WELL WRITTEN - PERFECT RECORD. PERFECT DRAW

By Graham Potter | Tuesday, March 3, 2026

Well Written, the horse with the perfect record, drew the perfect gate for Saturday’s NZ$4 million The Kiwi, a slot race which will be contested on Champions Day at Ellerslie on March 7.

Saturday will see the second running of The Kiwi, the Southern Hemisphere’s richest three-year-old race, with the prize-money already up to NZ$4 million from the NZ$3.5 million of its inaugural running twelve months ago and with a further increase to NZ4.5 million locked in for 2027.

An additional NZ$1 million in bonuses is also on offer each year.

And there is nothing like having a prospective champion in the line-up to lift the profile of the race above the mere lure of the prize-money bonanza and The Kiwi certainly has that this year with the presence of the unbeaten Well Written in the line-up.

With five wins from five starts … including wins in the Group 1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas, the rich NZ$1.5 million Karaka Millions (3YO) and the Group 2 Auckland Guineas … most pundits were already suggesting before the barrier draw that the Stephen Marsh trained filly has the race at her mercy, although the old adage of ‘there is no such thing as a racing certainty’ is always hovering in the background, waiting for an opportunity to prove a point.

The number two barrier draw for Well Written could well be the final nail in the coffin for Well Written’s thirteen rivals though, with the short-priced favourite now given the perfect spot from which to launch her big race challenge.

It is going to take a brave person to bet against her.