Millwood Nike (NZ) remains unbeaten after Harness Million triumph

 

Millwood Nike (NZ) (Captaintreacherous) let her incredible star power shine through when she made it a perfect nine from nine in the $150,000 Listed NZB Standardbred Harness Million Three-Year-Old Fillies Final (2200m) at Cambridge on Friday night.

The Mark and Nathan Purdon-trained NZB Standardbred graduate cruised to victory in the lucrative feature to keep her unbeaten record intact after nine starts.

Millwood Nike was secured by the All Stars Racing Stables for $75,000 from Millwood Farm’s draft at the 2021 National Yearling Sale in Christchurch.

With Mark Purdon in the sulky, the three-year-old took control of the race quickly by powering to the lead.

In her comfortable win, Millwood Nike even had the audacity to look at the Cambridge Raceway scenery.

But when crunch time came and runner-up Seaclusion (NZ) (Sweet Lou) issued a challenge, the brilliant pacer got serious.

“I don’t think she is quite as good in front because she looks around and she is quite relaxed,” Mark Purdon said.

“But she did rally when she saw the other horse outside her.”

Millwood Nike is raced by rugby league identities Frank and Shane Endacott, as well as Stephen Byrne, Steve Thompson and Bruce Irvine.

Purdon credited Thompson for bringing the group together to enjoy the incredible ride Millwood Nike has taken her owners on.

“Steve has been the instigator of this group coming together, they have raced a lot of horses over the years and this filly is special – they deserve it.”

Seaclusion produced the best performance of her career when chasing Millwood Nike gamely in the home straight, in what was just her third career start.

The runner-up was purchased by Rogerson Bloodstock for $35,000 from the Woodlands Stud draft at the 2021 National Yearling Sale in Auckland.

To view the upcoming catalogues for the 2023 National Yearling Sale just around the corner, visit www.nzbstandardbred.co.nz. All yearlings purchased at the Sale are eligible for the NZB Standardbred Harness Million Series, with approximately $1 million in prizemoney on offer for graduates of selected NZB sales.