Having a horse race in the Melbourne Cup will be a dream come true for Rotorua trainer Bill Pomare; unfortunately, he won't be there to see it.
Pomare is targeting the Gr.1 Caulfield (2400m) and Melbourne (3200m) cups with Ocean Billy, who booked his ticket across the Tasman when hewon the Gr.1 Auckland Cup (3200m) in March.
However, with the Delta variant of Covid-19 causing lockdowns on both sides of the Tasman, and with minimal chance of securing an MIQ spot on either side, Pomare and wife Suzi have decided to stay home and transfer Ocean Billy to expat New Zealand trainer Chris Waller.
"There's too much here at the farm to look after, I have some young horses and other responsibilities," Pomare said.
"But to have a horse in the Melbourne Cup is a dream. I've been involved with horses for a long, long time. To suddenly have a horse capable of competing in the Melbourne Cup, there was a lot of excitement.
"We thought we'd be over there enjoying the hospitality and everything that comes with a Melbourne Cup after all the years we've spent training and breeding horses."
Bill and Suzi Pomare's racehorse Ocean Billy is off to Australia to race in the Melbourne and Caulfield cups. Photo / Andrew Warner
Remarkably, the horse he is sending to race in Melbourne is one he tried to get rid of, but was unable to sell. Pomare himself was considering retirement, but his recent hot streak has kept him well and truly in the game.
The first time Ocean Billy ran with other horses, he was last by about 150m. Pomare thought he had a slow horse on his hands and took him to the markets.
Unable to sell, Pomare persisted with the horse. That persistence paid off with wins in the Waikato and Auckland cups, and now a shot at the big one in Melbourne.
"This is the pinnacle," he said.
"Ocean Billy is really well, he's had the two runs that have sharpened him right up and he's ready to go. I don't think I can improve him much more, Chris Waller will put the final touches on."
Pomare said he and his wife were working on plans for where they would watch the big race.
"We've had to look at alternative plans. I'm on the committee of the Rotorua Racing Club and the other members are keen to have a bit of a gathering to watch it.
"I have sons and daughters who live at Pukehina so they'll all want to get together too. I've got a pretty big house and a big setup out here so we'll probably watch it out on the farm. It'll be an excellent gathering - a good result would be nice too."
Ocean Billy races away with the Gr.1 Barfoot & Thompson Auckland Cup. Photos / Trish Dunell
He said he had been around long enough now that he did not get nervous watching his horses in action.
"I'm pretty laid back. Even with the Auckland Cup, the excitement was immediate but it was pretty laid back after that.
"I don't get nervous because what will be, will be. If we get a good result that's super, I'll definitely be watching with great interest, but there's no point getting all nervous. We've done all we can."
Ocean Billy raced at Te Rapa on Friday, his final outing in New Zealand before heading to Australia on Wednesday. He will join Chris Waller's stable in Melbourne and race in the Caulfield Cup on October 16.
New Zealand horses in the Melbourne Cup
According to the New Zealand History website (history.govt.nz), Kiwi horses have an impressive track record in the Melbourne Cup.
Since the Melbourne Cup's inception in 1861, 43 New Zealand-bred horses have won, including 33 of the past 55 winners.
The last New Zealand-bred horse to win the Melbourne Cup was Prince of Penzance in 2015. That year, another New Zealand horse, Criterion, finished third.
Perhaps the most well-known New Zealand-bred horse to win the Melbourne Cup was Phar Lap, who remains the shortest-priced favourite in Cup history, winning in 1930 at odds of 8-11.
Only 11 horses have won both the Caulfield and Melbourne cups in the same year. Eight of these have been Kiwi bred, with the most recent being Ethereal in 2001.
Ethereal's victory gave New Zealander Sheila Laxon the distinction of being the first woman to officially train a Melbourne Cup winner.
