IN Racing
Wallace/Cooksley juveniles dominant at Pukekohe
Byerley Park trainers Bruce Wallace and Grant Cooksley produced their promising contingent of juveniles to an impressive quinella in the Ellerslie Events 2YO 1100 at Pukekohe on Saturday.
Jess de Lautour, LOVERACING.NZ News Desk | October 29, 2023
Photo: Kenton Wright (Race Images)

Byerley Park trainers Bruce Wallace and Grant Cooksley produced their promising contingent of juveniles to an impressive quinella in the Ellerslie Events 2YO 1100 at Pukekohe on Saturday.

In a compact field of six, the Wallace/Cooksley stable presented half of the two-year-old field and managed to fill the first two placings with So Naïve and Toruk Makto respectively.

A son of U S Navy Flag, So Naïve jumped from the inside draw and was hustled to hold the pacemaking position under apprentice Ace Lawson-Carroll, while stablemate Toruk Makto began alongside race-favourite Take The Crown, who briefly bucked and became detached from the remainder of the field early.

The long-striding So Naïve travelled boldly in front throughout and despite racing greenly in the home straight, the colt showed a strong turn-of-foot to score by a length-and-a-quarter from a fast-closing Toruk Makto and Joe Doyle.

“He was a wee bit slower out than I thought he would be, but we got there easy enough and got some nice sectionals out in front,” Lawson-Carroll said.

“He was very strong, very forward and will be a nice horse to watch in the future.”

So Naïve was a $37,500 purchase for Wallace Thoroughbreds out of Kilgravin Lodge’s Book 2 draft at the 2023 Karaka Yearling Sales, while Eminent colt Toruk Makto was secured for $28,000 out of Brighthill Farm.

Toruk Makto So Naive Bruce Wallace and Grant Cooksley Byerley Park Eminent Kilgravin Lodge Brighthill Farm Wallace Thoroughbreds Ace Lawson Carroll Joe Doyle Take The Crown Celine Gaudray US Navy Flag