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Marotiri Molly all class at Tauherenikau
Kevin Robertson, LOVERACING NZ News desk • November 1st, 2025 5:45 pm
Marotiri Molly winning the Valley Plumbing Redcraze Bowl (1400m) at Tauherenikau on Saturday. Photo: Jane Davidson (Race Images)
Class mare Marotiri Molly showed she will be a force to be reckoned with for the rest of the summer as she overcame some home straight traffic issues to take out the Valley Plumbing Redcraze Bowl (1400m) at Tauherenikau on Saturday.
The Matt Dixon-prepared seven-year-old had taken out the corresponding event when run at Trentham last year, completing a winning treble before finishing runner-up in the Gr.2 Auckland Thoroughbred Breeders’ Stakes (1400m) and then capturing the Gr.2 Manawatu Challenge Stakes (1400m) during a purple patch of form.
Given a decent winter break after two unplaced runs in the autumn, the daughter of Per Incanto had been thereabouts in the first two runs of her current campaign and had a few questions being asked before Saturday’s event, however, she silenced those doubters in emphatic style in the hands of rider Toni Davies.
Davies, who had managed to reduce the mare’s 62kg topweight by 2kgs with her apprentice claim, had Marotiri Molly beautifully placed behind pacemakers Turn The Ace and Reign It In early on and appeared to travel well within herself approaching the home turn.
Things began to go pear-shaped at that stage as the pacemakers faded while the well supported pair of Bedtime Story and Blissful Belle kept Marotiri Molly in a pocket until the 200m mark.
Davies manged to squeeze through a needle eye gap on the race favourite and she burst through to take victory by a head from Blissful Belle as the late closing Kopua snatched third off Bedtime Story.
Dixon was pleased to see his stable star back in the winners’ enclosure as he looks forward to bigger summer targets for her.
“The tracks haven’t been to her liking and I always knew that when she got back on a better track she would show her true worth,” Dixon said.
“I thought it was a super effort, especially as she got held up and was carrying a big weight. To pick herself up and charge through that gap was a good effort.
“I think she will go to Counties (Gr.2 Auckland Thoroughbred Breeders’ Stakes, 1400m) as she went super there last year, so that is the next plan.”
Davies was all smiles as she described the ease of the victory.
“She has done it real easy today even though she got a little bit held up,” she said. “As soon as she found the gap she just stormed home.”
Raced by her breeders, Beven and Christine Parlato, Marotiri Molly is one of two winners from two foals to race out of the Al Akbar mare Marotiri Miss, who herself won five races and placed in the Gr.3 Winter Cup (1600m) and Gr.3 Metric Mile (1600m).
From 18 starts, she has now recorded seven wins and four placings and earned over $275,000 in prizemoney.
