Cover image courtesy of Bronwen Healy

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has ordered the region into lockdown, following confirmation that five students from three schools are among several new local COVID-19 cases.

Residents of the region face the same stay-at-home orders and restrictions as those that apply to Greater Sydney and its surrounds.

The affected local government areas are Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Maitland, Port Stephens, Cessnock, Dungog, Singleton and Muswellbrook.

The lockdown was expected to continue until midnight AEST on August 12.

"Community leaders and local leaders are being advised of this," Ms Berejiklian said.

"That (lockdown) will commence at 5pm AEST tonight and go until midnight next Thursday, so a week, similar to what occurred in Orange and hopefully, similar to what occurred in Orange, we'll see that community have their restrictions or stay-at-home (orders) lifted at that time."

Health officials are investigating whether the cases originated at a beach gathering at Lake Macquarie last week.

People will only be able to leave home for these reasons:

- Shopping for food or other essential goods and services

- Medical care or compassionate needs (including to get a COVID-19 vaccine)

- Exercise outdoors with one other person you do not live with; households of more than two people can exercise together

- Essential work, or education, where you cannot work or study from home

Masks will be required for all indoor areas except your home, while masks are also required in certain outdoor settings, for example if you work outdoors or are in a queue for takeaway, or while shopping for critical items.

TBA seeks to clarify COVID-19 lockdown impacts

Meanwhile, Thoroughbred Breeders Australia has sought to allay concerns about how the current COVID-19 situation may impact the upcoming breeding season, specifically in regard to the movement of mares, and urged all farms to ensure they have a COVID-19 Safe Plan in place.

The ever-evolving COVID-19 situation took a significant development on Thursday, with the Newcastle and Hunter Valley regions placed under lockdown by the New South Wales Government. Meanwhile, the entire state of Victoria moved back under lockdown after a fresh outbreak of cases in that state.

In a statement sent to its representatives, the TBA has said it is working closely with state and federal governments, who, it insists, regard breeding activities as part of the agriculture sector, and therefore an essential industry.

The movement of staff and stock is subject to COVID-19 procedures in each area and farms are urged to register their business as COVID Safe if applicable and have a COVID-19 Safe Plan in place.

"As with last year, the movement of mares across state borders is something that concerns many breeders. Again, freight companies are well set up to move stock and navigate any protocols," TBA chief executive Tom Reilly said in the statement.

"For those wishing to move mares with farm-owned trucks or vehicles, we have developed in-principle agreements with the NSW, VIC and QLD governments relating to movement of mares. When these have been formally signed off by the relevant departments we will provide more details (likely early next week).

"I am also conscious that many breeders in NSW will be concerned with moving stock between areas that have restrictions, especially with many parts of the Hunter being placed into lockdown today. Disappointingly, it has also just been announced that Victoria will go into a seven-day lockdown.

"Since the Hunter lockdown was announced, TBA has been in contact with the NSW state government to explain the needs of the breeding industry."

TBA has issued advice that all farms register as COVID Safe with the state government (including getting a QR code), that they develop their own COVID Safe Plan, and complete a COVID-19 Safety Plan for Freight and Transport for each relevant trip, with drivers or staff to carry the required documentation.

"From our conversations with all state governments - and the experience of 2020 - we are confident that drivers or staff moving stock inside state borders will meet all relevant protocols if they have these documents in their possession," Reilly said.

"We are hopeful of providing clearer guidelines for the movement of mares between states early next week."

The statement also pointed out in general terms all governments are very concerned – and therefore are more risk averse – due to the high transmissibility of the Delta strain of COVID-19.

"Because of this, I think we should expect governments to move very quickly in imposing lockdowns and changing protocols when outbreaks occur," Reilly said.

Cover image courtesy of Coolmore

187 - The number of stallions who produced stakes winners

The diversity of the Australian stallion offering is often a point of discussion, but when it comes to representatives among the country's stakes winners, there is a wealth of opportunity for sires to make their marks through black-type winners. The total number of stallions to produce a stakes winner last season finished at 187, two more than last season (there were 606 stakes races this season, compared to 580 last season).

It is also an increase on the 2018/19 total of 177, the 2017/18 number of 182 and the 2016/17 total of 168. The last time there were more sires represented with stakes winners in a season was in 2015/16, when there were 188.

There were 88 individual sires with multiple stakes winners, again an increase on last season, where that number stood at 77.

Gallery: The leading sires by stakes winners in the 2020/21 racing season

The leading sire in terms of individual stakes winners was Coolmore's Fastnet Rock, with 14, some 3.1 per cent of the total number of stakes winners. He was just ahead of Arrowfield Stud's Snitzel with 13, and then four stallions, Written Tycoon, I Am Invincible, So You Think (NZ) and Zoustar on 12. Fastnet Rock's total of 14 is the lowest for an Australian-leading sire of stakes winners in five years.

The top sires in terms of stakes wins from their progeny were Snitzel and So You Think with 18 apiece, or just under three per cent each of total stakes races. Following them were Written Tycoon and I Am Invincible on 17 and Fastnet Rock on 16.

5 - Most stakes wins by an individual horse

That Chris Waller's Verry Elleegant (NZ) (Zed {NZ}) won five stakes races is a notable achievement in itself, that all five of those victories came at Group 1 level, speak to both her talent and dominance. She was the most prolific horse in Australia in 2020/21 when it came to stakes wins.

There were six horses who were able to win four stakes races through the season, Behemoth (All Too Hard), Eduardo (Host {Chi}), Probabeel (NZ) (Savabeel), Savatiano (Street Cry {Ire}), Western Empire (NZ) (Iffraaj {GB}) and Wild Ruler (Snitzel).

Gallery: The leading horses by stakes wins in the 2020/21 racing season

There were a further 24 horses win three Australian stakes races and another 88 win two.

The total of 449 individual stakes winners across the 606 stakes races in Australia through the season, was up from 426 across 580 stakes races in 2019/20. The jump in the number of stakes races was largely due to the impact of COVID-19 on the stakes schedule last season, especially in Queensland.

13 - Sets of siblings who were Australian stakes winners

Thirteen may be unlucky for some, but for the number of sets of siblings who secured Group or Listed success on the Australian turf in the past season, it places them in a select club and elevates their dams to rare territory.

Among those 26 horses (13 sets of two) are four Group 1 winners. Bivouac, now preparing himself for life as a Darley stallion, won a G1 Darley Sprint Classic last November, while a few weeks earlier, his brother Coruscate (Exceed And Excel) won a pair of Listed races at Caulfield, also in the Godolphin silks for trainer James Cummings.

The Mathew Ellerton and Simon Zahra-trained Zoutori (Zoustar) won a trio of stakes races through the season and deservedly got a Group 1 victory in the Newmarket H. at Flemington, while his sister Kiku prevailed in the G3 Carbine Club S. at Randwick during The Championships.

Savatiano (Street Cry {Ire}) has proven a marvellous mare for Godolphin and among her four stakes wins last season was a victory in the G1 Canterbury S. Her half-brother Athiri (Lonhro) was a dual stakes winner for Cummings through the summer.

There were also half-siblings successful at stakes level from an overseas-based mare in Heat Haze (GB) (Green Desert {USA}), who is the dam of the G1 Metropolitan H. winner Mirage Dancer (GB) (Frankel {GB}) and dual stakes winner Ironclad (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}).

The total of 13 sets of siblings in this category is up from last year's total of seven. The full list of this year's siblings is below.

Table: Dams who have produced multiple stakes winners in the Australian 2020/21 season

9 - Number of countries where stakes winners were bred

The exact nine countries who produced stakes winners in Australia in 2019/20 were represented again in 2020/21, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Great Britain, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan and South Africa.

Of the stakes races in 2020/21, 468 were won by Australian-bred horses, or 77.1 per cent, while 82, or 13.5 per cent, were won by horses bred in New Zealand. A total of 23 black-type races were won by horses bred in Ireland, 18 from Great Britain, seven from France, three from Germany, two from the United States and one each from Japan and South Africa.

The percentage of Australian stakes races won by Australian-bred horses dropped from 84 per cent in 2019/20 to 77.1 per cent in 2020/21.

The biggest jump in terms of percentage came from New Zealand-bred horses, which in the previous season was represented with the winners of 8.9 per cent of stakes races.

Table: Number of stakes races won by the country where the horse was bred

211- Number of broodmare sires represented

Going back a further generation in the pedigree and again, the diversity of sources of Australia’s best horses comes to the fore.

There were 211 broodmare sires represented with a stakes winner in Australia in 2020/21, 79 of them with multiple stakes winners.

The leading broodmare sire by stakes victories was the late, great Redoute's Choice with 29 stakes wins from 19 individual horses, while Zabeel (NZ) had 22 wins from the progeny of his daughters from 17 stakes winners. Then followed More Than Ready (USA) (20 from 13) and Encosta De Lago (13 from 12).

Despite Encosta De Lago having seven fewer stakes winners and 16 fewer stakes successes as a broodmare sire than Redoute's Choice last season, he was crowned Champion Broodmare Sire, helped by the substantial contribution of The Everest winner Classique Legend (Not A Single Doubt), who was Australia's highest-earning racehorse of the last season.

1 - Number of dead heats in stakes races

While there were 606 stakes races in Australia in 2020/21, there were 607 winners, thanks to the rarity of a dead heat in the G1 Oakleigh Plate in February.

Portland Sky (Deep Field) and Celebrity Queen (Redoute's Choice) could not be separated by the judge in the famous Caulfield sprint in what was the first dead-heat in an Australian Group 1 race for 20 years.

It was a significant win for Portland Sky's sire Deep Field as it represented his first Group 1 win, while it was the 39th Group 1 winner for Redoute's Choice.

The 2019/20 stakes racing season also produced just the single dead heat from 580 stakes races.

Cover image courtesy of Arqana

The Northern Hemisphere yearling sales have become an increasingly important shopping destination for investors from Australia and New Zealand, and Arqana's sales in France have been no exception, with the current restrictions around international travel failing to dull the desire to buy.

Gabbedy, who operates Belmont Bloodstock (FBAA) in Australia, said the level of interest ahead of this year's Sale, which takes place from August 14 to 16, has reflected the confidence in the strength of the 355-lot catalogue.

"It’s definitely the best catalogue they have ever produced and I think part of the reason is because of the strength and the depth of the stallions represented," Gabbedy told TDN AusNZ.

"The other reason is that the French have been very aggressive in the last few years in buying mares. I've noticed this year there are a lot of younger mares with yearlings. It’s a great sign."

The diversity of the stallion offering is something by which Gabbedy also expects will lure buyers from this part of the world, with many familiar names in the catalogue.

"If you look at the stallions' index, you will see that there is a big representation of 18 from Almanzor, there are eight Camelots, seven Dubawis, eight Frankels, four Galileos and 17 Kingmans," he said.

"Then you have got horses by Kodiac, Le Havre, Lope De Vega, Sea The Stars and the two French stallions, Siyouni, who is a Champion sire and who has 22, and Wootton Bassett with 18."

The popularity of the progeny of Wootton Bassett (GB) will be closely monitored by those in the Australian industry, with the former Haras d'Etreham resident and now Coolmore stallion shuttling to Australia for the first time in 2021.

His impact is already being felt in this part of the world through his son Almanzor (Fr), who shuttles to Cambridge Stud in New Zealand and who proved the leading first-season sire on sales averages across several Australasian yearling sales earlier this year.

Wootton Bassett also had his first Australian winner this week, when Rapid Achiever (Fr), an Arqana graduate, broke her maiden in emphatic fashion at Donald for Ciaron Maher and David Eustace.

Zoustar launches with six yearlings

But the stallion whose progeny in the August Sale will be most keenly followed from a local perspective will be Zoustar. The six representatives are from the first Northern Hemisphere crop of the Widden Stud stallion, who shuttles to Tweenhills in the UK.

"It’s a really exciting opportunity for the boys at Widden for Zoustar to really cement himself as a successful dual-hemisphere stallion, much in the way that the likes of Exceed And Excel have done," Gabbedy said.

"With the support of David Redvers and his team at Tweenhills, he has got some fantastic mares in his first crop over there."

Zoustar will be represented by three fillies (Lots 134, 162 and 269) in the catalogue as well as three colts (Lot 105, 181 and 224).

"What is really interesting is when you look through his six representatives in this catalogue, you could be forgiven for thinking you are at Magic Millions or at an Inglis Easter Sale," Gabbedy said.

"Lot 105 is a Zoustar colt out of a Fastnet Rock mare and then Lot 269 is a Zoustar filly out of an Exceed And Excel mare.

"Overall, they should be really well-received. He has been given great support and great promotion over there. Zoustar really stamps his progeny, they are great walkers and they are good looking, so they are going to present well."

Crabtree's colt

Respected Australian breeder Robert Crabtree offers a Kitten's Joy (USA) colt he bred at the Arqana August Sale as well. Lot 149 is a colt out of Blue Grass Music (USA) (Bluegrass Cat {USA}) who Crabtree's Dorrington Farm paid US$250,000 (AU$337,280) for at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton November Sale.

The colt she was carrying, a brother to G1 Belmont Derby winner Henley's Joy (USA), is being sold by Crabtree through the Deauville sales ring as part of the Coulonces consignment.

"It’s quite interesting to have such a prominent Australian breeder selling a yearling in France," Gabbedy said.

Gabbedy also pointed to Lot 133, the half-sister to Group 1 winner and Widden Stud stallion National Defense (GB), as another lot of interest for Australian buyers, along with Lot 151, a No Nay Never (USA) half-sister to dual Australian Cup winner Harlem (GB) (Champs Elysees {GB}).

"That's a good pedigree with great residual value," he said.

Lot 152 also carries substantial Australian interest, being a colt by Siyouni (Fr) out of Cercle De La Vie (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), the sister to Group 1 winners Cape Of Good Hope (Ire) and Highland Reel (Ire) and daughter of Australian-bred Group 1 placegetter Hveger (Danehill {USA}), from the family of Elvstroem and Haradasun.

Buyer interest strong

While travel restrictions have meant that the usual travellers to Deauville, such as Gabbedy, won't be there for a second straight year, the level of comfort with bidding from afar has grown markedly in the COVID-19 era.

"With the world getting smaller and the levels of information you can access through the internet, there should be strong activity from Australian and New Zealand buyers," he said.

"We saw Matthew Sandblom from Kingstar, he bought a filly online in the August Sale last year, and it’s called Sunday Best and it won at Chantilly the other day very impressively."

Gabbedy has had strong interest from his own clients, while he expects other agents like John Foote to be busy, as well as a host of Australian trainers.

"A lot of the local trainers are looking to these European sales to buy their staying progeny for the future," he said.

While investing in Europe is expected to become more desirable with the growth in the Australian yearling market, Gabbedy is also expecting strong competition from the local buying bench at the August Sale.

"The bloodstock industry is an incredible industry and everything we feared might happen through the pandemic, it seems the exact opposite has happened," he said.

"The European market last year was strong and it is going to be stronger this year because there is great demand for quality bloodstock."

Cover image courtesy of Inglis

The current disregard for The Pattern in Australian race planning is one of great concern for all industry participants. The Federation of Bloodstock Agents Australia (FBAA) is strongly in support of continuing The Pattern of Australian racing, in accordance with international standards.

The FBAA calls on Racing Australia and the State PRAs (Principal Racing Authorities) to protect the future sustainability and relevance of the Australian thoroughbred industry by resolving the current stalemate in Pattern planning.

The Pattern, and associated ‘black type’, ensures the Australian racing product has international relevance and context. It creates value in bloodstock and pedigrees for the benefit of owners, trainers, breeders, bloodstock agents and many other racing participants.

We acknowledge there is vagaries within the current Pattern that need to be resolved in a collaborative manner, with an allowance for accommodating positive innovations. Withstanding that, it is vitally important that the Australia Pattern stays within the international standards set out by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) with specific reference to International Grading & Race Planning Advisory Committee (IRPAC).

Thoroughbreds are an international commodity and investors need security in consistent standards. If innovations are not balanced with consultation and consideration for international standards, then Australia risks becoming isolated from the rest of the world, which will have extremely detrimental ramifications for the entire Australian thoroughbred industry.

FBAA Members:

Craig Rounsefell, Dave Mee, Louis Le Metayer, Grant Burns, Damon Gabbedy, Suman Hedge, Leonard Russo, Julian Blaxland, John Chalmers, James Clarke, Noel Carter, Duncan Ramage, John Foote, John Ford, Peter Ford, Jeff Gordon, Mathew Becker, Adrian Hancock, Mark Player, Will Johnson, Bill Mitchell, Sheamus Mills, Louis Mihalyka, Mark Pilkington, Brett Howard, Peter Twomey and Andrew Williams.

Associate Members:

Magic Millions, Barry Bowditch

William Inglis & Son Limited, Jonathan D’Arcy

The FBAA has sourced opinions from a variety of industry participants, which will be released over the coming days.

Jamie Walter, Proven Thoroughbreds

“The Pattern system is the basis under which horse racing is graded internationally, for which, Australia is an increasingly integral part of. Clearly in a constantly evolving world, some races may become no longer worthy of black-type status due to a decline in a certain area.

"However lucrative new pop-up style races are, and no one is disputing the enormous prizemoney benefit, none-the-less should have to earn their black type status in the same manner in which the Magic Millions 2YO Classic did by producing a consistent flow of winners and fields that were commensurate with stakes winners.”

John O'Shea, John O'Shea Racing

“The Pattern Committee is critical but the problem is it has been politicised on a state basis. I don’t think some of them would be qualified to know what they are judging. There is no trainer representative. Trainers provide the horses, trainers understand the form, yet there is no national representative on the committee.

"For one, there are too many Group 1 races and too many Group 1s that are not a grand final. There is a proliferation of 1400 metre Group 1s at the start of a season. It’s farcical.

"I hate seeing Group 1s at the start of the season. They are irrelevant – not genuine Group 1 races. Whilst other races which have great relevance to our bloodstock, like the Matriarch S. at the end of the season should be Group 1.

"Victoria thinks it has exclusivity for the spring period of racing. They don’t. October to November is the best time to race horses, it’s not exclusive to one state.

"You have to lay the ground rules. The conversation is a waste of time until the issues are fundamentally acknowledged by all parties.

"They’ve got the right person in charge now (of Racing Australia). John (Messara) understands the importance of The Pattern Committee.”

Wayne Hawkes, Hawkes Racing

“Pedigree dictates what you pay for a horse. There are two main investment drivers to consider – type and pedigree - but it’s the pedigree and associated black type that dictates the price.

"If the horse is out of a Group 1 winner or a half to a Group 1 winner, you pay a premium.

"That alone proves The Pattern is important.

"Should they (Pattern Committee) be meeting? Absolutely - the backbone of a yearling sale is the currency of a pedigree page.”

Arthur Mitchell, Yarraman Park

“We can’t live without it. I’m a huge fan of The Pattern system.

"Notwithstanding the drama recently, on the whole, The Pattern gives us the mechanism as breeders we need.”

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the the publishers of Thoroughbred Daily News AusNZ.

This letter was written in response to an article in TDN AusNZ's Wednesday edition, The ongoing challenge of The Pattern.