November 2017

A $110,000 purchase at the Select Sale at Karaka, the Laurel Oak-bred, lion-hearted stayer Maygrove (Authorized) is becoming a king of New Zealand’s Cup races.

The gutsy grey’s trophy cabinet already included the Group 2 Wellington Cup (2400m), Group 2 Awapuni Gold Cup (2000m), Listed Feilding Gold Cup (2100m) and Listed Jakkalberry Classic (1950m), and on Saturday he struck again in the $100,000 Group 3 Ssangyong Counties Cup (2100m) at Pukekohe.

A victim of his own success, Maygrove’s high rating has earned him a 60-kilogram topweight in the Fielding Gold Cup and Counties Cup in his last two appearances. But it hasn’t been enough to stop him.

Trained by Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman and ridden by Johnathan Parkes, Maygrove sat in a handy position before surging into contention in the straight.

In a desperate three-horse battle down the straight with lighter-weighted rivals Five To Midnight (NZ) (Domesday) and Promise To Reign (Manhattan Rain), Maygrove refused to surrender and lunged at the line to win by a short head.

“He’s a cracker horse, having to carry the 60 kilograms,” Parkes said. “He’s been headed about 100 metres out, but he’s kept giving in a super effort.”

Raced by Lib Petagna’s JML Bloodstock Ltd in partnership with Patrick O’Rourke, Maygrove has now won nine of his 48 starts and more than $470,000 in prize-money.

“He’s a star,” Petagna’s bloodstock manager Bruce Perry said. “He’s so game, he’s brilliant. He’s great for everyone to be a part of.”

News from New Zealand Bloodstock

MONASTERIO followed a similar path to Bid Of Faith in that he ran an encouraging fifth first-up, was placed second-up, and then won impressively third-up.

Second-up from a spell at Doomben, Monasterio drew the outside gate and had to go back to last in a 1600m race. Jockey Matthew Cahill was continually held up getting a run, and had to pick his way through the field, but when clear Monasterio motored to the line for a very good second that made many of the horses to follow analyses.

On the strength of that impressive run, trainer Chris Waller decided that another run in the same grade over the same distance on the same track would suit him well, but once he drew wide again our optimism diminished. On this occasion though Matthew Cahill was able to push his way to the outside so Monasterio had clear running and once again he motored to the line, this time reeling the six-length deficit on the home corner to record an emphatic victory.

We expect him to be better suited over further, and Chris is yet to decide whether he will run over 2000m on 9 December at either Doomben or Rosehill, or wait till 16 December for another 1600m run at Doomben.

Coming back from a long injury layoff, BID OF FAITH put the writing on the wall with an encouraging second-up placing at Moruya in October. Third-up this Keith Dryden/Scott Collings-trained mare won impressively at Canberra on Melbourne Cup Day.

Ridden by Brendan Ward, she settled well back in the field and gave them a good start on straightening, but powered to the line to score an emphatic win. There was much celebration in Canberra where she was one of a winning treble for the stable.

There was also plenty of cheering at Flemington where a number of the owners were in our party in the Panorama Restaurant.

She appears to be in good form going forward, and was scratched from a strong race at Goulburn last Sunday due to a wide gate, and runs again this afternoon (Friday 1 December) in Canberra, but has a wide gate to contend with again, so will need a lot of luck.

Australian-bred Maygrove returned to the top of his game at Awapuni in New Zealand on Saturday, capturing the Listed Feilding Gold Cup over 2100m in a gutsy performance.

Winner of four stakes races across the ditch, Maygrove has been out of the winners’ circle since October last year, but fought back strongly when challenged in the Gold Cup.

Having no luck at his most recent outing in the Listed Rotorua Challenge Plate, when second up from a spell, Maygrove had to overcome a wide draw at Awapuni, taking up the lead 600m from home and then holding on gamely.

“He (Maygrove) had to overcome the draw and a big weight (59kgs), but it was a tough effort from the horse,” an admiring trainer, Andrew Forsman, said after the race.

The flashy grey is something of a crowd favourite in New Zealand and has now compiled eight wins – including the Group Two Wellington Cup and Group Two Awapuni Cup – and 15 placings from 47 starts for over NZ$400,000 in stakes.

Now a 7YO, Maygrove was bred in NSW by the Laurel Oak Lady Zhivago Syndicate, which is managed by leading bloodstock agent, Louis Mihalyka.

“We’ve always had an opinion of Maygrove and were actually the underbidders when he sold to Bruce Perry Bloodstock for NZ$110,000 as a yearling,” Mihalyka points out. “He is by the former Darley stallion, Authorized: a son of Montjeu who won the 2007 Epsom Derby. John O’Shea really liked the horse at the time and said to me that he wanted to train him, but obviously the other mob were keen to buy him too.

“Laurel Oak raced Maygrove’s mother, Lady Zhivago, which we’d purchased at Easter for $120,000 and she ended up winning a couple in Sydney and a VRC race at Bendigo.”

HOOFNOTE: Mihalyka has an interesting story as to how Maygrove got his name.

“When he was being sold as a yearling, some people from a local rest home were there at the sale for a day out. Maybe they liked him because he was a grey, but anyway the new owner got wind of it and decided to name the horse after their rest home … Maygrove. Evidently they now take a bus load to the races to follow the horse whenever he goes around.”

News from Aushorse

Bought for $110,000 at Karaka in 2012, accomplished stayer Maygrove (Authorized) took his prizemoney earnings to almost four times that amount with another tenacious performance in Saturday’s $50,000 Listed Ricoh Feilding Gold Cup (2100m) at Awapuni.

Ridden by Johnathan Parkes for Cambridge trainers Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman, Maygrove trailed the early leader and then made his move as the field rounded the home turn.

The grey kicked away and opened up a clear advantage, then stuck to his guns under 59 kilograms to win by a long neck.

Raced by Lib Petagna’s JML Bloodstock in partnership with Patrick O’Rourke, Maygrove has now had 47 starts for eight wins, 12 placings and just over $409,000 in prizemoney. This was his fourth stakes win, having previously won the Group 2 Wellington Cup and Awapuni Gold Cup along with the Listed Jakkalberry Classic.

Maygrove was bred by the Laurel Oak Lady Zhivago Syndicate.

Copy: NZB, Image: Maygrove claiming the Listed Ricoh Feilding Gold Cup – Race Images PNth