El Vencedor nearing his summer peak
Richard Edmunds - Raceform • November 28th, 2025 9:00 AM
El Vencedor was back in the winning groove in the Gr.3 Balmerino Stakes at Ellerslie earlier this month, and the reigning New Zealand Horse of the Year will return to the Auckland track on Saturday in search of further spoils in the Gr.3 Bayleys Great Northern Challenge Stakes.
The son of Shocking landed his sixth Ellerslie black-type feature in the Balmerino on November 4, cruising to victory by two and a quarter lengths to bring up his first win of the season. It brought a sense of déjà vu, with El Vencedor having scored his first win of the previous season in the same 2000-metre race 12 months earlier.
That Balmerino victory set El Vencedor up for a career-best season that saw him add the Listed Fulton Family Stakes, the Gr.1 Herbie Dyke Stakes, the Gr.1 Otaki-Maori WFA Classic and a second straight win in the Gr.1 New Zealand Stakes. He also ran third in the Gr.1 Zabeel Classic at Ellerslie on Boxing Day, in which he was narrowly beaten by star mares Snazzytavi and La Crique.
Cambridge trainer Stephen Marsh is planning to follow a similar itinerary this season with the superb seven-year-old, with the Zabeel Classic looming large on the horizon.
“The Balmerino Stakes was where it all started for him last season, so we got a big thrill out of seeing him back at his very best and winning that race again,” Marsh said. “He’s bounced right back. We felt he still had improvement in him heading into that race too, his coat was still coming through, so it was great.
“He’s just continued to look better and better since then and his work has been first-class. He’s right where we want him to be.
“The Challenge Stakes looks like a nice race for him. He gets in well under the set weights and penalties conditions.
“The main goal at this stage is to get him to the Zabeel Classic on Boxing Day. There’s a decent gap between this race and Boxing Day, but we’re comfortable with that. We can think about exhibition gallops and just give him whatever he needs. He’s definitely going the right way.”
El Vencedor headlines another strong weekend contingent for Marsh, who will be well represented at Ellerslie, Wanganui and Otaki.
“I think we’ll have some nice chances at all three venues,” he said. “Super Photon is going well and I’m looking forward to seeing him resume at Ellerslie. Miss Fladgate has won her last two and is a real improver.
“A filly I quite like is Lubeck, who gets a crack at black type in the Fillies’ Stakes at Wanganui. She ran well last start and has really pleased us since then.
“We’ve got Ammirati in the Wellington Stakes on Sunday. His last-start win was only a Sunday maiden at Rotorua, but he really seems to have taken the next step since that win. I thought his work was particularly good this (Tuesday) morning. He deserves this opportunity.”
