Written by Jessica Owers
Racing returned to Randwick on Wednesday with a midweek meeting, this time on the Kensington track with a seven-race card. The first of the day was the Admire Mars at Arrowfield Plate over 1400 metres, won by the 3-year-old Yarraman Park-bred filly Bella Rouge (I Am Invincible).
Trained by Chris Waller, Bella Rouge was having her fourth start. She was fifth on debut behind Billiondollarbaby (I Am Invincible) at Warwick Farm in April and was unplaced in two provincial starts thereafter.
Nevertheless, she’d shown enough to finish second in a trial this preparation, and she started in Wednesday’s race as a $4.50 second favourite.
Ridden by Jason Collett, who’s had a handy knack lately of winning the openers, Bella Rouge jumped among the leaders from barrier four.
Through the opening stages, she was second to pace-setter Verbek (NZ) (Turn Me Loose {NZ}), with wide outsider Dettori (NZ) (Ego {NZ}) poking along third, and they remained in that order into the straight.
On the fence, Verbek looked strong until the 200 metres, when Bella Rouge began to inch ahead. At the 100 metres, Coolmore filly Parlayed (American Pharoah {USA}) was sweeping late and got very close to Bella Rouge at the line.
In the end, the final margin was Bella Rouge by 0.7l to Parlayed, with Verbek a close 0.87l in third.
The final time was a new class record of 1:21.28s, the final 600 metres in 33.82s on a Good 3.
Handy maiden
Charlie Duckworth, Chris Waller’s racing manager, was trackside for the win, and he said the quick time was evidence of a blistering surface.
Samantha Clenton and Charlie Duckworth
“It looked like a pretty firm deck out there today,” he said. “Jason gave her no excuses and he gave her a nice ride, and she was strong to hold out a late challenger.”
Duckworth said that as much as the win was a good one, he thought the race itself would be a handy one for the future.
“I think you’ll find there’s a few in the race that will measure up to it being a pretty hot little maiden, considering we’re just here on a Wednesday,” he said. “But this filly has promised plenty. She had arrhythmia last start, and then at Hawkesbury before that she was found wanting a little bit. But she should go on with the task now and have a lot of fun.”
“I think you’ll find there’s a few in the race that will measure up to it being a pretty hot little maiden, considering we’re just here on a Wednesday." - Charlie Duckworth
Jockey Jason Collett said Bella Rouge’s gate speed made things easy for him from the get-go.
“It was just a matter of getting her into a rhythm mid-race, which she eventually did off a pretty stiff tempo,” he said. “She had a little bit of pressure in the straight but she held on.”
Collett said Bella Rouge had no trouble with the 1400 metres, but he said it was race manners that was holding her back if anything.
Jason Collett
“It’s probably stopping her from getting there,” he said. “Obviously today she got away with it, but she’ll need to take improvement from that going forward. Still, it’s a good start.”
Married to Vinnie
Bella Rouge is the first foal from the Starcraft (NZ) mare Choose, who was a very useful race mare, a near $300,000 prizemoney winner who was three-times placed in Group company.
This is the family of Princess Jocinda (NZ) (Imposing), the dam of dual Group 1 winner Bawalaksana (NZ) (Straight Strike {USA}) and stakes winner Damaschino (Last Tycoon {Ire}). It’s a good producing family below the line, with Damaschino foaling the G3 VRC Thoroughbred Breeders’ S. winner Shaaheq (Redoute’s Choice).
Bella Rouge was consigned by Yarraman Park to the 2020 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale. She sold to Chris Waller, Mulcaster Bloodstock and Raffles Racing for $600,000.
Bella Rouge as a yearling
Her full sister, now named I Choose You (I Am Invincible), was sold at the same Sale this year, fetching $500,000 from David Ellis and Andrew Williams Bloodstock. She’s in-training in New Zealand, with good reports coming back to Yarraman Park about her.
Matt Scown is Yarraman’s general manager and, in the fray of a busy day on the farm, he watched Bella Rouge’s race with considerable interest.
“I definitely watched it, and gee, she was solid,” he said. “Sitting outside the leader in the breeze the whole race, and then having the strength and courage to attack the line as severely as she did was pretty pleasing to see. I thought she was enormous in running today.”
“Sitting outside the leader in the breeze the whole race, and then having the strength and courage to attack the line as severely as she (Bella Rouge) did was pretty pleasing to see." - Matt Scown
Of the broodmare Choose, Scown said she was a delightful Yarraman mare that has visited I Am Invincible for the entirety of her career to date.
“Choose is a lovely Starcraft mare out of a Redoute’s mare, and she’s Group-placed,” he said. “I think she was raced by Raffles, from memory, and she’s been married to Vinnie since she got here.”
Choose was purchased off the track privately by Yarraman Park when her racing days were up. That was in early 2017, and she has foaled the two fillies by I Am Invincible plus a colt by the stallion that arrived on September 15. She will go back to him this spring.
“She has mated extremely well to Vinnie and, off the basis of her first foal winning today (Wednesday), I’d say that’s where we’ll keep her,” Scown said. “Her colt is a nice, good-sized horse with that rich bay colour. He’s got beautiful markings, and he’s just that sort of horse that she throws, lovely and correct.
“If you look back at the yearling photo of Bella Rouge, she was that beautiful rich bay, quality and nice markings. This foal is the colt version of her.”
“She (Choose) has mated extremely well to Vinnie and, off the basis of her first foal winning today (Wednesday), I’d say that’s where we’ll keep her." - Matt Scown
Scown said it was too early to say where the colt would head as a yearling, but he admitted that the trajectory of Bella Rouge would influence that.
“We’ll be watching Bella Rouge to see what she does on the track, and that will obviously dictate where he goes as well,” Scown said.
Snitz still on fire
Undefeated 3-year-old Snitzel gelding Snitzonfire was a popular winner of the second race at Kensington on Wednesday, extending his untouched run to three starts for three wins.
Trained locally by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, the gelding won by 1.89l to Bend The Knee (Snitzel) and third-placed Conrad (Maurice {Jpn}), bringing up a trifecta result for Arrowfield stallions in the second event.
Snitzonfire is a half-brother to the recent G3 ATC Gimcrack S. winner Coolangatta (Written Tycoon), making this a particularly topical family right now. The horse was bred by Highclere Racing, and he is the first foal from the More Than Ready (USA) mare Piping Hot, who resides at John Muir’s Milburn Creek in the Southern Highlands.
Snitzonfire was sold at the 2020 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, fetching $425,000 from the Milburn Creek draft.
He was purchased by Waterhouse, Bott and Mt Hallowell Stud, and Waterhouse indicated on Wednesday that the gelding was now ripe for the $2 million R. Listed Magic Millions 3-Year-Old Guineas in January.
