![\"Asakura,](\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/03\/breednet-images-asak_34661.jpg\")
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\u201cHe kind of takes it all (the travelling) in his stride.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re happy with everything we\u2019ve done with him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe made the decision four or five days after his last run that we would go to New Zealand and run in The Kiwi.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe decided to bypass the Australian Guineas and give him three weeks between runs and go and chase the prize money.<\/p>\n
\u201cSixties ran really well in the Guineas; he probably didn\u2019t have a lot of luck go his way.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe looks like a horse who is destined to win at the top level.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just goes to show that Asakura is probably not far off the top three-year-olds in Australia.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think any of that is good enough to be competitive over in New Zealand, but we\u2019ve got Well Written to take on this year, who looks like an exceptional talent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asakura will boast a further Australian connection, with his slot holder being prominent thoroughbred owner Ozzie Kheir, who secured the rights ahead of intense interest from other parties.<\/p>\n
The slot race is an exciting next venture for Freedman, who has savoured Group 1 success twice in his training career, with Attrition in the 2023 Toorak Handicap (1600m) at Caulfield and Skybird in last year\u2019s Lightning Stakes (1000m) at Flemington.<\/p>\n
Skybird was to be the 37-year-old\u2019s first slot race runner in last year\u2019s $20 million The Everest at Randwick, before being scratched due to injury.<\/p>\n
The path to The Kiwi has fortunately been a much smoother one.<\/p>\n
Asakura will be ridden in The Kiwi by six-time Group 1 winner Dean Yendall, who has partnered him in all four starts to date.<\/p>\n
Following a massive spring in which Ballarat trainers dominated the big Melbourne races, headlined by the McEvoys\u2019 Melbourne and Caulfield Cup triumphs with Half Yours and Thomas Carberry\u2019s fairytale Oaks win with Strictly Business, coming off the back of more overseas success for Henry Dwyer with Asfoora, Freedman would love to keep the momentum rolling.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Kiwi is a little bit different \u2013 a little bit left of centre,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cCertainly four or five years ago I wasn\u2019t expecting to travel horses to New Zealand to run in a big prizemoney race like this \u2013 that opportunity simply wasn\u2019t there.<\/p>\n
\u201cNew Zealand racing has done a great job of pumping the race up and we\u2019re just keen to be taking part in it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a big achievement for everyone in our team.<\/p>\n
\u201cHopefully he can acquit himself well.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WHILE they will have one of New Zealand racing\u2019s most exciting prospects to contend with, Ballarat trainer Mitch Freedman is confident Asakura can make his presence felt across the Tasman in the $4 million NZB Kiwi (1500m) at Ellerslie Racecourse this Saturday. Always held in high regard by his dual Group 1 winning trainer, the […]<\/p>\n