Gingernuts (horse)
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Gingernuts (foaled 2 October 2013) is a retired
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...
racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...
. As a three-year-old, he won the 142nd running of the
New Zealand Derby The New Zealand Derby is a set-weights Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds, run over a distance of 2,400 metres (12 furlongs) at Ellerslie Racecourse in Auckland, New Zealand. It is held in March each year. History The New Zealand Derby i ...
, followed up by a win in the
Rosehill Guineas The Rosehill Guineas is an Australian Turf Club Group One Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds at set weights run over a distance of 2000 metres at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse in Sydney, Australia annually in March. Total prize money for t ...
in Australia. At age four, he won the
Windsor Park Plate The Arrowfield Stud Plate is a New Zealand Thoroughbred horse race run at Hastings Racecourse in Hawke's Bay. The race is registered as the Horlicks Plate and has been previously known as: * the Windsor Park Plate. In 2022 the race sponsor and na ...
and was second in the
Livamol Classic The Livamol Classic is a weight-for-age Thoroughbred horse race run at Hastings Racecourse in Hawke's Bay and was at one stage New Zealand's richest horse race. It is run at a distance of . The race is run in October. The weather in the Hawke's B ...
, but then was injured while warming up for the
Emirates Stakes The VRC Champions Mile, registered as the ''Cantala Stakes'', is a Group 1 Victoria Racing Club quality handicap Thoroughbred horse race run over 1,600 metres at Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne, Australia on the fourth and last day during the ...
. The injury required surgery that eventually prompted his retirement.


Background

Gingernuts is a chestnut gelding who was bred by Goodwood Stud in
Palmerston North Palmerston North (; , colloquially known as Palmerston or Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatū Plains, the city is near the north bank of the Manaw ...
. He was produced by Double Elle, a five-time winning daughter of Generous who descends on the female side from
New Zealand Oaks The New Zealand Oaks is a Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old fillies run at set weights over a distance of 2400 metres ( miles) on the third Saturday of March every year at Trentham Racecourse in Wellington, New Zealand. It was ru ...
winner Devante. Gingernuts was sired by Iffraaj, a stakes-winning son of
Zafonic Zafonic (1 April 1990 – 7 September 2002) was a European Thoroughbred racehorse bred in Kentucky. He was the 1992 European Champion Two-Year-Old Colt and won the following year's 2,000 Guineas. Background Zafonic was sired by the Mr. P ...
. He was sold as a
weanling A weanling or weaner is an animal that has been weaned, eats solid food independently, and no longer relies on its mother's milk for nutrients. ''Weanling'' usually refers to a horse, though can be used with any livestock. ''Weaner'' is more co ...
for only NZ$5000, then was put through the ring again in the 2015 Ready to Run Sale of two-year-olds. He was bought for NZ$42,500 by Te Akau Racing, a 35-member syndicate consisting of mostly first-time owners. He was trained by Steven Autridge and Jamie Richards.


Racing career

Gingernuts made his debut on 6 May 2016 in a 1200m maiden race at Pukekohe Park, finishing second. He then broke his maiden on 19 May at Hastings over a distance of 1300m. Gingernuts began his three-year-old campaign on a low-key note, winning one of three starts while competing at rural tracks such as Te Teko. Early in 2017, his trainers added blinkers to his equipment, which helped him focus. On 18 February, he dramatically stepped up in class for the Group II Avondale Guineas at Ellerslie, going off at odds of 26-to-one. Gingernuts missed the start by six lengths and still appeared to have no chance with 600m remaining. However, he and jockey
Johnathan Parkes Johnathan Parkes (1988 – 18 October 2024) was a New Zealand jockey. Over a two-decade racing career, Parkes rode over 1,000 winners who earned over $19 million AUD in prize money. Parkes had 62 black type wins, including 12 Group 1 races. L ...
found racing room and "sailed through" to win by a length. The win prompted his connections to make a late nomination payment for the New Zealand Derby. Gingernuts was the second favourite for the
2017 New Zealand Derby The 2017 New Zealand Derby was a horse racing, horse race which took place at Ellerslie Racecourse on Saturday 4 March 2017. It was the 142nd running of the New Zealand Derby, and it was won by Gingernuts (horse), Gingernuts. Sold for $5,000 as a ...
on 4 March. Ridden by
Opie Bosson Owen Patrick "Opie" Bosson (born 24 July 1980) is a jockey in Thoroughbred racing in New Zealand. Riding career Bosson started as an apprentice for Stephen Autridge, his godfather. He began his race-day riding career as a 15 year old on 25 Oc ...
, who had previously won several major races aboard
Mongolian Khan Mongolian Khan (foaled 19 October 2011) is a retired Australian-bred New Zealand-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and breeding stallion. In 2015 he won the 140th running of the New Zealand Derby before going on to win the Australian Derby becoming ...
, the chestnut gelding surged out of midfield to score a comfortable victory. The win sparked jubilant scenes among the owners, most wearing matching orange caps. "We didn't know where we were before the Avondale Guineas", said Richards. "There's a lot of excited owners here." Two weeks after his Derby win, Gingernuts crossed the Tasman to make his Australian debut in the
Rosehill Guineas The Rosehill Guineas is an Australian Turf Club Group One Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds at set weights run over a distance of 2000 metres at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse in Sydney, Australia annually in March. Total prize money for t ...
at a distance of 2000m. Over extremely heavy going, he settled in mid-pack, then unleashed his run with 800m remaining and struck the lead shortly after turning into the straight. He tired somewhat in the final 100m but was still over three lengths clear of the runner-up, Inference. "He just loves it the further they go and we knew he would handle the conditions," said Richards. "He had his ears pricked all the way up the straight and he was gawking and looking around," noted Bosson. "I was just trying to keep his mind on the job." He finished his three-year-old campaign with a fifth place finish in the
Australian Derby The Australian Derby is an Australian Turf Club Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds at set weights held at Randwick Racecourse, Sydney, Australia in April, during the Autumn ATC Championships Carnival. The race is considered to b ...
. Gingernuts returned to New Zealand and was given some time off, then began his four-year-old campaign on 2 September in the Tarzino Trophy, finishing fifth. He next entered the
Windsor Park Plate The Arrowfield Stud Plate is a New Zealand Thoroughbred horse race run at Hastings Racecourse in Hawke's Bay. The race is registered as the Horlicks Plate and has been previously known as: * the Windsor Park Plate. In 2022 the race sponsor and na ...
on 23 September, in which his odds dropped rapidly to 2.90 thanks to his ever-growing fanbase. He raced in mid-pack during the early running then followed Kawi to the lead with about 600m remaining. Gingernuts dueled briefly with Kawi before pulling away, then withstood a late charge from Close Up to win by a neck. Two weeks later though, he was caught at the finish line by Wait A Sec in the Livamol
Spring Classic The Livamol Classic is a weight-for-age Thoroughbred horse race run at Hastings Racecourse in Hawke's Bay and was at one stage New Zealand, New Zealand's richest horse race. It is run at a distance of . The race is run in October. The weather in t ...
, losing by a head. Gingernuts made his second trip to Australia for the
Emirates Stakes The VRC Champions Mile, registered as the ''Cantala Stakes'', is a Group 1 Victoria Racing Club quality handicap Thoroughbred horse race run over 1,600 metres at Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne, Australia on the fourth and last day during the ...
on 11 November. Unfortunately, he took a bad step during the warm-up and was immediately pulled up by jockey Michael Dee. The on-track veterinarian immediately applied bandages and the horse was transported to the University of Melbourne veterinary clinic at Werribee. A CT scan found a fracture of the long pastern bone on his near foreleg. He underwent surgery on 13 November, during which four compression screws were inserted into the leg. A small fragment of bone was also removed from the fetlock joint. The initial prognosis was positive according to David Ellis of Te Akau Racing. "The fracture came together well," he said, "and barring any further complications, the prognosis is that he stands a 50/50 chance for a return to racing."


Retirement

On 2 September 2018, his connections announced that Gingernuts was officially retired. Although he recovered well from his injury, veterinarians feared that he would favour the injured leg if he returned to racing. He has been pensioned at Te Akau Stud.


See also

*
2017 New Zealand Derby The 2017 New Zealand Derby was a horse racing, horse race which took place at Ellerslie Racecourse on Saturday 4 March 2017. It was the 142nd running of the New Zealand Derby, and it was won by Gingernuts (horse), Gingernuts. Sold for $5,000 as a ...
*
Thoroughbred racing in New Zealand The racing of Thoroughbred horses (or gallopers, as they are also known) is a popular gaming and spectator sport and industry in New Zealand. History Thoroughbred horse racing commenced soon after European settlement. The first totalisator ma ...


References

{{Reflist 2013 racehorse births Racehorses bred in New Zealand Racehorses trained in New Zealand Thoroughbred family 22-b