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FWC on Sport Nation guideJumping future beckoning Diamond Jak
Joshua Smith, LOVERACING.NZ News Desk • June 23rd, 2026 4:12 pm
Group Three performer Diamond Jak. Photo: Kenton Wright (Race Images)
Group Three performer Diamond Jak has shown a propensity for jumping and he could make his raceday debut over fences in the coming month.
The Mark Brosnan-trained seven-year-old was runner-up in his first hurdle trial last year and went one better at his second public outing over the smaller fences at Cambridge on Monday.
“He did everything right,” Brosnan said following his trial.
While Diamond Jak pleased his trainer with Monday’s effort, the same couldn’t be said for his last two raceday appearances at Ellerslie, which have left Brosnan scratching his head.
A fortnight ago, Diamond Jak was slow to begin, losing five lengths at the start, and eventually ran eighth in a 2100m contest which was taken out by his stablemate Fly My Wey.
The son of Jakkalberry returned to the Auckland track last Saturday to contest The Lawn Shed Winter Series – Stayers Final (2100m), and this time he stood in the gates, and by the time he did jump, he had cost himself a 10-length deficit.
Those performances have put him on the naughty list with stipendiary stewards, and he is now required to barrier trial to their satisfaction before he returns to the races.
“We have got to go back to the trials because of his barrier manners and not wanting to jump out, so we have got to get a certificate to race first,” Brosnan said.
“It is the second time he has done it, so it is a bit of a concern. I think it is all in the head.”
While Diamond Jak has been leading towards a jumping future, Brosnan’s hand may be forced to try him over fences sooner rather than later, however, he still believes he has a future in both disciplines.
“It looks like we might head down that path (jumping) because if he is a little bit slow out of the barriers it won’t be such a worry,” Brosnan said. “But I don’t think he is a spent force on the flat.”
Brosnan said Diamond Jak, who is the winner of eight races, including the Listed Kaimai Stakes (2000m), will likely make his hurdle debut before season’s end.
“He will probably have one or two (jumping starts) before the end of the season,” he said.
Stablemate Fly My Wey also competed in the Stayers Final on Saturday, where he finished eighth, and he will now head to the winterless north next month for his next target.
“He just got caught too wide in my opinion,” Brosnan said. “He will now go to Ruakaka in three weeks.”
Meanwhile, Brosnan is pleased with the way his Group One performer Sterling Express is coming up ahead of his spring campaign.
The son of Shamexpress came of age this term, winning the Gr.2 Foxbridge Plate (1200m) before running fourth in both the Gr.1 Proisir Plate (1400m) and Gr.1 Howden Insurance Mile (1600m).
He showed his spring form was no fluke when finishing runner-up behind First Five in the Gr.1 BCD Group Sprint (1400m) at Te Rapa in February, before rounding out his season with a fourth placing in the Gr.1 Otaki-Maori WFA Classic (1600m) and another runner-up result in the Gr.2 Japan Trophy (1600m).
Brosnan said Sterling Express has been back in work for just under two months, and he is pleasing him with his progress.
“Sterling Express is on his way up, he has been back in for six or seven weeks,” he said. “He will go to the Foxbridge and Proisir, and then we will work from there.
“He seems bright and really well, so we can only hope.”
