Shinko King sired the first leg of what could be a Group 1 double this week when Barinka nailed the NZ Breeders Stakes (1600m) at Te Aroha on Saturday.

Barinka (6m Shinko King – Hay Barlu by Hey Baba Riba) overcame a wide draw to score a determined victory in a three-way finish from Smoulder (Traditionally) and front-runner Fleur de Line (Stravinsky).

Shinko King (Fairy King) was originally based at Ashwell Farm before transferring to Henk Smit’s Paxton Park at Cambridge.  His Australian based stayer C’est La Guerre is on the third line of betting for the G1 Sydney Cup next Saturday.

Barinka has been a consistent performer for Levin trainer Karen Zimmerman with 8 wins and 12 placings in 34 starts.  “I gave her one or two on the home turn and there was no response but I knew she was trying her out heart out,” winning jockey Hayden Tinsley said.  “She never gives in.”

Among Barinka’s priors were Listed wins in the Westbury Classic at Ellerslie, Anniversary Hcp at Trentham and Canterbury Breeders Stakes at Riccarton Park.

Barinka is one a dozen stakes winners for 20 year-old Shinko King.  The nearest black-type on the bottom half of her pedigree goes back to Tawlord’s G2 win in the 1993 Sandown Cup.