Archive for month: September, 2020

Above: Lady of Harrods won the 2012 MRC Thousand Guineas Prelude at Caulfield.

Spendthrift Farm did not get much of a return for the $400,000 shelled out for dual Group III winner Lady Of Harrods at the 2016 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale when selling her son Omaha City for just $5,500 at Keeneland September last year, but there may be better days ahead after the 2yo colt powered to victory in Saturday’s Listed Hollywood Beach Stakes at Gulfstream Park.

Owned and trained by Mohamed Jehaludi Omaha City (Temple City) had been placed in four of his previous five starts on the track before breaking his maiden in the 5 furlong scamper on turf, defeating Big Daddy Dave (Khozan) by one and a quarter lengths with Hall Rich Legacy (Field Commission) three-quarters of a length back in third.

Lady Of Harrods came from the second of three crops left in Australia by Dubawi (USA).

Purchased by Russell Cameron for $80,000 at the 2011 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale, she went on to bank over $277,000 highlighted by wins in the Group III MRC Thousand Guineas Prelude and Group III HDF McNeil Stakes.

She was bought by Segenhoe Stud, on behalf of Fairway Thoroughbreds, at the 2014 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale and was back in the same ring two years later when purchased by Spendthrift for $400,000 when a carrying a colt by Snitzel.

The daughter of Dubawi was exported to the US alongside the stakes-placed Fastnet Rock mare Ameristralia, Listed Morphettville Guineas winner Forever Discreet (Bernardini), stakes placed Rosehill winner Cana (Fastnet Rock) and Krupt’s sister Prairy Kat (Flying Spur).

Ameristralia was featured in Breednet recently when her Into Mischief colt made the equal third highest price of day three of the Keeneland September Yearling Sale when knocked down for $400,000.

Article courtesy of Breednet

Above: Overshare standing at Spendthrift Australia

While the arrival of spring reminds us of years past when it was possible to enjoy being among the hustle and bustle of the Spring Racing Carnival’s unbridled, ahem, social gatherings, season 2020 is shaping up to look considerably different.

But all is not lost. In fact, a local good news story has emerged that might just have us all riding high.

Garry Cuddy, General Manager, Spendthrift Australia, a leading Thoroughbred stud farm located in the Macedon Ranges’ scenic Kerrie Valley, has very generously offered to donate a nomination to their young, exciting stallion Overshare to the shire’s only community-owned, not-for-profit aged care facility, RM Begg Kyneton Aged Care Inc.

At first glance, the odds of a horse stud fundraising for an aged-care organisation might seem, well, long. But, as Cuddy, who was recently appointed to the Thoroughbred Breeders Victoria Board, explained, “Covid doesn’t discriminate and has meant that the annual stallion parades have had to go on-line. Traditional open days here at the farm usually attract large numbers of visitors, which translate into bookings for our stallions for breeding services. This season will have its challenges and we know that a lot of other people are doing it tough, especially in the aged-care sector. So, this is a way we can help make a difference in our local community.”

A stakes-winning son of super-sire I Am Invincible, the farm’s stallion Overshare began his stud career in 2018 and his first crop of yearlings will hit sale rings during the 2020-21 season. Overshare is an extremely good-looking stallion who throws stunning foals. “At an $11,000 service fee, Overshare is an ideal alternative for breeders whose budgets can’t quite stretch to I Am Invincible’s $209,000 fee,” Cuddy said. “The aim of our fundraiser is to ‘share’ a nomination to Overshare with RM Begg.”

The equine industry forms a large part of Macedon Ranges local economy from breeding and training to many support industries and services such as vets and farriers as well as manufacturers of horse-related products and feed. RM Begg spokesperson Sarah Collier welcomed the generous support of Spendthrift Australia and invited mare owners to submit their offers for this wonderful stallion and get behind this amazing and generous gesture. “We hope the bidding whips up some real excitement among breeders and we’d love to see a photo finish!” Ms Collier quipped.

HOW BREEDERS CAN BID

Overshare will stand at Spendthrift Australia for a service fee of $11,000 incl. GST.

You can view Overshare on Spendthrift Australia’s virtual stallion parade on their website: www.spendthrift.com.au/stallions/overshare/

Bids to buy the donated stallion nomination to Overshare for this stud season can be made via Bloodstock Auctions: www.bloodstockauction.com.au

Bids open Thursday 1 October 2020 and close Tuesday 6 October 2020.

Donations can also be made directly to RM Begg via their website: www.raymbegg.org.au/donate

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More information contact: Danielle White, drdanni1@bigpond.com | m. 0408 797 438

Above: All too easy for Swats That (Pat Scala/Racing Photos)

A luckless second in the Cap D’Antibes Stakes at Flemington on her seasonal debut on September 13, the Leon and Troy Corstens-trained Swats That overcame a tough run to ring up her first stakes win in Friday night’s Group III Piper-Heidsieck Scarborough Stakes (1200m) at Moonee Valley.

Ridden by John Allen the 3yo daughter of Shamus Award was obliged to race three deep without cover from her outside barrier. She took control of the race at the home turn to defeat the fast-finishing Highly Discreet (Street Boss) by with the favourite Dirty Thoughts (So You Think).

Try Corstens said the Coolmore Stud Stakes is her goal this preparation.

“She was three-wide and had no peace whatsoever and was very, very strong,” Troy Corstens said.

“It’s nice to see her do that because we have all put in a lot of work and we always thought she was pretty good.

A homebred for Adam Gay, Swats That is a sister to 2-time winner My Sweet Fish, Swats out of the unraced Bel Esprit mare Is It A Mosquito whose dam Yes I Will (USA) (Danzig) is a daughter of the great racemare Let’s Elope.

A daughter of Nassipour (USA), Let’s Elope won 11 races including the Caulfield Cup – Melbourne Cup double in 1991.

It A Mosquito has a 2yo filly by Shamus Award and a yearling filly by Trust In A Gust.

Purchased by Glenrae Stud for $5,500 at the 2018 Inglis Great Southern Sale, It A Mosquito recently foaled to Jimmy Creed (USA) before being covered by Shamus award again.

Dual Group 1 winner Shamus Award is having a golden run and Swats That takes the stakes-winners total  for the Rosemont Stud stallion to eight.

Article courtesy of Breednet

Above: An Inglis Premier triumph as Ole Kirk edges North Pacific in the Golden Rose (Steve Hart)

It might have been in so called enemy territory, but two Victorian bred colts stamped themselves as stallions in waiting when they  finished first and second for Team Hawkes in the Group 1 Golden Rose (1400m) at Rosehill on Saturday.

The winner Ole Kirk and runner-up North Pacific were the two sale toppers at last year’s Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale.

Ole Kirk (Written Tycoon/Naturale) and North Pacific (Brazen Beau/Up In Lights) fought out the finish of the stallion-making Golden Rose, with Ole Kirk just a head in front of his stablemate.

The pair is set to again clash in the Group 1 $2 million Caulfield Guineas (1600m) on October 10.

Ole Kirk is now worth an estimated $25 million-plus as a stallion prospect, with North Pacific certainly in the same price bracket.

And there are already offers from prominent studs wanting to secure a piece of the impeccably bred Ole Kirk whose dam Naturale is an unraced sister to the champion mare Black Caviar (Bel Esprit/Helsinge) and a half-sister to All Too Hard (Casino Prince).

Ole Kirk was purchased for $675,000 by Mark Player’s International Thoroughbred Solutions, on behalf of Neil Werrett, when he was offered by Rick Jamieson’s Gilgai Farm which also bred the colt.

While Werrett is the majority owner of Ole Kirk, Jamieson remained in the ownership along with a group of others.

North Pacific was knocked down for $800,000 to Orbis Bloodstock at the 2019 Inglis Premier sale.

Flemington-based Wayne Hawkes said it doesn’t get any better for Inglis to have the two top priced yearlings sold at Melbourne Premier finishing first and second in the big race.

“It’s good for Victoria to have the quinella and it is good for consumer confidence when the top priced yearlings come good,” Hawkes said.

“It’s good when the top priced horses can fight out the biggest three-year-old race in Sydney.

“They were both expensive yearlings so it was good to get a return for the owners.”

Hawkes said both Ole Kirk and North Pacific had great pedigrees and were cracking athletes which was the reason they demanded big prices at the sale.

As far as types go, Hawkes said they were totally different.

“There is nothing the same about both of them and they are just chalk and cheese, those two,” Hawkes said.

“There is nothing remotely the same about both of them and they wouldn’t be in the same mould with anything, to be honest, and they are just so far away in the spectrum that it’s not funny.

“But it takes all types.”

Gilgai’s Kelly Skillecorn said Ole Kirk was always a nice horse.

“He is not a big strong horse or the obvious horse,” Skillecorn said.

“He is a nice enough horse and a good moving horse with a pretty head.”

Skillecorn said that without any Danehill in him, Ole Kirk would be highly sought after by studs and breeders.

“There are not many Danehill free sons of his quality and pedigree to go to stud, if there ever has been,” Skillecorn said.

“I know my boss (Rick Jamieson) isn’t in any hurry to retire him and realises that it’s a family that just gets better and better and you’d hope he’d go again next year.”

Skillecorn said there was no doubt Ole Kirk was the real deal with a great pedigree.

“He is not a big horse so he’ll suit all of those Fastnet Rock, big strong things,” he said.

“We are all looking forward to how he is going to go in the Guineas (1600m at Caulfield on October 10). It would be nice to have a couple of Group 1s on the resume before Christmas.”

Ole Kirk’s dam Naturale is back in foal to Written Tycoon which Skillecorn said was an even bigger result after the colt’s Golden Rose win.

Werrett, who was trackside at Rosehill on Saturday, obviously has an affiliation with the family after racing Black Caviar.

“As soon as I saw the page and I remembered Rick [Jamieson] had told me about this sister to Black Caviar way back, and how unfortunate it couldn’t race,’’ Werrett told Inglis.

“So when it was coming up in Melbourne, I asked the Hawkes’ if they had looked at it and they said it was on their list to buy. I said I want to buy it.

“I have put my sister, Colin Madden and Brett from work into him and Rick stayed in. That makes it more special.

“The breeding and the whole thing that has gone into this race, I can’t believe we have won it.’’

For winning co-trainer Michael Hawkes, finishing first and second

with the two colts was “as good as it gets’’.

“Dad and Wayne saw the colts at the sale, I wasn’t there. It’s a team

effort, I was home here with the horses and they did that particular sale,’’ Hawkes said.

“To go one two with the two highest-priced colts from the Inglis

Melbourne Sale, it means a lot because you know what, it backs your

judgement that when you’re buying these horses, you’re in the right

frame of mind to say this is what we need to do to get the best result. It’s phenomenal.”

Some bookies have installed Ole Kirk as the $5 favourite for the

Caulfield Guineas, while North Pacific has firmed into $9.

Above: Bel Esprit standing at Sun Stud

It’s something of an understatement to suggest that BEL ESPRIT has been a star from the get go.

Winner of his first five starts, including the Group 1 Blue Diamond, Bel Esprit would go on to capture the Group 1 Doomben 10,000 before retiring to Sun Stud (then Eliza Park).

From only his 3^rd crop, Bel Esprit achieved everlasting fame through racing immortal, Black Caviar, while an unprecedented eight Victorian Sires’ premierships, an Australian title and 720 winners later, he’s still producing headliners such as Kisukano, winner of six  from nine, $698,100 in stakes and the only horse to defeat Rothfire (by 2 lengths) as a 2YO.

However, BEL ESPRIT is now well and truly into the next stage as a leading Broodmare Sire, courtesy of Saturday’s brilliant Group 1 Golden Rose winner, Ole Kirk.

On Friday night at Moonee Valley, Swats That became his 25^th stakes horse as a Broodmare Sire by taking out the Group 3 Champagne Stakes.

And let’s not forget the big daddy of them all, Beauty Generation.

Hong Kong Horse of the Year, Beauty Generation has won 20 races – including 8 Group 1s – and is the highest money earner ever in Hong Kong. Now under the guidance of David Hayes, Beauty Generation returned to racing on Sunday with a brave second behind Golden Sixty in the Group 3 Celebration Cup at Sha Tin and appears on target to retain his title as the world’s best miler.

Much, much closer to home though is how well MAGNUS over BEL ESPRIT mares go: already there have been 17 winners from 22 runners, with 5 of them stakes horses … among them the exciting 3YO stakes winner FRONT PAGE.

The Geoff Duryea trained chestnut has won four from seven  (including 2 seconds) and is due to appear in the $1.3 million The Kosciuszko at Royal Randwick in 3 weeks with James Macdonald booked for the ride.

So, if you have a BEL ESPRIT mare …

Bel Esprit stands this season at Sun Stud at a fee of just $7,700, while barnmate, MAGNUS will cover another full book at $15,400. No payment on any Sun Stud stallion until live foal.

For further information, phone Phil Marshall at Sun Stud on 0407 853 782.

Article courtesy of Breednet

Above: A Woodside yearling gets ready to enter the Inglis Newmarket sales ring

Winning is the driving force behind many equine endeavors. Some horse enthusiasts breed, raise, train, and compete their own horses, but many prefer to shortcut the vagarious nature of the breeding business by purchasing a horse that is “made” or possesses the potential to be everything the buyer could want. Public auctions often provide the best opportunity for these horsemen to locate the right horse for their purpose. For the consignors, the fall of the auctioneer’s hammer can signal the difference between economic viability and the death of a dream. The dream begins in the breeding shed. The old adage “breed the best to the best and hope for the best” certainly holds true for the highest priced sale horses. The pedigree page is often the first introduction a buyer has to an individual horse. Sales agencies pride themselves on consigning horses with the most sterling of bloodlines as the catalogs’ headliners.

Thoroughbred sales companies have defined specific ways to indicate exemplary performance. Bold-faced type (called “black type”) and capital letters are used to indicate the quality of races won by the horses in the pedigree. Once the catalog has been mailed and the horses and buyers have arrived at the sale, the ticket to a higher price is appearance. According to Mark Taylor of Taylor Made Sales Agency, “It is the complete picture – conformation, fitness, and finish – that ultimately sells the horse.” The Taylor Made Sales Agency sold its first consignment in 1978 and since then has established an impressive record. In the last twelve years, it has sold more sales-topping Thoroughbreds at public auction than any other sales agency in the world. Mark, one of four brothers who together own and operate the sales agency, a stallion station, and a boarding operation, is the head of the public sales division. He has devised guidelines for the preparation of the horses the sales agency will handle that cover the range from weanlings and yearlings to broodmares.

Each type of horse has specific requirements, and each individual within a group may have special needs on top of those. Mr. Taylor believes weanlings are the most challenging to prepare for the sales ring. As Thoroughbred sales weanlings are often sold in November, there is a limited amount of time to prepare them for their debut. Mr. Taylor explained, “After weaning, young horses go through a gawky stage that can alter their appearance dramatically. Sometimes the foal we assessed in July looks considerably different as a weanling in September. For those born early enough in the year to be weaned in September, there is time for them to mature out of that awkward stage. The horses that are most difficult are the ones born late in the spring. We have had good success weaning those young horses quite late. Sometimes their weaning is completed at the sale. We don’t wean them as abruptly as we do the earlier foals, so many of them avoid going through that awkward stage.”

Even with the most careful guidance, some weanlings seem to grow in fits and starts. One of Taylor Made’s sales standouts, Unbridled’s Song, was just such a one. Today the horse is known for his stunning wins in the 1995 Breeder’s Cup Juvenile Stakes, the 1996 Florida Derby, and the Wood Memorial. This winner of $1.3 million was an equine version of the ugly duckling that grew into a swan. Mr. Taylor stated, “He was a gangly weanling. He grew into a better-looking yearling and has just continued to look better every day of his life.”

Mr. Taylor feels that sales preparation for young horses has changed considerably over the past two decades. He said, “We used to be pretty aggressive with our young horses. We fed them to grow quickly, and we worked them to build muscle. Today, we are more conservative. Our goal is to raise well-grown foals that are marketable as weanlings or yearlings that become sound, quality racehorses.”

At Taylor Made two of the most important components of producing healthy, attractive young horses for the sales ring are a vigorous deworming schedule and a carefully designed nutrition program. Like many sales companies, it employs an equine nutritionist to supervise each aspect of the farm’s program from the forage to the grains and supplements. “We look at every individual and design a program to accommodate that horse’s specific needs. Some horses grow more quickly than others do, some get fat on air, while others need considerably more food to grow well. Our goal is to have the horses at a good weight for their body structure and to avoid any problems like physitis or osteochondritis dissecans (OCD),” Mr. Taylor said.

Feeding young horses for sales preparation has always involved providing a balanced nutritional program. The recent trend to send yearlings to the sale ring in a more fit and athletic condition differs from the past when it was common to see yearlings that looked heavier. As a result, many nutrition programs have been designed to produce a more athletic individual. Kentucky Equine Research, Inc, (KER), an international equine nutrition and exercise physiology firm, was at the forefront of developing sound nutritional programs for growing young horses a decade ago when, together with Farmers Feed Mill, a feed manufacturing firm in Lexington, Kentucky, it developed a sales preparation ration known as Hallway Prep 14.

Jim FitzGerald’s Knockgriffin Farm relies upon Prep 14 to provide the nutritional background for all its young sale horses. Mr. FitzGerald stated, “This is a wonderful feed. The horses find it palatable. They have no digestive problems with it, and it provides everything they need to grow well. We have not had problems with physitis, and the horses develop a great muscle tone. I used to have to practice a bit of witchcraft to mix a little of this and a bit of that to come up with a good blend of everything, but with Prep 14 I can use just one product.”

As part of the FitzGerald/Keogh Agency, a sales agency that has sold over $21 million worth of horses including the top two yearlings in the second session of the Keeneland January Sale this year, Mr. FitzGerald also prizes the outward appearance his young horses carry with them into the ring. He said, “Prep 14 provides my horses with a lovely hair coat. No matter how much grooming you may do, if the horses are not fed correctly, you cannot get a good shine from their coat.”

Recent studies done by KER may further change the way rations for young horses are developed. Research presented at the 2001 American Association of Equine Practitioners conference indicated that there may be a connection between glycemic response and the incidence of OCD.

KER researchers used a glycemic response test patented by Dr. Sarah Ralston at Rutgers University to study the predisposition of Thoroughbred foals to develop OCD lesions. Six farms in central Kentucky cooperated with the effort, and the growth patterns of over 200 weanlings were charted for the year.

Surgery to correct OCD problems was performed on 25of the weanlings involved in the study. All 25 had above average levels of insulin and glucose as well as heavier body weights and higher condition scores than many of their peers.

KER researchers are continuing to examine the glycemic responses in young horses in an expanded study that includes horses on 16 farms in central Kentucky. A diet designed to produce a low glycemic response has been developed for some of these farms and the horses fed this diet will be compared to those fed a traditional feed. As the results of this study become available, KER President Joe Dr. Pagan predicts that a big change will be made in the way growing horses are fed.

The advantages of good nutrition provided from an early age can certainly be seen in the condition of the horses sold as weanlings and yearlings, but it also provides a sound foundation for the athletic careers for which these horses are destined. Christopher “Kip” Elser of Kirkwood Stables in Camden, South Carolina is an international agent and trainer who travels throughout the United Statesand Europeto market Thoroughbreds.

His specialty is preparing horses for two-year-old in training sales. He looks for a well-balanced horse and then prepares a program designed to capitalize on that individual’s strengths. As with the younger sales horses, nutrition plays a key role. Mr. Elser stated, “Horses need to be groomed from the inside out. A well-conditioned animal cannot be developed without a balanced nutrition program.”

Mr. Elser admits to having been a feed room alchemist who, as he said, “used to travel up and down the shed row with the feed cart, putting a scoop of this and a capful of that into each horse’s daily ration. Finally, a nutritionist told me that my method was guaranteed to do one thing–drive me crazy. I now feed a good, balanced high-protein diet that contains a bit more fat than would normally be fed to a performance horse. Two-year olds need to have that extra fat in their ration to maintain their weight through their increased activity level. I use Equi-Jewel for this. It is a stabilized rice bran product that also helps to maintain the shine in the horse’s coat.”

The increased workload of the two-year-olds Mr. Elser prepares includes some hand walking and ponying. He prefers that his two-year-old charges spend time with a rider on their backs, but likes the idea of the automatic free walkers. “The walkers allow the horses to have a consistent form of exercise. I also like to use aquatreads (underwater treadmills) for rehabilitation and maintenance.” Mr. Elser pointed out the immense value in having knowledgeable horse people working with his animals at all times. “I cannot be everywhere at once. I must rely upon the people who work for me to be observant and dedicated.”

Mr. Taylor concurred. He said, “Taylor Made Farms expects to employ over 125 people during the September Keeneland yearling sales. About one third of that number will be full-time employees and the rest will be people hired just for the sales. We try to bring back as many of the same people every year as possible. They know our routines and what we expect, and they have the experience we need. A good sales associate is one who knows what pertinent information to pass along to us not only about the horses, but about the buyers as well. A good sales team is a valuable part of the overall effort.”

The polished weanlings and yearlings and the athletic two-year-olds that grace the sales rings throughout the world today are slightly different from the horses that went before them. Technology and research have combined to provide consignors and buyers with a slightly different opinion of what constitutes good health.

The shine that graces the coats in today’s sales pavilions begins most often with exemplary nutrition. Muscled bodies have become more appealing, and the horses are the better for it.

Article courtesy of Kentucky Equine Research

Free To Move ridden by Luke Currie wins the Lloyd Williams Plate at Moonee Valley Racecourse. (Pat Scala/Racing Photos)

It’s probably not the thing that breeders want to hear, but Cranbourne trainer Kasey Keys admits she had a much bigger budget to purchase a yearling at the 2019 VOBIS Gold Yearling sale.

Kasey, who now trains in partnership with her father Ken, was quite keen on an Unencumbered colt, out of Canhill (Dangerous/Canned Music).

She snapped up the colt for $8000, which was offered by Bucklee Farm at Greta West, and luckily for Kasey the under bidder had reached their limit.

Now named Free To Move, the three-year-old gelding has had five starts for two wins, a second and third.

The gelding picked up a $74,250 cheque for his victory at Moonee Valley last Saturday over 1200m.

And there was also an additional Super VOBIS owner’s bonus of $23,000 and a $7,000 nominator’s bonus.

It was significant that the victory was the first metropolitan win for Kasey and Ken since forming their training partnership.

Ken wasn’t taking any credit for the win, saying it was his daughter who selected the horse and put in place as what he described as the project.

Kasey described Free To Move as a godsend.

“He was only $8000,” she said. “But he was a neat, little package and he just had a beautiful head on him. I just liked him from the moment I saw him and it was good to get him at that price.”

Kasey said he had been so easy to train, pretty much push button.

Kasey said she didn’t mind his pedigree, even though it was an older page.

“If you go to the second dam and further, there was all good form in there and quite a few Group races and those sorts of things,” she said.

“Even though it was an older page, I was then more than happy with him on type as well.

“He was quite sensible for a colt when he was walking around there at the sales and he looked like he was ready to go to the races and he certainly didn’t look like one who was going to take a long time.”

Kasey admits she would have gone a lot higher in the bidding and in her head he was a $20,000 or $30,000 horse.

“I think I was just in the right place at the right time,” she said.

“I definitely would have gone to 20 or 25 thousand. We both (Ken) really liked him so I wasn’t hesitant with it, that’s for sure.

Unencumbered (Testa Rossa/Blizzardly) died in early 2018, and Kasey admits the stable hasn’t had a lot to do with his progeny, but have always taken notice of them.

“I have always liked them if that makes since,” she said.

“Everything I asked him to do, he just did easily and quite naturally and you didn’t have to do it a few times as he pretty much picked it up the first time he galloped or quickened up or went to the barriers.

“It was really easy compared to others that were nearly four to even get to trial stage.”

The only time Free To Move has been out of the placings was on debut when he raced on the Pakenham synthetic track after a meeting was transferred in May.

He finished fourth, beaten two lengths, in the two-year-old maiden and then won his next start 18 days later at Moe.

“When the meeting was transferred to the synthetic I was more excited about getting him to the races, but in hindsight I should have waited for a grass track,” she said.

“He was against some good horses that day and it wasn’t as though it was a terrible field or anything.”

Kasey said she was looking at couple of options for Free To Move, including the Blue Sapphire (1200m) at Caulfield on October 14 or the Australia Stakes (1200m) Cox Plate Day. Both are Group 3 races.

And Kasey said it was good to record the first metropolitan victory with her father and even more pleasing to do it with a horse she’d selected at the sale

“It was definitely pleasing,” she said.

“It was great to have a win at The Valley with a horse that has only had a couple of starts”.

With winnings of $149,220, Free To Move has well and truly paid for himself and it helps that Kasey is also the only owner.

Bucklee Farm’s Leeanne Smith said it was great to watch Free To Move’s victory and she was happy for Kasey.

“I am all for the girls in the industry and the young ones coming up and I’d like to think that I was there doing something, even from afar,” Leeanne said.

Leeanne said she’d always had a soft spot for Unencumbered, who died in early 2018.

“The pedigree read really well and there were crosses and nicks that worked super well and suited the mare and what we would spend on her,” she said.

“The mare has since died – but doesn’t that always happen. Unencumbered is gone and so is the mare. As soon as something dies, something good out of the family pops up.”

The last yearling, out of Canhill, was sold by Leeanne for $4000 at this year’s VOBIS Gold Yearling Sale.

She would have liked Kasey to have bought the yearling by Trust In A Gust.

Leeanne said the filly was about three months old when Canhill died and she was reared by all its aunties in the paddock.

And Leeanne said she can still manage a chuckle after hearing Kasey say in her post race interview at The Valley that she wasn’t going home from the sale without the yearling.

“I wish I had have known that,” she laughed.

“My horses go to the sales and they are for sale and that’s how I’ve operated and it has helped the farm to have a good reputation and that’s what we look for to have a seller’s reputation.”

Leeanne said it was a great Free To Move’s victory was in a VOBIS race.

“God bless VOBIS,” Leeanne said.

“My main reason for screaming at the television on Friday night was that I could see the VOBIS sticker on his bum the day he went into the ring.

“Those are the things you look at when you sell them cheaply when they stay in Victoria.”

Leeanne said she was happy the yearling she sold is still in Victoria, is VOBIS eligible and went to a good stable which are all positive factors to provide the best opportunities for breeders.

Pocketing the $7,000 nominator’s bonus made the win all that more enjoyable.

Above: Frosted | Standing at Darley, Northwod Park

Darley shuttle sire Frosted (USA) registered his fifth and sixth winners on Saturday when Likable(USA) followed up a win by Tkotchke (USA) at Churchill Downs with his own at Belmont.

Racing over 1200 metres, Tkotchke was close behind the leader for much of the race. The colt showed determination to hold on by a nose after getting the lead late in the stretch to become his sire’s sixth winner.

Less than an hour later, Likeable demolished the field in his victory. A troubled second-last out, Likeable took the lead and never looked back in his Belmont Park maiden. The colt built up his lead at every call to win by an easy 8.25l without ever being called on.

Frosted’s first Southern Hemisphere 2-year-olds hit the track this season with 103 mares visiting the stallion in 2017.

Article courtesy of TDN

Wise Counsel ridden by Jye McNeil wins the Longboard Accountants for Mirabel Hcp at Caulfield Racecourse (Brett Holburt/Racing Photos)

The breeding season was over for Toronado before it even began.

After being Victoria’s most popular stallion last year when he served his biggest book of mares – 197 – the demand just kept growing.

Swettenham Stud closed his book months ago and at the same time kept his service fee at $27,500.

The performance of Wise Counsel – the full brother of the brilliant Master Montaro which is now in Hong Kong with David Hayes – at Caulfield last Saturday again emphasised Tornado’s importance to the Victorian breeding industry.

Coming off a fifth in a 1500m Geelong maiden, Wise Counsel stepped up to 1600m in a three-year-old handicap at Caulfield where he raced more handier to score a half-length victory.

Wise Counsel, like Master Montaro, was bred by Swettenham Stud principal Adam Sangster from his broodmare Circus Polka (Stravinsky/Tropical Affair).

He races the colt with a group of owners including famed New Zealander, Sir Patrick Hogan.

And Sangster has plenty to look forward to with the other progeny from Circus Polka. A yearling colt by Toronado will go to the sales in 2021, while a two-year-old full sister will be trained by Lindsey Smith.

Circus Polka is in foal to another Swettenham Stud stallion, Highland Reel, and will go back to Toronado this season.

Sangster said training partners Ciaron Maher and David Eustace had always liked Wise Counsel which has now had three runs for prizemoney of $96,930.

“It’s interesting when you look at his full brother Master Montaro who might get up to 1400m after winning his maiden at 1000m at Pakenham and then winning brilliantly over 1140m at Geelong in a benchmark 70,” he said.

“He went to Hong Kong for big money.”

Sangster said Wise Counsel was only getting warm over 1400m and says it’s amazing how full brothers and sisters can have different speeds and ranges.

“But he’ll go to UCI next over 1800m at Flemington in a fortnight,” he said.

Sangster said Toronado, which shuttled back to France after doing his job at Swettenham last season, had kicked off his latest stint with his ‘exceptionally well’ fertility.

“We probably could have filled his book three times over,” he said.

“We wanted to keep his fee at what it was last year to make sure that he didn’t get out of the price range of the people who used him last year.

“And we have a lot of people from hobby breeders right to the big breeders supporting him so we wanted to make sure to keep him at the same level and we’ll see what he stands at next year and what happens on the track.”

Sangster said he wouldn’t be surprised if there is interest in Wise Counsel from Hong Kong as they love the Toronado horses.

He said Toronado had enough good horses winning city races against good opposition to hopefully claim some big races.

“His book of mares this year quality wise is the best he’s ever had and each year it’s just been getting better and better,” Sangster said.

“Some of the mares he has just covered are the best going around and we are only three weeks into the season and as the yearlings start to come through they are from better mares than his two-year-olds and three-year-olds.”

Sangster said Toronado’s prices at the yearling sales were exceptional and a lot of trainers just can’t get enough of them.

He said Wise Counsel and Master Montaro are very similar in looks and typical of what the son of High Chaparral throws.

Sangster said Wise Counsel would get up to a Victoria Derby trip and is rated a $26 chance to win the October 31 race.

“Obviously Toronado is a world champion miler,” he said.

Sangster said they were limiting Toronado’s daily number of mares versus his overall book to make sure he is looked after before he returns to France.

Speaking after Wise Counsel’s victory, David Eustace said:

“We’ve always had a nice opinion of him. It’s taken a bit of time to get him to the track and get a few runs in him. He had an injury at the back end as a two-year-old. It was a good result.

“We thought the mile would be fine. It was a good race, good maiden (run previous) at Geelong and hopefully he can go onto bigger and better things.

“I’d like to thank the owners – Adam Sangster and Sir Patrick Hogan. A good team back in New Zealand are in this horse and he’s got a nice future.”

Eustace said Wise Counsel was probably a horse that warrants going into a Derby Trial and the UCI which would be a nice race for him.

“We think he’ll relish Flemington,” he said.

“He’s obviously a winner here as well and you’ve got the Caulfield Classic, so we’ll put him on that path now and see how he comes through.”

Winning jockey Jye McNeil said Wise Counsel had a bright future and dug deep when challenged.

Asked about the Derby, McNeil said: “He seems to have that X factor in class. He was prepared fantastic and he looked fantastic in the yard.”