Expat New Zealand trainer Chris Waller has set his attention towards Queensland in the coming months and will have a six-strong contingent in the Gr.2 Hollindale Stakes (1800m) at Gold Coast on Saturday.

 

They include New Zealand-bred and owned Group One winners Shillelagh and Savvy Coup.

 

Waller has had tremendous success in Queensland, having trained 43 Group winners in the Sunshine State.

 

He has experienced a lot of success out of his Gold Coast satellite barn with 97 winners and $9.6 million in prize money in the 22 months since it opened.

 

Waller's Queensland manager Paul Shailer said Waller took great interest in the Gold Coast stable and constantly switched horses between it and Sydney.

 

“Chris has worked out a system of moving the horses between the states. For instance Youngstar and few others have done their final work in Sydney and are due to leave on Wednesday night," Shailer said.

 

"But we have built up our numbers here in recent weeks. We have had only 25 horses here for most of the season so things have been going well.

 

"A lot of it is Chris picking the right horses and right races for them."

 

Shillelagh and Savvy Coup will be joined in the Hollindale Stakes by fellow New Zealand-breds Luvaluva, Consensus and Order Again.

 

 

 

Group One winner Brutal has secured his stud career in Australia after Newgate Farm recently purchased 50 percent of the New Zealand-bred three-year-old.

 

The O’Reilly colt will still be seen on the race track next season, with his current owners wanting to press on with their horse into the spring after his spring ambitions were cut short last year through injury.

 

"We have sold 50 percent, on the agreement that Brutal will race on next season," part-owner Rupert Legh said.

 

The three-year-old confirmed his potential in winning the A$3 million Gr.1 Doncaster Mile (1600m) at Randwick last month.

 

Brutal is trained by the Hawkes Racing team and the two-state stable is looking forward to the entire racing on next season.

 

"Brutal is just one of those extra special horses that showed rare talent from day one and to win a Doncaster at just his seventh start is something that only the really exceptional ones can do," senior trainer John Hawkes said.

 

"We are thrilled he is staying in training because the world is his oyster."

 

Legh said all spring racing options for Brutal would be considered.

 

"Our intention is that he will compete in all the major races with the Golden Eagle his target in the spring. However no race is out of the question," he said.

 

The Golden Eagle is a new race added to this year's Sydney spring carnival.

 

It will be run over 1500m at Rosehill on November 2 and will offer A$7.5 million in prize money.

 

Brutal was bred by Anne Storey and her mother Ruth Kerr-Taylor and was sold through Mapperley Stud’s 2017 New Zealand Bloodstock Premier Yearling Sale draft to Hawkes Racing for $220,000.