Trainers Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr were determined to come home with a Contributor two-year-old they had picked out at last year’s New Zealand Bloodstock Ready To Run Sale.
That $170,000 purchase made his debut in the Ladbroke It! Plate (1300m) at Sandown on Wednesday, scoring an impressive win.
Named Snow Patrol (NZ) ($9) and ridden by Damian Lane, the gelding raced to a one length win from Amigo (Snitzel) ($6.50) with Delivering (Justify) ($17) a further three-quarters-of-a-length away third.
“Mick and I were both there for the entire sale,” Kent Jnr said.
“We had all the information, and he was the one horse we had to buy, so we bought him and teamed up with Ace Bloodstock, and this is their first winner, and I then went about with a lot of our clients that are close to us, including my best friend, Bill Barber.
“He’s a beautiful horse. Big, strong, well-muscled. He had a great action in the breeze-up and it was an impressive win.
“I thought it was a pretty strong maiden, so to sit deep and keep finding and be strong past the post, it was quite impressive.”
After purchasing Snow Patrol last year from the draft of Lilywhites Lodge, the gelding made his way to Australia where he was put through the early stages of a preparation before going for a spell.
“It was a Ready To Run Sale but they are no means ‘ready to run’,” Kent Jnr said.
“We brought him in, had a look at him, put him back out. He had a nice spell and he’s been very straight-forward since.
“He works up like a smart horse. He’s by Contributor and a mile and beyond will be nice for him.”
Kent Jnr said the stable wanted to have a look at Snow Patrol under race day pressure and at a nice galloping track like Sandown.
“He’s probably exceeded expectations a little bit, so we’ll dive into the spring and see what unfolds,” Kent Jnr said.
