Siblings John, Mark and Rachael operate under the Jomara Bloodstock banner and early
on Sunday morning they welcomed a half-sister to Humidor, who on Tuesday bids
for Gr.1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) glory at Flemington."We had some really good news when Humidor's mother foaled a filly at 3am on Sunday morning," Mark Carter said.
"We sold a half-sister (Marechal, by General Nediym) to Humidor and the mare's had a filly by Shooting To Win. It's a nice match and we were desperate for a filly to keep the family going."
The Carters bred Humidor, who is by Teofilo out of the Zabeel mare Zalika, and enjoyed success in the Gr.3 Manawatu Challenge Classic (2000m) and a Gr.1 Livamol Classic (2040m) placing with the gelding when he was trained at Otaki by Johno Benner and Hollie Wynyard.
They subsequently sold a 50 per cent interest in Humidor to clients of top Victorian trainer Darren Weir, who has subsequently added Group One wins in the Australian Cup (2000m) and the Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) to the horse's record.
Now, the five-year-old is currently the equal third favourite at $10 to win the Melbourne Cup following his close last-start second to the wonder mare Winx in the Gr.1 Cox Plate (2040m).
"It's very exciting and at a whole new level – it's a dream come true to have a runner," Carter said.
He has a background on major sporting stages as a former All Black, Auckland rugby union and league representative and having played for the New Zealand Warriors and is endeavouring to take a low-key approach to Tuesday.
"I'm trying to have low expectations so I don't get disappointed," Carter said.– NZ Racing Desk.
