Written by Lewis Lesbirel
Cover image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
Three juvenile heats took centre stage at the Warwick Farm trials on Wednesday morning, where a pair of 2-year-olds from the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott stable sauntered to wide-margin victories. A filly by Leneva Park’s first-season sire Royal Meeting (Ire) also caught the eye in her first public outing for trainer Nathan Doyle.
Following on from a season which saw the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott stable saddle up a record number of 2-year-old wins for as far back as the history books could tell them, they have picked up where they left off in no uncertain terms this year.
Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
The stable has the short-price favourite for Saturday’s $1 million Golden Gift at Rosehill Gardens in Shangri La Express (Alabama Express) and judging by the action at the Warwick Farm trials on Wednesday, they have plenty more juveniles waiting in the wings for the upcoming 2-year-old riches over the next few months.
There’s a Storm coming
The first of the three juvenile heats of the morning was taken out in emphatic style by exciting colt Storm Boy, a son of US Triple Crown hero Justify (USA), who was purchased by his trainers in conjunction with Bruce Slade’s Kestrel Thoroughbreds for $460,000 at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale in January.
Storm Boy, who created a huge impression when winning his first barrier trial by 3.3l ar Rosehill Gardens last month, was given a solid hit-out by Regan Bayliss to beat Godolphin’s regally bred colt Skogafoss (Lonhro) in Heat 10, who is out of a half-sister to Champion 2-Year-Old and 3-Year-Old Miss Finland (Redoute’s Choice), by 5.76l, while Yulong’s $700,000 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale purchase Growing Empire (Zoustar), was a length further adrift in third.
The first foal out of the city-winning Fastnet Rock mare Pelican (NZ), Storm Boy is a grandson of NZ Horse of the Year and Champion Sprinter Seachange (NZ) (Cape Cross {Ire}), whose seven Group 1 wins included four as a 5-year-old mare. As such, it’s a bit of a surprise that Storm Boy is showing such precocity according to Slade, who fell in love with the son of Justify as soon as he first laid eyes on him.
“He is a horse that, even as a yearling, you thought he could be anything one day,” Slade told The Thoroughbred Report. “He just had the frame, structure, depth and action, and as we have learned now he has the attitude and action under saddle too, which is great.
“He (Storm Boy) is a horse that, even as a yearling, you thought he could be anything one day.” - Bruce Slade
“I will say he is maybe surprising us with how early he is doing it, given that he’s by Justify out of Fastnet Rock daughter of Seachange. They’re champions on both sides of the pedigree, but they’re horses that were perhaps better 3-year-olds than 2-year-olds, and may have even been better as 4-year-olds.
“He’s got plenty of scope, so it’s exciting to see him do it early, but we’re very mindful that it has only been in trials so far. I know Gai and Adrian are very keen to make it count at the races as well as the trials.
Storm Boy as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
“Today you never really saw Regan ask him for an effort, just to get a bit more fitness under his belt and ready him for raceday for when the pressure does come on, so he knows how to respond when asked.”
Slade revealed that Storm Boy, who was identified by Coolmore’s racing and bloodstock manager John Kennedy as a horse of great promise in Sunday’s edition of The Thoroughbred Report, will now attempt to break his maiden in Sydney in the coming weeks, before being set on a path to the R. Listed Magic Millions 2YO Classic on the Gold Coast in January.
A tilt at the G1 Golden Slipper S. in the autumn is not being ruled out either, such is the regard in which he is held by his trainers.
Bruce Slade | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“Farnan, who won the Slipper for Gai and Adrian, was able to contest both races, and obviously Capitalist did it as well, so we know they can do it, but we’ll just try and get his debut off to the right start first and go from there, provided that he is a happy horse both mentally and physically,” Slade said.
“Gai and Adrian have a really high opinion of him and I know John (Kennedy) really liked the horse as a yearling himself, so fair dues to John.
“Physically we have always been impressed by him and thought he might have the right biomechanics and engine, but it’s nice to see that coupled with a great mental attitude and a horse who just wants to be there.
“Physically we have always been impressed by him (Storm Boy) and thought he might have the right biomechanics and engine, but it’s nice to see that coupled with a great mental attitude...” - Bruce Slade
“So far so good, but we don’t want to count our chickens before they’ve hatched.”
A surprise package
The Waterhouse-Bott stable has dominated the juvenile trials in Sydney from the word go this season, and moments after Storm Boy sauntered to a 5.76l success in Heat 10, the all-conquering duo unearthed another potential contender for the R. Listed Magic Millions 2YO Classic in the shape of Toque (Street Boss {USA}) - another Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale purchase by her trainers and Kestrel Thoroughbreds, only this time for $200,000.
Bred by A-List Stud, Toque is by Darley stallion Street Boss (USA) and out of the winning Exceed And Excel mare Gorgons, who is a half-sister to the dam of Newgate Farm’s young stallion Profiteer, the R. Listed Inglis Millennium-winning son of Capitalist who covered 136 mares during his debut season at stud last year.
This is also the family of Listed Maribyrnong Trial winner and now Kingstar Farm-based stallion Unite And Conquer, and despite a host of precocious speed influences in the family, Slade revealed that he was once again left pleasantly surprised with how well the daughter of Street Boss drew away from Deep Field filly Deep Joy to score by 7l eased down, posting the fastest time of all the 815-metre heats in the process.
“I thought she was really, really good,” Slade said of Toque. “Interestingly enough she has been doing everything right at home, but we just feel like we’ve got a really good group of well-educated 2-year-olds at the moment, and there’s not a heap between a few of them, so it’s hard to know how they stack up against others.
“I must say going into today, Gai and Adrian thought she was going to go well, but they might have been a bit surprised with just how easily she did it.
“I must say going into today, Gai (Waterhouse) and Adrian (Bott) thought she (Toque) was going to go well, but they might have been a bit surprised with just how easily she did it (7l).” - Bruce Slade
“Of course, we don’t know what she was running against, but her time was very sharp for a filly having her first trial, and I thought Regan didn’t really ask her much of an effort either, I thought she carried him to the line.
“It’s exciting for the Valerie Group, who have some nice fillies in the 3-year-old crop. I’m really hoping that she is another nice stakes filly for them, touch wood.”
Having enjoyed plenty of success with the likes of Platinum Jubilee (Zoustar), Sicilian (I Am Invincible) and Taormina (Written Tycoon) last season, the Valerie Group also has G3 Gimcrack S. fifth Alinea (Written Tycoon) to enjoy alongside Toque this year, and Slade is hopeful that should the latter make the field for the R. Listed Magic Millions 2-Year-Old Classic in January, she can go one place better than Platinum Jubilee managed for the same connections last year.
Toque as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
“She might trial again and then maybe head towards the Calaway Gal in Brisbane to try chase some black-type pre-Christmas, and again she’s a Magic Millions filly, so if she can hold together, she might find herself in that great race too, with some luck,” he added.
“Gai trained Danglissa, so it’s a family from which we have had a bit of success with the fillies.”
“She (Toque) might trial again and then maybe head towards the Calaway Gal in Brisbane to try chase some black-type pre-Christmas...” - Bruce Slade
A notable filly making her second public appearance in this trial was Godolphin juvenile Loblolly (Lonhro), who is the first foal out of the operation’s G1 Golden Slipper S. heroine Kiamichi (Sidestep).
Loblolly was given a quiet time of things under Rachel King and came home last of the five runners, 9.17l off the winner.
A Royal introduction
The final juvenile heat of the morning, another for the fillies over 815 metres, contained no representation from the Waterhouse-Bott stable, and a filly from Nathan Doyle’s Newcastle operation, Body Of Venus (Royal Meeting {Ire}) took full advantage to score handsomely by 2.15l.
Ridden by Tom Sherry, Body Of Venus displayed far too much speed for her rivals and was eased right down in the closing stages, while the James Cummings-trained duo Thames (Lonhro) and Zeitung (Exceed And Excel) worked home together nicely to occupy the placings, with a nose separating the pair on the line.
Body Of Venus is from the first crop of Leneva Park’s undefeated Group 1-winning 2-year-old Royal Meeting (Ire), whose yearlings sold for up to $240,000 earlier this year. Royal Meeting’s only runner thus far, Hayasugi, is already a stakes performer having finished a gallant runner-up to runaway winner Bold Bastille (Brazen Beau) in last month’s R. Listed Inglis Banner at The Valley.
Retained to race by her breeders Seymour Bloodstock having been passed in at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale, Body Of Venus is a half-sister to the stakes-placed Call It A Day (Domesday) and descends from the same family as this year’s impressive G3 Breeders' Plate winner Espionage (Zoustar), who was purchased by bloodstock agent James Harron for a cool $1 million as a yearling.
Body Of Venus as a yearling | Image courtesy of Inglis
Best of the rest
Other notable trials included that of G1 Toorak H. placegetter Military Expert (Redoute’s Choice), who led home talented performers Eleven Eleven (Fastnet Rock) and Money From The Sky (Frankel {GB}) to win the opening heat over 1209 metres in decisive fashion, clocking a time of 1:13.22 in the process.
Elsewhere, Trapeze Artist 3-year-old Confringo, the half-brother to Blue Gum Farm’s freshman stallion Sejardan, looked the goods in Heat 3 over the same distance on what was his first trial for Robert Quinn since switching from the Gary Portelli stable.
The regally bred Il Tevere (Dundeel {NZ}), a three-quarter brother to Arrowfield’s first-season sire Castelvecchio and the first foal out of the G1 Spring Champion S. heroine Maid Of Heaven (Smart Missile), also created a favourable impression when taking out Heat 4 by over 5l for the Richard Litt and Tyler Schiller combination.
