Breeding Snippets for May 11

Star of the broodmare paddock this week would have to be Dizzy Miss Lizzy.

The Changeover – Back In The USSR mare, now 11 and owned by the Boags, was a very smart filly on the race track winning six (3 of those as a 2YO) and banking $272k in the process.

Dam of only two live foals of racing age to date, they did their mother proud in different parts of the country but both trained by the Dalgety partnership.

First, at Winton on Thursday, as a short-priced favourite on debut after some fine trials form, Devil Woman (by Always B Miki) led and did enough to hold on and get her supporters through in a 1:57.7MR on an easy track.

Three days later at Ashburton, older half sister, Bettor Than Lizzy (by Bettor’s Delight), also as a favourite, was good enough to sit parked most of the way and still proved too good for her rivals in a 1:58.8MR over the 2400m, to record her second win at start No 9. 

‘Dizzy’ does have a weanling half sister on the ground by Sky Major and has been served by Bettor’s Delight in the most recent breeding season.

She belongs to what is often referred to as the ‘Don Bates’ breed (aka Norwegian Breeding Ltd) which has come back into the limelight recently with the in-form Forever Miki winning all of his three starts for Brent and Tim White recently.

Dizzy’s dam Back In The USSR (Presidential Ball – Paperback Writer) was a two-race winner and at stud has left the likes of Ukraine (4 wins to date), Lady Madonna (7 wins) and the promising maiden Conan, also in the White stable.

Those with musical knowledge will recognize Bates’s ‘love affair’ with The Beatles immediately. Lennon, Penny Lane, Hey Jude, Revolution, Sergeant Pepper, Blackbird Fly and Eleanor Rigby, just to name a few, have all been significant contributors to a very successful breeding operation managed by the Canterbury breeder over several decades.

Winning a $7700:Rating 35 trot at Cambridge might not seem significant but in winning her second race (from 25 starts), Mass Disruption, and trained by Jason Teaz, took this writer back to one of the great NZ trotters of the modern era.

Mass Disruption is a 5YO gelding by Father Patrick from the Armbro Invasion mare Rattle. The latter qualified and had just the one start before going to stud where she has had just the 4 foals for two winners and a qualifier.

The standout among that list of foals is clearly the Dream Vacation gelding Matty A (8 wins and $99k to date) and trained by Sheryl Wigg.

Rattle is from the Sundon mare Scuffle who in turn was a daughter of the great Tussle, a remarkable trotter of the 80s winning 38 races and some $562k for Dr Cliff Irvine and so ably handled mostly by Templeton horseman Peter Jones.

Tussle was hardly 14H and it took her something like 15 starts to win her maiden but she quickly became a fan favourite with her low head carriage and great manners.

While Tussle never left one as good as herself, Bristle (by Britewell) did win 9 races.

Scuffle didn’t race but did a good job at stud leaving seven handy winners. De Gaulle and Mamselle both won 6 but Sir Fahrenheit (by Pegasus Spur) won 24 times on both sides of the Tasman, amassing $300k in the bank.

As already stated, Scuffle was by the mighty Sundon, who ironically took over the mantle of NZ’s top trotter of the time from the bonny wee mare by Tuft.

Soul Artist (Art Major – Helena Ideal) didn’t start racing until this season as a 4YO but has quickly made up for lost time for Cambridge trainer Rodney Frampton and his family group of owners and last week at Cambridge, she recorded her third win from just 7 starts with another two placings to boot.

Closer scrutiny of her pedigree suggests she can go on to greater heights with a second career as a broodmare well and  truly on the cards with her current form.

Dam Helena Ideal, by American Ideal as her name suggests, won three on the track and Soul Artist is just her second foal. The same ownership group has a yearling half-sister by Always B Miki following on in behind, bred before the mare was exported.

Helena Ideal is a half sister to the well-performed Helena Jet (13 wins and $163k) who has bred on successfully leaving the likes of Nicholas Cage (9 wins and $144k and 1:50.7), Sweet Jemma (6 wins) and Tyson (5 wins to date).

Another half sister Matai Mies (6 wins) left the smart Emily Blunt (8 wins), Happy Place (8 wins and $116k) and Kevin Kline (6 wins).

This is the immediate family of the former smart Barry Purdon trained 2YO Matai MacKenzie (6 wins) and Angelina Jolie (4 wins and $108k).

If one goes far enough back, one finds a prolific source of winners that started in Southland with the Milne and Hunter families.

Some of the older readers might remember the likes of Matai Dreamer (17 NZ wins) who was a top performer for Alec Milne in the late 70s.

Soul Artist certainly has a lot going for her with a staunch pedigree to support a successful race and breeding career.

That was some run by Prince Lincoln in the opening race of premier racing at ‘The Park’ over the weekend, resulting in a 6.5L win in the great time of a 1:53.6MR over the mob 1700m.

The Always B Miki – Cullen’s Princess 3YO has always looked above average but according to the stable has chosen on occasions not to give of his best.

Now the winner of two races (with a further 8 placings) from 19 starts, the gelding might cast a glance over his immediate family tree and see a tidy stream of very good performers behind him.

Dam Cullen’s Princess was unraced and before her untimely passing, had done a very creditable job as a broodmare.

Her first two foals Gooddealehemily and Gooddealehmaddie both won nine races respectively and are now at the beginning of their broodmare careers in Australia.

Third foal Miki Montana was a good filly winning six and earning $138k and is now part of the broodmare band at Spreydon Lodge.

Lincoln La Moose won six races in NZ before leaving for America at the beginning of 2026 where he is very likely to improve upon his best winning MR of 1:57

All these stemming from the class filly Tosti Girl (Great Northern Oaks) who won seven from only 19 starts with $197k in the bank.

By Christian Cullen from Delightful Paula, Tosti Girl has bred on brilliantly, leaving NZ Cup winner The Fixer (12 wins and $1M+ and 1:50.7), The Honey Queen (13 wins and $177k and 1:50.3) and Weownthenight (by Art Major) who has left smart types in full relations Midnight Miki (4 wins to date and placed at Group 1 level) and the well-performed Kiss (11 wins + $277k). 

The latter has just had delivered her first foal, a colt by the highly touted Confederate. 

One should not be surprised if Prince Lincoln goes on to bigger and better things

The Woodlands Partnership syndicate are not likely to part with Night Moves any time soon. 

The American Ideal – Lively Nights 3YO was having just her second race start on premier night at Auckland over the weekend and in the hands of Zachary Butcher, justified her strong support by leading throughout from her ace draw, fighting off race favourite MacLeod, with the promise of more to come.

And there could be ‘much more’ to come since she is a full sister to top pacer and two-time NZ Cup winner Copy That (33 wins and $2.02M) who unfortunately has been sent to the ‘back blocks’ of Australia to live out his stallion days.

But Lively Nights has not been a one trick pony!

She won seven on the track herself and besides Copy That, four of her first 5 foals have been winners including My Copy (8 wins and $135k), Toni Street (3 wins) and Sugar Ray Lincoln (5 wins and $105k).

Crossing successfully with American Ideal on more than one occasion, Lively Nights has a 2YO and yearling full sister to Night Moves in the wings and has been served by Downbytheseaside in the most recent breeding season.

This family traces directly back to Miranda Star and NZ Cup winners Luxury Liner and Christopher Vance, so successful through the 1970s for northern breeders the Reid brothers and trainers Roy and Barry Purdon.

Things are working out for Canterbury breeder Trevor Casey after he made the decision to send his What The Hill – Belle Galleon mare Tinkerbelle north to the ‘trotting’ stable of Michelle Wallis & Bernie Hackett.

After winning at Cambridge last week in the hands of junior driver Ollie Gregory, Tinkerbelle’s race record now stands at 7 wins and 12 placings for near on $72k in stakes.

That might just be enough to convince the breeder to add her to his broodmare band. 

Dam Belle Galleon was good enough to win 11 races and $116K in stakes then in the broodmare paddock has turned out to be a real gem leaving nine winners from 9 foals headed by millionaire trotter Stent (30 wins), My Arya (15 wins and $288k) and Ollivici (20 wins and $326k).

Five of those 9 Belle Galleon’s foals earnt over the $100k benchmark.

Several branches of this family have successfully bred on over the years, making it one of the most commercial trotting families in NZ. It is the family of Picotee, Sundowner Bay, Enthusiast, Inspire and Framalda just to name a few high class trotters on a long list.

It shouldn’t be a difficult decision to allow Tinkerbelle to have a second career after racing with such a fine family history.

Peter Pan would know what to do!