Ammirati franks NZ Derby tilt with Salver win

11 January 2026
Ammirati winning the Listed Gingernuts Salver underneath Matt Cartwright. Photo: Kenton Wright, Race Images NZ.

Our Stephen Marsh-trained Savabeel gelding ๐€๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ข๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ข has emphatically franked a Gr.1 Trackside NZ Derby mission with a smart win in the Listed Trackside Gingernuts Salver (2100m) at Ellerslie this arvo.

Ridden by Matt Cartwright, ๐€๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ข๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ข was handy to the pace throughout and had the race at his mercy with 150m to go, winning by close to a length.

๐€๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ข๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ข was selected for Elsdon Park by Bruce Perry from Waikato Stud’s 2024 NZB Book One Yearling draft. He has now won three times, with additional black-type success in the Gr.3 Wellington Stakes.

Ammirati is raced with Jamieson Park and Hawridge Developments Ltd.

Elsdon Park’s colours were also seen in today’s Salver with Day One (Wootton Bassett) weaving his way home for fourth.

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