head straight into last year’s Welcome Stakes after Bona Sforza’s initial debut plans were thwarted by weather.

“It was actually a bit like last year,” Finnegan said. “We were meant to run at Tauherenikau in her first start before the Welcome, and then that got called off, but we thought we would go anyway, and she won so well.

“The original plan was to go to Te Rapa today (Sunday) and when the weather looked so bad we looked for another race, so we ended up down here.”

With the late change of plans, Finnegan faced a logistical nightmare getting to Christchurch, but part-owner Cam Heron came to the rescue with transport.

“All the trucks had either left or were full by the time we decided to come down, so it was a mad rush on Wednesday,” Finnegan said. “One of our owners, Cam Heron, lives in Cambridge and has a horse truck, so he met me in Turangi and we swapped vehicles and then we drove down here (Christchurch) on Thursday.

“All the owners have been great. We have been down here four times and it is a big expense and they are always happy to come, they are amazing.”

Stepping up to a mile second-up was Finnegan’s only concern heading into Saturday, but Bona Sforza proved she had nothing to fear.

“We were worried whether the mile was a run to soon, but she seemed to get it beautifully,” Finnegan said.

“On her pedigree she shouldn’t get further than 1200m, but she seemed to get the mile really well in the Guineas and even better yesterday.

“She has come through the run super, she is a great little horse, she eats everything, you wouldn’t even know she went around.”

While the Listed New Zealand Bloodstock Warstep Stakes (2000m) at Riccarton in a fortnight looms as an obvious target, Finnegan said she will likely bypass the fillies feature in favour of flying to Australia to tackle the Gr.1 Australasian Oaks (2000m) at Morphettville on ANZAC Day.

“There is an option to go to Australia in two weeks, so we will talk with the owners this week about that, but if we go to 2000m she will probably be going to Australia,” Finnegan said.

“There’s the Australasian Oaks in Adelaide, which is a Group One worth $1 million, and with her going so well you would probably have to have a go.

“It could possibly be her only run and then she can go out and get ready for a spring campaign.”

With just a handful of horses in her career and currently in her second full season of training, Finnegan is pinching herself that she has a filly of Bona Sforza’s quality in her barn and she is excited about the future.

“We only have a small team of four horses in work and to have one good enough to be running in Group Ones and winning Listed races is amazing,” she said.

By Written By, Bona Sforza is out of stakes performer Thwayya and was offered through Highline Thoroughbreds’ 2024 New Zealand Bloodstock Book 1 Yearling Sale draft where she was purchased by Finnegan and her husband Francis for $150,000.

She has now won two of her six starts, both at stakes level, and has accrued more than $138,000 in prizemoney.