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Te Rapa Runners - 6/9

We're heading to Te Rapa Racing today with three horses on the truck. The track is currently graded as a slow 8 and rail is out 8m.ONE MADISON (Opie Bosson, barrier 6) will kick our day off in race 3 at 1.52pm. She was impressive on debut before struggling last start. Stepping up to 1400m appeals.TWEEDLEDEE (Taiki Yanagida, barrier 2) will line up in race 7 at 4.17pm. We were very pleased with his performance last start when second at Te Rapa in against a rating 82 field. Going back to...

Matamata Runners - 28/8

As of 9am on raceday morning, the track is graded as a heavy 10 and rail is out 6m.  JOHNIE REDMOND (Taiki Yanagida, barrier 6) will kick off our day in race 5 at 2.17pm. He is back going left handed today, which will suit him well after failing to perform at Counties last start. Back to the 1200m appeals and he should handle today's very testing conditions. As with all of our runners today, will have the home track advantage on his side. PATCH MAN (Taiki Yanagida, barrier 3) will line up i...

Charles sets off on road to the Cup

Lance O'Sullivan, who trains in partnership with Andrew Scott, is delighted with Charles Road's progress ahead of the Spring Preview Handicap (1400m) at Randwick's Kensington track but doesn't expect him to trouble the main chances in a race well short of his best distance."Andrew and I are really pleased with him. He's probably carrying a little more condition than he normally would be going into his first-up run but it's come around pretty soon and to be getting the show on the road, we have t...

Pukekohe Park Runners - 10/8

The Wexford truck is heading north to Pukekohe Park today, with four horses onboard. The track is currently graded as a heavy 11 and rail is in the true position.  DIVINE DUKE and TWEEDLEDEE will kick our day off in race 2 at 12.15pm. DIVINE DUKE (pictured) (Joe Kamaruddin, barrier 9) is backing up after racing only seven days ago at Te Rapa Racing. He drops in class but is up in weight and will be assisted by the 4kg claimer 'Smoking Joe.' He always takes a conside...

Te Rapa Runners - 3/8

The track is currently graded as a heavy 10 and rail is out 10m. BECAUSE (Taiki Yanagida, barrier 14) will kick off our day in race 4 at 1.52pm. He was disadvantaged by a slipped saddle last time out when 4th at Matamata, 24/7. He likes Te Rapa and gets on well with Taiki. He has continued to train on well and we're confident of a good performance.  TWEEDLEDEE (Taiki Yanagida, barrier 8) will line up in race 5 at 2.29pm. He has failed to put in a good performance at Te Rapa in the past...

Wexford Way Back: Visions and the 1993 Auckland Cup

As a jockey, Lance always had the ability to visualise a race before it was run. This second sight had reached a stage where, in major races, he would ride the race over in his head a dozen times before he went out on race day. "I'll look inwards and say to myself, 'OK, I've jumped well, i'm in front, what's second, what's third, what's fourth?' or 'OK, I didn't jump well, i've positioned myself back at eleventh. Who's in front of me, who's outside me and who's directly behind.' Such vision...

Charles Road set for Sydney Spring Campaign

Class stayer (Sir) Charles Road flew to Sydney over the weekend as he prepares to kick off a spring campaign that will hopefully culminate in a tilt at the Gr.1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) in November.Prepared by Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott, the rising six-year-old will forego the nominations he held for the Gr.1 Windsor Park Plate (1600m) and Gr.1 Livamol Classic (2040m) during the Hastings Spring Carnival in favour of his Australian mission that will commence over 1400m at Randwick on August...

Matamata Runners - 24/7

The track is currently graded as a heavy 10 and rail is in the true position.BECAUSE (Taiki Yanagida, barrier 9) will line up in race 1 at 12.30pm. He just missed last start when running second at Te Rapa 6/7 and meets a weaker field today. The ground will be heavier than last start but if he handles conditions, he’ll be very competitive again.WISDOM PATCH (Taiki Yanagida, barrier 5) will line up in race 5 at 2.54pm. It was a strong effort last start at Rotorua, 26/6 and has continued to hold ...

Paul O'Sullivan successfully rounding off HK season

Paul O’Sullivan is following his stable’s fortunes over the final few racedays in Hong Kong during his annual fortnight visit back home to Matamata. A win at Sha Tin on Sunday by Wayfoong Charmer (by Dream Ahead), has taken O’Sullivan’s tally for the season to 25 wins and almost HK$32 million (NZ$6.1 million) in prizemoney and there’s the prospect of more success by the conclusion of the final day of the Hong Kong season next Sunday. “It’s been another successful season a...

Broodmare’s unretirement works wonders for Pencarrow

Article by NZ Racing DeskPencarrow Stud’s decision to bring a broodmare out of retirement has been spectacularly rewarded by the dual black-type winner Sleeping Beauty.  The Rip Van Winkle six-year-old mastered the gruelling conditions for a dominant victory in Saturday’s Listed Ultimate Ford and Mazda Tauranga Classic (1400m), having also taken out the Gr.3 Rotorua Stakes (1400m) at her previous start. Sleeping Beauty is the tenth and final foal out of the Danehill mare Kailey Pri...

Arawa Park Runners - 26/6

A busy day ahead for team Wexford, with 8 horses heading to Arawa Park - Rotorua Racecourse. The track is currently graded as a heavy 11.JOHNNIE REDMOND (Shaun Mckay, barrier 10) will kick our day off in the first race on the card at 11.57pm. He wanted to do a lot wrong last preparation but has enjoyed a short break and has improved in his trackwork. His trial at Taupo was encouraging and he looks fit and forward heading into today. There's no reason he can't race well in a fresh state...

Sleeping Beauty takes out Tauranga Classic

Class performer Sleeping Beauty underlined her credentials on the deep winter tracks when she out-toughed her female rivals to take out the Listed Ultimate Ford and Mazda Tauranga Classic (1400m) under weight-for-age conditions at Tauranga on Saturday. The six-year-old Rip Van Winkle mare has fashioned an impeccable record on wet tracks having now won five of her ten starts, along with a further three placings on tracks rated in the Heavy range.Faced with a puggy Heavy11 surface, the Lance O’S...

Wexford Way Back: Waverley Star arrives at Wexford

Waverley Star was half human. For the third consecutive morning, the chestnut had cantered around the training paddock at Wexford five times (one lap was approximately 300m and most horses did 7 laps), before slamming on the breaks with such force that Lance had almost fallen off, doing a u-turn and heading for home. Paul was in such disbelief that he insisted on riding the 2 year old himself the following morning. Paul stopped after four circuits, thinking that with a small break he might be ab...

No winter hibernation for Sleeping Beauty

Wexford Stables has a small winter team in work but is hoping classy mare Sleeping Beauty can add to her black-type portfolio over the coming months, with the potential to target a Group One early in the new season.  The six-year-old daughter of Rip Van Winkle has won nine of her 22 starts, including her most recent start in the Gr.3 Rotorua Stakes (1400m) on May 11.  Despite a gap between runs, O’Sullivan, who trains in partnership with Andrew Scott, is expecting a good sh...

One Maddison wins on debut

One Maddison made an impressive raceday debut today, taking out the maiden 1200m at Te Teko.  Jockey Sam Spratt had the 4YO mare back in the field before she let down impressively to win comfortably by 1 3/4 lengths.  The mare has demanded patience, after showing ability at the trials as a 2 and 3 YO but never making it to the races due to immaturity issues. ...

Wexford Way Back: Dave's first racedays as a trainer

Wexford Stables has a long history, beginning with Dave O'Sullivan in 1961. Over the years, our stable has enjoyed many weird and wonderful moments and we thought we'd bring a few of those stories back with 'The Wexford Wind Back.' We hope you enjoy these small snippets of our history! We'll start at the beginning - Dave's first days as a horse trainer.  Dave's opening raceday was fittingly at Matamata in 1961. He had one starter, Poetic Justice. Before the race could start, ...

Star Treasure wins at Te Rapa

After knocking on the door for some time, Star Treasure got the job done at Te Rapa, winning the Rating 72 Benchmark 1200m ($25,000) comfortably by just under 3 1/2 lengths.  The Lonhro gelding was rated beautifully by jockey Sam Spratt, leading the entire way before kicking clear at the top of the straight.  He relished in the slow 9 conditions and we are sure that there will be plenty more success heading his way this winter.  Watch the race here. ...

Taiki on the Road to Recovery

Our stable apprentice Taiki Yanagida had an unfortunate trackwork accident two months ago, which resulted in him sustaining two small fractures in his foot.  We are pleased to report that Taiki is recovering well and is expected to be back riding in around three weeks time. Taiki is most excited to partner again with Divine Duke, with the pair winning an impressive hat-trick together last season.  We wish Taiki the best of luck in his recovery and eagerly await his return! ...

Summer Passage to stand at Mapperley Stud

Mapperley Stud has added Snitzel’s Group One winning son, Summer Passage, to their five-strong stallion roster ahead of the 2019 breeding season, where he will stand for a fee of $8,000+GST. An A$800,000 yearling, Summer Passage was a high-class juvenile, winning the Listed Reid & Harrison Slipper (1200m) before showing sustained speed when crossing from the outside barrier to win the Gr.1 Sistema Stakes (1200m) in emphatic fashion. The Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott-trained colt then pro...

Dave's Story

Article by Loveracing.nz Dave O’Sullivan is solid gold, a true champion who’s had a long and illustrious career training legions of world-class record breaking racehorses. Success at this level is fascinating, it propels people into another realm, making them appear almost god-like. How do they do it? What are their secrets? We spoke with Dave O’Sullivan at his farm in Matamata to hear his story and see if we could find out his secrets - and we did.At 15, determined to become a jockey...

Sleeping Beauty claims deserved Stakes Victory

Consistent mare Sleeping Beauty finally got the major race win she deserved when she took out the Gr.3 ISCL Rotorua Stakes (1400m) on Saturday.The Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott-trained six-year-old has proven a model of consistency throughout her career, having finished inside the top three in two-thirds of her 21 career starts before Saturday’s Rotorua feature. Included in that record was a narrow defeat in the Gr.2 Westbury Classic (1400m) at Ellerslie two starts ago where she beat al...

Wexford Targeting Rotorua Features

Wexford stables have a strong chance of taking home the silverware at Arawa Park - Rotorua Racecourse on Saturday where Giovanno Canaletto and Sleeping Beauty will represent the Matamata barn in the two feature races.Group One performer Giovanni Canaletto will contest the Gr.3 Rotorua Cup (2200m) and his connections are hoping the regally-bred son of Galileo can replicate his form from February where he finished third in the Listed Kaimai Stakes (2000m) at Matamata.The Lance O’Sulliv...

Quality Stayer Primed for Sydney Cup Assault

Sir Charles Road will be looking to continue his love affair with Sydney on Saturday when he lines up in the Gr.1 Sydney Cup (3200m) at Randwick.The Matamata galloper has a great association with Randwick, having won the Gr.2 Chairman’s Quality (2600m) there last year before running third in the Sydney Cup behind Who Shot Thebarman.The five-year-old gelding returned this year to finish fourth behind Gallic Chieftain in the Chairman’s Quality and his connections are happy with him heading int...

Spring Heat in Search of More Black Type

Wexford Stables will be in search of more black-type on home soil for Group Three-winning mare Spring Heat when she competes in the Listed NZB Finance Sprint (1200m) at Hastings on Saturday.The Hermitage Thoroughbreds-owned daughter of More Than Ready finished midfield last start in the Gr.3 Waikato Stud Plate (1200m) and her connections are hoping for an improved performance from their mare.“She’s had a little bit of a let-up after her last run and there is no doubt that she wants a bit of ...

Australian Easter Yearling Sale Purchases

Wexford has continued our strong association with Hermitage Thoroughbreds, recently purchasing two yearling colts with an eye towards Hong Kong.“We are very pleased, they are two nice horses that are both going to take time,” Lance said.“It’s fantastic (to get the support from Hermitage), it’s a great opportunity. If their horses are any good they do go to Hong Kong. They are hoping to buy a horse that can one day be good enough to compete up there at a good level.” Check out ou...