Following the weekend’s racing six-times Champion Sire Volksraad has now edged to the front of the New Zealand Sires Premiership with total stakes earnings for the season to date in excess of $1.3 million. This is the seventh successive season in New Zealand that Volksraad’s progeny earnings have exceeded a million dollars.

Volksraad’s offspring have a well documented dislike for rain affected going, however, even in the adverse conditions which have prevailed over racing surfaces in the past week his progeny have managed significant placings. These include at Matamata on Saturday where his very promising 2YO daughter Corsage finished third in the Gr.2, 1200m, Robin, Duke of Bedford Matamata Breeders’ Stakes while Dezigna finished fourth in the Listed Stanley Group TRAC Stakes over 2000m.

To this stage of the New Zealand racing season Volksraad has sired more individual winners and his progeny have won more races than any other stallion and this season alone he has sired three Gr.1 winners including Orange County (in Australia), Dezigna and ‘peoples champion’ Sir Slick.

Volksraad’s stallion companions at Windsor Park Stud in Cambridge, Thorn Park, King’s Chapel and Golan, are also enjoying a successful season.

Thorn Park’s recent run of success, culminating in a trans-Tasman stakes race double for his progeny at the weekend, has seen him rise to second position on the Second Season Sires table and to fourth position on the Two Year Old Sires Premiership.

King’s Ransom’s stakes win at the weekend has propelled his sire King’s Chapel to the head of the New Zealand First Season Sires list while the outstanding season being enjoyed by Golan has positioned him in third place on the Two Year Old Premiership and in the top ten on the general Sires Premiership.