Following his strong win over 1950m at Rotorua and fast finishing 5th in the Group 2 Waikato Guineas, OTI has purchased the son of Jakkalberry, Regal Lion, from his owner/breeders Barbara & Carl McComb.
The imposing gelding will continue his New Zealand campaign with Murray Baker & Andrew Forsman as he prepares for this Saturday’s Group 2 Avondale Guineas and the Group 1 New Zealand Derby two weeks later. He will then head to Australia.
OTI and the Baker/Forsman team has enjoyed a wonderful Derby relationship, with the stable winning the New Zealand Derby in 2018 with Vin de Dance and the Australian Derby in 2020 with Quick Thinker. In addition, back in 2007, Murray Baker sold Kibbutz to OTI. Kibbutz went on to win the Victoria Derby that year.
Regal Lion’s last two runs have been against New Zealand’s best including Perfect Pink, the Group 1 NZ 1000 Guineas winner and La Crique. On both occasions, he ran similar sectionals over the final stages. In the Group 2 Waikato Guineas, he then ran the fastest last 200m (11.52 secs) of the race.
Phill Cataldo, who buys OTI’s horses in New Zealand and has followed the horse through his early days, describes him as an attractive type, around 16.1 hands, athletic and with a good brain. When inspecting him last week, Cataldo indicated the horse was thriving.
While the gelding’s next two runs are planned, a good effort in the New Zealand Derby will see him come across for the Australian Derby. After this campaign, he will be targeted towards a staying career in Australia. Both the Baker/Forsman stable and Phill Cataldo believe that he will continue to improve as an aged horse, as did his sire and broodmare sire.
Having won the Queensland, Victoria and Australian Derbies, as well as the New Zealand Derby, there is confidence within the OTI camp that Regal Lion has the attributes to match his predecessors.
