Owen Larsen, who for many years during the 1960s and 1970s was a small-time breeder on a property at Newstead, Hamilton was searching for a stallion bred for speed, when he first saw Pag-Asa (by Kaerou Star) in Sydney and he was fairly impressed. Soon after viewing the pedigree and race performance sheet, Owen was convinced with what he saw and purchased the horse, shipping him straight to Dave O’Sullivan’s Matamata stables where he went into full work. After a few unsatisfactory performances in New Zealand, a medical examination revealed that he was not in the ideal physical condition to continue racing. Consequently, he was retired to stud, where he was eventually bred with the broodmare, Imitation (Oakville), who turned out to be the dam of the future champion horse Bonecrusher.

It was an unusual turn of events that led to the acquisition of the seemingly unfashionable Pag Asa colt by owner Peter Mitchell in 1982, made after consulting with a self-styled breeding expert during the annual yearling sales. An old joker named Harold Hampton who was a postmaster used to go around the sales with his odd theories on how you could find a good future racehorse. His pedigree had no value to most onlookers, but Peter purchased the first one that year and called him Superbrat. He ran a couple of times and didn’t do much, but Mitchell stuck with the bloodlines, and next time to the sales he bought Bonecrusher and sent him to trainer Frank Ritchie, who was just starting on his own and battling away with his strapper son, 16 year old Shaun Ritchie in tow.

Mitchell purchased Bonecrusher for a handy $3200 from the Waikato Yearling sales and he first hit the track in August of 1984 where he won three of his first five starts as a juvenile, including one at Group Three level at Ellerslie before embarking on an ill-fated three start campaign in Australia. Brought home after three lacklustre runs, Bonecrusher commenced his three-year-old campaign with four consecutive placings including finishing third behind Random Chance and Field Dancer in the 1985 Gr.1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) at Riccarton. Bonecrusher won his next seven starts straight including the Gr.1 Bayer Classic (1600m), the Gr.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) before defeating the older horses in the New Gr.1 Zealand Stakes (2000m) at Ellerslie.

In the spring of 1986, Bonecrusher achieved his greatest triumph by winning the Cox Plate over the Dave and Paul O'Sullivan-trained (Our) Waverley Star, a race that has been hailed as, 'the race of the century.' The two great horses went to war from the 600m mark with Bonecrusher prevailing in a colossal head-to-head dual as the renowned racecaller Bill Collins delivered one of the most memorable and dramatic calls in racing history...

“and Bonecrusher races into equine immortality"

Although he lacked the brilliance of Black Caviar or the dominance of Winx, his courage endeared him to many. Even when it appeared he could not win, he prevailed. In the Cox Plate, Our Waverley Star settled wide, in mid-field, while the chestnut, Bonecrusher was towards the back of the field. At the 800 metres mark, Bonecrusher (ridden by Gary Stewart) powered out swiftly around the field to be immediately shadowed by the slick Our Waverley Star (ridden by Lance O'Sullivan). Quickly, the two horses cleared out from the rest of the field. Race caller Bill Collins questioned the two horses breakneck tactics,

Here come the New Zealanders...have they gone too early?"

Our Waverley Star built up a length lead, which was soon countered by Bonecrusher. As they entered wide into the short home straight at the Moonee Valley, Bonecrusher had a slender lead. In an instant Our Waverley Star gathered him in again and it seemed he would pull away. But Big Red fought back hard down the straight to gather in his nemesis stride by stride, winning by a neck at the post. The huge crowd erupted and it is still considered one of the single greatest thoroughbred races ever witnessed down under, and rightly so. Mitchell then shouted dozens of family and friends, and funnily enough even local reporters to dinner out at Melbourne's finest Chinese restaurant, the Flower Drum as the victorious team celebrated long into the night.  

A tilt at the Japan Cup in 1986 almost ended in tragedy as the horse contracted a mystery virus in Tokyo, thankfully aided in recovery by the JRA vets. Both trainer Frank Ritchie and jockey Gary Stewart firmly believe that Bonecrusher would have emerged victorious in the Cup, considering his exceptional performance during track work. The Australian Cup was the race, not the Cox Plate, which trainer Frank Ritchie said undid Bonecrusher in 1987. Rider Gary Stewart described it as the roughest race he'd ridden in, and Big Red came back to scale with a chunk out of his leg after running 2nd in a torid battle with At Talaq. Stewart observed that there was "plenty spent to beat him", a claim interpreted by the Aussie press to mean payoffs to riders by bookies, two of whom were reported to be on the breadline after massive payouts on the result.

All up, Bonecrusher raced 44 times for 18 wins, 5 second places, and 12 third places. His races ranged from 880m to 2400m. He won 9 Group One races, 3 Group 2 races, and 2 Group 3 races, and earned prize money of NZ$674,225 and AU$1,679,495. He was retired after finishing 3rd in the Gr.3 Starway Stakes in December 1989 at the age of seven, considered one of New Zealand's greatest ever gallopers. Bonecrusher is buried next to the Ellerslie parade ring where his statue attracts numerous visitors who are all eager to pay tribute to the mighty, Big Red.

RACE RECORD - 44: 18-5-12

EARNINGS - NZ$674,225 & A$1,679,495

Bayer Classic (1985)

New Zealand Derby (1985)

Air New Zealand Stakes (1986 & 1988)

Tancred Stakes (1986)

Australian Derby (1986)

Caulfield Stakes (1986)

W. S. Cox Plate (1986)

Underwood Stakes (1986)

Australian Cup (1987)

The famous line by race caller Bill Collins will always be synonymise with a great racehorse in a clash hailed as, 'THE RACE OF THE CENTURY'