WS NEWS | 32 Elite Yearlings. One Week to Go!
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There is now less than a week until the 2026 NZB Standardbred National Yearling Sale kicks off. Woodlands Stud's draft consists of 32 yearlings - 28 colts and four fillies, bred from world-class stallions and out of some of New Zealand’s strongest and most proven maternal families.
At Woodlands, our philosophy is simple.
We breed to race, we raise to educate, and we sell to see our horses succeed.
Every yearling in our 2026 draft is for genuine sale. Our reserves are realistic, and nothing gives us greater satisfaction than seeing our stock head to great homes where they are given every opportunity to reach their potential on the track.
Our results speak for themselves.
Woodlands Stud is a past New Zealand Breeder of the Year, and we were proud to once again be a contender in 2025. Last season alone, six Group 1 winners were bred and/or raised on farm at Woodlands Stud:
Arafura (2x Group 1 winner)
Freeze Frame
Hillbilly Blues
All Of Me
Fugitive
Ya Rite Darl
Five of these elite performers are NZB Sales Graduates, reinforcing the strength and consistency of the Woodlands sales model.
Our yearlings are raised in a hands-on environment, handled daily, well educated, and prepared to be an easy, professional addition to any stable from day one.
If you’re searching for your next racetrack performer, one bred with purpose and raised with care, we invite you to inspect our draft and see the Woodlands difference for yourself.
Photos and videos of each weanling are available for viewing on the NZB Standardbred Website. The draft will be video scoped on Friday and these videos will also be made available on each lot's page.
KEY TIMINGS FOR THE WEEK AHEAD:
FRIDAY 13TH FEBRUARY - Yearlings arrive at Karaka and available for inspection from midday.
SATURDAY 14TH FEBRUARY - Inspections welcomed all day.
SUNDAY 15TH FEBRUARY - Official Sale Parade at 11am, private inspections welcomed all day.
MONDAY 16TH FEBRUARY - Auckland Sale starts at 1.00pm, inspections welcomed all day.
TUESDAY 17TH FEBRUARY - Christchurch Sale inspection day
WEDNESDAY 18TH FEBRUARY - Christchurch Sale starts at 11.00am
We welcome you to come and visit us and our draft at the sales complex from Friday afternoon onwards. We will be located at Barn F (map below) for horse inspections and our hospitality area is right beside this barn where nibbles and refreshments will be available.
The full draft can be seen by clicking on the link below.
For further information about the draft contact Kelly Blakemore on +64 21 0273 5686 or Tony Grayling on +64 21 618 830
WOODLANDS SIRED SPOTLIGHT - COMING SOON
It gives us great satisfaction to see the breeders and vendors who have supported Woodlands Stud also do well at the yearling sales, later in the week we will highlight the other stock across the sales that are sired by our stallions and offered by other vendors in the sale.
OTHER NEWS
Photo: Mary Kenny & Andrew Grierson from Woodlands Stud with Jamie MacKinnon after accepting the Pacing Stallion of the Year award for Bettor's Delight.
AN AWARDS NIGHT TO REMEMBER
It was an awards evening to remember for Woodlands Stud at the 2025 NZB Standardbred Harness Racing Awards, with our sires, their progeny, connections and the Stud itself recognised on a night celebrating the outstanding performers of the season.
Woodlands Stud was proudly named a 2025 Breeder of the Year nominee, while our stallion roster dominated the major sire categories with:
Trotting Stallion of the Year – What The Hill
Pacing Stallion of the Year – Bettor’s Delight
The night also highlighted the success of horses bred and/or raised at Woodlands, with the following champions honoured:
Arafura (Sweet Lou) – 3YO Pacing Filly of the Year
Ya Rite Darl (What The Hill) – 3YO Trotting Filly of the Year
Hillbilly Blues (What The Hill) – 4YO Trotting Male of the Year
All Of Me (Downbytheseaside) – 2YO Pacing Filly of the Year
Recognition at this level reinforces what Woodlands is all about, standing World-Class sires that shape our industry and breeding horses capable of excelling on the biggest stages.
Woodlands influence was felt right across the awards evening through the achievements of our Woodlands-sired progeny, who claimed major honours including:
Jumal (Downbytheseaside) – 2YO Pacing Male of the Year
Marketplace (Bettor’s Delight) – 3YO Pacing Male of the Year
I Dream Of Jeanie (Pegasus Spur) – 5YO+ Trotting Mare of the Year
Bet N Win (What The Hill) – 5YO+ Trotting Male of the Year & Trotter of the Year
Republican Party (Bettor’s Delight) – 5YO+ Pacing Male of the Year, Pacer of the Year & Horse of the Year
Congratulations to their connections, especially those who bred these star horses. We also extend our congratulations to John and Katrina Price of Price Bloodstock, loyal Woodlands clients, on being named 2025 Breeders of the Year, a fantastic and well deserved achievement.
With many yearlings by these same elite sire lines heading to the ring in just one week, the timing couldn’t be better to invest in proven performance.
A SWEET START TO 2026
There haven’t been many 2-year-old races held in Australasia yet, just eight so far, but Woodlands sires are already making their mark.
Downbytheseaside and Sweet Lou both have two winners each
Seaside Serenade (Downbytheseaside’s Australian daughter) has also picked up two wins, a feat no other 2YO has achieved this season yet.
Last year, Downbytheseaside sired the two 2YO Pacers of the Year in New Zealand and finished second on the 2YO stakes leaderboard, just behind Bettor’s Delight.
After a standout 2025, we’re excited to see what the progeny of these elite sires can achieve in 2026.
