Former sale-topper holds Group 1 hopes for Gangemis

By Bren O'Brien

When Chris and Michael Gangemi secured the sale-topping colt at the 2017 Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale, they were hopeful they were buying their first Group 1 winner.

The colt, by Not A Single Doubt, cost $325,000 and was the most expensive horse the brothers had purchased. Now named Samizdat, he can deliver the Gangemis that long-awaited top-flight success in the G1 Railway S. at Ascot this Saturday.

"Without trying to sound silly, he was basically the perfect yearling," Chris Gangemi told TDN AusNZ. "He was big, strong, straight legged, good body, good bone. He's now 580 kgs and he's a bit of a monster, but he doesn't look that big that he's out of proportion.

"He really had everything going for him, hence the reason we paid $325,000 for him. That doesn't make them fast, but he hasn't let us down on the track."

The pain of the initial investment was somewhat helped by the post-sale discussion with breeder Peter Walsh of Amelia Park, who agreed to stay in the ownership of the colt, and in whose colours he races in.

"That was the first horse we got involved with with Walshy and the only one who has been to the track so far. He was pretty keen to stay in and when we said, he was a lot of money but we did want him, my brother did a deal with him to stay in for half," Chris said.

Gangemi said while Samizdat had obvious talent, there was no reason to rush him and as a younger horse he put the brakes on himself somewhat when getting shinsore in his first couple of preparations.

He had one start as a 2-year-old, winning a winter race at Belmont before returning to claim the Listed Magic Millions 3YO Trophy at Bunbury at just his second start. That was in February this year, and he has since improved his record to five wins from eight starts heading into Saturday, where he carries the minimum 53kgs.

"We take our time with them anyway, so it's not unusual for our horses to only a have a handful of starts when they are four. Especially with him, there was no way in the world we were ever pushing him. He's a big horse, who was always going to be good if we looked after him, so we were never going to rush him to the races," Gangemi said.

Ahead of Saturday, the trainer's only concern with Samizdat is whether the challenge of Group 1 company has come too soon for him.

"He's only had the eight or so starts. He's still a big, young immature horse and that's the only concern," he said. "He's a serious horse. We always thought he was and he hasn't let us down yet. Ability wise, he's definitely good enough to win a race like this, the only concern is if it is a year too soon."

Victory on Saturday would be a massive fillip for the Gangemis, who have come close a couple of times to Group 1 wins with their star sprinter Rock Magic (Redoute's Choice) but have never won at the elite level.

"It’d be sensational, not for me individually but because it's a massive team effort," Gangemi said. "My brother buys all the horses and he's the big boss here and it has been his goal for a very long time.

"Mum and Dad, we train off their property, it would be huge for them and all the staff on the property as well. It'd be sensational if we could do it and obviously it’s a pinnacle that everyone aims for."

If Saturday doesn't work out as planned, Gangemi will also have Rock Magic in the G1 Winterbottom S. the following week, while there is a chance Samizdat will head towards the G1 Kingston Town Classic on December 7.

"There's only three $1 million races in Perth every year and if he runs through the line strong on Saturday, we'd probably look to go for the 1800 metres (of the Kingston Town Classic). I can't see why he won't be doing that," he said.

He also holds longer-term ambitions that Samizdat could measure up in better races on the eastern seaboard in time.

"I still think mentally, he's 12 months away from being anywhere near his top. Over there in the autumn, or maybe this time next year, he could definitely measure up for sure," Gangemi said.