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The New Zealand Bloodstock Select Sale at Karaka is where it all began for this season’s NZ Filly of the Year Dijon Bleu and the same connections struck black type gold for a second time when Secret Allure won Saturday’s Listed Champagne Stakes at Riccarton.
Djion Bleu, who cost just $26,000 at the 2016 Select Sale, won six of her 11 starts and more than $306,000 in stakes for trainer and part-owner Lisa Latta and her co-owners Kevin Dixon, Peter Finlayson, Debra Masters, Milton Passey, Andrew Rennie and Trevor Tomlins.
Her racing career is now over, but it has only just begun for Zacinto filly Secret Allure, their $36,000 purchase from the 2017 sale.Having her fourth start, the filly came from midfield to beat fellow Karaka graduate Peaceful (Savabeel) for the second win of her career earning $50,375 in prize-money.
Secret Allure (Zacinto x Secret Scent by O’Reilly) is the fifth stakes winner by her sire Zacinto, a son of Dansili standing at Inglewood Stud.
She has continued her family’s affinity with Riccarton as her dam Secret Scent’s sister Ombre Rose was a multiple stakes winner on the South Island’s premier track.• New Zealand’s champion stallion Savabeel sired his 74th stakes winner when his talented juvenile filly Santa Catarina maintained her unbeaten record with a victory in the Listed Waikato Equine Veterinary Centre Stakes at Te Rapa.
The Stephen Marsh-trained Santa Catarina (Savabeel x Discreet Evening by Discreet Cat) won her first start at Matamata on April 18.Santa Catarina was unable to reach her $80,000 reserve as a yearling at Karaka when offered by Lib Petagna’s JML Bloodstock through the Blandford Lodge draft at the 2017 NZB Premier Sale at Karaka.
When the filly went unsold she was retained by Petagna to race in his familiar apple green, blue and yellow colours, which have been worn to G1 victories by the likes of Karaka graduates Lucia Valentina (Savabeel) and Sofia Rosa (Makfi).Santa Catarina has now had three starts for two wins, a second placing and $39,500 in prize-money.
• Falkirk mare Fascinate won the Listed Great Easter Stakes at Riccarton to provide her sire with his 11th stakes winner.Fascinate (Falkiurk x Zerperfluous by Zerpour) has now won 10 of her 39 starts.