Former NZ Derby champion back in winning form

By Jordyn Bublitz 

A Group 1 winner four years ago, Nazareth returned to the winner’s circle at Hawera on Tuesday, snapping a drought stretching back to 2023.

It came in the Greaves Brothers and Peter McCallum Memorials Trot for the driver-trainer combo of Andre Poutama and Roddy Butt.

A former winner of the 2022 Group 1 New Zealand Trotting Derby at Addington as a three-year-old, Nazareth showed immense promise early in his career while in the care of Robert and Jenna Dunn. However, ongoing hoof soreness began to take its toll, ultimately derailing the talented gelding’s progress.

Butt says the horse’s journey has always been a personal one.

“I actually bred him myself, and then sold him at the yearling sales. I kept 10 percent of him for fun, and he went to Robert and Jenna Dunn. They did a fantastic job with him,” he said.

Despite his early success, persistent foot issues proved difficult to manage, prompting Butt to step back in and take over the training mid-2025. 

“He started to develop a lot of problems with his feet, hence why his form dropped away,” Butt said. 

“I decided to have a go with him as a bit of a project, gave him a good spell and we’ve been working away with his feet. It’s been a bit of a struggle at times, but we feel like we’re starting to get somewhere with him.”

In search of the right conditions to help the son of Love You, Butt made the decision to send Nazareth north from his Canterbury base, targeting the Central Districts grass circuits, which are generally kinder on horses prone to foot soreness.

“He likes the grass, so I thought the grass tracks up there might do him some good,” he said. “He was struggling a wee bit here in Canterbury, so I thought it was a good opportunity to send him up there, and I’m delighted that it’s paid off.”

Nazareth rewarded that faith with a polished performance on Tuesday, settling into the trail throughout before sprinting home strongly to score by two lengths, showing a glimpse of the class that once made him one of the country’s top young trotters.

It was his sixth win in 43 starts. 

Looking ahead, Butt is content to temper expectations and simply enjoy seeing the gelding competitive again.

“There’s absolutely no expectations on him,” he said. “He’s an older horse with a few problems, and we’re just happy that he’s still a racehorse.”