While Hitotsu was grabbing the headlines in the Group 1 Australian Guineas (1600m) at Flemington, the Japanese champion Maurice (GB) had another promising three-year-old salute when Mazu captured the Listed Tokyo City Keiba Fireball Stakes (1100m) at Randwick.
The Triple Crown Syndications colour-bearer made it three wins on the bounce when defeating the Not a Single Doubt filly Mallory by one and a quarter lengths with the Deep Field filly A Very Fine Red a long-head back in third.
The winner of the Listed Brian Crowley Stakes last spring, the Peter and Paul Snowden-trained gelding advanced his record to four wins and a third from eight starts with earnings of $369,350.
Paul Snowden said that a gelding operation has Mazu’s mind back on racing.
“I think we are seeing what we have always believed now he is transferring what we see at home to raceday, and it’s a pleasure to watch,” Snowden said.
‘It’s a purposely built preparation with small steps and we may go again in three weeks and pick them off and give him confidence.
“Who knows, we might not get till the elite level until the next preparation. We will keep chipping away. When he is winning like that we know we are going the right way.”
A $180,000 purchase by Triple Crown Syndications out of the Parsons Creek Pastoral draft at the 2020 Classic Yearling Sale, Mazu is a half-sister Headway (Charge Forward) who was crowned the 2008-09 Champion 2yo Filly in Australia. Her four wins included the Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes and was runner-up in the Golden Slipper.
Mazu is out of the multiple stakes-placed Flying Spur mare Chatelaine, who has a weanling colt by Toronado and was covered by King’s Legacy last spring.
