Six horses to follow from the spring carnival

Cover image courtesy of Darren Tindale

With the spring carnival now at an end, TDN AusNZ has profiled some of the up-and-coming horses that have shone through during the final stages of an action-packed last few months, with five picks from Australia plus a standout from across the Tasman for good measure.

1 - Razeta

3-year-old filly, Deep Field x Little Zeta (Commands)

Trainer: Kris Lees

Owners: Mr R D Hannon, Mrs S B Hannon

Breeder: Mr R D Hannon

Latest result: 1/16 Listed Desirable S. - Flemington (November 3)

The late charge of Razeta (Deep Field) in the Listed Desirable S. on Oaks Day was hard to miss. Once she found enough racing room she flew home over the top of Grey River (Al Maher) to score by 1.25l, with last season’s G3 Ottawa S. winner See You In Heaven (Divine Prophet) 0.85l away in third.

She was enjoying her first win since breaking her maiden in June, and it was her second attempt at a stakes race, having placed sixth in the Listed Reginald Allen Quality in the middle of last month.

She seems to have improved with racing this season, and trainer Kris Lees indicated after her latest victory that Razeta will be saved for an autumn campaign.

“I think we're going to have a really nice filly in the autumn, so we'll just see how she comes through today,” Lees said after the race.

“I think she showed today she can measure up to the better fillies next time around.”

Owned and bred by Bobby Hannon, Razeta has an excellent pedigree. She is out of Little Zeta, a winning Commands mare who is most notably the producer of G2 Roman Consul S. winner, Cosmic Force, a brother to Razeta who stands alongside their father at Newgate Farm. Razeta is also a half-sister to Group 3 winner Onemorezeta (Onemorenomore).

2 - Soulcombe (GB)

4-year-old gelding, Frankel (GB) x Ribbons (GB) (Manduro {Ger})

Trainer: Chris Waller

Owners: Mr A Kheir, Mr J A O'Neill, Carty Racing et al.

Breeder: Pursuit Of Success Llc

Latest result: 1/11 G3 Queen’s Cup - Flemington (November 5)

Champions Stakes Day saw the debut Southern Hemisphere victory of fresh Chris Waller import in Soulcombe (GB) (Frankel {GB}). The 4-year-old gelding, still considered a 3-year-old in his native Europe, sat towards the rear of the field in the G3 Queen’s Cup last Saturday and picked up with ease in the straight to record a 2.25l victory over Luncies (GB) (Iffraaj {GB}).

He put the race to bed in such smart fashion that he is now the favourite for the 2023 G1 Melbourne Cup.

Chris Waller is already the trainer of the most successful of Frankel’s (GB) progeny to race in Australia so far, dual-Group 1 winner Hungry Heart, and there’s every hope that Soulcombe can also achieve top-level success - especially since the trainer sent him into Saturday’s race with a firm eye on his future development.

Speaking after the race, Waller said: “It's all about seeing how he recovers today. Most importantly he knows how to win at Flemington.

“It was a great experience (for the horse) and that's what it's all about with horses, especially, when you're coming from a different hemisphere.

“It is a different style of racing, but there's no better place than Flemington, the bigger tracks, and that will give the horse a lot of confidence.”

Formerly trained by Wiliam Haggas in Newmarket, Soulcombe won three races in England and was making his first attempt at stakes level on his first start in Australia. He is from an excellent European family, his dam being the Group 1-winning mare Ribbons (GB) (Manduro {Ger}) who is herself out of the winning Marju (Ire) mare Sister Act (GB) a sister to multiple Group 1-winning Champion mare Soviet Song (Ire).

3 - Legarto (NZ)

3-year-old filly, Proisir x Geordie Girl (NZ) (Towkay)

Trainers: Ken and Bev Kelso

Owners: Mrs C J & P H Brown, A C & Mrs M E Enting, W J Foster, Mrs B J & K S Kelso, A M & Mrs P J Kirton, G & M Maloy, E J Verheyen

Breeder: W E Jeffries

Latest result: 1/13 G3 Soliloquy S. - Te Rapa (October 22)

On just her third start, the Ken and Bev Kelso-trained 3-year-old filly Legarto (NZ) (Proisir) landed the G3 Soliloquy S. on October 22 in scintillating fashion. Showing a great burst of speed to seal the race when asked, she scored by 3l over The Moon (NZ) (El Roca), with Prowess (NZ) (Proisir) another 0.5l away in third.

With that victory she kept her unbeaten record in tact, having shown glimpses of her now well-developed turn of foot in her two other lifetime starts, when breaking her maiden as a late-season juvenile and returning this season to score at the same venue as her latest start.

Legarto is raced by a similar group to the Kelsos’ Levante (NZ), also by Proisir, who has placed fourth in two Group 1 starts in Australia most recently, and both are raced in the colours of Philip Brown’s Ancroft Stud. After the Soliloquy, Ken Kelso commented on further similarities between the two:

“She is very similar to Levante. They’re both by Proisir and she has really come up well,” Kelso said.

“I said to Philip as they pulled up, ‘Could lightning strike twice?’ and he said, ‘I think it just did’.

“She had a lot against her today (October 22) with the bad draw (barrier 11) and being on a Good track for the first time after being on bad ground only before this. She was just fantastic.”

Connections will be hoping that the aforementioned lightning does indeed strike twice when Legarto lines up in the G1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas at Riccarton this weekend.

Legarto was purchased by Brown’s Ancroft Stud at Book 2 of the 2021 New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sale, where she was knocked down for NZ$90,000. She is out of Geordie Girl (NZ) (Towkay), who is a sister to dual-Listed winner Rapid Kay (NZ) and a half-sister to another dual-Listed winner in Kekova (NZ) (Elusive City {USA}).

4 - Wee Nessy

3-year-old filly, Snitzel x Later Gator (NZ) (More Than Ready {USA})

Trainers: Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr

Owners: Arrowfield Pastoral Pty Ltd, Flying Angels, Mr P Athanasakos, Barragunda Racing

Breeder: Arrowfield Pastoral Pty Ltd

Latest result: 1/10 Listed William Crockett S. - Moonee Valley (October 22)

Lining up on Cox Plate Day, connections were quietly confident that 3-year-old filly Wee Nessy (Snitzel) coud leave her G3 Thoroughbred S. performance behind her as she took on the Listed William Crockett S. at Moonee Valley.

She managed just eighth in the Thoroughbred S., having struggled for racing room, but landed her latest start in the style of an improving filly. Making her run four-wide into the home turn, she drew alongside leader Bay Thirteen (Deep Field) with 100 metres to run, changed leads and began to assert, eventually scoring by a comfortable 0.75l over that rival, with Birdies Galore (Spieth {NZ}) a further 1.8l back in third. So confident was James McDonald that she received just a hands-and-heels ride from the Champion Jockey.

Having made two starts as a juvenile, both at Listed level and placing on both occasions, Wee Nessy got off to winning ways on her first start this season, scoring when odds-on in a Bendigo maiden.

She came up short just behind a blanket finish to the Listed Cap D’Antibes at Flemington on her next start and was then sent back to Bendigo to gain more confidence, scoring again at prohibitive odds.

Whilst her trainers have no firm plans for her yet, Kent Jnr confirmed to TDN AusNZ that they will have her primed to target fillies' sprint races in Melbourne and Sydney this autumn.

Wee Nessy was a $400,000 purchase at the 2021 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale by Flying Angels/ARJB, with her breeders Arrowfield Stud retaining a share. She is out of Lator Gator (NZ), a dual-winning More Than Ready (USA) mare who is a half-sister to Group 3-placed Next The Universe (Mossman).

5 - Perfect Thought

3-year-old colt, So You Think (NZ) x Perfectly Safe (Exceed And Excel)

Trainer: John Sargent

Owners: Think Big Stud, Horse Ventures, Mr C N McGuckin, Mr M A Agnew, Mr A E Byrne, Mr M A Fleming, Mr T Thomson, Miss A E Wahlstrom, Mr L K Wahlstrom, Mr G Zanoli, Mrs J Zanoli

Breeder: Wallings Bloodstock Pty Ltd, Anthony Hatzopoulos

Latest result: 1/12 G3 Carbine Club S. - Flemington (October 29)

At $31, victory in the G3 Carbine Club S. for Perfect Thought (So You Think {NZ}) might have been a shock to the market, but it certainly wasn’t to connections, who have always held the colt in high regard. Once he got rolling in the G3 Carbine Club S. he drew clear of the pack to bound home for a facile, 1.8l victory over Elkington Road (All Too Hard).

But things haven’t always been so simple for the son of So You Think (NZ). As a lovely moving horse with a low action, the tracks have played against the colt throughout his Classic campaign, and a return to a Soft surface (as opposed to Heavy) for the first time since his maiden win seemed to do the trick.

His trainer also feels he’s found the key to the horse gear-wise too.

“He’s a bit of a quirky colt so we’ve changed all of his gear and he’s had nothing today (October 29),” Sargent said post-race.

“He shows so much potential at home on the track and we’ve always rated him with the connections and today he showed he is a good horse.”

Whilst connections will dodge the G1 AJC Derby, citing an unsuitably run race for a keen-going horse, he is expected to be seen in some of Australia’s premier mile to a mile-and-a-quarter Group 1 races this autumn.

Perfect Thought is out of the Exceed And Excel mare Perfectly Safe, a dual winner whose own dam, Refuge (Ire) (Sadler’s Wells {USA}) is from a family of European stakes winners. He was purchased by Duncan Ramage of DGR Thoroughbred Services, managing director of Think Big Stud (in whose famous colours he races), for $120,000 at the 2021 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.

6 -Arkansaw Kid

2-year-old colt, Harry Angel (Ire) x Florabella (Exceed And Excel)

Trainer: Ben and J D Hayes

Owners: Ms J McAlpine, Philippa Duncan Bloodstock, Mrs C G Legh, Mrs K L Gordon, Ms N K Arthur, Ms K L Bytel, Mrs LA Frew, Mrs J G Madden, Mrs S M Montague, Mrs I Sampieri, Mrs K G Spillane, Mrs A M Webb

Breeder: Philippa Duncan Bloodstock Pty Ltd

Latest result: 1/6 R. Listed Inglis Banner - Moonee Valley (October 22)

At this stage of the season, it can be difficult to judge which juveniles will progress and there have been some impressive performances during the spring so far, such as Charm Stone (I Am Invincible) in the G3 Ottawa S. and Krakarib (Ribchester {Ire}) in the G3 Maribyrnong Plate.

That pair benefitted from a start prior to those victories, but one that was good enough to seal a debut victory was Arkansaw Kid (Harry Angel {Ire}), and his signs of immaturity that day leave him open to a huge amount of improvement.

The first horse put under pressure, he came round the home turn awkwardly and three-wide, but got the hang of things in the home straight to claim a 0.5l victory over Mexico (Capitalist).

He is the first Southern Hemisphere stakes winner for Darley shuttler Harry Angel (Ire), a World Champion Sprinter who got better with age, and was a $190,000 purchase by his trainers at the 2022 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale.

He is out of the Exceed And Excel mare Florabella, herself the daughter of G1 Coolmore Classic winner Shindig (NZ) (Straight Strike {USA}).

“We always liked him at Classic, both JD and I really liked him but when you buy them you never really expect they’re going to come out and win $500,000 on debut, but he has,’’ Ben Hayes said after the race.

“I’m very impressed with this horse. He’s always done everything right and what I really liked about him today was he was so relaxed, he paraded beautifully, he was just a gentleman.

“He actually pulled a front and back shoe during the race so that gives the win even more credit.’’