Bonecrusher
SirePag-Asa
GrandsireKaoru Star
DamImitation
DamsireOakville
SexGelding
Foaled1982
CountryNew Zealand
ColourChestnut
BreederBill Punch
OwnerPeter J. Mitchell
TrainerFrank Ritchie
Record44: 18-5-12
EarningsNZ$674,225 & A$1,679,495
Major wins
Bayer Classic (1985)
New Zealand Derby (1985)
Air New Zealand Stakes (1986 & 1988)
Tancred Stakes (1986)
Australian Derby (1986)
Caulfield Stakes (1986)
W. S. Cox Plate (1986)
Underwood Stakes (1986)
Australian Cup (1987)
Honours
New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame
Australian Horse of the Year (1987)
Last updated on 26 June 2007

Bonecrusher (17 September 1982 – 10 June 2015) was a champion New Zealand Thoroughbred racehorse who was widely admired in both Australia and New Zealand.

Bred by Bill Punch, by the sire Pag-Asa,[1] his dam's sire was a son of a French champion, Tantieme.[2] Pag-Asa was brought to New Zealand by Owen Larson.[3]

Bonecrusher was purchased by Peter Mitchell for just NZ$3,250 at the Waikato Yearling Sales, and was trained by Frank Ritchie. Peter also bought Bonecrusher's full brother. A chestnut, Bonecrusher was nicknamed Big Red - the same name as the champions Man o' War, Secretariat and Phar Lap.

Racing career

His trainer was Frank Ritchie, and his strapper was Frank’s son Shaune Ritchie. Frank was trying to establish himself in the top echelon of trainers, while Shaune was sixteen and straight out of high school. "I was battling away, and although I had trained a Group winner in Australia, it was when he arrived that it really changed my life," Frank said.

All up, Bonechrusher raced 44 times for 18 wins, 5 second places, and 12 third places. His races ranged from 880m to 2400m. He won 9 Group One races, 3 Group 2 races, and 2 Group 3 races, and earned prize money of NZ$674,225 and Au$1,679,495.[4] He was the first New Zealand racehorse to win over NZ$1 million in prize money,[5] and his combined New Zealand and Australia career earnings were approximately 3 million dollars. Bonecrusher won four Group One races in New Zealand, including the New Zealand Derby, and six Group One races in Australia: the Tancred Stakes, the Australian Derby, the Underwood Stakes, the Caulfield Stakes, the Cox Plate, and the Australian Cup.[4]

Bonecrusher first hit the track in August 1984 where he won three of his first five starts as a juvenile including one at Group Three) level at Ellerslie before embarking on an ill-fated three race campaign in Australia.

Brought home after three lacklustre runs, he commenced his three-year-old campaign with four consecutive placings including finishing third behind Random Chance and Field Dancer in the 1985 Group One New Zealand 2000 Guineas run at 1600m at Riccarton. Ritchie was convinced that trip away was the making of the horse. "He had hurt himself in an incident on the truck before he went to Christchurch and missed a lot of work," he said. "He went into the 2000 Guineas underdone and I thought at the time the race would either flatten him or bring him on and thankfully it was the latter."

Bonecrusher won his next seven starts straight including the Group One Bayer Classic (1600m) and the Group 1 New Zealand Derby (2400m), before defeating the older horses in the Group 1 Air New Zealand Stakes (2000m) at Ellerslie Racecourse in Auckland.

Then he went to Sydney and won the Group 1 H E Tancred Stakes (2400m) and finished off with a win in the Group 1 Australian Derby (2400m).

Bonecrusher scaled his greatest heights in the spring of 1986 in the Cox Plate, where he prevailed in the 'Race of the Century' with another New Zealand champion, Waverley Star. The horses went to war from the 600m mark and separated themselves from the rest of the field, with Bonecrusher narrowly prevailing in a head-to-head struggle that caller Bill Collins summed up with the famous line "Bonecrusher races into equine immortality." Amongst the onlookers was strapper and now-successful trainer Shaune Ritchie. "I was sixteen and left school to go and look after the horse in Melbourne for that campaign," Shaune said. "It was a pretty big thing as back then an OE (overseas experience) wasn’t a normal thing so just to go to Australia was a big trip. After the race it was just amazing and I still remember the way the crowd stayed on to greet him and watch the presentation after the race. Australians are punters and normally when a race is finished, they are off to the bookies to bet on the next race coming up."

Later that year, Bonecrusher was the pre-post favourite against some of the world's best racehorses in the Japan Cup but contracted a virus in Tokyo, nearly lost his life, and withdrew from the race.

The next year, he had recovered from his illness and won the 1987 Australian Cup, beating At Talaq, and was named Horse of the Year in New Zealand and Australia for the 1986–1987 season. He was the first horse to be awarded both titles.[6] He was also a Government appointed 'Equine Ambassador' for New Zealand in 1986.

Bonecrusher continued to campaign at five, six, and seven years of age. He won three races in New Zealand, including a second Air New Zealand Stakes in 1988, but was unable to reach his previous heights in Australia.

Bonecrusher's racing career included the following:

Year
 Placing
 Race
 Venue
 Distance
 Jockey
 Winning Time
 1st
 2nd
 3rd
31 August 19844th2YO colts & geldingsAvondale800mGary Stewart-Bold Edition 54.3Bon Sang 54.3Chief Mayo 54.3
26 October 19841st2YO colts & geldingsEllerslie840mGary Stewart49.27Bonecrusher 54Blue Kingdom 54.3Bright Kiwi 54
3 Nov 19843rd2YOCounties880mGary Stewart-Orangeade 49Petersburg 55Bonecrusher 54.5
6 Feb 19851st2YOTROA1200mGary Stewart1:11.71 GoodBonecrusher 55Anglo Saxon 53Nostalgia 54.5
23 Feb 19851stEclipse Stakes (G3)Ellerslie1200mGary Stewart1:10.13 FirmBonecrusher 53.5Star Board 57Princess Carbine 49.5 (Relegated from 1st)
18 March 19855thBrambles ClassicKembla Grange1200mGary Stewart1:09.6Swift Cheval 52Comedy Star 52
8 April 19858th2YO colts and geldings raceRandwick1200mR Quinton-Piccata 52Rass Flyer 52
13 April 19854thT L Baillieu HandicapRandwick1400mDavid Walsh-Swift Cheval 56Gippsland 48Willara Prince
14 Sep 19853rdC3Hawkes Bay1200mGary Stewart-Chuckka Khan 51Laurent 57Bonecrusher 55
5 Oct 19853rd3YOEllerslie1400mGary Stewart-Honour Bright 55.5Hot Ice 55.5Bonecrusher 55.5
12 Oct 19852ndWinstone Guineas (G2)Ellerslie1600mGary Stewart1:34.38Avon's Lord 55.5Bonecrusher 55.5Honour Bright 55.5
13 Nov 19853rdNew Zealand 2000 Guineas (G1)Riccarton1600mGary Stewart1:35.48Random Chance 55.5Field Dancer 55.5Bonecrusher 55.5
27 Nov 19851stBayer Classic (G1)Levin1600mJim Cassidy1:36.90Bonecrusher 55.5French Polish 53Seadreamer 53
26 Dec 19851stNew Zealand Derby (G1)Ellerslie2400mGary Stewart2:29.47Bonecrusher 55.5Flight Bijou 55.5Random Chance 55.5
14 Dec 19851stAuckland Breeders Avondale GuineasAvondale2000mGary Stewart2:03.05Bonecrusher 55.5Hot Ice 55.5Flight Bijou 55.5
11 Feb 19861stCambridge Stud International StakesTe Rapa2000mGary Stewart1:59.59Bonecrusher 52.25Eva Grace 56.5Coronal 58
22 Feb 19861stAir New Zealand Stakes WFAEllerslie2000mGary Stewart2:02.21Bonecrusher 52.5Abit Leica 58Lacka Reason 58
22 March 19861stH E Tancred StakesRosehill2400mGary Stewart2:31.10 GoodBonecrusher 52Rant And Rave 52Abit Leica 58.5
29 March 19861stAJC DerbyRandwick2400mGary Stewart2:35.60 GoodBonecrusher 56Handy Proverb 56Agent Provocative 55.5
23 Aug 19863rdC1Ellerslie1200mGary Stewart1:18.02 HeavyWaverley Star 56.5Matthew Ryan 51Bonecrusher 58
6 Sep 19862ndWFA (G3)Wanganui1600mGary Stewart1:36.1 DeadBourbon Boy 57Bonecrusher 57Great Estate 58.5
25 Sep 19861stUnderwood StakesCaulfield2000mGary Stewart2:01.1 GoodBonecrusher 57At Talaq 59Black Knight 59
11 Oct 19861stCaulfield StakesCaulfield2000mGary Stewart2:00.60 GoodBonecrusher 57Black Knight 59My Tristram's Belle 54.5
25 Oct 19861stCox PlateMoonee Valley2040mGary Stewart2:07.20 DeadBonecrusher 57Waverley Star 57The Filbert 59
10 Feb 19874thWaikato Sprint (G1)Te Rapa1400mGary Stewart1:20.73 GoodCourier Bay 57Arctic Wolf 53.3Tidal Light 51.5
28 Feb 19871stC1Avondale1625mGary Stewart1:33.9 GoodBonecrusher 59Chickero 51Out Of Sight 50.5
9 March 19871stAustralian CupFlemington2000mGary Stewart2:05.6 GoodBonecrusher 57At Talaq 58Ima Red Man 57
28 March 19873rdRawson StakesRosehill2000mShane Dye2:02.9 DeadMyocard 53Waverley Star 57Bonecrusher 57
13 Feb 19881stWhite Robe Lodge Stakes (G3)Wingatui1600mGary Stewart1:36.80 GoodBonecrusher 57.5Robinski 50Slick Million 53
27 Feb 19881stAir New Zealand Stakes WFA (G1)Ellerslie2000mGary Stewart2:02.51 GoodBonecrusher 58Horlicks 55.5Sounds Like Fun 55.5
14 March 19883rdAustralian CupFlemington2000mGary Stewart2:01.5 GoodDandy Andy 57Vo Rogue 57Bonecrusher 58
9 April 19882ndWFA (G1)Ellerslie2000mPeter Tims2:03.72 GoodHorlicks 56Bonecrusher 58Sounds Like Fun 56
8 May 19882ndQueen Elizabeth StakesCanberra2000mJim Cassidy2:07.18 DeadBeau Zam 54Bonecrusher 58Dandy Andy
20 Aug 19884thWFATe Rapa1400mGary Stewart1:31.23 HeavyPoetic Prince 57Regal Affair 56.3Tri Belle 56
10 Sep 19882ndC1Ellerslie1575mGary Stewart1:39.52 SlowSaci 52Bonecrusher 58.5March Sea 53.5
1 Oct 19881stWFATaranaki2000mGary Stewart2:13.6 HeavyBonecrusherThe Filbert 59Classic Bay 59
22 Oct 19883rdCox PlateMoonee Valley2040mGary Stewart2:06.9 GoodPoetic Prince 57Horlicks 56Bonecrusher 59
27 Nov 19888thJapan Cup[7]Tokyo2400mGary Stewart2:25.5 SlowPay the Butler (USA) 57Tamamo Cross (Jap) 57Oguri Cap (Jap) 55
28 Jan 19893rdJarden MileTrentham1600mPeter Tims1:35.84 GoodTricavaboy 51Sirstaci 49.5Bonecrusher 58
14 Feb 19895thNew Zealand International StakesTe Rapa2000mPeter Tims2:00.55 GoodRegal City 57Horlicks 56.5Westminster 57
4 Mar 19898thDB Draught ClassicEllerslie2100mPeter Tims2:07.09 GoodHorlicks 56.5Regal City 57Westminster 57
1 Apr 19893rdWFAEllerslie2000mGary Stewart2:03.65 GoodTrissaring 57Sirstaci 58Bonecrusher 58
9 Dec 19893rdStar Way StakesEllerslie1600mGary Stewart1:34.24 GoodKrona 57Regal City 58Bonecrusher 58
28 Dec 19895thWaikato Stud Kings PlateEllerslie1600mGary Stewart1:35.6 GoodRegal City 58Red Legend 57Money Market 57

Retirement

After retirement Bonecrusher was cared for by his owner, Peter Mitchell, on a property in Takanini.[6] In retirement, he was a guest of the Moonee Valley Racing Club. His last public appearance was Derby Day in 2003.[5] In 2010, he was inducted into the New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame. Bonecrusher was euthanised in June 2015 after contracting laminitis.[8]

Bonecrusher was buried beside the saddling paddock at Ellerslie Racecourse, as he won his first race, his first Group race, and all three of his New Zealand Group One races at Ellerslie. A bronze statue was set above him.[9] The life-sized replica is of the champion racehorse in action and includes his famous shoulder scar and unique protruding tongue. At the end of the plaque below the statue, it says 'Bonecrusher: The Pride of Ellerslie'

"To see Bonecrusher immortalised like this stirs a lot of emotion and brings back a lot of great memories," his trainer Frank Ritchie said.

"People still want to talk about him to this day and in a radio interview I did recently I think I spent three minutes talking about my runners in the Auckland Cup and the New Zealand Oaks, and another 17 minutes on Bonecrusher, a horse that retired 30 years ago."

"He didn’t have the brilliance of Black Caviar or the dominance of Winx, but why people loved him so much was his courage, and when it looked like he couldn’t win, he would win. I doubt that there has been a story written about Dad or I that hasn’t included Bonecrusher somewhere in it and I have no problem with that as who doesn’t want to be associated with such a wonderful animal."

"The fact that every day you go to Ellerslie you see the magnificent statue there of him, that he is buried underneath, is very special and it is very nice to have."

Bonecrusher's strapper, trainer Frank Ritchie's son Shaune Ritchie, is now a trainer based in Cambridge who trained 2010 New Zealand Derby winner Military Move, and 2006 New Zealand 2000 Guineas winner and runner-up in the 2007 Kelt Capital Stakes, Magic Cape.

Bonecrusher song

In October 1986, Bonecrusher's achievements on the track became the inspiration for a song released by fellow Ellerslie locals, Wayne Cann, Gordon Evans and John Scull. Titled "Tribute to a Champion", the song promoted Bonecrusher as a New Zealand Sports Ambassador, and featured lyrics which stated that he could be "the greatest since Phar Lap" and named him as the "pride of Ellerslie".[5] While not available in stores, fans were asked to send orders through the "Bonecrusher Song Child Cancer Appeal", which donated NZ$1 from each sale to the child cancer foundation.[5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Bonecrusher (NZ) 1982 / Breeding / LOVERACING.NZ". loveracing.nz.
  2. ↑ "Bonecrusher". Online Thoroughbred Database. Retrieved 20 August 2010.
  3. ↑ https://www.nzthoroughbred.co.nz/blog/post/82572/bonecrusher--my-story/
  4. 1 2 Racing Victoria Limited. "Bonecrusher Race Record". Retrieved 20 August 2010.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Bonecrusher's Scrapbook". Retrieved 20 August 2010.
  6. 1 2 "20 Years on and Bonecrusher Still Going Strong". Retrieved 20 August 2010.
  7. ↑ "Full Result 6.20 Tokyo (JPN) | 27 November 1988 | Racing Post".
  8. ↑ Manley, Michael. "Bonecrusher dies: Legend of racing and winner of famous 1986 Cox Plate dies aged 32". Fox Sports News. Retrieved 11 June 2015.
  9. ↑ "Bonecrusher bronze statue unveiled at Ellerslie". stuff.co.nz. 8 March 2018. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
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