3 minute read
Consensus smashes Australasian online auction record; Telegraph possible for Emily Margaret;Te Akau looking to extend Karaka Million run
Consensus smashes Australasian online auction record
Group One-winning mare Consensus set an Australasian online auction record on Monday night when she sold on gavelhouse.com to Yulong Investments for $622,500.
The daughter of Postponed raced across six seasons for 11 wins, six of those at stakes level, including the Gr.1 Zabeel Classic (2000m) and Gr.2 Sunline Stakes (1600m).
The recently retired eight-year-old mare is in-foal to Haunui Farm's Iffraaj, who added another Group One winner to his credentials on Saturday courtesy of Wyndspelle's Captain Cook Stakes (1600m) victory.
Consensus fetched considerably more than her $375,000 reserve and gavelhouse.com General Manager Haylie Martin was grateful for the opportunity to showcase the benefits of selling online.
"It's a privilege to be given the opportunity to present horses of Consensus' calibre to the market," she said.
"There was plenty of interest in her from New Zealand and Australian clients right from the outset and this result demonstrates again that there really are no boundaries when it comes to presenting horses for sale online."
Monday's result surpasses gavelhouse.com's previous top lot, Lubaya, who fetched $255,000 in August, while Consensus' dam Kate Cross sold in-foal to Iffraaj in December 2017 for $85,000.
Telegraph possible for Emily Margaret
Emily Margaret's runner-up performance over 1200m at Riccarton on Saturday has got her connections thinking.
The Group Two-winning daughter of Pins put in a disappointing effort when tailing the field home in the Gr.3 Canterbury Breeders' Stakes (1400m) last month, but her performance on Saturday has co-trainer Kevin Hughes weighing up a tilt at the Gr.1 JR & N Berkett Telegraph (1200m) at Trentham next month.
"I was very pleased with her on Saturday because there was a bit of a muck-up in the Valachi and I just wanted to get her back on track again and get her confidence back," said Hughes, who trains the four-year-old mare in partnership with his wife Pam.
"With a bit of pain last year I don't think she jumped out as well as she could and they have just got to realise that it doesn't hurt anymore.
"I think she is going through that, and on Saturday she jumped out pretty well. It was a grand finish, the three of them knuckling down to it.
"I have still got in the back of my mind to put in a late nomination for the Telegraph, but she has got the Kamada Park (Manawatu Challenge Stakes, Gr.2) at 1400m at Manawatu on the 21st (of December).
"That will be her first target. We will try her at weight-for-age and see how she goes."
Te Akau looking to extend Karaka Million run
Te Akau have a formidable record in the Karaka Million 2YO (1200m) and trainer Jamie Richards is hoping they can extend their association with the race in January.
The Matamata-based racing team has won the past three editions of the race, including taking out the trifecta in this year's running, and Richards believes his stable will have a couple of nice chances in the juvenile feature next month.
"We have got two nice chances qualified at this stage," he said.
"Bordeaux Le Rouge is definitely in. He is a horse with some controversy around his win the other day at Ellerslie (when promoted above Taroni), but he's going well.
"We have another nice horse, Cool Aza Beel, who was an impressive winner on debut at Wanganui and then he was very unlucky at Counties when running fourth.
"He has got close to $9,000 (in earnings), so hopefully that will be enough."
"Both of those horses will run a fortnight beforehand at Ellerslie on the 12th (of January). It is a race we have used successfully before."
While Richards looks likely to have two starters in the race, he said there are a number of juveniles in his barn who may make a late run at qualifying for the rich feature.
"We have also go some horses to trial in the next couple of weeks. They are running out of time a little bit, but if they can trial well we will certainly give them the opportunity to race and they might be able to get in late in the piece."
