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New Zealand Bloodstock a World Leader in Hong Kong

The completion of the 2010/11 Hong Kong racing season has seen New Zealand Bloodstock claim the title of the world's leading auction house for stakes wins with a total of nine black-type races won by NZB graduates.

The season has also seen New Zealand Bloodstock become the leading auction house in Australasia, and equal world leader, for International Group 1 winners and wins with Ambitious Dragon (NZ) (Pins x Golden Gamble) and Beauty Flash (NZ) (Golan x Wychwood Rose) both winning at the highest level.

New Zealand Bloodstock is also the leading auction house in Australasia, and equal world leader, for individual stakes winners with five graduates winning at black-type level.

New Zealand Bloodstock graduates have very much been the toast of the Hong Kong season with the weekend's Hong Kong Racing Awards seeing Ambitious Dragon take four awards, including the Hong Kong Horse of the Year, and the powerhouse Beauty Flash crowned Hong Kong's Champion Miler.

Other graduates that have distinguished themselves at stakes level on the Hong Kong turf during the 2010/11 season are the dual International Group 1 winner Able One (NZ) (Cape Cross x Gardenia) who won the lead up to the Hong Kong Mile in the Group 2 Jockey Club Mile, Sapelli (NZ) (Flying Spur x Ishkala) who won the HK-3 Premier Plate and Flying Blue (Piccolo x Bright Blue) who recorded a strong win in the HK-2 Chairman's Trophy.

The 2010/11 Hong Kong season has seen the New Zealand thoroughbred industry continue to excel, and in a sustained display of authority, it has for the third consecutive year been the leading country for stakes wins in Hong Kong.

Building on the 2008/09 and 2009/10 seasons where New Zealand led the way for individual stakes winners in Hong Kong, New Zealand is equal world leader in this bracket for 2010/11.

In the stallion ranks Waikato Stud's resident sire Pins has claimed the title as Hong Kong's Champion 2010/11 Sire with his son Ambitious Dragon taking the racing scene by storm.

O'Reilly, Hong Kong's champion sire in 2007/08 and 2008/09 has continued to make his presence felt as he featured in the top five sires by earnings and race day winners and wins, with Towkay, Keeper and Faltaat also featuring in the top 10 sires under numerous categories.

On the track, New Zealand bred horses filled the top three positions, and six of the top ten, for horses with the most career wins in the 2010/11 season with Ambitious Dragon equalling the Hong Kong record of seven wins in a season.

There have also been some impressive NZB graduates coming through the ranks in the 2010/11 season with horses including, and not limited to, Let Me Handle It (High Chaparral) who has raced through the grades and has been very competitive in his first appearances at Group 1 level, Gift is Gift (Thorn Park) who is unbeaten in his four career starts, and National Treasure (Pins), Just Fantastic (No Excuse Needed) and Fulfil a Wish (Commands) who have won 16 races between them.

Catalogues for NZB's Winter Mixed Bloodstock Sale and the South Island Sale of Two-Year-Olds & Mixed Bloodstock are now available. To order please email reception@nzb.co.nz. To view the catalogues online please visit www.nzb.co.nz.

ENDS

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