Saavoya & Platinum Witness to fight out NZB Filly of the Year honour in Oaks

13 March 2015

The New Zealand Bloodstock Filly of the Year winner will be determined on Saturday with the running of the Group 1 $300,000 Wellfield New Zealand Oaks (2400m) at Trentham.

Top of the NZB Filly of the Year Series is Saavoya (NZ) (Savabeel) who has earned 23 points thanks chiefly to wins in the Gr.2 Cambridge Stud Eight Carat Classic and the Gr.2 NZB Royal Stakes.

Platinum Witness (California Dane) is almost on par with Saavoya, sitting on 22.5 points and Vavasour (NZ) (Redoute’s Choice) is in third place with 12 points. With Vavasour not contesting this weekend’s final leg, only Saavoya and Platinum Witness can win the crown.

The winner of the Group 1 feature race will earn 12 points towards the Series, second place receives 7 points and third place receives 3.5 points.

The Corner with Garry Chittick

It would appear I now have to continue my weekly Corner with the amount of rumblings at the start of our new racing season. I have been around long enough to know we can never please all; my tenure as Chairman of the Racing Board was subjected to as much vitriol as subsequent Boards have had to bear, so what’s different this time, or is it different.

5 August 2026

First foal for Waikato’s Group 1 winner Skew Wiff

Group 1-winning Savabeel mare Skew Wiff (ex Starvoia), known affectionately as ‘Wiffy’, foaled a filly by Super Seth in the early hours of Wednesday, 5 August.