NZ Bloodstock Canterbury Belle Stakes
Owner-trainer and former Inglewood Stud studmaster Nick Wigley is looking to create history at Riccarton Park on Saturday by winning the $50,000 Listed New Zealand Bloodstock Canterbury Belle Stakes over 1200 metres.
All the ingredients are there for a fairy-tale result. The race is named after the great filly he bred and raced, Canterbury Belle, and is sponsored by New Zealand Bloodstock with which Inglewood Stud has had a long and successful association over many years as a vendor of yearlings. Furthermore, his delightfully named filly Zigwig is a daughter of the exciting, young Inglewood Stud based second season sire Zacinto and is wholly owned by the Stud.
These days Nick’s son Gus runs the stud and breeding operation while Nick hones his skills as an owner-trainer.
Zigwig has the credentials to make a bold showing in the ‘Canterbury Belle’ after winning the $50,000 Listed Berkeley Stud Champagne Stakes at Riccarton Park in May before her solid first-up second placing in the $20,000 Gavelhouse.com Three-Year-old over 1000m at Riccarton two weeks ago. In the latter race Zigwig was very fresh, jumped quickly, and was left in front a long way from home.
Ideally drawn in barrier two on Saturday Zigwig should be able to take a sit and run out a strong 1200 metres. The field has just 10 acceptors but is full of quality and the race promises to be a great spectacle.
The nominal favourite is the unbeaten John and Karen Parson’s trained Starvoia which could not have been more impressive in her only two starts. She looked very smart in beating Zigwig last time out although she is more awkwardly drawn in barrier nine this week.
The Te Akau Racing fillies O’Naturelle and Play For Time are both royally bred and expected to make forward showings. Both lack a depth of raceday experience but O’Naturelle has already shown the stable huge potential with a win at Taupo, where she was very impressive, at her only start.
The Matt and Mandy Brown trained La Diosa caught the eye in the Gavelhouse.com Three-Year-Old last time out when producing a scorching run in the straight to gain third in the shadows of the winning post. The extra 200 metres should suit her. Also unlucky in that race was the Terri Rae trained Zacinto filly Wize Act which finished a very creditable fourth.
The quality of the race is made up by the Australian-bred, last start winner Darkseid, What Choux Wantwhich has already won in excess of $61,000 in stakes, Rio Tennille which was a four length 5th to Starvoia, and Shirley Maude which wasn’t far away when third to Zigwig in May.
Canterbury Belle won the Geraldine Challenge Stakes by five lengths in 1984 – sometime after which the Geraldine course was closed and the race moved north to Riccarton Park where it was renamed in her honour. It didn’t take long for Nick Wigley to reassert the Inglewood influence when he won the race again with Spangles in 1987 but there have been a few ‘drought years’ in the interim.
Canterbury Belle has always been a hard act to follow as an owner-trainer for Nick but now, after more than 30 years have elapsed since the arrival of that great filly, perhaps Nick is closer than he’s ever been.
As well as Zigwig and the excitement created by a new stallion showing great potential, Nick may also have one or two other fillies by Zacinto that he can develop into future broodmare prospects for Inglewood.
Gus Wigley will certainly be grateful, if Dad can do just that.
