Star-Studded Start to NZB Caulfield WFA Championship
14 August 2019
The 2019 New Zealand Bloodstock Caulfield WFA Championship is set for an explosive start on Saturday with a star-studded field in the A$200,000 Group 2 P.B. Lawrence Stakes (1400m).
Now in its ninth year of New Zealand Bloodstock sponsorship, the Caulfield WFA Championship comprises four races – the P.B. Lawrence Stakes, the Group 1 New Zealand Bloodstock Memsie Stakes (1400m) on August 31, the Group 1 Underwood Stakes (1800m) on September 29, and the Group 1 Caulfield Stakes (2000m) on October 12.
The winner of each race will earn 10 points, with 8 points for second, 6 for third, 4 for fourth and 3 for fifth. Horses placed sixth to eighth will earn 1 point each.
With almost A$3 million in stakes up for grabs over the four-race series, the ultimate winner of the Championship will receive trophies to the value of A$15,000.
Five of the 11 horses in the field for Saturday’s P.B. Lawrence Stakes are Group 1 winners, with another two multiple Group 2 winners and a Group 3 winner.
Most eyes will be on Mystic Journey (Needs Further), who has won 10 of her 13 starts and more than A$3.2 million in prize-money. She has won all of her last six starts, including the Group 1 Australian Guineas (1600m) and the inaugural A$5 million All-Star Mile (1600m), and she is a leading contender for the Group 1 Cox Plate (2040m) in October.
The field also features the four-time Group 1 winner Hartnell (Authorized), who won the NZB Caulfield WFA Championship in 2017, along with Kenedna (Not a Single Doubt), who won two Group 1 races earlier this year. The other Group 1 winners in the field are Harlem (Champs Elysees) and Trap For Fools (Poet’s Voice).
The P.B. Lawrence Stakes will be run as Race 8 on Saturday with a start time of 4:40pm (6:40pm NZT).
View the NZB Caulfield WFA Championship upcoming schedule and past results here.
| # | Horse | Draw | Comments | Trainer | Jockey |
| 1 | Hartnell | 5 | The winner of the NZB Caulfield WFA Championship two years ago, Hartnell (Authorized) has won 13 races and almost A$7 million in a glittering career. Alongside Group 1 victories in the BMW (2400m), Epsom Handicap (1600m), Turnbull Stakes (2000m) and CF Orr Stakes (1400m), he has also been placed in 12 Group 1 races including the Melbourne Cup (3200m), Cox Plate (2040m) and Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m). | James Cummings | Hugh Bowman |
| 2 | Harlem | 10 | Harlem (Champs Elysees) is a two-time Group 1 winner, having claimed back-to-back Australian Cup (2000m) titles in 2018 and 2019. | David & Ben Hayes & Tom Dabernig | Jamie Kah |
| 3 | Trap For Fools | 3 | After beginning last season in lower-level handicap races, Trap For Fools (Poet's Voice) stepped up to the big time in November with his victory in the Group 1 Mackinnon Stakes (2000m). He was placed in another four black-type events during the season, including the Group 1 Australian Cup (2000m). | Jarrod McLean | Damian Lane |
| 4 | Cliff's Edge | 9 | From 23 career starts, Cliff's Edge (Canford Cliffs) has eight wins, five placings and more than A$1 million in prize-money to his name. He has recorded Group 2 victories in the Crystal Mile (1600m) and Alister Clark Stakes (2040m), along with two Group 3 wins and four stakes placings. | Ciaron Maher & David Eustace | Mark Zahra |
| 5 | Fifty Stars | 8 | Although unplaced in two Group 1 starts last season, Fifty Stars (Sea The Stars) made a big impression in the remainder of his campaign. He won the Group 2 Sandown Stakes (1500m), Group 2 Blamey Stakes (1600m) and Group 2 Ajax Stakes (1500m). Overall, he has won eight of his 13 appearances to date. | David & Ben Hayes & Tom Dabernig | Ben Allen |
| 6 | Sikandarabad | 1 | Irish import Sikandarabad (Dr Fong) has shown plenty of ability since his arrival in Australia, headed by a Listed win in the Mornington Cup Prelude (2000m) and a Group 1 placing in the Metropolitan Handicap (2400m). | David & Ben Hayes & Tom Dabernig | Jye McNeil |
| 7 | Neufbosc | 11 | French-bred Neufbosc (Mastercraftsman) is set to make his Australian debut in this event. He has won three of his eight starts, headed by the Group 3 Prix Du Lys (2400m). He placed in the Group 1 Grand Prix de Paris (2400m) and Group 2 Prix Niel (2400m), and his most recent appearance was an unplaced finish in the prestigious Group 1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (2400m) last October. | David & Ben Hayes & Tom Dabernig | Dwayne Dunn |
| 8 | Mr Marathon Man | 7 | Mr Marathon Man (So You Think) is another recent arrival in Australia, having won one of his four starts there to date. He began his career with four wins in France, one at Listed level, and placed in the Group 3 La Coupe Stakes (2000m). | Michael Moroney | Damien Oliver |
| 9 | Kenedna | 6 | Kenedna (Not a Single Doubt) has always shown enormous promise, dating back to a three-year-old season in which she won four stakes races headed by the Group 2 Roses (2000m) and placed in the Group 1 Schweppes Oaks (2010m). But 2019 has been her breakthrough year, recording her first Group 1 victory in the Queen of the Turf Stakes (1600m) and adding the Group 1 Doomben Cup (2000m) a month later. Altogether, she has won 10 of her 27 starts and more than A$2.1 million. | Ciaron Maher & David Eustace | John Allen |
| 10 | Semari | 4 | Trained by expat Kiwi couple Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young, Semari (NZ) (Sebring) has had 13 starts for six wins. She won three in a row earlier this year, culminating in the Group 3 Epona Stakes (1900m), then placed in the Group 2 Chairman's Handicap (2600m). | Trent Busuttin & Natalie Young | Brett Prebble |
| 11 | Mystic Journey | 2 | Tasmanian star Mystic Journey (Needs Further) was the fairytale story of the 2018-19 Australian season. The $11,000 yearling has become a multi-millionaire, winning 10 of her 13 starts and A$3.2 million to date. Her stakes wins have come in the Listed Elwick Stakes (1100m), Listed Jim Moloney Stakes (1400m), G2 Moonee Valley Classic (1600m), Listed Thomas Lyons Stakes (1400m) and Group 1 Australian Guineas (1600m), along with the inaugural A$4 million All-Star Mile (1600m). | Adam Trinder | Anthony Darmanin |