The Auckland Reactor two-year-old filly, Miss Ethel Sunshine could hardly have been more impressive in her harness racing debut performance.
On Thursday night at Addington she was simply too good for a strong field in the first heat of the Magness Benrow NZ Sires Stakes for two-year-fillies.
She is now qualified for the Group 1 final to be held at Auckland on 28 April.
The result may have come a day or so late to have an effect on the New Zealand yearling sales but, none the less, it was a hugely significant win in the burgeoning siring career of Auckland Reactor.
Working to the front early, the daughter of Auckland Reactor skipped clear turning for home and found the line strongly to win by four lengths. She paced the 1950m journey in a 1:59.4 mile rate with a 57.4 last 800m and 28.9 final quarter.
Bred and raced by John and Gaylene Tate of Christchurch, Miss Ethel Sunshine is from the race winning McArdle mare Miss Sunshine, a half-sister to the good performers Alberto Contador (second in the NZ Jewels as a two-year-old and now a 1:50.8 winner in USA) and Albuquerque (8 NZ wins). This is the family of the former outstanding filly Oaxaca Lass.
Trained by Mark Smolenski and driven to Dexter Dunn, the daughter of Auckland Reactor will now be aimed at next weekend’s Group 3 NZ Leonard Memorial at Addington.
Auckland Reactor already has 18 qualifiers to date and has five individual two-year-olds racing throughout Australia over this weekend.
This augurs well for the siring future for Auckland Reactor. Especially so when it is remembered that he himself didn’t commence his race career until September as a three-year-old. A race he won – along with his next sixteen in a row!
Miss Ethel Sunshine