Mehzebeen has added to her collection of staying titles in fine style at Trentham.

The daughter of Almanzor produced a stirring display to land the Listed Hawke’s Bay Cup following her spring successes in the Listed Metropolitan Trophy and G3 New Zealand Cup.

Also runner-up in the G1 New Zealand Oaks, Mehzebeen was out of luck during a two-start Melbourne campaign before she returned home to finish a first-up third in last month’s New Zealand St Leger.

The Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson-trained mare showed the benefit of that outing with a stout display in the Cup under Lily Sutherland.

They led early before settling in the trail and the five-year-old finished relentlessly along the fence for the sixth victory of her career.

“Sam and I spoke, he said Plan A was to push forward and then get a breather if Final Return went around and took over,” Te Akau Racing Manager Reece Trumper said.

“Luckily, when she (Sutherland) was going to come to the outside the inside run came and it was a great ride by Lily. While she is the leading apprentice in the country, she is also one of the best jockeys as well.”

Bred by Pencarrow Stud, Mehzebeen was a $50,000 New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sale graduate and is a daughter of the Zabeel mare Salkantay.

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Almanzor’s son Trav produced a memorable performance at Ellerslie to land a knockout blow in the feature staying event on Champions’ Day.

The five-year-old came from the tail of the field to claim top honours in the G2 Auckland Cup for co-breeder, part-owner and trainer Raymond Connors.

Trav drifted well off the pace under rider Masa Hashizume before they began to pick up ground 800 metres from home and the gelding finished relentlessly in the run home to land the thick end of the $600,000 stake.

“That’s just the way he races so I expected him to be well back there and he came on well,” Connors said.

“It’s amazing and just awesome to be part of such a big day. This was our goal so it’s great to achieve it.”

Trav had drawn serious attention to his prospects with his lead-up fourth in the G3 Wellington Cup at Trentham where he had missed the start by 20 lengths.

“He’s not the easiest horse to train, so it’s been a bit of an effort as he can be tricky at times,” Connors said.

Hashizume said while Trav had got well back in the field, he was able to get a smooth run into contention.

“He got a good drag into it and he ran through the line and even afterwards he was hard to pull up. He’s a tough horse and all credit to the horse and trainer.”

Trav is a son of the winning Savabeel mare Royal Sav, a half-sister to the dual G3 Stewards Handicap winner Prince Oz.

It is a family that Connors has an intimate knowledge of and includes his G2 Wellington Cup winner Blood Brotha, who also claimed two G3 New Zealand Cups, and his G3 Manawatu Classic winner and G1 New Zealand Derby placegetter King Johny.

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What You Wish For has credited our resident sire Embellish with his fourth individual black type winner.

The Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson representative stepped up to 2000 metres for the first time this preparation in the Listed Kaimai Stakes at Matamata and duly prevailed with a determined display.

We bred and sold What You Wish For, who settled in behind the pace on the fence and, once into the clear, the gelding finished determinedly to earn top honours.

He has now been successful four times, and placed in the G2 Waikato Guineas last season, but can be a tricky customer to get a line on at times, according to his co-trainer.

“He’s always promised a lot, but you wouldn’t want to play cards with him,” Walker said.

“With the stock of Embellish you have to be a bit patient, I think he is a really under-rated sire.”

What You Wish For was ridden by Craig Grylls who said the four-year-old travelled strongly and rounded off well in the straight.

“We crossed them and ended up in the trail and he was hard on the steel all the way, it was a great win.”

What You Wish For was a $60,000 purchase by David Ellis out of our 2022 New Zealand Bloodstock Yearling Sale draft and the following year the Te Akau chief bought his half-sister by Savabeel, the unraced Wish Come True, for $190,000.

They are out of the Smart Missile mare Grand Wish, who is a half-sister to the G1 Galaxy Handicap winner Griante and the family of the G1 WATC Derby winner Grand Journey.

Grand Wish has a yearling colt by Sword Of State and foaled an Embellish filly last season before returning to the Group 1-winning son of Savabeel.

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A sprinkling of first crop representatives of our young Snitzel stallion Sword Of State received a warm welcome at the Gold Coast.

Six youngsters by our Group 1-winning resident, who stands at $15,000 + GST, changed hands at the Magic Millions Yearling Sale for A$1,445,000 at an average of A$240,083 with a top price of A$380,000.

That was achieved by Lot 716, who was presented by Kia Ora Stud and the colt will join the leading Sydney stable of expatriate Kiwi trainer Bjorn Baker.

He is the first foal of the Maki mare Needle And Thread, winner of the G2 Royal Stakes and a sister to the stakes winner, Group 1 placegetter and sire Savile Row.

Congratulations also to Wentwood Grange on another top result, selling a Sword Of State colt, Lot 142, out of the Tavistock mare Alloro for A$340,000 to Queensland’s KPW Bloodstock.

From our own small draft, we were delighted with our handsome Sword Of State colt, Lot 769, claimed by Victorian trainer Matt Laurie for a bumper A$375,000.

He is the first foal of the Written Tycoon mare Pazienza, who was successful on two occasions including a 5.8-length two-year-old victory.

The pedigree features the G1 Underwood Stakes winner and G1 Caulfield Cup runner-up Buckaroo whose half-brother Middle Earth was also a multiple stakes winner.

Our Sword Of State colt, Lot 687, was another popular youngster and she was knocked down to New South Wales interests Noble Racing and Luke Price Racing for A$160,000.

The attractive filly is out of the More Than Ready mare More Jools whose half-brother Ninth Legion won the G2 Villiers Stakes and the family of the G1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas winner Tell A Tale.

Cambridge trainer Tony Pike believes the well-related Wind Rush can realise his full potential next season.

He has a high opinion of Almanor’s son who paid the believers at Te Rapa where he posted a long overdue maiden success with a commanding performance over 1600 metres.

Wind Rush had previously posted eight top four finishes from his previous nine appearances, including a third in the Listed Waikato Equine Veterinary Centre Stakes.

“It’s been a long time coming and he’ll get a lot of confidence from it,” Pike said.

“He’s always been a talented horse, but he’s been immature both physically and mentally and I think he will get to a good level next season.”

Wind Rush settled three back on the fence under rider Ryan Elliot before the short-priced favourite finished powerfully one off the rail to win by a length and a-quarter.

“He drew a nice gate and got into a good rhythm and sprinted away, it was really encouraging,” he said.

Wind Rush was bought out of Kilgravin Lodge’s draft at New Zealand Bloodstock’s National Yearling Sale by Pike for $170,000.

He is a brother to Adam I Am, whose career was cut short by injury after winning four of his seven starts, with their dam the G2 Japan-New Zealand International Trophy winner Our Famous Eve.

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Gifted stayer Alma Rise turned her fortunes around stylishly at Echuca to claim top honours in the Country Oaks over 210 metres.

Little had gone the way off the daughter of Almanzor in her opening two runs this preparation and the Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman-trained the four-year-old bounced back to her best with an emphatic performance.

She loped along in fifth spot away from the rail before rider Craig Williams urged her four wide around runners 600 metres from home.

They were in front before the turn and Alma Rise stayed on strongly to have two lengths on her closest rival at the post.

“She hasn’t had much luck in her last few, so Craig took all the bad luck out of it, and it was a convincing win,” Moody said.

“She’s a lovely staying mare, it was very pleasing.”

Alma Rise has now won four of her 10 starts and was also runner-up in last season’s Listed VRC St Leger over 2800 metres.

She is co-raced by her breeder Ed Calvert and is a daughter of the Bertolini mare Fashion Black, who was successful on six occasions.

Fashion Black is a half-sister to the dual Group 1 winner and sire Xtravagant whose brother He’s Remarkable was a Group 3 winner and placed at the elite level.

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