The ability to overlook Ceolwulf’s X-ray blemishes pays off

The multiple Group One winner overcame a testing heavy track and 59.5-kilogram top-weight to prevail in a tight finish to Tuesday’s postponed A$300,000 G3 Precise Air Neville Sellwood Stakes at Rosehill.

On Saturday 1 February, Kingmakers will debut its brand new jockey silks with Kevin Stott, riding on race favourite, Interplanetary. Jockey silks are paramount in identifying your horse, within a wall of horses, going down the back straight. They are also your brand in motion

Shaun and Emma Clotworthy will plot a path towards the $1.25 million Gr.1 Trackside New Zealand Derby (2400m) with their promising three-year-old Interplanetary, who put his staying prowess on display at Te Aroha on Sunday.

A desperate finish to the Gr.3 Bonecrusher Stakes (1400m) saw exciting three-year-old Lupo Solitario extend his career record to three wins from just four starts as he defeated talented filly Orchestral by the barest of margins in a thrilling conclusion to the age-group feature.

Sydney trainer Joe Pride and Kiwi owner Leighton Howl have made relatively rare appearances at Karaka’s Ready to Run Sale and even fewer in tandem, but their joint purchase from the 2022 edition of the sale has taken them to Group One heights.


Two weeks after his brilliant Group One breakthrough in the Epsom Handicap (1600m), the New Zealand-bred rising superstar Ceolwulf conquered an even stronger line-up over the same course and distance in Saturday’s A$5 million Gr.1 King Charles III Stakes (1600m) at Randwick.

Danica Guy’s talented three-year-old Lupo Solitario has been sold to Hong Kong. A son of Satono Aladdin, Lupo Solitario announced himself with a bold winning performance on debut in August 2023, attracting extensive offshore buyer interest.

In his weekly bloodstock column, Tim Rowe talks to Joe Pride about risky x-rays and Group 1 glory with new Group One stable star Ceolwulf.