Thunder strikes a Shocking milestone

Cover image courtesy of Rich Hill Stud

Shocking's stud career at Rich Hill began brightly with a big first book of 154 in 2011. That was less than two years after he had captured a memorable success for trainer Mark Kavanagh and jockey Corey Brown in the 2009 G1 Melbourne Cup and only six months after jockey, trainer and horse had combined to win the G1 Australian Cup in his final race start.

From that big first crop emerged six stakes winners, including G1 New Zealand Oaks victress Fanatic (NZ), while six further stakes winners emerged across his subsequent two crops.

That racetrack success contributed to a second boom in his mare numbers in 2016, when he served a book of 142, and from that crop has emerged his latest, and arguably brightest star, I'm Thunderstruck.

Bred by Cambridge-based couple Tony Forlong and Jennifer Jones, the 4-year-old broke new ground on Saturday becoming Shocking's second Group 1 winner with a determined success in the time-honoured Toorak H. at just his eighth start.

The OTI Racing-owned gelding not only became Shocking's eighth Australian stakes winner, and his 15th overall, but the first of his progeny to replicate their sire's racetrack achievements and win at the elite level in Australia.

It was a win marked with much delight at Shocking's home at Rich Hill Stud, which has followed the career of I'm Thunderstruck closely.

"Obviously he's a good stallion and he made a great start to his stud career. You could say he has gone a bit quiet, but he has certainly come back with a vengeance this season, hasn't he? To get horses like I'm Thunderstruck, he's out of the top drawer that horse," Rich Hill Stud Managing Director John Thompson said.

"He's lightly raced and the way he ran that race out, you’d imagine 2000 metres won't be a problem. You could see him running a Cox Plate next year couldn't you?"

On the up

While Shocking has had a few quiet years, with his book of mares dropping back to the forties over the past few seasons, the emergence of horses like I'm Thunderstruck as well as Elephant (NZ), Hezashocka (NZ) and Surprise Baby (NZ) has led to a revival in breeder interest.

Gallery: Some of Shocking's recent stakes winners

His book will be up around the 100 mark this season at a fee of NZ$8500 plus GST, with I'm Thunderstruck's success on Saturday likely to keep the Rich Hill phones busy over the next week or so with later-season bookings.

Thompson took particular joy that the faith that Forlong and Jones had put in Shocking when sending their mare Primadonna Girl (NZ) (Edenwold {Can}) to him, has been rewarded.

"If your clients do well, you do well, don’t you?" he said. "That's the nature of the breeding game. They took a punt on him with an Edenwold mare which you wouldn't expect to throw a horse like that. But that's the beauty of breeding and that's why people stay in the game," he said.

"If it was just based on adding the most successful stallion and most successful broodmare stallions, there wouldn’t be many people breeding."

Primadonna Girl had been purchased by New Zealand Bloodstock's Danny Rolston on Forlong's behalf for a modest NZ$2400 as a weanling in 2010 from Selwyn River Stud.

While she wasn't able to make the grade on the racetrack, as a broodmare she has done a superb job. Her first foal, Cantstopthefeeling (NZ) (Swiss Ace) has been stakes placed and her second is I'm Thunderstruck.

"It’s not too dissimilar a story to a filly like Verry Elleegant is it? It's great that people are still able to breed those horses that can win at the top level especially in Australia," Thompson said.

Primadonna Girl has a 2-year-old colt by Shocking and a yearling by Charm Spirit (Ire), while she is set to foal to Ocean Park (NZ) this spring.

An emerging market

I'm Thunderstruck is yet another success story for New Zealand horses privately purchased as older horses either early in their racing careers or through strong trials.

In this case, I'm Thunderstruck was identified out of a trial at Te Rapa by bloodstock agent Phill Cataldo, who recommended him to long-time client Terry Henderson of OTI Racing.

This style of purchase has become an increasingly important aspect of the market in New Zealand, highlighted by success stories such as nine-time Group 1 winner Verry Elleegant (NZ) (Zed {NZ}) with Thompson saying it was helping drive further investment in racing and breeding.

"A lot of our trainers have stayed in business by doing that. I know that the owners of I'm Thunderstruck were happy with the price they got at the time and it was able to keep them going," he said.

"People like Terry Henderson from OTI, he's a great believer in the New Zealand product and he is always looking to buy horses out of the trials and syndicate them. It justifies what he has been able to do and hopefully, he will come back for more."

Shocking thriving on increased interest

As for Shocking, now 16, he is fit and healthy and ready to capitalise on the resurgence in interest this year.

Thompson said the type of mare best suited to the son of Street Cry (Ire) has been refined over time, and that is part of the current success.

"He seems to work with a wide range of mare. He had six stakes winners out of his first crop, which is a good result for any stallion and these horses coming through now have been bred as the result of the success of that first crop," he said.

"He seemed to get a few faster mares about that time. Initially he got a lot of our staying mares because people wanted to breed Classic horses but when he became a bit more commercial, he got some faster mares, and I think these horses like I'm Thunderstruck and Elephant are a result of that.

"He tends to throw physically some really nice horses and they tend to be the ones that are the athletes. He can get a good filly and a good colt or gelding as well."