Te Akau Racing establishes Cranbourne stable

In a landmark announcement, New Zealand’s top stable, Te Akau Racing, has confirmed plans to establish an operation in Victoria, Australia.

The move marks a milestone in Te Akau’s history and is a promising development for the owners.

“This is a milestone for Te Akau, for our team, and especially for our owners – having an operation in Australia has massive appeal for them,” said Te Akau Principal David Ellis CNZM.

The new stable will be located at Cranbourne Turf Club’s world-class training centre, a location chosen for its top-tier facilities and favourable geographical position.

“Cranbourne stood out as our location of choice.”

“It is the largest training venue in the Southern Hemisphere built on 98 hectares, with state of the art facilities.” Ellis added.

This expansion comes after a period of strategic planning and setbacks due to COVID lockdowns and restrictions.

Despite these hurdles, Te Akau’s vision for an Australian operation will finally take form, providing new prospects for horses showing promise in New Zealand.

In response to this announcement, Cranbourne Turf Club CEO, Neil Bainbridge, expressed his delight, “We’re delighted that Te Akau Racing has chosen Cranbourne as its Australian training location. Te Akau has a proven record of producing stakes’ winners around the world, and we’re looking forward to welcoming the team to our world-class training centre at Cranbourne.”

The new stable will serve as a springboard for promising horses, especially given Victoria’s substantial prize money offerings, currently exceeding A$320 million for the season.

As Ellis CNZM further highlighted, “Our new stable will provide a springboard for our horses that are showing promise, and has huge appeal to our owners who are looking for returns at a time when economic conditions are influencing how people spend their disposable income.”