While the majority of the bloodstock audience was in or on its way to Sydney on Wednesday, Sandown posted an interesting juvenile result in its midweek meeting.
Two-year-old Esskay, a son of Real Steel, won the opening race for trainer Danny O’Brien in a tussle down the straight with Magic Mogul (Written Tycoon). The final margin was 0.1l between the pair in a winning time of 1:20.11 for the 1300 metres.
Esskay was on debut for the O’Brien barn. He’d been in and out of preparations, but he was widely priced against the race’s favourites, Tacito (Showtime) for Lindsay Park and Freakofnature (Snitzel) for Trilogy Racing.
For O’Brien’s bloodstock manager Luke Wilkinson, who is the managing owner in this smart gelding and who found himself crowded around a screen at Inglis’ Riverside complex to watch the race, it was a barnstorming result at Sandown.
“I was in the Kia Ora marquee and I screamed the place down,” Wilkinson said. “There are so many of my good friends in this horse and I knew what it would mean to them. I’m very happy today.”
“I was in the Kia Ora marquee and I screamed the place down. There are so many of my good friends in this horse and I knew what it would mean to them.” - Luke Wilkinson
Esskay landing in Wilkinson’s ownership is a story in itself.
The gelding is from the sole Australian crop of Japanese shuttler Real Steel, who spent only one season in Australia in the spring of 2019. From that crop arrived 51 live foals and Esskay, the sixth foal from the Lonhro mare Lacey Lonhbreak, was one of them.
Bred by Bowness Stud and consigned to Book 2 of the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, he was Lot 1171, one of only three by Real Steel in the sale and the only one that wasn’t in an Arrowfield draft.
The page boasted enough European pedigree through the third dam to warrant a closer look, including the Champion British filly Lailani (GB) (Unfuwain {USA}), but there wasn’t much relevancy to it. Nevertheless, the colt was a very good type from the same family as the stakes-placed Boldinho (Brazen Beau).
Esskay as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
Wilkinson had gone to the 2022 January sale with a client order for a Real Steel yearling.
“An owner had asked me to secure him a Real Steel progeny,” the bloodstock manager said. “Real Steel wasn’t high on my radar, but I walked around looking for one and there were a few in the second sale. This one, Esskay, walked past me when I was inspecting another horse and he caught my eye. Lucky enough he was by Real Steel.”
Lot 1171 pleased Wilkinson very much and reminded him of another horse he had previously raced. But when the page went to the prospective owner, it was a thumbs down.
“I put the pedigree to the owner and he didn’t like it, but I liked the horse that much I still bought him,” Wilkinson said.
“I put the pedigree (Esskay's) to the owner and he didn’t like it, but I liked the horse that much I still bought him.” - Luke Wilkinson
Esskay was bought for $90,000, which wasn’t the most amount of money paid for a Real Steel at the sale. That honour belonged to a colt from Fast Eva (Fastnet Rock) who sold to Ciaron Maher for $200,000.
Esskay was bought purely on type and brought down to O’Brien’s yard at Flemington, where Wilkinson brought in a sweep of good friends to form a syndicate. They named the horse after the late cricketing legend Shane Keith Warne, which was a suggestion by one of the owners, the “all-round good bloke Paul Vawdrey”.
“All of my friends who are in the horse are very excited,” Wilkinson said. “They are all either a friend or someone I’ve had horses with in the past.”
Luke Wilkinson | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Spring beckons
Before Wednesday’s debut win, Esskay had jumped-out over 800 metres at Flemington on March 17. He finished at the back of that field, but he put the pieces together at Sandown in what was probably a surprising result.
“We thought he’d just have a soft run and work to the line, then go for a spell and come back as a spring 3-year-old,” Wilkinson said. “So today was a bit of a bonus.”
Esskay earned a tick over $30,000 for his Wednesday debut, which is a third of his pricetag in a very quick turnaround. However, it’s not likely he’ll race again this season, with the bigger targets firmly on the spring agenda.
Esskay winning at Sandown-Hillside | Image courtesy of Racing Photos
“We’re looking forward to seeing what he can do over a mile and 2000 metres,” Wilkinson said. “He looked to me like a leggy, well-put-together yearling that was going to take a bit of time. We’ve had him in and out of the stable a few times and he’s done everything right but he wasn’t mature enough to get to the races.
“Today he was, but he was still a little immature about a few things. Physically though, he’s pretty good. He’ll go to the paddock now and come back for the Caulfield Guineas.”
All go for Go Bloodstock
While Esskay was winning on debut at Sandown, at Warwick Farm in Sydney, a good crowd was on course next door to the Inglis Riverside complex.
The first race of the meeting was a 2-year-old feature over 1300 metres and it was won by the John Sargent-trained filly Last Straw. By Brazen Beau, she is a homebred for Go Bloodstock and she won in fairly good style from a barnstorming, tail-end position.
She led home the battling pair of Sheetice (Frosted {USA}) and Kenology (NZ) (Tivaci), who looked to have things won for most of the straight.
“That was fantastic,” said Sargent, who was trackside. “We expected her to go well but it’s always a surprise first-up. Tommy (Sherry, who rode the filly) has done a lot of work on this horse. He trialled her and he gallops her, and in her last trial she was a bit slow out of the gates but she hit the line strong.”
“That was fantastic. We expected her (Last Straw) to go well but it’s always a surprise first-up.” - John Sargent
Sargent gave Sherry instructions to debut the filly in much the same manner and it worked. Last Straw was slow out of the gates and she sat back for much of her run, exploding to life in the straight to win by 1.08l from Sheet Ice. According to her trainer, she liked the sting out of the track.
Last Straw has been trialling at Randwick since October, and she had been very good. She was third to the promising Fludway (Exceed And Excel) on March 7, and before that she was second in late February.
“I think she’ll get over at least a mile or mile, so I’ll have to speak to (Go Bloodstock’s) Steve O’Connor and Sir Owen Glenn’s manager, just to see if we put her aside or carry on. I’ll find out from them.”
Last Straw winning at Warwick Farm | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
A homebred with Dream Appeal
Last Straw continued a brilliant juvenile run this season for Go Bloodstock.
The group had no less than six vested interests in the G1 Golden Slipper on March 18, and this was on top of such winning 2-year-olds this season as Amazonian Lass (More Than Ready {USA}).
The group also had the very quick Red Resistance (Russian Revolution), who was scratched from the Slipper. Last Straw is yet another good one.
The filly was bred by the group from the Manhattan Rain mare Boundary. Boundary raced in the same colours and won three races in 22 lifetime starts, running second in the G3 Vamos S. in 2016.
She began her breeding record in 2017, foaling a filly by Criterion (NZ) and another by that sire the following year. Last Straw was her next foal, and she was covered by Wild Ruler in the spring.
The page is very heavy through the third dam, Dream Appeal (USA) (Valid Appeal {USA}). It features the likes of Charge Forward, Hong Kong hero Southern Legend (Not A Single Doubt) and the smart Georgette Silk (Flying Spur).
For Darley’s Brazen Beau, Last Straw was seasonal winner number 52, and his 145th Australian winner overall. He has sired 33 2-year-old winners in the Southern Hemisphere, and 82 overall from both Southern and Northern Hemisphere crops.
Brazen Beau | Standing at Darley
Brazen Beau stood for $44,000 (inc GST) last spring, his eighth season at stud, and among his good progeny to date are the R. Listed Karaka Million and Group 1 winner On The Bubbles, Zapateo, Exploring and Pretty Brazen.
