Millane to debut for Tony Gollan
The former Peter Moody-trained Millane (Zoustar) will debut for Eagle Farm-based trainer Tony Gollan in Saturday’s G3 Gold Coast Guineas on the Sunshine Coast.
The son of Zoustar was a $1.1 million yearling purchase by Peter Moody and the Victorian Alliance (which includes Rosemont Stud and a group of prominent breeders) from the 2021 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale.
Millane | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
There will be no ill feelings as Rosemont Stud’s principal Anthony Mithen shared that Peter Moody suggested the environment change for the 3-year-old colt.
“Moody said if you want to keep Millane a colt, he probably needs another jurisdiction and a different environment,” Mithen said.
“Moody was more than happy to train Millane as a gelding if we wanted as he loves him, but he understood the partnership is about finding colts that can be stallions; this horse is a stakes winner as a juvenile but still has to add to his record to be a stallion in our barn.”
Media Award looks for one last hurrah
The Geelong-based trainer Chris Calthorpe explained that Media Award (Shamus Award) had been transferred to the care of Glenn Thornton, who was previously based at Geelong before moving to the Gold Coast; the mare will run first-up for Thornton in the Listed Silk Stocking at the Sunshine Coast on Saturday. Calthorpe hopes the scenery change will help the 5-year-old mare return to the form that saw her claim the G1 Australasian Oaks at her sixth start.
“We have sent her up there before she retires to see if she can find a bit of form again,” Calthorpe told Racing.com.
“It was too hard for me to go up for two or three months.
“The early part of the Queensland carnival is likely a little weaker than South Australia, and we wanted to avoid wet tracks. Regardless of what happens now, she will be going to stud in a couple of months.”
Co-owner Mark Arrowsmith had put Media Award up for sale through the Inglis Digital platform last year (2022), but she failed to meet her $630,000 reserve.
“Hopefully, she can run well in Queensland and make us proud.”
Rubick juvenile winner at Cranbourne
The Shane Nicholas-trained Anticks (Rubick) broke her maiden at start two on Friday night at Cranbourne.
The 2-year-old filly is the fourth foal from the Fastnet Rock mare Fitna. Anticks is a half-sister to Hypothetical (Pride Of Dubai), who was placed in the G3 Birthday Card S. Furthermore, the filly’s second dam is the More Than Ready (USA) mare Carry On Cutie who won the G1 Champagne S. and G3 Sweet Embrace S.
Antick’s sire, the Swettenham Stud-based Rubick will stand the 2023 breeding season for $25,000 (inc GST). The filly was a $70,000 yearling purchase by Shane Nichols Racing from the draft of Angas Bank at the 2022 Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling Sale.
First Australian winner for the late but great Arrogate
The Robbie Griffiths & Mathew de Kock-trained Stormy Grey (USA) (Arrogate {USA}) became the first Australian winner for the late Juddmonte Farms’ USA-based Arrogate (USA) at Cranbourne on Friday night.
Arrogate had a short but brilliant career with recorded victories in the G1 Travers S. G1 Breeders Cup Classic, beating the star California Chrome (USA) in a head-to-head dual and a memorable G1 Dubai World Cup victory at Meydan.
Arrogate is the sire of seven stakes winners headed by the G1 Kentucky Oaks winner Secret Oath (USA).
Aggressive primed for Sangster
Grahame Begg’s smart sprinting mare Passive Aggressive (Fastnet Rock) is primed to run a bold race in Saturday’s G1 Robert Sangster S. at Morphettville, where she is currently equal favourite with the Ciaron Maher and David Eustace-trained Bella Nipotina (Pride Of Dubai).
However, Begg feels bookmakers have underrated Bella Nipotina, “Bella Nipotina is a good mare. I don’t believe the market is paying her enough respect; she ought to be an outright favourite to be truthful. Bella Nipotina has proper Group 1 form. She’s seasoned, whereas Passive Aggressive has only had seven starts,” Begg told Racing.com.
“We know in the TJ Smith Passive Aggressive was below-par, but she’s been back to the jump-outs and went well. I wouldn’t like to see the track downgraded. It is rated a Soft 6 now and hopefully stays in that range.”
Begg shared that pending Saturday’s performance, connections will contemplate the G1 Goodwood H. for the 4-year-old mare, but the ‘Sangster’ will likely be her final run ahead of the spring.
Inglis Digital May (Early) Online Sale released
The Inglis Digital May (Early) Online Sale catalogue has been released.
A total of 446 lots have been entered for sale, including 182 racehorses (101 race fillies), 145 broodmares, 54 weanlings, 37 racehorse shares, 24 yearlings and one stallion share.
Due to the popularity of the sale and increased catalogue size, the final countdown of bidding will again be brought forward to begin from 10 am AEST on Wednesday, May 10.
Among the highlights is Tricia'o (NZ) (O’Reilly {NZ}), the dam of the Group 2-placed colt Titled (Exceed And Excel), while Tricia’o’s weanling filly, by Savabeel, this week sold for $280,000 at the 2023 Inglis Weanling Sale.
Other highlights include the stakes-winning Sniparoochy (Snippetson), who is being offered as a breeding and racing prospect and the Charge Forward mare Nubian Smile (NZ), who will be offered in foal to sire of the moment Proisir, carrying a three-quarter relation to the exciting Yonce (NZ) (Proisir). There is also a full sister to the dam of In Secret (I Am Invincible), Eloping (Choisir), named Jesse’s Dream offered with a Hanseatic colt foal at foot, and a share in the Aquis Farms-based stallion Lean Mean Machine, whose yearlings have sold up to $380,000.
Fast Company sires a juvenile winner at Wagga
Friday’s Wagga meeting threw up an intriguing result when the Tim Donnelly-trained County Kilkenny (Ire) (Fast Company {Ire}) broke his maiden in Race 1.
The Northern Hemisphere-bred 3-year-old was a 60,000gns (AU$118,000) purchase from the 2021 Tattersalls October Yearling Sale. He is a half-brother to two Australian winners in Waterford (Ire) (Awtaad {Ire}) who has also been placed at Group 2-level and the newly Listed Wagga Wagga Cup winner Wicklow (Ire) (Twilight Son {GB}).
The gelding’s sire Fast Company (Ire) was a rags-to-riches story; after siring the G1 Irish 1000 Guineas winner Jet Setting (Ire), Darley bought the stallion to stand at Darley Europe’s Kildangan Stud, where he stood until his untimely death at the age of 15; Fast Company is currently credited with siring 25 stakes winners.
Mitchell Leek trains his winner
Young Pakenham-based trainer Mitchell Leek celebrated his first winner at Kyneton on Friday with the 5-year-old gelding Castrofrancaru (Americain {USA}) partnered by apprentice jockey Emily Pozman wore down Savvy Valentino (NZ) (Savabeel) in a BM58 over 2800 metres.
Leek’s first winner comes just six days after he claimed the Victorian state boxing title.
“Both events are pretty good thrills, you’ve got 5000 people in a stadium going off, or here you’ve got a horse that you have worked tirelessly with, so they’re both thrilling, and I’m pretty happy,” Leek told Racing.com.
“I was just hoping Castrofrancaru had enough in the locker; today was only his second run in this preparation as he’s had six months off, so it’s a gallant run.”
Leek is the son of fellow Pakenham-based trainers Andrea and John Lee Jnr.
Danny Beasley quintet at Wagga
Multiple Group 1-winning jockey Danny Beasley rode a quintet at Wagga on Friday afternoon.
Dominating the first four races, Beasley partnered with the Tim Donnelly-trainees County Kilkenny in Race 1 and Participator (NZ) (Contributer {Ire}) in Race 4. Beasley also provided trainer Greg Hickman with a double when he won on Unwritten (Written Tycoon) in Race 2 and followed by winning on Packer (Written Tycoon) in Race 3.
Sir Dragonet’s half-sister a winner on debut
Francis-Henri Graffard-trained Les Pavots (Ire) (No Nay Never {USA}) debuted at Chantilly, winning impressively. She is raced by the newly established partnership of Craig Bernick and Haras d’Etreham.
Haras d’Etreham’s Nicolas de Chambure told TDN Europe that the partnership (Haras d'Etreham and Craig Bernick) had privately purchased three yearling fillies from Coolmore last year, one of which was Les Pavots.
“We do all these deals through Hubie De Burgh, and it was a big team effort with Hubie and Craig to buy those fillies from Coolmore,” de Chambure said. “It's the first one of the three to race, and it's a great start to that partnership.”
Les Pavots is a half-sister to the late G1 WS Cox Plate and G1 Tancred S. winner Sir Dragonet (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) and his full-brother Sir Lucan (Ire), who won the Listed Randwick City S.
