Where did the Coolmore winners begin their careers?

Cover image courtesy of Sportpix

The G1 Coolmore Stud S. will be run on November 2 this year. The race has fashioned a wonderful reputation as a stallion making race with winners such as Home Affairs, Brazen Beau, Zoustar, Northern Meteor, Encosta De Lago, Exceedance, Flying Artie, Star Witness, and further back in time, Kaapstad (NZ), Zeditave, Century, and of course Vain won the inaugural race in 1969.

Race history

The race pre-dates Vain’s win, but not in the same format for 3-year-old sprinters. Originally held in the autumn for 2-year-olds, the Ascot Vale S. over 5 furlongs was first run in 1863 won by Freestone (Touchstone). The champion Heroic won the race in 1921, and he would go on to sire 29 stakes winners and win multiple Champion Sire titles.

Star Affair (Star Kingdom {Ire}) won the final Ascot Vale 2YO S. in 1965 and he went on to win the Cox Plate, Caulfield Guineas, Manikato S. and William Reid S. The race then was put on hiatus for three years, before debuting as a race for 3-year-olds in the spring with Vain being the inaugural victor under the new format.

Last year’s winner Ozzmosis won at the first NSW 2-year-old trials

Newgate Farm's newest recruit, Ozzmosis, become the fourth winner for his sireline with his sire Zoustar, his grandsire Northern Meteor and his great-grandsire Encosta De Lago all winning the Coolmore. He was first seen at the very first Official 2YO Trials, where he won.

“We knew very early. He wasn’t the biggest 2-year-old, he was tall but slight, but the closer he got towards turning two, the more idea we got (of his ability). We went to those trials with a fair opinion. He showed a lot that day but was very green. Basically, a lot of raw ability in that trial,” said Bjorn Baker’s racing manager Luke Hilton.

“He had a set back out of that trial which was maybe a blessing in disguise as it let him develop and mature. He came back a bigger, stronger, specimen. When he won on debut, I remember being on the phone to Bjorn, and he said, ‘We’ve got to set this horse for the Coolmore.’ Then we took him to town to show us if he could measure up and he won that, then he went to the paddock and the rest of the plan was for the Coolmore.”

Ozzmosis won on debut over 1100 metres at Gosford as a May 2-year-old, then backed it up with a win in Sydney over the same trip to be an unbeaten juvenile.

Back at three, he won the Listed Heritage S. first-up, then had his first non-winning run when third in the G2 Roman Consul S. From there he went directly to the G1 Coolmore Stud S. which he won.

“After he won the Heritage, there was a hint of The Everest, and we might have run him there if he’d gained a slot, but he didn’t gain a slot. We weren’t opposed to the idea, but also, we weren’t pushing it as we had a nice program anyway. Home Affairs had done it (Heritage S./Coolmore double) before, so we knew it was possible.”

“Winning the Coolmore was massive for us. It established Bjorn as one of Sydney’s leading trainers. He’d won Group 1s before, but this was with a high-profile colt. It was big for Rachel (King) too, she was the first female rider to win the Coolmore.

“Bjorn has been able to lift since Ozzmosis won. He had improved buying power at the sales off the back of it.”

Ozzmosis is the only Coolmore winner to have been seen at the first Official 2YO Trials, while Sepoy, Sunlight (Zoustar) and Alinghi (Encosta De Lago) were all seen at the first Victorian trials at Cranbourne in September of their juvenile season.

When did the Coolmore Stud S. winners first race?

Of the last 20 winners of the Coolmore Stud S. all of them had raced by September of their 3-year-old season.

Table: When did the last 20 G1 Coolmore Stud S. winners have their first start?

Notably, only two of the last 20 winners had their first start at three (both in August), and one of those two did have a trial at two, leaving only the gelding Weekend Hussler (Hussonet {USA}) as completely unsighted as a 2-year-old by the public. Weekend Hussler was fourth on debut at Sale, hardly a result that screamed his future brilliance, but then he figured out this racing game and won five in succession including the G1 Caulfield Guineas before dropping back in trip to win the G1 Coolmore Stud S.

He then won four Group 1 races in succession as an autumn 3-year-old, the Oakleigh Plate, Newmarket H., Randwick Guineas and George Ryder S. to be crowned Champion 3YO for the 2007/08 season. He added the G1 Underwood to his tally at four, retiring in 2010 with 12 wins from 21 starts with earnings over $3 million.

Waller has won five Coolmore Stud S.

It’s no wonder the big stud farms send Chris Waller their expensive colts given that he has won the stallion making G1 Coolmore Stud S. on five occasions in the past 11 years. Zoustar began the winning streak in 2013, and Waller proceeded to win three in succession, with Brazen Beau in 2014 and Japanisme (Choisir) in 2015. September Run (Exceed And Excel) won in 2020 and Home Affairs in 2021 to give Waller the quintet.

Each of the five had different race programs leading into the Coolmore. September Run was the earliest of the group, first out at the trials as a November 2-year-old, and then she ran an ordinary 13th on debut in the R-Listed Inglis Banner 2YO S. September Run improved to run fourth in the G3 Widden S. in February before winning her maiden in May in Sydney at her third start. She then won the Listed Bill Carter S. to end her juvenile season, returning at three with a fifth first up. The speedy filly then put three together in succession finishing her spring 3-year-old campaign with a win in the G1 Coolmore Stud S.

In many respects September Run is an anomaly for Waller’s quintet of winners, as the only one to race as a spring 2-year-old.

Zoustar was the next earliest, trialling in mid-December before having his first race start in April, which he won.

Suman Hedge, who picked Zoustar as a yearling for $140,000 on behalf of Iskander Racing, reflected on the horse's early potential and development under the guidance of Chris Waller. He explained, “He showed a bit of promise as a late 2-year-old, he’d won his first couple of starts and Chris (Waller) sent him to Brisbane.

“He won the Sires’ Produce up there (Queensland), then he ran second in the TJ Smith (JJ Atkins), and was a little bit unlucky in that race. At that time, we thought he might be a Caulfield Guineas type of horse, but Chris was absolutely adamant he was a sprinter, and really wanted to train him that way. Chris thought he’d thrive in those races. He had a short break, then won the Golden Rose and Roman Consul and the Coolmore,” said Hedge.

“I think they did do some genetic testing and he came back as a CC sprinter, which influenced which way to go with him. At that time the Coolmore was still emerging as a big race, while the Guineas was more attractive as the race that spring 3-year-old colts needed to win. It’s all flipped now and the Coolmore is the one to win.

“He performed well in Sydney in the lead in, and he looked on song to go down there, and peaked at that time, that spring. It was quite a big feat that he won. He had seven studs interested in him and they were all vetting him going into the race, can you imagine! To get through that week and the big crowds, it was a decent effort by him.”

Zoustar won by 2l covering the 1200 metres in 1:09.23 on a dead track.

“When I’m looking at stallions, (the Coolmore Stud S.) is one of the best races because the straight means a horse is under pressure all the way, they sprint early, and they need a big heart to perform well. If they’ve performed under those conditions down the straight several times, it shows a lot of ticker.”

Brazen Beau and Home Affairs were both first seen at the 2-year-old trials in January of their juvenile season, with Home Affairs running second in the G3 Canonbury on debut while Brazen Beau won a city race on debut in February.

Of the five, Japanisme was the last of the five to be seen in public, but not by much as the four horses are clustered around that December to February timing. Japanisme had his first trial outing in February of his 2-year-old year and debuted with a third in the city in mid-March.

Table: Chris Waller's five Coolmore Stud S. winners