Remembering Benazir

People of fundamentally peaceful democratic traditions, such as Australians, are appalled at the turmoil and hatred entrenched in the political life of other countries, exemplified again today by the killing of Benazir Bhutto in the troubled nation of Pakistan.

I like to put a bit of thought into the naming of horses and when it came time to name a filly I bred in 1985, in my capacity as managing director of Waikato Stud, I chose Benazir for the daughter of Vice Regal-Hunza, by Pakistan II.

By the greatest coincidence, this Benazir features as the third dam of a rising star three-year-old in New Zealand, Prince Kaapstad (by Kaapstad) who on Boxing Day won the G2 Great Northern Guineas at Ellerslie, his third win from eight starts.

I remember the thoroughbred Benazir well. Her legs were all over the place as a foal and I think she may have had a PE on all four of them. Being a daughter of the irreplaceable mare Hunza, we retained Benazir for the stud and I arranged her lease to clients of Bruce McLachlan’s Brisbane stable from where she won three city races in a 15-start career. I think her sire Vice Regal was standing for $50,000 no live foal guarantee around that time.

In 1985, I decided to keep Hunza at home and put her to our own cheap ($6,000 fee) second-season stallion Pompeii Court (USA), the mating producing the G1 Blue Diamond/Golden Slipper winner Courtza, to this day only the second New Zealand-bred winner of the Golden Slipper. Courtza was one of four Group winners and one Listed winner produced by Hunza, 1989 NZ Broodmare of the Year, three of them by Pompeii Court (USA).

At stud, Benazir has done her bit to perpetuate this branch of the Hebrew Maid family. The last 10 years of her stud career were under the guidance of the Chittick family who rescued Waikato Stud from the shambles it had fallen into back to its status today, virtually without peer as a breeding ground of successful horses. She produced 13 foals of which seven were winners including New Zealand G1 winning mare Critic, by Centaine.

This family is a genetic powerhouse and I hope some of its female members are being given their opportunity with Courtza’s outstanding sire son O’Reilly to see if line-breeding to Hunza can produce something special.