Brilliant Kiwi filly Damask Rose to ‘specifically’ target $10m Golden Eagle in Australian spring

Te Akau Racing kingpin David Ellis has revealed brilliant Kiwi slot race winner Damask Rose will target a rich race during the Sydney spring carnival.

Blake Shinn returning after winning the $3.5m The Kiwi slot race on Damask Rose, with Te Akau Racing boss David Ellis (right). Picture: Getty Images

Te Akau Racing boss David Ellis has revealed brilliant Kiwi slot-race winner Damask Rose will be specifically set for the $10m Golden Eagle during the Sydney spring carnival.

By winning the $3.5m The Kiwi slot race at Ellerslie on Saturday, Damask Rose won her way into the Golden Eagle thanks to Racing NSW boss Peter V’landys who last week announced a golden ticket arrangement.

There was no prior guarantee that The Kiwi winner would take up the option, but Te Akau Racing kingpin Ellis said it was now set in stone.

All going well, the exciting Kiwi filly which was aided by a dazzling Blake Shinn ride on Saturday, will add more international flavour to the Golden Eagle which has been won by overseas invaders the past two years.

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“As of today, Damask Rose will be set specifically for the Golden Eagle,” Ellis revealed.

“That means she will now come out to my farm for a six-to-seven week holiday.

“She has got a lot of improvement and a lot of physical development to do, which I think she will do.

“We will let her grow and develop and we will just set her for that race in the spring.

“I think she will handle plenty of racing in the spring and we will look at some Group 1 races.

“But the Golden Eagle is the race we will set her for.”

• Shinn weaves magic to land Kiwi slot race

Shinn rode an incredible race to score in The Kiwi, with Damask Rose back last and scraping paint along the inside and going to the line without having to go around a horse.

It cemented the growing relationship between champion Victorian jockey Shinn and the Tangerine Army of powerful Te Akau Racing.

Blake Shinn powers Damask Rose to score the $3.5m The Kiwi slot race at Ellerslie. Picture: Kenton Wright

Shinn has ridden for Te Akau with success in New Zealand and appears set to also link with them on a growing basis in Australia, with Te Akau trainer Mark Walker having a stable at Cranbourne in Victoria.

“Blake is a champion bloke, we are very good friends and I appreciate the professional way he conducts himself and we enjoy having him as part of the team,” Ellis said.

“We have even had him over in New Zealand for track work for a few mornings.

“I hope he can do some more riding for us in Australia, going forward.”

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Te Akau celebrated its 100th Group 1 win at Ellerslie on Saturday when $1.3m two-year-old colt Return To Conquer won the Sistema Stakes.

Ellis has since revealed to Racenet that Return To Conquer has been sent for a spell and will not contest the Golden Slipper.

New Zealand racing appears to be in a much better place, thanks in part to strong financial support from Entain, and Ellis said “the racing side of things is now in a really good position”.

“We just need to get the breeding side of things going better now,” he said.

“If we get the foal crop up and a few other things, the future for New Zealand racing is very exciting.”

Originally published as Brilliant Kiwi filly Damask Rose to ‘specifically’ target $10m Golden Eagle in Australian spring