Saturday is shaping up to be an exciting afternoon for Waikato Stud, whose colours will be carried by key Group One contenders on both sides of the Tasman.
Skew Wiff returns to Hastings to defend her title in the Gr.1 Westbury Stud Tarzino Trophy (1400m), and she will be followed two and a half hours later by I Wish I Win in the Gr.1 Moir Stakes (1000m) at The Valley. Both are homebred progeny of Waikato Stud’s legendary stallion Savabeel.
Waikato Stud also has last season’s Gr.2 Awapuni Gold Cup (2100m) winner Nereus lining up in Saturday’s Livamol Animal Health Products Premier (1600m) on the Hastings undercard. The full-brother to multiple Group One winner Savvy Coup is on trial for a potential spring campaign in Melbourne.
“It’s a day that we’ve really been looking forward to,” Waikato Stud principal Mark Chittick said. “To have runners in our colours in Group One races in both New Zealand and Australia, we’re very excited.
“We’re hoping to kick the day off well at Hawke’s Bay with Nereus, who I’m really keen to see on top of the ground and getting up over a bit more distance as well. Then we go into the El Roca-Sir Colin Meads Trophy (1200m), which has a couple of three-year-olds from the first crop of our exciting stallion Super Seth (Super Photon and Poetic Champion), and then into the Group Ones from there.
“It’s obviously a very busy time of the year on the farm as well. I’ll have a bit of vet work to get through and a few things like that, but I’ll see whether or not there’ll be a bit of free time for me to sneak down to Hawke’s Bay for the races on Saturday.”
A second Tarzino Trophy win by Skew Wiff on Saturday would continue a proud record for Waikato Stud in the season-opening Group One feature. Their colours were previously carried to success by I Do in 2014.
Skew Wiff’s victory in the Tarzino last September was a springboard into an Australian campaign that started strongly with victory in the Gr.3 Hong Kong Jockey Club Stakes (1400m) on Melbourne Cup Day at Flemington. She was also a close and unlucky fifth in the Gr.1 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes (1400m), but her form tailed off later in the season.
Trainers Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson appear to have turned Skew Wiff’s fortunes around, launching her five-year-old preparation with a close third behind Bonny Lass and Mali Ston in the Gr.2 Foxbridge Plate (1200m) at Te Rapa on August 24.
Skew Wiff will be ridden by Opie Bosson, who was in the saddle for last year’s triumph as well as I Do’s win in 2014. The TAB rates Skew Wiff a $6 third favourite behind Crocetti ($2) and Bonny Lass ($5).
“Skew Wiff ran really well first-up and it’s great to have her back to defend her title in this race,” Chittick said. “Obviously there’s a very, very smart horse to beat, but she’s going into the race in great order.
“I’m sure that Daniel (Nakhle) will shout me a drink if Crocetti wins, as I will for him if it’s Skew Wiff.”
I Wish I Win took Waikato Stud and slot-holders Trackside to the brink of the summit in the A$20 million The Everest (1200m) last October, and Saturday’s Moir Stakes is the first step towards his second shot at the mega-rich sprint.
The six-year-old is set to go from Saturday’s Moir Stakes into the Gr.1 Manikato Stakes (1200m) on September 27, with trainers Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman building him towards his shot at The Everest in the third start of his campaign on October 19.
“His build-up has been perfect,” Chittick said. “It’s only 1000m on Saturday, but the team has been very happy with him leading into it and it’s a nice way to kick off. It’s all part of his programme leading into The Everest. We’ve got an exciting few weeks coming up with him.”