Mark Newnham may have unwittingly created a niche market for himself courtesy of his success with former Hong Kong-trained gallopers.
His latest prodigy, Group 1 placegetter Sunshine Rising, finished an encouraging fourth at his Australian debut in Saturday’s Festival Stakes at Rosehill when he was strong to the line despite a wide passage.
It follows Newnham’s success with Joyful Fortune, the winner of two of his three local starts interspersed with a bold effort in The Everest, and the likes of I Am Power, who managed a Saturday win in seven local starts before his retirement.
“I don’t know whether I’ve created a rod for my own back or not, but I’ve got quite a few Hong Kong clients so it creates a bit of a niche market I suppose,” Newnham said.
“It’s a completely different environment, what they have there compared to here.
“Some horses leave here and improve and some don’t get back to the form they have displayed here. It’s a unique environment over there and it can work for or against them.”
Having his second start in three years, Sunshine Rising earned himself a shot at next month’s $2 million Ingham Stakes (1600m) at Randwick with his performance on Saturday.
“It was outstanding considering he hasn’t had competition for nearly three years at a good level,” Newnham said.
“I thought his effort to continue to make ground under today’s conditions was more than a pass mark.”
Joyful Fortune is just a week off returning to the stable having been given a deliberately short break after landing a stakes win at Flemington on VRC Oaks day.
Newnham has been mindful of keeping the horse’s fitness up to the mark before he embarks on an early-year sprint campaign.
“He had 10 days in the paddock and has been on the water walker for a couple of weeks,” Newnham said.
“He can’t afford to get unfit. It took a long time to get him fit, so we have to keep him active.
“He’s had those knee issues so we just need to give him little freshen ups and space his runs a bit.”
Unbeaten in two runs down the straight, Joyful Fortune is being aimed at the Lightning Stakes at Flemington ahead of a Sydney campaign likely to encompass the Galaxy.
