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By John Curtis

There was probably never much chance Daniel Robinson was going to part with Karmazone after buying him as a yearling in Adelaide in 2017.

The accomplished horseman and his wife Alexandra went through a lengthy process before securing the now rising six-year-old for $27,000 under their DPR Breaking business banner at that Magic Millions sale, with the intention of getting him ready and selling him at the Inglis Ready2Race sale in Sydney later that year.

Karmazone (Alysha Collett) holds out Into the Oblivion (Reece Jones) at Newcastle. Image by Bradley Photographers

Those plans changed quickly once the Hawkesbury trainer started educating him, along with the fact Alexandra took a real shine to the youngster.

“I put Karmazone in the round yard when we got him over from Adelaide, and I was impressed the first time I lunged him,” Robinson explained after his underrated five-year-old had made it two in a row and clinched his fourth overall success at Newcastle on Saturday, lifting his earnings beyond $100,000.

“Then Alex fell in love with him. We decided to keep him, and we’re glad we did.

"He’s spoilt, but always tries, and often seems to be over-priced in his races because we’re not a big stable.”

Overcoming a slow start and despite conceding the well-backed $3 favourite Into The Oblivion 6.5kg, Karmazone ($4.60) sustained a determined burst along the inside to outstay him in the Benchmark 64 Handicap (1880m).

The gelded son of Eurozone, racing for the 18th time, was coming off a strong victory on his home track in a Benchmark 64 Handicap (1800m) on heavy ground on June 22.

It is no coincidence that jockey Alysha Collett has been aboard Karmazone in his two recent wins. She chased the mount after winning a race on Peekays Legacy at Hawkesbury on June 13, impressed with Karmazone’s finishing sectionals when a closing fifth.

“A friend of ours, Tim Brown from Magic Millions, put together an extended shortlist of about 50 colts for that Adelaide sale,” Robinson said. “We cut that list down further and then got x-rays done to reduce the number even more.

“We wanted a blemish free young horse and, in the end, it was the price ($27,000) which persuaded us to buy Karmazone.”

Karmazone lives life out in the open, rarely being boxed. “I train him out of a paddock, and he enjoys that,” Robinson said. “He is boxed only when it’s wet weather.”

Now that Karmazone has racked up two wins in a row, Robinson is setting his sights on a Sydney assignment to try for a hat-trick.

“He always seems to pull up well, but I’ll see how he does in the next few days before deciding whether to back up at Royal Randwick on Saturday in a Benchmark 78 Handicap over 2000m,” Robinson said.

“If we don’t run there, I’ll keep him for a similar race over 2400m at Rosehill Gardens a fortnight later.”

Disappointingly, Robinson will have to split a winning combination unless racing’s COVID restrictions go back to normal this weekend, as Alysha Collett is currently riding outside the Greater Sydney Area zone.

“I’ll have to stick with the family and hopefully get Jason (Alysha’s brother) to ride him at Randwick if we go ahead and run and Alysha is unable to ride there,” Robinson said. “Jason knows the horse as he has ridden him before when placed on the Kensington track last October.”

Karmazone’s dam, the Pendragon mare That’s Karma, a three-times Queensland winner, had only a couple of foals before being retired from the breeding barn. He is the second foal, and her first foal, a Prince Arthur filly, was sent to Singapore.

Hawkesbury representatives Piping Roller ($9.50) and Switched ($5) finished sixth and seventh respectively in Saturday’s inaugural $100,000 Midway Handicap (1100m) at Rosehill.

Piping Roller was held up for clear running between the 400m until near the 250m, and a subsequent veterinary examination revealed her to be 4/5 lame in the near foreleg. Racing NSW stewards advised trainer Claire Lever a vet clearance would be required before the mare is allowed to trial or race again.