The potential Peters saw in the standout colt from Dundeel's first crop five years ago bore fruit at the elite level on Saturday when Truly Great delivered a sixth success in the iconic cerise and white in the Group 1 weight-for-age race at Ascot, a race that Peters himself played a major role in setting up over 40 years ago.

Impressed by what he saw from Dundeel on the track and in terms of type, Peters sought to support the son of High Chapparal (Ire) from the outset, with Truly Special among the mares sent to him in his first year.

"He is a very, very nice type of horse when you go and look at him," Peters told TDN AusNZ, when asked about Dundeel. "He's not that big, but he's a really good type. The way he won that Derby in Sydney, for a stayer to finish on like he did, he just showed that they can have stamina and can give you a good 600 metres at the end."

Peters' inkling about Dundeel was proven correct when Truly Special delivered a colt by him the following October.

"When he arrived home with all our other weanlings, I was very pleased with him and I thought he was our best colt that year on type," he said of Truly Great.

"He's just taken a long time, a lot of little silly things have gone wrong on the way through. He needed a bit of teaching on the way through, and it looks like it might have paid off for us."

With Peters keen to repeat the formula, Truly Special has since been an annual visitor to Dundeel, since producing two further colts and two fillies (she missed in 2018), none of which has yet made the track. The latest arrival was only two weeks ago, a filly full sister to the now Group 1 winner.

"It was the result we got with him (Truly Great) that encouraged me to keep going," he said.

"They are all the same as him, nice horses, but little things have kept going wrong with them and I haven’t even got the next one (Truly Inspired) to the track as yet. It’s just one of those things. It’s a family that things go wrong with."

The right pedigree match

Truly Special, purchased by Peters as a yearling back in 2008 for $130,000 through Belmont Bloodstock, won three of her four starts before the daughter of Jeune's (GB) racetrack career ended prematurely. Out of Listed winner Reigning Belle, whose sire Military Plume (NZ) is by Sir Tristram (Ire) and who was a Group 1 winner of the Kingston Town Classic (then named the Rothwells) himself in 1986, she shaped as a good broodmare prospect.

"She didn’t have a lot of starts, but she has been a very good mare for us. She has done quite a good job before this one came along," Peters said.

Her first two progeny were both by Nicconi in Truly Gold and Truly Rare, both of which would become winners, while her third foal, Special Alert (Not A Single Doubt), won the 2018 G3 WA Oaks in the cerise and white.

Peters has enjoyed quite a deal of success with daughters of Jeune as broodmares, with G1 Railway S. winner Galaxy Star (Redoute's Choice) and Group 2-winning pair Star Exhibit (Stature Of Liberty {USA}) and Perfect Jewel (Redoute's Choice) all out of mares by the 1994 G1 Melbourne Cup winner.

"At one stage, he wasn't showing up much as a broodmare sire, but he has got better as time has gone on," Peters said of Jeune.

Truly Great became Dundeel's fifth individual Group 1 winner, following in the footsteps of Atyaab, Castelvecchio, Yourdeel (NZ) and Super Seth, with his success on Saturday.

Arrowfield connection builds Peters' success

That Peters has joined the list of breeders to secure elite success from the stallion is pleasing for Arrowfield Stud which has a long-term relationship with the Western Australian breeder.

"He's been a wonderful supporter and friend of the farm for a long time now," Arrowfield Bloodstock Manager Jon Freyer said. "He dominates the carnival over there, but he's a very astute breeder and a very astute racing man.

"He's been a consistent supporter of Dundeel over the journey and it was great to see him rewarded with a Group 1 winner."

That a son of Dundeel from the pedigree that Truly Great boasts was able to prosper over the 1800 metre trip of WA's best weight-for-age race was of no surprise to Freyer.

"They can get over ground and they have got class as well. It stands them in good stead, particularly these Dundeels that are in-bred to Sir Tristram, which this one is. They may not be as precocious as some of the others, but they certainly lap up a little bit of ground, and then get to these races over a mile to 2000 metres-plus, they can come into their own," he said.

Dundeel is just completing another season with a bumper book of over 200 mares, with Freyer indicating that the current success on the track is just a window of what is likely to come for the stallion, whose oldest progeny are only five.

"It’s an elite level of mares he has been covering, but the foals on the ground that he has got this season are out of a breathtaking group of mares. His continued success is almost locked in on the basis of the substantial numbers and the quality he has," he said.

"If our crop of foals we have by him this year are any indication of what else is out there, then I think he has his best crop on the ground.

"He's only a young horse still. He's bred in such a way that he's an attractive mating for a lot of Danehill-line mares. A lot of those breeders will continue to utilise him and while you are getting the results on the racetrack, that's what owners and trainers want."

A race like no other for Peters

While Group 1 success has flowed constantly for Peters and his trainers Grant and Alana Williams of late, Saturday's stable quinella - with G1 Railway S. winner Inspirational Girl (NZ) (Reliable Man {GB}) running second - was particularly special for the leviathan breeder and owner, as well as his wife Sandra and his family.

"All Group 1s are important and that's what we all aim for. That was our sixth win in that race. The race is pretty special to me because I was in administration at the time and I was responsible for suggesting the race to the committee at the time," Peters said.

"I was taken to lunch with our club secretary at the time to convince a potential sponsor that they should sponsor a race. We didn’t have a race on our calendar that would have suited them, so I suggested to the secretary that we create a weight-for-age race, so could have aspirants from the Eastern States come over and race in it.

"The idea was that the ones that came for the Derby, and the ones that came for the Railway, and the ones for the Perth Cup could all meet at weight-for-age. The committee thought that was a good idea and that's how the race came about."

Peters not only helped bring about the inspiration for the race, but has also made it his own, with some of his best horses, including Arcadia Queen (Pierro) and Old Comrade (Old Spice) on the honour board.

"It’s been running since 1976 and we have been lucky to win it six times. It takes a good horse to win that race and if you look back at the winners, it shows that," he said.

"Old Comrade is the best horse we have ever bred. He won it as a 3-year-old and won it again as a 4-year-old. Some great horses that have won it, such as Better Loosen Up and of course Kingston Town himself."

Peters may have made the race his own, but with the race having undergone six name changes in its first 20 years, he is grateful that the 1982 winner has had it permanently named in his honour since 2007.

"It's got a good name and that name will stay with it," Peters said.

Cover image courtesy of Race Images

Pukekohe-based Cambria Park, run by Fraser Jones and Rosemary Price, was already set to take its strongest ever draft to Karaka, with all seven lots to be offered in Book 1 of the Sale, which starts on January 24.

Lot 75, the filly by Westbury Stud's Redwood, offered on behalf of Rock On Wood's breeders, got a huge pedigree update when the 6-year-old Leanne Elliot-trained gelding charged home to win the Trentham feature in his fifth shot at Group 1 level.

"It’s a good upgrade for her going forward to the sales and for the mare ongoing as well. That horse has been unlucky twice in Group 1 races before, so it's nice to get the upgrade now just before the sales," Jones said.

"We've done a bit of work for the breeders over the past few years. The dam, Rock On Rye, lives at a client's place. The client just comes down with his mares to foal down and to be rebred. We take his yearlings through to the sale for him."

Rock On Rye (Catch In the Rye {Ire}), who was a six-time winner for the syndicate that now breeds with her, has had two winners to the track, the other one being Youvebeenlitup (NZ), who is also by Redwood (GB). She has been a regular visitor to the son of High Chaparral (Ire), with an unraced 3-year-old by the stallion called Sword Of War, as well as the filly to be offered at Karaka.

"She's a good filly, a good-sized filly with a good walk on her," Jones said. "She's got a really nice athletic walk, she's a really nice straightforward filly. She's pretty typical of the family. Most of the foals out of the mare by Redwood are nice and have sold accordingly."

Long Acres Stud has sold most of the progeny, with Youvebeenlitup selling for NZ$34,000, Rock On Wood for NZ$26,000 and the unnamed now 3-year-old for NZ$65,000. Cambria Park sold a colt by Zacinto (GB) for NZ$41,000 as a weanling to noted agent Paul Willetts in 2017.

Rock On Wood is not the only one of the page to feature black-type, with the granddam Beldale Blues (NZ) (Beldale Lear {USA}) placed at Group 3 level along her half-brother Likeable Will (His Royal Highness {NZ}).

Strong draft gets due spotlight

The pedigree update has put extra spotlight on the Redwood filly with Jones welcoming the attention on a draft he is confident is their best since Cambria Park first began selling at the Sale in 2013.

"It's our first year with so many horses in Book 1. We've got a really good representation of stallions and a real mix of nice horses going there," he said.

"The extra quality has come about from our clients having such better stock, while we have a broader base of clients coming through as well."

Among the highlights on pedigree is another yearling by now Group 1-producing stallion Redwood, Lot 351, who is a brother to Group 2 winner and G1 New Zealand Derby runner-up Rising Red (NZ).

"He's a lovely horse. We've sold two other full brothers in the past few years. This guy is certainly another improvement on them. He's a much stronger, more forward type of horse than the two we sold," Jones said.

Redwood Rising (NZ), sold by Cambria Park for NZ$75,000 at Karaka in 2018, recently won his second race in Australia for Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young, while the now 2-year-old Reddivo (NZ) was a NZ$50,000 purchase for another trainer in Australia, Jamie Edwards, at Karaka in 2020.

There are high hopes for Lot 112, a son of Charm Spirit (Ire) and multiple Group 2 placegetter Shikoba (NZ) (Chief Bearheart {Can}).

"She was a very good filly and mare and she has been unlucky in that she hasn't had a lot of opportunities in the breeding shed. She's been hard to get in foal. He's a really nice horse, a nice tidy colt," Jones said.

Jones also highlight Lot 502, a colt by Vadamos (Fr) out of the Dubawi (Ire) mare La Sommeliere (NZ), the sister to multiple stakes winner Cellarmaster (NZ), as a 'nice, big, strong horse', while Lot 307 is a colt by Zed (NZ) out of a daughter of stakes winner Shovoff (Danehill {USA}).

"Zed has been going very well, and there aren’t a lot of really well-bred Zeds around, but this will be the first year where we see of these more well-bred ones and this colt is very much in that mould," he said.

Meanwhile, the success of last month's NZB Ready to Run Sale has Jones relatively confident in the strength of the Karaka buying bench in January.

"The momentum that was built through the Ready to Run, that Sale was quite successful when international buyers were happy to buy online. I think if that is maintained through to the yearling sales, things should be alright," he said.

Cover image courtesy of Arqana

German influence

The German entry for this year’s Sale was strong, particularly through the draft of Ronald Rauscher, and it was Durance (Ger) who proved the most desirable of the fillies in training, with the 4-year-old Gestut Ebbesloh homebred eliciting the day’s top price of €750,000 (AU$1.22 million) from James Delahooke.

The winner of last year’s G3 Mehl-Mulhens Trophy in her native country for Peter Schiergen, Durance (Lot 174) followed that up with victory in the G2 Gran Premio di Milano this season and the half-sister to seven black-type performers is now under American ownership, with Delahooke having been acting on behalf of Bryant Prentice’s Pursuit Of Success LLC.

“She was the one that I really wanted in the Sale,” said the agent. “Her family has really produced with sires that I’m ashamed to say I’ve never even heard of. The first dam fills the entire page: that’s rare these days. She herself has an admirable race record. I bought her for a very nice American gentleman who has mares in Kentucky and England. Durance will head to stud and her offspring will go to the sales.”

He added, “The Sale is very strong for the right profiles despite so few people around the ring. A lot of people must be bidding from offsite.”

Another of the Rauscher draft, the Group 2 winner Satomi (Ger) (Teofilo {Ire}), was bought by Michel Zerolo of Oceanic Bloodstock on behalf of breeder Andreas Putsch for €300,000 (AU$489,890). Trained by Markus Klug to win three times and to finish fourth in the G1 Preis der Diana, the 4-year-old (Lot 197) is a daughter of German champion juvenile Swordhalf (GB) (Haafhd {GB}).

While G1 Preis Von Europa winner Donjah (Ger) (Teofilo {Ire}) was bought back by her owner Dr Stefan Oschmann of Darius Racing at €720,000 (AU$1.18 million), this year’s G2 German 1000 Guineas runner-up No Limit Credit (Ger) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) was knocked down to Jean Deroubaix of the FBA at €480,000 (AU$783,820). Both fillies were bred by Gestut Karlshof, with the latter (Lot 192) having raced in the colours of the Faust family of Gestut Karlshof to win four times, including the G3 Schwarzgold-Rennen.

Deroubaix said of No Limit Credit, “I have bought her for a German client, who hasn’t owned a horse for 20 years. I bought him a horse in the 1980s, Val Des Pres, and then he then moved away due to work commitments, and stopped having horses. Now he is retired and is reinvesting. She will go back into training in Germany.”

Carson wants truth

The offspring of Prudenzia (Ire) (Dansili {GB}) have long ruled over Arqana’s August Sale, and one of the great mare’s daughters again played a leading role in December when Truth (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) brought the hammer down at €580,000 (AU$947,110). Again it was James Delahooke doing the bidding but this time he was acting on behalf of Willie Carson’s Minster Stud.

Now eight, the sister to Group 1 winner Magic Wand (Ire) and half-sister to Classic winner Chicquita (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}) had been sold for €1 million (AU$1.63 million) as a yearling and raced in a partnership for Al Shaqab and Coolmore. Her one placed finish for Aidan O’Brien may have been disappointing but she has plenty of black-type earners for relations and she was sold in foal to Siyouni (Fr) as Lot 178. Thus, a member of the celebrated family returns to England, where her grandam Platonic (GB) (Zafonic {USA}) was bred by the Cumani family’s Fittocks Stud before being bought as a foundation mare for Ecurie des Monceaux by Henri Bozo and Patricia Boutin.

Another of Platonic’s grand-daughters, Psara (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), also brought one of the day’s highest prices when sold to Ghislain Bozo’s Meridian International for €500,000 (AU$816,480).

The 4-year-old mare (Lot 148) is a daughter of the G3 Prix de Lutece winner Pacifique (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}) and, a winner herself last year, is now in foal to Churchill (Ire). As a yearling she was bought for €250,000 (AU$408,240) by Monceaux partner Victor Langlais.

“She’s a lovely mare from a very good family,” said Bozo. “She is carrying to Churchill and the mating should suit her. Certain partners have come out and the sale has allowed new partners to come in.”

Japan calling

All three Yoshida brothers of Japan’s leading racing family were represented during Arqana’s opening session.

Spinning Memories (Ire) (Arcano {Ire}) has been a highly consistent campaigner for Pan Sutong and Pascal Bary since her impressive maiden win on debut in Ireland and subsequent purchase from Andy Oliver’s stable. Her tally of two Group 3 and three listed wins over the last two seasons vouch for her talent and, though her first two dams were unraced, she traces back to another talented and consistent race mare, the dual Grade 1 winner Memories Of Silver (USA) (Silver Hawk {USA}), who has in turn also proved to be a classy producer.

Now five, Spinning Memories (Lot 134) has thus earned her place among the illustrious broodmare band of Teruya Yoshida, who bought her online for €500,000 (AU$816,480). She will be joined on the flight to Japan by Mageva (Fr), the 3-year-old daughter of Wootton Bassett (GB) who was trained by Fabrice Chappet to take third in the G1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches and was picked up for €430,000 (AU$702.170), also by the Shadai Farm principal.

Katsumi Yoshida had already bought the winner of that French Classic, Dream And Do (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}), in a private deal earlier this season to join his own equally impressive collection of broodmares at Northern Farm, and he was also a prominent buyer in Deauville. Through Emmanuel de Seroux of Narvick International, Yoshida went to €400,000 (AU$653,180) for the wildcard entry Petite Folie (GB), the Australia (GB) half-sister to dual Group 1 winner Persian King (Ire) (Kingman {GB}).

“She has been bought for breeding purposes and she will join Northern Farm,” said de Seroux. “There is a very strong chance that she will head to Japan in the new year to be covered.”

Petite Folie, who ran just once for her breeder Diane Wildenstein’s Ballymore Thoroughbred Ltd, was sold as Lot 50 through La Motteraye Consignment and she continues the European spending spree for Katsumi Yoshida, also bought five mares at Tattersalls last week for 1.6 million gns (AU$3.04 million).

Haruya Yoshida also made his presence felt with the purchase of another wild card (Lot 170) in the recent G3 Prix Fille de l’Air winner Directa (Fr). The half-sister to German Listed winner Mc Queen (Fr) (Silver Frost {Ire}) was bought for €470,000 (AU$767,490) through Satoshi Kobayashi and will join the breeder’s Oiwake Farm in Hokkaido.

Kobayashi said of the 3-year-old, “The filly has been bought as a breeding prospect and she won’t race again. She may be covered by a European stallion before she travels to Japan.”

Another mare on the way to Japan from Arqana is Considerate (GB), a Dansili (GB) half-sister to Enable (GB), who was bought by Keisuke Onishi of JS Company for €65,000 (AU$106,140). The 10-year-old mare (Lot 32) was sold by Haras d’Etreham in foal to Enable’s sire Nathaniel (Ire). She also has a colt foal by the Newsells Park Stud stallion on the ground among her four offspring to date.

Euclidia joins select local team

Owner Jean-Louis Bouchard is turning his success on the track into a boutique breeding operation and, acting though agent Gerard Larrieu, went to €525,000 (AU$857,300) to buy the Listed winner Euclidia (Fr) (Maxios {GB}) from the Wertheimer consignment (Lot 172).

“Jean-Louis Bouchard has just started a little farm here near Deauville,” Larrieu explained. “He doesn’t want to have many mares, just eight or ten maximum, and he wants to improve the quality of his broodmare band. This is a lovely Wertheimer family and they cover their mares with top sires.”

The 3-year-old Euclidia is a half-sister to G3 Prix d’Aumale winner Soustraction (Fr) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) and G1 Prix Marcel Boussac runner-up Matematica (Fr) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}) from a deep Wertheimer family which includes the Arc heroine Solemia (Fr) (Poliglote {GB}) and Poule d’Essai des Poulains winner The Gurkha (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}).

American engagement

Along with the day’s top lot, two well-credentialed 3-year-old fillies piqued the interest of Americans, one to remain in training and one to join the broodmare band at Gainesway Farm.

Conte De Fee (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) has already earned black type through her victory in the Listed Prix Occitaine this summer. Bought as a yearling by Tina Rau for 100,000 gns (AU$190,050) for owner Alexis Adamian, the grand-daughter of Irish Oaks winner Petrushka (GB) (Unfuwain {USA}) was sold on by her trainer Nicolas Clement for €410,000 (AU$669,510) to Newmarket-based agents Mark McStay and Jamie Piggott.

“I bought her with Jamie Piggott on behalf of Medallion Racing and a client of Jamie’s in America,” explained McStay of Avenue Bloodstock. “She’ll go to the United States. Medallion is Taylor Made’s racing arm and both Jamie and I felt she was a lovely filly. She’s been really well trained by Nicolas Clement and she looks like to be progressing the right way.”

Piggott added, “I’ve had a lot of luck at this sale over the years and you only need to look at the recent success of French-bred horses in America to see what fillies like this can do over there.”

Also heading across the Atlantic is the unraced but well-bred Lasy W (USA) (War Front {USA} (Lot 144), who was bought online for €320,000 (AU$522,550) by Alex Solis acting on behalf of Gainesway’s Antony Beck and Andrew Rosen.

“It’s a great American family,” said Solis. “It’s very rare to have a Grade I winner who is out of a Grade I winner and there are so many current stakes horses on the page. We’re excited about that; she’s a beautiful War Front filly. I had some people look at her over there for me and the report was out that she was very, very good-looking.”

Hoyeau purchase headed to Australia

Agent Arthur Hoyeau purchased three horses on Day 1, including stakes-placed Kraquante (GB) (Bated Breath {GB}) from the consignment of Fabrice Chappet for €155,000 (AU$253,110).

The 3-year-old filly, w winner of one of her eight starts for Chappet, is headed to Archie Alexander's Ballarat stables.

Purchased for €55,000 as a yearling through the Arqana October Yearling Sale in 2018, her lone win came in a 1400 metre maiden at Longchamp as a 2-year-old last October and while she has been winless in her 3-year-old campaign, she did finish third, beaten 3.5l in the Prix de Saint-Cyr at Longchamp in October this year.

Consigned as Lot 45, she is out of the stakes-placed mare Desert Image (GB) (Beat Hollow {GB}), who is from the family of Group 1 winner Zafonic (USA) (Gone West {USA}) and Group 1 placed Zamindar (USA) (Gone West {USA}).