25 Feb 2023Zourion announced herself as one of the best juvenile fillies in New Zealand when she handled a step up to stake company at Matamata with aplomb.
Our daughter of Zoustar followed up her debut success at Taupo with a clear-cut victory in the G2 Matamata Breeders Stakes for premiership leading trainer Mark Walker.
Rider Opie Bosson allowed Zourion to drift to the back of the field before he edged closer 700 metres out and slipped through inside runners at the top of the straight before striding clear to win by 1.3l.
“She really is a high-class filly and she has it all ahead of her,” Walker said.
“You do have a think about whether you are doing the right thing by tackling a race like this so early in her career, but she is just so tough and thoroughly professional that it seemed well worth it.
“It is great to win a race like his for Brendan and Jo and the whole of Cambridge Stud and I think the best thing about it is that I have no doubt she will be even better as a three-year-old in her next campaign.
“I’m going to sit down and talk with the team, but I’m leaning towards maybe spelling her now as she is in for a big season next time in with a number of very winnable races available to her.”
We purchased Zourion out of breeder Pencarrow Stud’s draft at Karaka where she was knocked down for $475,000 on our behalf to Te Akau’s David Ellis.
Her dam is the Danroad mare Irion, who won on four occasions and was a multiple Group placegetter.
It is a pedigree page littered with top performers, including the Group winners Valpolicella and her offspring Vavasour, Catalonia-Vilanova (Aus) and Celebrity Dream as well as stakes winners Pussy Willow and Pussy O’Reilly.