New Zealand’s Champions Day is all about putting Kiwi racing on the map

Written by Kit Gow, The Thoroughbred Report on 10 March 2025

The resounding success of New Zealand racing’s revamped Champions Day is, for Entain’s Cameron Rodgers, a testament to the enduring quality of the Kiwi industry. He spoke to The Thoroughbred Report about New Zealand’s racing on the global stage, making the industry more accessible, and having a share of the NZB Kiwi pie himself.

For Entain’s outgoing Manager Director of New Zealand Cameron Rodgers, Saturday’s Champions Day at Ellerslie was the perfect culmination of his and outgoing Deputy Chief Executive Lachlan Fitt’s endeavours within the company. The jewel in the race card’s crown was the inaugural running of the NZ$3.5 million New Zealand Bloodstock The Kiwi, which was particularly special for Rodgers, who owns a share in the winner.

“I think it (the Kiwi) couldn’t have gone better,” Rodgers told The Thoroughbred Report. “The way the race came together, the field – it drew a large amount of attention and cut through to the mainstream. Things were shaping up so well leading into it, and the race itself didn’t disappoint.”

Rodgers was trackside to enjoy the festivities; “it was the most electric atmosphere that I’ve ever seen at the races. For the first time, there were a lot of people coming across the ditch to come over here for a race day. That might not sound like much, but that’s a huge step forward for us.”

Even as he transitions out of Entain and into the breeding and racing world, Rodgers hopes this year’s Champions Day can be a blueprint for success for years to come.

Preparing a headline race day

“The objective for us (Rodgers and Fitt) is to drive domestic wagering, turnover, and interest, but being able to export the New Zealand racing product into Australia and out to the world is what gets attention more than anything else,” Rodgers said. He recognised that the presence of three Australian-trained raiders in the Kiwi – as well as visiting jockeys such as in-form Ashley Morgan, Blake Shinn, and Michael Dee – was a huge additional boost to the program.

“Seeing horses in colours they recognise, with jockeys they recognise, that’s a huge, huge part of it. So to be able to have that quality of the horses that came (was) fantastic). It was a really big kick for the race, and a huge get for New Zealand as well.”

All the better, then, when a local takes out the top prize, owned and trained by one of the nation’s biggest investors in the local racing scene. Rodgers owns a slice of the winner, Damask Rose (NZ) (Savabeel), and was full of praise for the efforts of Te Akau Racing and winning trainers Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson.

“I’m very pleased to see Te Akau doing so well,” he said. “It is an amazing reward for David (Ellis) and Karen (Fenton-Ellis), they’ve carried so much of the load in terms of keeping racing going down here through some of the harder times. So it’s been awesome to see them do so well in the first running of it.”

Te Akau Racing’s race day was crowned with their 100th Group 1 victory, courtesy of unbeaten colt Return To Conquer’s (Snitzel) victory in the G1 Sistema Stakes.

The enduring power of Savabeel

Now the winner of over NZ$2.2 million across seven lucrative starts, Damask Rose has been an incredible jumping off point for Rodgers’ personal investment in New Zealand racing.

“When we got the keys (to Entain in New Zealand), one of the first things we did was get down to Waikato and meet some of the breeders,” Rodgers shared. “I got the chance to meet (Waikato Stud’s) Mark Chittick and Garry Chittick for the first time, and we got to see Savabeel, which was great.”

New Zealand’s multiple Champion Sire left an indelible impression on Rodgers – which is no surprise, given his offspring’s exploits on the track and in the breeding barn – and they were keen to invest in one of his yearlings. As luck would have it, the Te Akau Racing team had a few shares remaining in a Savabeel filly out of Sombreuil (Flying Spur), a daughter of previous Te Akau flagbearer Te Akau Rose (NZ) (Thorn Park).

“She was actually the last yearling that Te Akau had shares in,” Rodgers said. “So we said, ‘okay, we’ll take her’.”

A shrewd choice; Damask Rose was runner-up in the R. Listed Karaka Millions 2YO last year and won the R. Listed Karaka Millions 3YO en route to Saturday’s win, booking herself a ballot exempt ticket to the $10 million Golden Eagle across the Tasman in November. Her full sister Provence (NZ) contributed to a huge Saturday for their sire – who also had a Group 2 winner in Sydney with emerging sprinter Jedibeel (NZ) – by winning the G1 New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders’ Stakes on the same card, further enhancing both fillies’ pedigrees.

It was the beginning of a strong friendship with the Chitticks as well; Rodgers and Fitt were able to get involved in I Wish I Win (NZ) (Savabeel) and enjoy the ride of having a slot in the G1 Everest in the spring.

“It’s a really good bond that we have formed (with the Chitticks),” Rodgers said. “It’s scary what Savabeel has done. Even in his twilight years, he is still producing these amazing horses. It’s been a great ride with them.

“And with the Te Akau team, we couldn’t have asked for a better result. When you step back and look at Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson, it’s been an absolute masterclass watching them pull this campaign together. We’re very lucky to be a part of it.”

That is not to ignore Waikato Stud’s Super Seth, whom Rodgers was also full of praise for, adding, “he’s had a cracking couple of weeks. The team really are lovely people, so we really want to see them do well.”

Strengthening international connections

The reciprocal link with the Golden Eagle is just one of a range of international relationships that New Zealand racing and Entain have been working to establish, and Rodgers believes it is the next great step in promoting Kiwi racing.

At the beginning of the year, a relationship between NZTR and 1/ST in the United States was announced with a series of ‘golden ticket’ races in both countries that permit winners of certain races to race on the international stage, with travel covered for runners. The NZ$500,000 Champion Middle Distance Series and NZ$500,000 Champion Sprint Series winners have been invited to California Crown day in September.

“For us down here, being able to export our horses and see them run internationally, it’s huge for growing the sport down here,” he said, referencing El Vencedor’s (NZ) (Shocking) recent invite to run in Hong Kong for the jurisdiction’s Champions Day. “For the owners to take him up there, it’s amazing. The more of those that we can get, the better.

“The flow between borders is all just helping grow the game, so it’s really exciting to see.”