The Almanzor colt now boasts a record of four wins and a second from only 10 starts and has won $86,285 in stake money, still a long way short of the $675,000 he cost as a yearling from the 2022 Karaka sales.
Geriatrix earned a trip to Queensland when winning a 3-year-old race over 1400m at Rotorua on May 11 and produced strong finishes to be close behind the placegetters in the Group 3 Wellington Stakes (1600m), Group 2 Wellington Guineas (1400m) and Group 3 Cambridge Breeders’ Stakes (1200m).
Expat New Zealand jockey Michael Dee was having his first ride on Geriatrix last Saturday and showed great patience in the running, settling the colt out the back, three wide, before improving as the field came to the home turn.
They were one of the widest on the track straightening for the run home and Geriatrix unleashed a powerful finish to sweep past his rivals and win by half a length.
O’Sullivan and Scott are hoping to step Geriatrix up into black-type company in the Group 3 A$200,000 Gunsynd Classic (1600m) at Eagle Farm on June 15.
Few horses win four races on end but Little Bit Of Love showed a real tenacity when he out-finished the pacemaking Wessex in a head-to-head battle over the final stages at Pukekohe last Saturday.
Little Bit Of Love has now won five races from only eight starts. The 4-year-old Time Test gelding was a maiden winner over 1200m at Tauranga in January and then recorded a seventh and a fifth in his next two starts.
Given a brief freshen-up, he then strung together three victories in a row at Te Rapa, producing booming finishes to win a 1300m Rating 65 and two 1400m Rating 75 events.
He stayed in the same grade last Saturday but rose to the top of the handicap at 60.5kg, with apprentice jockey Ngakau Hailey reducing that to 57.5kg with his 3kg claim.
Hailey was in no hurry in the early running, letting his mount settle third last while Wessex took up her customary role in the lead.
Wessex still had plenty to offer at the top of the home straight and quickly put a break on the field. But once Hailey brought Little Bit Of Love to the outside, he quickly hit top gear and ranged up alongside the leader before gaining the upper hand close to the line.
Little Bit Of Love, bred by Graham and Helen Bax and raced by a syndicate managed by their daughter Kylie, has now amassed just under $100,000 in stake money.
The O’Sullivan/Scott stable also claimed the NZB 3-Year-Old Filly of the Year title with stable star Molly Bloom.
At the end of the exciting 11-race series, Molly Bloom had amassed 28 points to put her well clear of her rivals.
Her wins included the Group 1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m), Group 2 Eight Carat Classic (1600m) and Group 2 David & Karyn Ellis Fillies’ Classic (2000m).
Hastings track given all-clear
The racing surface at the Hastings track was given another tick of approval after six heats of jumpouts were run on the course proper on Wednesday.
Jockeys, trainers and racing administrators were all happy with the way the track held up after 24 horses galloped on it.
It was the second set of jumpouts held on the track since a complete renovation after the February 28 meeting, which had to be abandoned after four races due to an unsafe surface.
New Zealand Thoroughbred chief operating officer Darin Balcombe attended both series of jumpouts and gave the racing surface a glowing appraisal on Wednesday.
“It’s great,” he said. “The horses are just going into the top of it and there are no signs of movement.
“There was some slight movement when we held the last lot of jumpouts three weeks ago but nothing today.”
Senior jockey Jonathan Riddell rode in all six heats and described the surface as “lovely”, while Hastings trainers Guy Lowry and John Bary were both happy with the way the track stood up.
It is now all systems go for the next scheduled meeting, the Hawke’s Bay Hunt meeting, on Saturday, June 29.
Bradley hangs up his boots
Central Districts jockey Darryl Bradley has been in a career transition over the past few years and is now ready to end his time as a rider.
It brings the curtain down on four decades in which the 57-year-old has recorded 1832 wins, with 103 of those at stakes level.
For the past five years, Bradley has been moving towards becoming a racecourse manager. He is now the track manager of Manawatū Harness Racing Club in Palmerston North, after stints at Awapuni and Foxton.
“I knew my riding career was starting to dry up, so I was searching for another job, and I was lucky enough to get the course manager’s job at Foxton Racing Club 5½ years ago. That was a great start‚” Bradley said.
“The Manawatū Harness track manager position came up a little while later and I got the job, and I’m very grateful.”
Harness racing is not foreign to him, having grown up with a dual-code father, Graham Bradley.
Surrounded by both thoroughbreds and standardbreds growing up, it was the former that captured the younger Bradley’s imagination.
He rode his first winner on Choir Path, trained by his father, in 1984. His first stakes win came several seasons later when he rode Sir Daniel to win the 1992 Hawke’s Bay Cup.
Bradley enjoyed working under his father but decided a move to Palmerston North was needed.
His career trajectory continued to rise. He became the country’s leading jockey in the 1998-99 season, riding 133 winners, eight at stakes level, and more than $1.3 million in prizemoney.
Career highlights include winning the 2016 running of the Group 1 Auckland Cup (3200m) with El Soldado.
“That was a race I thought I would never win,” he said. “I find Ellerslie the hardest track to ride. It was something special about El Soldado winning.
“It was only just ahead of Sapio winning the Doomben Cup and New Zealand Cup.”
Bradley also enjoyed success on many other horses and with several Central Districts trainers, including Group 1 wins on the Patrick Campbell-trained Avedon in the New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) and Bayer Classic (1600m).
“There was also Chad, he won 14 races and I won 13 on him, and I won 12 on King Of Ashford,” he said.
“I had a good association with Karen Zimmerman when she was at Ōtaki, I rode just over 100 winners for her. Then joining the stable of Lisa Latta after that, the list of winners goes on from there.
“In the mid-90s, I got a call from Kay Marsh, Bruce Marsh’s wife, and she asked if I wanted to join their stable. That was a big boost to my career, Bruce was a very astute trainer.”
Bradley’s riding career also gave him the chance to travel.
“I have ridden in four states of Australia, with a couple of placings and the Group 1 win in the Doomben Cup,” he said.
He also represented New Zealand in a World Jockeys’ Championship in Japan, rode Sapio in an international race in Hong Kong and had brief stints in Malaysia and Mauritius, kicking home winners in both places.
