Princess Kereru (NZ) Breaks Through in Waikato Stud Plate

Group 1 performer Princess Kereru (NZ) (Pins) broke through for her first stakes win in Saturday’s $100,000 Group 3 Waikato Stud Plate (1200m) at Ellerslie.

Passed in at the 2015 Select Sale at Karaka with a $40,000 reserve, Princess Kereru has emerged as a top-class sprinter during an excellent 2018-19 campaign headed by a close second in the Group 1 Sistema Railway (1200m) on New Year’s Day.

Racing over the same course and distance in Saturday’s feature, she burst out of an awkward position halfway down the straight and took the lead. She was challenged late by the Group 1 winner Santa Monica (NZ) (Per Incanto) and the fast-finishing Ronchi (NZ) (Stravinsky), but held on by a head for jockey Cameron Lammas.

Trained by Ken and Bev Kelso and Mark Donoghue, Princess Kereru has now had 23 starts for six wins, seven placings and $212,875 in prize-money – more than five times her reserve at Karaka.

“She’s just a little trooper,” Ken Kelso said.

“Her form’s been great all year and she really deserved that as she hasn’t had a lot of luck in the big races.

“It is so important to get that winning black-type to go with that Group 1 placing. She is just the most adorable little horse you’ve ever come across.”

Runner-up Ronchi completed a Karaka quinella, being passed in with a $70,000 reserve during the 2014 Premier Sale. He has earned $221,760 in stakes.