'The NZ suffix punches well above its weight' - New Zealand Bloodstock's Andrew Buick on life down under and his famous family

Andrew Buick hails from a renowned equestrian family, being brother to dual British champion jockey William and De Burgh Equine's Martin, while their parents are eight-time Scandinavian champion jockey Walter and dressage rider and showjumper Maria. Here, he tells us about his background and role with New Zealand Bloodstock.

It's fair to say the sport is in your blood . . . 

Horses and racing were a massive part of our upbringing, which I’m sure has helped all of us enormously career-wise. I’m very grateful for everything they taught me, and the knowledge and advice they keep applying.

 It’s a great help for me when I’m unsure or have questions about certain things; you can give any of them a ring and the feedback and advice will always be of value. We speak most days and go through the ins and outs of what’s happening.

Did you always feel you’d end up working in the industry or were there other interests you might have pursued?

We were never pushed into any aspect of the industry, but I’m pretty sure it was on the cards quite early on for all of us. I was never tempted to be a jockey and I think mum and dad are quite happy with having only one in the family as it’s a cut-throat sport being a jockey, and certainly comes with its risks. 

William Buick: top-notch jockey and brother to AndrewCredit: Edward Whitaker

I probably fancied myself as a footballer at some stage, but quickly found out I was 100 lengths behind the rest, ability-wise.

Talk us through your experiences in racing prior to joining New Zealand Bloodstock . . .

Although always in touch with horses and being mad keen on racing, the Irish National Stud course really gave me a kick-start and played a key role in the trajectory of my career. The academic aspect of the course is brilliant, but it’s the connections and networking they expose you to that really sets it apart, and it’s a course I would recommend to anyone.

After the course I did a stint with John and Thady Gosden, which was brilliant. It was quite surreal to see the calibre of horses they had at the time, and continue to develop and train season after season.

I then ventured to Arrowfield Stud in Australia, where I worked through a breeding and sales season. It was a great experience to work for one of Australia’s leading stud farms and fascinating to compare the practices employed to those in the northern hemisphere.

My time in Australia provided the perfect platform to my current role at New Zealand Bloodstock as the two nations share common traits among their racing and breeding, and there is a fair degree of crossover.

You’ve been with NZB since last July – what does your role as bloodstock representative entail?

It’s quite a diverse role but the essence of it is to service the needs and expectations of our vendors and buyers alike. The bloodstock team are on the road inspecting horses for all of our sales throughout the year, so inspections take up a chunk of the calendar, but it’s something we love doing. The farms in New Zealand are stunning and it’s great to see the quality stock coming through.

Karaka: the hospitality at the sale is second to none

We also attend a lot of trials and racedays to keep up to date with the stock which is performing on the track. It's a good opportunity to catch up with our clients. We assist them with everything from bloodstock valuations to portfolio management, so we’re kept busy throughout the year.

Where are you based, had you been to New Zealand before joining NZB, and how much travelling do you do?

The NZB bloodstock team are all based in the Waikato region, an hour south of Auckland, which is where the bulk of the major farms and training centres are located.

I'd never been to New Zealand before I came in late July last year, so I didn’t know entirely what to expect. But I was fortunate to have a good friend in George Chittick, who I met on the Irish National Stud course. The Chittick family owns and operates the famed Waikato Stud, which would be one of the best thoroughbred nurseries in the world. George and I are great mates, and we had a good chat before I took on the role and flew down here. He gave me some good advice about what to expect, and, for me, New Zealand and working for New Zealand Bloodstock has exceeded my expectations and then some.

We do plenty of travelling both within New Zealand and internationally to keep tabs on both our vendors and our buying bench. Australia is our biggest export market along with Asia, so it’s pivotal we keep encouraging and scouting for new clients and markets to bring down to Karaka for our sales and make sure they get the true Kiwi experience and world-renowned Karaka hospitality, which is second to none and should be on the bucket list for everyone in our industry.

NZB recently made me their European representative to go along with my bloodstock role here, so I’ll be back in the UK in time for Royal Ascot to hopefully bring some new clients down for our sales and also look after our valued recurring purchasers.

New Zealand racing and bloodstock is possibly – fairly or unfairly – overshadowed by neighbour Australia; what would you advocate as the USPs of the industry in NZ?

Australia has got a thriving racing industry, as we know, and is like a much bigger brother to New Zealand, with a foal crop more than five times the size.

But the unique selling points of New Zealand include the incredible environment in which the stock are raised, expert horsemanship, value for money and, most importantly, racetrack performance. It is also a great place to visit and in the past 12 months the prize-money has risen significantly, so there are a lot of positives.

Top-class horses like So You Think have flown the flag for New Zealand-bred runners in recent yearsCredit: Edward Whitaker

It’s safe to say the NZ suffix punches well above its weight, and New Zealand-bred horses are very hard to beat wherever they go. Over the past five seasons New Zealand-bred horses have won more than 20 per cent of the Group 1 races in Australia, yet account for 7.5 per cent of the horse population, so the statistics are quite compelling.

Horses like So You Think, Little Bridge and Starcraft all carried the NZ suffix to elite success in Europe, while in Hong Kong the two best horses, Golden Sixty and Lucky Sweynesse, were both sold through the NZB Ready to Run Breeze-Up Sale.

I’d say climate is a big factor in the success. The land and scenery here would be quite similar to Ireland, with lush pasture, cold winters and overall perfect conditions to breed tough, sound and quality racehorses.

More generally in terms of the sport in the southern and northern hemispheres, what one thing could each learn from the other and do a bit better?

New Zealand and Australia do a terrific job of promoting syndication as a form of ownership. With more people involved and a broader base to share the experience, it gives the sport more relevance and creates a great shared experience. The feeling in Europe is they keep relying on the same pool of owners, and it looks very hard to be competitive against the big outfits. 

One aspect I do miss when attending and watching racing in both New Zealand and Australia are the scenic, testing and undulating tracks. The UK especially is very blessed to have tracks such as Goodwood, Newmarket and Epsom, which are incredible racecourses and test the horses in a unique way.

Whether ridden by your brother William or not, any favourite racehorses down the years?

Will has sat on some superstars over the years but Blue Point gets the tick from me. He never shied away from a battle and I loved watching him clash with Battaash and other world-class sprinters. 

His King's Stand-Diamond Jubilee double was breathtaking and to be one of very few horses to do the Tuesday-Saturday double speaks volumes of him as a racehorse. He’s had a terrific start to his stud career, which has been great to follow.

Goffs London Sale

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