3 minute read

Russell Warwick - Westbury Stud

Who are your most successful sale graduates to date?
From limited numbers to the races so far we have offered Hong Kong Group winner Ho Ho Khan, Listed winner Kante, the inaugural The Jericho winner High Mode, Good Luck Friend (2019 Champion Griffin in Hong Kong), Superich, Swisswatch, D’Augilar, Edit, Timberlake, Trusty Lad, and Claiborne. 

Of your 2020 draft which are your standouts?
There are some nice horses at all levels but two that stand out to me are Lot 34, a colt by Tarzino from the stakes winning mare Readyor. He is a lovely colt and everyone who has been involved with him has taken a liking to him.

Lot 125, a filly by red hot sire Reliable Man from the Redoute’s Choice mare Zuzela is a quality filly. She is a 30 November foal and has done particularly well to reach the Ready to Run stage. Her sister was purchased by Cambridge trainer Shaune Ritchie at the Ready To Run Sale last year for NZ$170,000 and trialled impressively at Matamata last week. 

How do you think your draft this year compares to previous years?
There are probably a broader selection of horses in this draft who have all breezed up well and fit a wide range of markets. There is more emphasis at Ready To Run time on how the horses breeze up rather than bodyweight and pedigree which often applies at yearling sales, and some of the horses shine at this advanced stage.

How do you think the sale will be affected by the current travel / COVID situation?
At this point I don’t think any of us can say with any certainty what the outcome might be, but there is no doubt that it won’t be easy and as vendors we will need to be conservative as to where we pitch our values. No matter what the influencing factors are from time to time, one thing we can be assured of is that there is always a strong demand for good types and one would feel this will continue to be the case next week.

Have you seen any changes in the way breeze up horses are prepared in New Zealand over the past few years?
I believe there is less emphasis on running the fastest time these days, and more focus on seeing a horse moving within its comfort zone and allowing prospective buyers to evaluate the actions of the horses. They are still very young horses and there aren’t too many races run over 200 metres.