NO EASING BACK INTO IT FOR MICHAEL MCNAB. HE GOES FROM BEING SIDELINED STRAIGHT INTO GROUP 1 ACTION

By Graham Potter | Wednesday, February 18, 2026

Racing is a game of many moving parts … and we are not only talking about the horses and riders racing out on the track. Even away from the main action, it is fair to say good positioning and some luck in the running is always a favourable ally.

Take the case of jockey Michael McNab, a New Zealand Premiership winning jockey, who will return to the saddle at Ellerslie on Saturday after suffering a broken leg early in September last year when he was kicked by a horse at the trails.

The pain caused by that injury was not only physical but a costly one as McNab ended up missing the bulk of the potentially lucrative summer season … but he will be right back at it on Saturday and, no, there will be no carefully measured, gentle easing back into it for McNab … but rather a full on leap and landing in the middle of the no quarters asked, or given, ultra-competitive battleground that is Group 1 racing.

McNab will ride the Darryn & Briar Weatherley trained Pier in the NZ$600 000 Sport Group 1 Nation Otaki Maori WFA Classic in his first meeting back following his injury setback … not exactly the more cautious route routinely followed by those making a comeback, but there is no reason to suggest that McNab cannot pull this off in the most resounding fashion.

And that’s where good positioning and luck in the running off the track comes into it.

Pier is the current favourite for Saturday’s big race but, not many days ago, First Five, the G1 BCD Group Sprint and Group 1 Telegraph winner, and Legarto, the recent Herbie Sykes Stakes winner, topped the betting boards for the Group 1 contest.

Both First Five and Legarto clearly had the means to place a roadblock in the path of Pier’s quest for glory … but they are both now going to bypass the race, their dual absence lifting Pier to favouritism.

So, Pier has already had some luck in the running.

For McNab good positioning … or being in the right place at the right time … also helped set up his ride on Pier. With Pier’s regular rider Sam Weatherly suspended, the Darryn & Briar Weatherley training partnership offered McNab the ride … which was simply not only an offer too good to refuse, but one which showed great confidence in McNab ability and his capacity to be able to return to form immediately after the layoff.

So, with the combination of that lucky break and a confidence-boosting call-up … and the removal of the First Five / Legarto roadblock, you might think that the stars are really beginning to align for McNab at this time.

There are still some hard yards to be done by horse and rider but, should Pier salute it will another magical moment in McNab’s already illustrious career and rubber-stamp his comeback in a most emphatic manner.