The Gentry is a

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

who won the

New Zealand Derby The New Zealand Derby is a set-weights Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds, run over a distance of 2,400 metres (12 furlongs) at Ellerslie Racecourse in Auckland, New Zealand. It is held on the first Saturday in March, as the opening day o ...

in 1988. Born in 1985, he is the only classic-winning son of the brilliant galloper

McGinty McGinty is a surname of Irish origin. Notable people with the surname include: * Adam McGinty (born 1971), Australian cricketer * Anne McGinty (born 1945), American flautist, composer and music publisher *Billy McGinty (rugby league), Scottish rug ...

who beat the best on both sides of the Tasman in his racing career and with an ounce of luck should arguably have been the first New Zealand winner of the

Golden Slipper The Golden Slipper Stakes is an Australian Turf Club Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old horses run over 1,200 metres on turf at set weights conditions, held at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse in Sydney, Australia. It is the premier two y ...

. The Gentry showed promise at two, taking out the Group 3 Eclipse Stakes, but then lost his form for the best part of a year and, with the exception of a class 3 win at Tauranga, failed to finish in the first three for nine months. But he bounced back to his best at exactly the right time, winning a three-year-old race at Ellerslie in late November before running second to Lou Morton in the Avondale Guineas and turning the table on that horse with a spectacular performance in the one that really matters, the New Zealand Derby. After his Derby win he went on to record another Group 1 win at the same track, beating the excellent mare Maurine and

Poetic Prince Poetic Prince, known in Australia as Our Poetic Prince, was an Australian bred and New Zealand trained race-horse that was a top performer at Group 1 level. Racing career Poetic Prince was trained by John Wheeler at New Plymouth. Two year old s ...

over 2000m in the

New Zealand Stakes The New Zealand Stakes currently run as the Bonecrusher New Zealand Stakes is a Group One thoroughbred horse race in New Zealand. It is run at Ellerslie racecourse on the final day of the Auckland Cup Week Carnival in March for a stake of $200 ...

, but was disappointing in a subsequent Australian campaign.

References

1985 racehorse births Racehorses bred in New Zealand Racehorses trained in New Zealand Thoroughbred family 13-a {{racehorse-stub