Friday Flash 8th April

Headline News;

NO ENVY wins for Fortuna Racing at Geelong Friday 1^st April
 
EMINENT – KATY O’BEEL Filly sells in 36 hours
 
Mark Walker collects a Group One win at  Awapuni 2^nd April on his first day back as Head Trainer NZ for Te Akau Racing
 
Fortuna has a quiet week with just one runner in New Zealand

New Zealand

SOPRANO SUPREME contests the R74 2200m at Rotorua Saturday – Race 4 @ 2.26pm. Three starts in 2022 for 2 emphatic wins , this talented staying mare is up in Grade for this event and Opie Bosson rides from a good barrier. Dominant winner this track 1950m last start, she is primed to feature again and is a strong each way chance in  this

Upcoming Trialists

Avondale 12th April – 2yo Filly INCA BELLE (Per Incanto – Belle Vie)

Fortuna Track work – Matamata

Tuesday 5^th April

No Fortuna Timed trackwork today

Thursday 7^th April
Madame Moet (S Pillay) galloped over 1000 metres in 1.11.4, home in 42.6.

Fortuna Track work – Singapore

Saturday 2^nd April
Kermajack (Jamil) – 800/600 37

Tuesday 5^th April
Kermajack (Aiman) – 800/600 38; Briggs (Aslam) – 600 48; Elliot Ness (Aslam) 600 37;

Other News

Fortuna UK import NO ENVY wins his Maiden race at Geelong in Victoria 1st April
Published 2 April 2022

The Fortuna Racing four year old Gelding NO ENVY was sent out an odds on favourite  by punters in the Maiden 2455m event at Geelong in Victoria Friday 1st April and the horse didn’t disappoint them. Drawn the outside barrier in the eight horse field, jockey Damien Thornton allowed him to stride forward in the run down the straight for the first time, and slotted in nicely one out and one back. Traveling nicely in the run, Thornton asked for an effort before the turn, NO ENVY responded nicely, hit the front as they turned, fought off any challengers and went to the line winning by a four and a half length margin.

Click HERE to see race Video replay.

NO ENVY was having just his 3rd race day start – he had run 2nd on debut at Ascot in the UK in October 2021 when trained by Andrew Balding – he was then offered for sale and was aquired by Fortuna Racing/De Burgh Equine and shipped to Australia.  He is now trained at Pinecliff in Victoria by the father and son team of Anthony and Sam Freedman and is the first horse trained by them for Fortuna Racing and was having his 2nd start for them after running 6th at his Aus debut over 1950 meters 3rd March. NO ENVY who carries the stable name “Felix” is by Lope De Vega out of Purple Pearl (Danehill Dancer) and has a very stout staying pedigree.

Sam Freedman was a satisfied handler after the race “NO ENVY was very good today, he jumped away well, Damien got him into a nice spot, he relaxed well in the run and produced a strong staying effort that was too strong for the opposition. The field was not strong today, but this horse clearly is a dead set stayer who will only improve with racing and more distance. Well done to John Galvin and his Fortuna Racing ownership team – NO ENVY is the first horse they have given us and Anthony and I are very pleased to have him in our Stable.”

Fortuna Director John Galvin, watching from his home in Hamilton, New Zealand, was also a very happy man, “That was special today – while the Stable were confident that he was going to run well and the market saw it that way as well, it is always good to get the job done with one of these imports, particularly one we had given to a new stable in Australia to prepare for us. It was a lovely ride by Damien Thornton and hats off to Anthony/Sam and their team for getting to know this horse so well – well done to all of the Fortuna clients who have taken shares in him. He was a very popular offering – and a big thank you to our International agent, Hubie De Burgh, who did such a great job selecting this horse for us”

NO ENVY who was bred by Stone Roses Bloodstock and was acquired at the Tattersalls Horses In Training Sale in October 2021 by Deburgh Equine/ Fortuna Racing for 85,000 Guineas 

He is raced by the Fortuna No Envy Syndicate, an ownership group of 63 individuals from New Zealand and Australia

EMINENT – KATY O’BEEL Filly sells out in 30 hours
 
An amazing outcome for this Filly that we had purchased from Karaka Book 2 Sale  – on Monday morning we published our “breaking news” update giving her details and by lunchtime on Tuesday, she was fully committed – a big thank you to our Clients who responded so promptly to this offering

Mark Walker collects a Group One win at  Awapuni 2^nd April on his first day back as Head Trainer NZ for Te Akau Racing

Here below is a story from the Te Akau website on Mark’s background

With Mark Walker returning to his old stomping ground we take a look back at his history with Te Akau. Mark is a world-class horse trainer, with five Champion Trainer titles in New Zealand, and four Champion Trainer titles in Singapore – most recently last year (2021). Walker joined Te Akau Racing straight from school and rose to the heights of top-class thoroughbred trainer, capable of making his mark in any racing jurisdiction worldwide.
An outstanding horseman, Walker led the way among New Zealand horse trainers, dominating New Zealand racing in the decade to 2010, when he transferred to set up Te Akau Racing Stables in Singapore. Results speak volumes for both his talent and ability to lead a team.
He won five New Zealand Trainers’ Premierships in seven years and in the 2009/10 season won the Premiership with 108 wins (28 more than the closest rival).  This was a new benchmark for wins in a season, eclipsing the previous seventeen-year-old record. During his first tenure at the Te Akau New Zealand helm he trained 858 winners, including 88 stakes’ winners, and has over 20 Group 1 wins to his credit.  He still holds the New Zealand record for two-year-old winners in a season.
In November 2018, Mark recorded his 500^th win in Singapore when Elite Invincible provided a season highlight in $1.35m Group 1 Singapore Gold Cup and he registered over 1500 wins as a trainer, and holds the record for wins in a Singapore season.
Away from training horses, Mark enjoys farming and take a keen interest in economics. He resides in Matamata with his partner Mirka and has three children.

BACKGROUND:

Like Kiwi trainer Chris Waller, who grew up in Foxton before becoming a star in Australia, Walker also arose from somewhat ‘obscure beginnings’ growing up on a dairy farm in Rahotu, about 30 minutes from Opunake.   It was a Shetland pony named ‘Mac’ that provided his introduction to horses and he joined the Opunake Pony Club, becoming a very talented show-jumping and eventing competitor between the ages of seven and 17.

Mark Walker has worked for David Ellis CNZM since leaving high school and is now his business partner. Armed with his CV, Walker walked up the driveway at Te Akau Stud and asked David Ellis for a job. Although there were no vacancies at the time, David took the time to read through the CV and promptly hired Walker – the rest, as they say, is history. Ellis freely admits that apart from marrying Karyn (Fenton-Ellis MNZM), employing Mark Walker is the best decision he has ever made.

Here’s just a sample of his unmissable stats:  

Mark commenced training in the 1998/99 season. His first win came on 8 August 1998 at Te Rapa in Hamilton when Galaxy Lover won a hurdle race.
Mark’s first Group 1 win was with Maroofity in the Ellerslie Sires’ Produce Stakes (1200m) in 2003.
He won the “Newcomer to Training” Award at the official NZTR Annual Racing Awards, during his first season as a trainer in 1998-99.
He was voted “NZ Trainer of the Year” four times at the official NZTR Annual Racing Awards – 2003-04, 2005-06, 2006/07 and 2008/09.

Youngest ever recipient of the “NZ Trainer of the Year” award when he first won the title as a 31 year old during season 2003-04.
In 2007-08 broke the NZ record for the highest number of 2YO wins in a season, winning 23 juvenile events with 16 individual 2YOs.
In 2007-08 became the first ever trainer to win the prestigious NZ Bloodstock Filly of the Year title for three consecutive years with Shikoba in 2005-06, Princess Coup in 2006-07 and Insouciant in 2007-08.
In 2007-08 was the first trainer to win NZ’s first ever $2million race, the Kelt Capital Stakes, in which he went on to record back to back wins after Princess Coup’s second consecutive victory in 2008-09.
In 2008-09 won the South Island’s first ever $1 million race, the Group 1 NZ 2000 Guineas with Fortuna Racing’s Tell a Tale.
In 2008-09 Te Akau established a new New Zealand record for domestic stakes’ earnings in one season – $3.71 million.
In 2009-10 established a new New Zealand all time record for wins in a season – 108 (previous record 104).

Please join us in welcoming Mark Walker back to New Zealand! We can’t wait for the future!

Guest Selector
 
Yes, our new Guest Selector, Des Coppins, got off to a great start last week, tipping out Hong Kong at Awapuni – here is what Des is recommending this week

“It was great to start off on the right foot with my “early bird” bet for Fortuna’s Friday Flash readers with Hong Kong last Saturday on the big day at Awapuni. The ease of the win didn’t surprise me – he’s most certainly a likely Cups candidate next season – but it was amazing to see where his price ended around $2.80 after we were able to grab $4.50 briefly at one stage.

The attention this Saturday focuses on Rotorua and there’s one I like at big odds, North of Havana, in race 7. She had a brief let up after showing form in December and January when she beat the highly promising Te Akau runner, Felicienne by more than 3 lengths at Tauranga. At her last start she was taken back from a wide draw and was left a little flat footed.  Her best performance was finishing 4th  to subsequent black type Trentham winner, Bankers Choice, at Ellerslie in the Stella Artois 1500 Championship Final, who since then has run an absolute “blinder” in the rich Doncaster Mile at Randwick on Saturday. Second behind Bankers Choice that was day was the impressive Tauranga winner last week, Carolina Reaper, while third in the event was Sindicato, who is now in the stable of Chris Waller. She’s the type who can act on any type of ground. Her price of $14 and $3.70 is over the odds on my chart.”

Des runs  his very popular phone tipping line (you can access this by calling 0900 45459 – note this incurs a charge of $2.99 per minute) – this service has been active for over 25 years and covers all NZ gallops from 8am each race day).

Fortuna Shares for Sale

We have shares in two horses currently on our website – the proven two win Irish bred staying type MILESTONE, whom we have acquired to specifically contest the 2 Mile Cups races in the coming season and the Karaka Yearling, the Merchant Navy Colt “Salty”

MILESTONE, who had been agisting at Phoenix Park near Cambridge since arriving in NZ early March, has now travelled to Catherine Cleghorne’s property at Waiuku Beach, where he will undergo 6 weeks of pre-traing in the beach environment before transferring to the care of Mark Walker at Matamata

“Salty” is now 3 weeks into his breaking in programme and is handling everything with aplomb – this fellow has been labelled as a “get up and go Two Year Old type”

Not a lot of shares left, but both of these offerings can be viewed on the Fortuna website HERE