Snazzytavi to carry sponsors’ hopes in Zabeel Classic
Richard Edmunds - Raceform • December 24th, 2024 3:00 PM
Graham Richardson and Rogan Norvall have won two of the last three runnings of the Gr. 1 Cambridge Stud Zabeel Classic, but a third victory in the weight-for-age showpiece at Ellerslie on Boxing Day would mean more than most.
The Matamata trainers saddled Tiptronic to win the Zabeel Classic in 2021, then repeated that result 12 months later with Defibrillate. Their runner in 2024 is the top-class mare Snazzytavi, who races in the colours of the sponsors – Cambridge Stud owners Brendan and Jo Lindsay.
“The Zabeel Classic is a race that’s been good to us in the last few years, but it would be pretty cool if we could win it in the sponsors’ colours this time around,” Richardson told RaceForm. “We’ll give it our best shot and hopefully come away with a special result.”
Within the space of a career that spans only 14 starts, Snazzytavi has soared to the very top echelon of New Zealand’s weight-for-age ranks. The Tavistock mare has won eight of those 14 starts and more than $680,000 in stakes, including barnstorming come-from-behind wins in the Gr. 1 Livamol Classic and Gr. 2 Cal Isuzu Stakes in her last two appearances.
Last Saturday’s Cal Isuzu was a super-impressive performance, storming home from second-last off a slow pace and winning by two lengths.
“That was an outstanding win,” Richardson said. “The way she finished the race off that day, from well back and without a lot of pace in the race, was very exciting to see.
“She’s pulled up really well too. Having a horse like her in your stable, you always get a bit nervous in the lead-up to each race. But everything’s gone well with her since Te Rapa and we’re happy with where we’re at in the lead-up to Boxing Day.”
The $500,000 Zabeel Classic marks a departure from Snazzytavi’s remarkable run of success at Te Rapa. She has won all of her five starts at the Hamilton track, including the Gr. 3 Easter Handicap, the Livamol Classic and the Cal Isuzu Stakes.
“The way she goes at Te Rapa, you almost wish all of her races could be there,” Richardson said. “But she has won at other tracks too.”
Those three wins at other venues include the Stella Artois 1500 Championship Final on this day last year, albeit at Pukekohe while Ellerslie was undergoing its major track renovation.
The step up to 2000 metres also holds few fears for Richardson. Snazzytavi’s three starts over further than 1600 metres have produced a win over 2000 metres at Matamata in February, a third in the South Waikato Cup over that same course and distance in March, and her stunning romp by three and a half lengths in the 2040-metre Livamol Classic in October.
“Going up to 2000 metres on Boxing Day should be ideal,” Richardson said. “She was so good over that sort of trip in the Livamol earlier in the spring. We’re really looking forward to seeing what she can do at Ellerslie.”
Co-trainer Graham Richardson reports that Snazzytavi has made excellent progress ahead of her Zabeel Classic mission at Ellerslie on Boxing Day. Credit: RaceForm
