The countdown to a young stallion's yearling sale debut is a time of great excitement for any stud farm, and Mapperley Stud has double the anticipation in the lead-up to Karaka 2019.
The Matamata farm will unveil the first
yearlings by the high-class former Godolphin racehorses Contributer and
Complacent.
"It's a hugely exciting time and definitely the biggest feature of Karaka this season for us," Mapperley's Simms Davison said.
"They're two stallions we purchased from Australia and brought over to New Zealand. It was a big commitment, and it's been really exciting watching their progeny develop from foals into lovely, athletic young horses. Both stallions have really stamped their progeny.
"We've started our yearling parades and the response has been terrific. John O'Shea, who trained both horses, came and was rapt with how their yearlings looked. We were thrilled to get that feedback from him.
"The feedback and interest in these two stallions has been immense all the way through. Whenever we've gone to Australia or Australians have come over here, we've had a lot of enquiries about the stallions and how their progeny are coming along. That level of interest has been really encouraging."
Contributer, by High Chaparral out of a Group Three-winning mare, won eight of his 18 starts including the Chipping Norton Stakes and Ranvet Stakes at the elite level. He also placed in the Gr. 1 Mackinnon Stakes at Flemington.
Authorized stallion Complacent won five out of 11 including the Gr. 1 Spring Champion Stakes and three other Group races. He also finished second in the Victoria Derby.
Contributer has 20 yearlings in Book 1, 14 in Book 2 and one in Book 3. Complacent has two in Book 1, 10 in Book 2 and six in Book 3.
In a bittersweet contrast to the exciting debuts of Contributer and Complacent, Karaka 2019 will also mark the final crop of short-lived Mapperley stallion Atlante. The New Zealand 2000 Guineas winner will be represented by one Blandford Lodge yearling in Book 1, three from Mapperley's own draft in Book 2 and 10 yearlings in Book 3. – The Informant
