Blind Raise ready for Cox Plate challenge
New Zealand-bred three-year-old Blind Raise (NZ) (Ace High) will take his place in Saturday’s A$6 million Gr.1 Cox Plate (2040m) at Flemington, with trainer Trent Busuttin confident the talented gelding can measure up against older opposition.
The son of Ace High has won four of his six starts and was gallant when runner-up to Warwoven (Sword Of State) in the Gr.1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m) last start, having endured considerable pressure on speed.
Trained by Busuttin in partnership with Natalie Young, Blind Raise will jump from barrier nine under Jamie Melham and carries just 49.5kg under the weight-for-age conditions.
Busuttin expects his charge to race prominently despite the wide draw, with several other runners also likely to push forward.
“We will be sliding forward. The only positive from the barrier draw is that there is no question Land Legend (Galileo) will be going forward and Light Infantry Man (Fast Company) will go across as well,” Busuttin said.
“Hopefully we can go underneath them, get across and find some cover. It is what it is, Jamie will sort it out.”
Blind Raise will be taking on older opposition in the Cox Plate, but Busuttin is confident the three-year-old can handle the pressure of the weight-for-age feature.
“The three-year-olds go through a pain barrier every year in the Cox Plate, where they are all going flat out,” he said.
“Three-year-olds have a good record in the race.
“I have no problem with it being a high-pressure race. We also only have to carry 49.5kg.”
Busuttin has been delighted with Blind Raise’s progress since his Caulfield Guineas performance and believes there could be further improvement to come as the gelding prepares for just his fourth run of the campaign.
“We were very happy with his Guineas run. He certainly hasn’t taken a step backwards, and he is only fourth-up, so I hope there is improvement in him,” he said.
“He looks great in the coat and he will present at his best.”
The Cox Plate will also see Blind Raise renew his rivalry with Warwoven, who is prepared by Bjorn Baker.
Busuttin and Baker are longtime friends, having grown up together in New Zealand, but Saturday’s Cox Plate will give them more than just a chance to compete for one of Australia’s most prestigious prizes, it will also provide valuable bragging rights between the two old mates.
Busuttin admitted there were easier options available for Blind Raise, including the Gr.2 Drummond Golf Vase (2040m) at Moonee Valley or the Gr.1 Spring Champion Stakes (2000m) at Randwick, but believes the opportunity to contest a Cox Plate was too good to pass up.
“We could have run in the Vase or gone up for the Spring Champion Stakes, but not very often do you get a genuine chance in the Cox Plate,” he said.
Offered by his breeders The Oaks Stud in Book 1 of Karaka 2025, Blind Raise was purchased by Busuttin Young Racing for $70,000.
The gelding is by Rich Hill Stud stallion Ace High out of the Darci Brahma mare Away Cruising. A two-race winner herself, Away Cruising is a daughter of Seachange (NZ), who carried The Oaks Stud’s colours to seven Group One victories and was twice crowned New Zealand Horse of the Year - NZ Racing Desk
Manzor Blue shooting for Melbourne Cup golden ticket
Palmerston North mare Manzor Blue (NZ) (Almanzor) will carry the hopes of a nation at Flemington on Saturday as the sole New Zealand-trained entry for next month’s Gr.1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) bids to secure one of the last two golden tickets into the coveted race.
Trainer Lisa Latta and New Zealand-based syndicator Go Racing are having one throw at the stumps, with the six-year-old mare having to win the Gr.2 Moonee Valley Gold Cup (2500m) this weekend in order to qualify for the Melbourne Cup.
Manzor Blue’s connections had the option of lining her up in another Melbourne Cup ballot-exempt race, the Gr.3 Geelong Cup (2400m) on Wednesday, however, they elected to opt for the added distance and roomier track at Flemington.
“She drew wide in the Geelong Cup, and we were hoping for a better draw (14) at Flemington,” Latta said. “We just thought the big, roomier track (of Flemington) would probably suit her better, and the extra 100m.”
Manzor Blue, who won the Gr.3 Wellington Cup (3200m) at Trentham in January before finishing runner-up in the Gr.2 Auckland Cup (3200m) in March, arrived in Melbourne on Sunday, and Latta said she has settled in well.
With it being her first run in Australia, Latta is unsure how she will measure up against her rivals, but she is hopeful of a bold showing.
“She has travelled well and you just don’t know until you get in amongst these horses and line up,” she said. “It is a strong field.”
Manzor Blue is currently an $81 outsider with TAB bookmakers, in a market headed by Aethelwulf (Saxon Warrior) at $4.80.
Go Racing currently have one likely runner in the Melbourne Cup in the Chris Waller-trained Soul Of Spain (Phoenix Of Spain), while their other hopeful, Omni Man (Invincible Spirit), just missed out on an automatic spot after running home well to finish third in the Geelong Cup.
Latta could have a second runner at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day, with the Awapuni conditioner contemplating heading south from Sydney with Platinum Pantheon (Hanseatic) following his unplaced run in last Saturday’s A$1 million Listed Silver Eagle (1300m) at Randwick.
“It was a bit of a disappointing run, but the track dried out during the day and there was real on-speed bias in that race,” Latta said. “He got home well enough, but like Zac (Lloyd, jockey) said, he was no chance turning in, just drawing that wide and having to go that far back.
“We may look at a rating race on Melbourne Cup Day at Flemington with him.”
Back in New Zealand, Latta will be hunting stakes success at Riccarton on Saturday with Platinum La Danse (NZ) (Noverre) in the Gr.3 War Decree Stakes (1400m).
The three-year-old daughter of Noverre was runner-up at the track in last month’s Listed Canterbury Belle Stakes (1200m), and Latta said that trip puts her in good stead for this weekend.
“She left in the early hours of this (Thursday) morning,” Latta said. “She has had a trip down there, so that will help her a lot, but there is a question mark on a Good track.”
Closer to home at Trentham on Sunday, Latta will be represented by a handful of runners, including Gr.3 TAB Mile (1600m) aspirant Coulthard (NZ) (Redwood), who will contest the Upper Hutt Sales Handicap (1400m) after missing out on a spot in the Gr.3 Gee & Hickton Thompson Handicap (1600m).
“I really wanted to run Coulthard in the Thompson but ended up two on the ballot and drawn the very outside,” Latta said. “He will possibly have to run anyway because he holds a nom for the TAB Mile, and that is the race we have targeted when he came back into work.
“We don’t really want to wait a week and go down there 10 days later and line up. It (this weekend) just fits in perfectly. But he is going to have to carry 62kg in that, and he has drawn the outside in that as well.” - Joshua Smith
Pitman team poised to shine ahead of Cup week
Michael and Matthew Pitman are marshalling their troops for New Zealand Cup week and a number of them will have opportunities to further their carnival hopes at Riccarton this weekend.
Among them are the well-performed stayers Rosso (Camelot), Star Ballot (NZ) (Tarzino) and Canheroc (NZ) (El Roca), while Third Decree (NZ) (War Decree) is also warming up for the defence of a festival feature.
Rosso will be in action in Saturday’s Listed Pavilion Now Open Spring Classic (2000m), a distance short of his target event, but he is still expected to give another strong account of himself.
Last season’s Gr.3 Trentham Stakes (2100m) winner was third when resuming on the course over 1600m two starts back before finishing runner-up over a middle distance at Timaru.
“They were both very good runs, and he was a little bit unlucky not to have won the other day, but it was a good result all the same,” Michael Pitman said.
The Irish-bred Rosso is currently the $5 second favourite for the Gr.3 Martin Collins New Zealand Cup (3200m), and is primed for a bold showing over 2000m.
“He did run third first-up over a mile and he’s not a slow, plodding stayer,” Pitman said.
“He’s got a natural turn of foot, as he’s showed when he’s won, so I think he’s an each-way chance.
“His main target is the New Zealand Cup, it has been all the way through, and he’ll run in this one and then in the Metropolitan (Listed, 2580m).”
Connections also have hopes of tackling a distance feature further afield in the autumn.
“The long-range target is the Sydney Cup (Gr.1, 3200m), we’re hoping to get him over there,” Pitman said.
Star Ballot was placed off a break in the Ashburton Cup (1600m), and recent Canterbury Cup (2000m) third Ocean Light (NZ) (Ocean Park) will add to the stable assault on the Spring Classic.
“Star Ballot is my favourite, he’s a very genuine racehorse and was massive first-up and will possibly improve. He holds a Cup nomination as well,” Pitman said.
“He’ll follow the traditional path as well, into the staying event on the first day and Ocean Light should have won his last start.
“He was in front a long way from home after having a reasonably tough run early in the race and just got run down. Hopefully, he gets a sweeter run this weekend and will be a chance at longer odds.”
Another Cup contender for the team is proven stayer Canheroc, who will take aim at Saturday’s NZB Airfreight Road To Jericho (3000m).
“I think he will go close to winning, he’s very well in himself and has run third in the last two New Zealand Cups, so 3000m will suit him,” Pitman said.
“He’s probably our best chance on the day, and he’ll also follow the traditional path to the Cup.”
Mystic Park (NZ) (Ocean Park) was an impressive last-start course and distance winner and will step out in the TAB Mile Prelude (1400m) ahead of the defence of his Gr.3 TAB Mile (1600m) title.
“He was fantastic and enjoyed the drier track conditions, he’s got a marvellous record at Riccarton (seven wins) and he’s got the weight (60kg) to carry, but he’s earned it,” Pitman said.
Third Decree will also take her place in the Prelude off the back of a sound resuming fifth at Ashburton.
“She went a nice race first-up and will go from here to the fillies and mares’ race on the first day (Gr.3 Windsor Park Stud Canterbury Breeders’ Stakes, 1400m),” Pitman said.
“The biggest plus for her on Saturday is that she’s down to a weight (55.5kg) that she can be competitive at.” - Paul Vettise
Melbourne Cup-winning partnership reunites
Graeme Rogerson and prominent Australian owner Lloyd Williams have plenty of fond memories together, and they are hoping to add to them with promising three-year-old Glamorgan (Wootton Bassett), who won on debut at Te Aroha on Wednesday.
The pair’s biggest successes came with grey gelding Efficient (NZ) (Zabeel), who won the 2006 Gr.1 Victoria Derby (2500m) at Flemington, and a year later returned to the track to score his biggest win in the Gr.1 Melbourne Cup (3200m).
Williams’ famous colours are synonymous with the Melbourne Cup, having won seven editions of the race, the last being with the Joseph O’Brien-trained Twilight Payment (Teofilo) in 2020.
His silks haven’t appeared in New Zealand for over two decades, and Rogerson said seeing them return aboard a victorious Glamorgan on Wednesday evoked some fond memories.
“It has been a long time, about 20 years, since Lloyd has raced a horse in New Zealand,” said Rogerson, who trains in partnership with his wife Debbie and Clinton Isdale.
“We have had a great run, including a Melbourne Cup winner, and he is a very close friend.
“It does bring back good memories, and I think he (Glamorgan) has got the potential to be a very good staying horse.”
Bred by Gerry Harvey in Australia, Glamorgan is by Wootton Bassett and out of stakes-winning Savabeel mare Grazia (NZ), who is a full-sister to dual Group One winner Shillelagh and Group One performer Tullamore.
Glamorgan was initially bought by Riversley Park out of Baramul Stud’s 2025 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale draft for A$225,000, and he was subsequently offered through their New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run Sale draft later that year, where his pedigree caught the eye of Williams.
Williams asked Rogerson to cast his eye over Glamorgan, and he was suitably impressed, and bid to $350,000 to secure the then colt on behalf of Williams.
“Lloyd Williams picked him out on pedigree, and he is a very good judge,” Rogerson said. “He put me and Deb in the ownership (along with his son, Nick).
“He is a nice horse and we might have a bit of fun with him. I think he has got the potential to be a very good staying horse. Deb is working out a programme with him now, with Lloyd and Nick, and we are concentrating on the (New Zealand) Derby and then hope we end up in Australia for the Derby with him.”
While Rogerson is dreaming of another Derby victory with Glamorgan, his 2023 Gr.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) winner Sharp ‘N’ Smart (NZ) (Redwood) is set to head south to Trentham on Sunday to contest the Gr.3 Gee & Hickton Thompson Handicap (1600m).
The former New Zealand Horse of the Year beat just one runner home when resuming over 1500m at Te Rapa last month, but Rogerson said he has progressed well ahead of his second-up assignment this weekend.
“He had 61kg and he got going when the race was all over,” Rogerson said. “He has developed into a lovely, big, strong horse, and I think when he gets up over a bit of distance you will see the old Sharp ‘N’ Smart.
“The reason we are taking him down there is because it is a Listed race and he gets a little bit less weight. He will need the run, but I think he will run a cheeky race, even with the weight difference.”
The Gr.3 Balmerino Stakes (2000m) at Ellerslie on Melbourne Cup Day looms as his next target, with summer Cups targets also on the cards, including the Gr.3 Waikato Cup (2400m), which he won last year.
“He is running in the weight-for-age race at Ellerslie on Melbourne Cup Day and then Deb will work out whether he has another go at the Counties (Gr.3, 2100m) and Waikato Cups, and maybe the Queen Elizabeth (Gr.3, 2400m) at Christmas. We will just play all of that by ear.”
Sharp ‘N’ Smart will be joined in his race on Sunday by stablemate Knights Realm (NZ) (Castledale).
“He is Clint’s horse and he is coming up really well,” Rogerson said. “He ran a cheeky race the other day. There is a nice race in him.”
Meanwhile, Rogerson is also upbeat about the chances of last-start winner Play (NZ) (Redwood) in the Grahams Painters Handicap (1600m), while at Ellerslie a day prior, he is looking forward to lining up Lucky Ferrando (NZ) (Ferrando) in the Thank You Craig Baker 1600.
“I like the Redwood horse, Play,” Rogerson said. “He is a nice horse in the making.
“I don’t mind the horse at Auckland called Lucky Ferrando. I had him out on lease, and the lease ran out, and I got him back. He will run a nice race.” - Joshua Smith
NZ Racing Desk
A special moment for Team O’Valerie.
Darryl Anderson reviews the New Zealand-sourced winners in Hong Kong on Wednesday 21st October.
