Consistent galloper Discretion Rules cracked his maiden victory in fine style after a string of minor placings when taking out the Listed Berkley Stud Champagne Stakes (1200m) at Riccarton.
The son of Alabama Express is prepared by Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson from their Riccarton base and had the misfortune of striking star stablemate Nucleozor at his first three starts, where he placed third then second in consecutive runs, before finding the top step of the podium at his fourth attempt.
Bounced away nicely from barrier four by Niranjan Parmar, Discretion Rules sat outside pacemaker Great Time before assuming control at the 300m.
Parmar asked for a serious effort, and he shot way by three lengths before holding out the late challenges of Cambridge visitor Ziggy Stardust and the second Walker and Bergerson runner in Colonel Warden.
Te Akau Racing Manager Reece Trumper was on hand to witness the victory and was quick to praise the ride by their stable apprentice.
“It was a great ride by Parmar as he put him in a lovely position where he relaxed beautifully,” Trumper said.
“The step up to 1200m was a question mark but Parmar gave him a treat of a ride and that is why he is the leading apprentice (43 wins) at present.
“Colonel Warden was also really good as he flattened out well and will improve with the run, so he won’t be taking long to win one.”
Walker was also taken with the performance.
“It was a really good win today,” he said.
“He’d obviously been going great races behind his stable-mate Nucleozor, but it was good to see him get his Maiden win in a Listed race.
“He’s a yearling that Dave (Ellis) bought before we knew how good the sire (Alabama Express) was going to be. He’s a very promising sire and we were very impressed with his yearlings throughout the sales series, at Magic Millions, Sydney, and Melbourne. He’s got a lovely line of young horses.
“We’re going to give him a break now, because he’s had four starts since early March, so it’s great for him to gain a valuable win before going out.”
Raced by the Te Akau Non-Stop Express Racing Partnership Discretion Rules was purchased by Te Akau Racing Boss David Ellis for $165,000 from the Highline Thoroughbreds draft during the Book 1 sale at Karaka in 2023.
He is out of the Zoustar mare Miss Madonna and comes from an extended family that includes a colt (now stallion) with an outstanding record for the stable in Sword Of State who won six races, including the Gr.1 Diamond Stakes (1200m) at Ellerslie before being named Champion Two-Year-Old in New Zealand for the 2020 racing season.
Sword Of State is now resident at Cambridge Stud and will stand during the 2024 breeding season for a fee of $15,000 + GST.