Cover image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
Gooree Park’s red and black striped silks are synonymous with Australian racing and many good horses have carried them to big-race success - Desert War (Desert King {Ire}), Don Eduardo (NZ) and Northern Meteor, among countless others.
Breeding and racing good horses for the late Eduardo Cojuangco Jr was a passion for him until his passing in 2020 at the age of 85.
It was heart-warming for racing fans to see the big-race winners from the last two Saturday’s saluting in the Gooree silks. First, there was the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott-trained Tropical Squall, a daughter of the Goore Park-bred Group 1 winner Prized Icon; the filly joined her sire as an elite-level winner when she stormed away with the Flight S.
Tropical Squall, winner of the G1 Flight S. | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
Saturday just past, the filly was joined by the exciting I Am Invincible colt King’s Gambit, who reminded all of his ability in the G2 Roman Consul S.
Juban helping out
Although things have changed at Gooree Park, Cojuangco’s granddaughter, Michelle Juban, carries on the legacy.
With Juban’s father, the former general manager of Gooree Park, Mike Barrera, retired, she has been helping manage the remaining broodmare portfolio and horses in training.
Michelle Juban
“I’m just helping out with the farm at the moment, as Dad (Mike Barrera) has retired,” Juban explained to TTR AusNZ.
“But Saturday was extraordinary as King’s Gambit was actually one of the last horses my grandfather (Eduardo Cojuangco Jr) bred before he passed away.”
“... Saturday was extraordinary as King’s Gambit was actually one of the last horses my grandfather (Eduardo Cojuangco Jr) bred before he passed away.” - Michelle Juban
King’s Gambit, a son of the reigning Champion Sire of Australia, I Am Invincible, is the fourth foal from the Gooree Park homebred Sultry Feeling (Encosta De Lago).
Sultry Feeling was a classy galloper for the operation, claiming victories in the G3 Birthday Card S. and the Triscay S.
King’s Gambit is raced by Gooree Park and Henry Field’s Newgate Farm, alongside other prominent owners/operations: China Horse Club, Go Bloodstock Australia, Starlight Racing, Grant Bloodstock, Horse Ventures, Carpe Diem, Aston Bloodstock and Nick Vass Bloodstock.
The colt carries a hybrid of the Gooree Park silks and Newgate Farm silks.
Newgate connection
Juban explained the connection with Field’s Newgate Farm.
“The mare Sultry Feeling went to Newgate because we planned to breed her to one of the stallions there. She was in foal at the time, and when the foal (King’s Gambit) was born, there was quite a big push from the farm to sell him,” she said.
“Henry Field approached my dad and basically said he was interested in the colt. My dad said, ‘Look, instead of selling the horse, why don’t we sell 50 per cent to Newgate and their syndicates and then keep the rest of the horse.’
“Henry Field approached my dad and basically said he was interested in the colt. My dad said, ‘Look, instead of selling the horse, why don’t we sell 50 per cent to Newgate and their syndicates and then keep the rest of the horse.’” - Michelle Juban
“So that’s what happened with King’s Gambit.”
Barrera has faith in Icon
The G1 Flight S. victress Tropical Squall story was quite different.
She is a daughter of Prized Icon, who claimed the G1 VRC Derby and the G1 Champagne S. in the Goore Park colours when trained by Juban’s brother-in-law, James Cummings. Although Gai Waterhouse, who would train the filly had a strong association with the sire and family.
Prized Icon | Standing at Kooringal Stud
Prized Icon was a son of the Gooree Park-bred Listed winner Tropical Affair (Danehill {USA}). She would prove an outstanding producer for the farm.
The son of More Than Ready (USA), still owned by Gooree Park, is standing at Kooringal Park.
“We were at the Magic Millions sales in 2021. We had sold a few horses there, and my dad was looking through the catalogue because we bought a couple of horses and were potentially looking to add a few more.
“My dad said, ‘Oh, there’s some Prized Icon weanlings here. I’m going to have a look at them and pick a few, and if they’re nice, we will support our stallion.’ So he came back to us with ones he liked, and I said, ‘You know, I don’t know if that’s such a great idea. Don’t be ridiculous. We have the stallion; why do you want to buy his progeny like we can just send mares to him.’
Tropcial Squall as a weanling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
“But he went around with our vet, John Peatfield, and Andrew Baddock, who was the stud manager at the time. My Husband and I followed, and I looked at the two horses he had picked, and Dad wanted the vet to go over them.
“Dad was adamant it would be really good for the stallion if we can bring a couple home. He told me he really liked two of them, one on conformation and one on pedigree.
“Tropical Squall reminded Dad a lot of Prized Icon. She looked like him; she was a bit lanky with big ears and just really had his look as a young horse.
“Tropical Squall reminded Dad a lot of Prized Icon. She looked like him; she was a bit lanky with big ears and just really had his look as a young horse.” - Michelle Juban
“So, he bought the horses, paid $16,000 for Tropical Squall, and took them back to the farm. I made fun of them, and then a few other people made fun of my dad because he picked these two horses, and he just would say watch and give them a couple of years.
“Tropical Squall went into training with Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott. Gai returned to us and said, ‘She’s got a bit of talent in this one.’ Still, I didn’t believe her.
“Then she won a trial one day, and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, that was impressive,’ Gai and dad would just keep saying wait, and she’ll get better.
Andrew Baddock, Santi Juban, Michelle Barrera-Juban, Mike Barrera, David Chester and John Peatfield | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
“So, when the filly won the Flight Stakes, it was so special and even more so because my dad was in Canada visiting his mum, and it was his birthday.
“And when King’s Gambit won, it was my husband and my anniversary. It was very sentimental for both horses to win on special occasions.”
Oaks and Coolmore tilts?
Although Juban wouldn’t be surprised to see Tropical Squall push on towards a G1 VRC Oaks, she is happy to leave those decisions to Waterhouse and her team.
“Gai has had so much success with our horses. So, I think we’re very much guided by what Gai recommends for the horses.
“She probably has been the longest serving trainer for Gooree, and she knows our horses back to front, inside out and upside down.
“And she had a lot to do with Prized Icon, so she’s quite in the know when it comes to that family as well.”
Gai Waterhouse | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Juban looks forward to seeing King’s Gambit continue winning now that the colt is learning to harness his energy under the traineeship of Peter and Paul Snowden.
“Racehorses were really my grandfather’s passion. It was so nice to see the last he bred in King’s Gambit win on Saturday,” Juban told TTR AusNZ.
“Hopefully, he continues to learn, as we would love to run in the G1 Coolmore Stud Stakes with him.
“My grandfather would love that he’s such a character. He always said, ‘The best ones are the toughest ones. So, they’re the ones that are going to give you the most headaches, but they’ll come out in front.’”
“My grandfather would love that he’s (King's Gambit) such a character. He always said, ‘The best ones are the toughest ones. So, they’re the ones that are going to give you the most headaches, but they’ll come out in front.’” - Michelle Juban
Gooree not lost to industry
Although on a reduced scale, with Cojuangco selling much of the Gooree Park empire off, the farm will continue to breed and utilise the historic property at Mudgee.
“A lot of my grandfather’s broodmares and a lot of the racehorse were sold when he passed away,” Juban said.
Andrew Baddock and Edward Cojuangco Jr | Image courtesy of Sportpix
“He had actually planned to do that. He was very passionate about horses, but he knew how expensive it would be. So, he had a plan in place to sell his ‘hobby stock’, which was quite a bunch of blue blood mares.
“But he was keen to see them succeed, and if it wasn’t under the Gooree banner, he was happy for it to be elsewhere, and he always got a kick out his horses winning whether it was one he sold or still owned.
“... he (Eduardo Cojuangco Jr) was keen to see them succeed, and if it wasn’t under the Gooree banner, he was happy for it to be elsewhere, and he always got a kick out his horses winning whether it was one he sold or still owned.” - Michelle Juban
“It’s nice to continue that. So, we are still breeding horses; many are with a bit of a joint venture with Newgate, but we still have our own mares.
“The ones shared with Newgate will run in the colours of King’s Gambit, the Newgate cap and the Gooree body.
“And my grandmother is still around and keen to see the red and black still. She loves it when we go to the races, and sometimes we will see horses carrying the G S C brand that have won, and we’ll send her the pictures, and she gets a big kick out of that still.
“Not long ago, we opened the farm up as a commercial stud now. We do take in other mares, and we’ve separated, so the property’s divided into two. Now, we have the racing complex, which has adjusted horses for spelling and pre-training.
“Not long ago, we opened the farm up as a commercial stud now. We do take in other mares, and we’ve separated, so the property’s divided into two. Now, we have the racing complex, which has adjusted horses for spelling and pre-training.” - Michelle Juban
“And that runs as a separate operation to the breeding; we do stand Your Song and leave the other stallions with Twin Hills and Kooringal.
“But yeah, we have client mares that come onto the farm and travel with our mares to whatever stallions that we’re using.
“Gooree still does all the prep for that and foals down the mares, handles the foals, the weanlings and prepares for the sales whether it’s a weanling or yearling sale.
The pre-training side of Gooree Park Stud | Image courtesy of Gooree Park Stud
“Gooree Park still does a lot of education on the farm. But we send the horses away to have their first work under the saddle, and then they return to Gooree and continue their education at the racing complex.”
