Cover image courtesy of Australian Turf Club
Albany Road in red hot form on autumn return
Exceed And Excel gelding Albany Road has hit his straps on return as a 3-year-old, demonstrated by an assertive win in the fifth race at Kensington on Wednesday. Trained by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott for a syndicate headed by Suman Hedge and Rosemont Stud, the gelding was a juvenile winner at Grafton in July and enjoyed the spring off to mature.
The break has done him the world of good, and after two December trials, Albany Road was ready to repeat his mid-year effort on resumption. Out wide was the place to be, having jumped from barrier seven in an eight-horse field, and the gelding appreciated having the breathing room when within the final furlong, galloping home to deliver connections victory by three quarters of a length over Happy Bellie (I Am Invincible).
Albany Road | Image courtesy of Georgia Young Photography
It’s a great addition to the pages of his older sisters G3 David Coles AM Stakes winner Flyer (Exceedance) and G3 SAJC Breeders' Stakes winner Treasurway (Starspangledbanner), both juvenile stakes-winning fillies. Flyer remains in work with Jason Warren, while Treasurway delivered her first foal at Rosemont Stud in 2025 - a colt by Home Affairs - and subsequently visited new shuttle stallion Henry Longfellow (Ire).
Sales: Albany Road was a $650,000 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale purchase for Suman Hedge Bloodstock (FBAA), Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, and Kestrel Thoroughbreds from the draft of Rosemont Stud.
Pedigree: The son of Exceed And Excel is the third winner for his dam, the four-time winner Miss Toorak Flyer (Toorak Toff), making him a three-quarter-brother to the aforementioned Flyer and a half to Stakes winner Treasurway.
Albany Road as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
Miss Toorak Flyer’s dam Rosemont Flyer (Bel Esprit) is a half to 11-time winner and dual Listed victor Secret Flyer (Secret Savings {USA}) and the family also extends to the likes of multiple Group winner Luvaluva (Mastercraftsman {Ire}).
Miss Toorak Flyer’s Starspangledbanner colt has been withdrawn from the Gold Coast this year, but there are plenty of sales still to come where she might appear. After delivering a Dundeel (NZ) filly in 2025, she visited Rosemont’s new recruit Schwarz.
In a weird pedigree cross over on Wednesday at Kensington, Albany Road’s sire Exceed And Excel is the damsire of Gorgeous (NZ) (So You Think {NZ}), and So You Think (NZ) was the damsire of maiden winning 3-year-old filly Skirmish (Smart Missile) on the same card.
Beautiful Kensington debut from Gorgeous
The well-named 3-year-old Gorgeous (So You Think) was well favoured for her racing debut at Kensington on Wednesday, and she dutifully delivered on the promise she had made with two recent speedy trials.
The David Pfieffer-trained filly jumped from barrier four, but found herself having to sneak round the outside of the pack to gain ground and entered the straight as the widest of them all. Jockey Jason Collett wasted no time asking the filly for more effort once straightening and she pricked her ears on the way home, prevailing over Listed Woodlands Stakes runner-up Let’s Go Barbie (Yes Yes Yes) by a head, with Double Vision (Shalaa {Ire}) another half-length away in third.
Syndicator Kurrinda Bloodstock have enjoyed a good run with daughters of the late So You Think; in 2021, they spent $125,000 at the Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale to acquire So You Pence from the draft of Supreme Thoroughbreds, and the mare has subsequently won four races for connections, running fifth in the $2 million Kosciuscko this past spring before winning the $250,000 Barn Dance on Big Dance day to take her prizemoney to over $280,000.
In 2023, they purchased Queen’s Rhapsody for $160,000 from Segenhoe Stud at the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale, and the mare strung together four metropolitan second placings in a row over her first four starts before breaking her maiden in May.
Queen’s Rhapsody is a half-sister to Kurrinda pin-up horse Boston Rocks (Hellbent), the winner of over $600,000 in prizemoney and seven races, including the Listed Village Stakes in November, beating subsequent Listed Christmas Stakes victor Hedged (Capitalist). Kurrinda Bloodstock will have to head back to Melbourne this year to buy the Tassort half-sister to both, who is Lot 366 in Segenhoe Stud's draft.
Sales: Kurrinda Bloodstock, David Pfieffer Racing, and Koolman Bloodstock combined at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale two years ago to secure the filly from the draft of Segenhoe Stud for $230,000.
Gorgeous as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
Pedigree: Gorgeous is a half-sister to G3 Schweppervescence Handicap winner and sire Bellevue Hill, and takes her dam’s record to eight runners, seven of which are winners. Dam Bellevue Girl (Exceed And Excel) is a winning full sister to G3 HDF McNeil Stakes victress and Group-placed juvenile Sugar Babe.
Triple Group 2-winning second dam On Type (Zeditave) has also produced Listed performer Muscovado (Big Brown), dam of stakes performers Aidensfield (Dissident) and Sweetened (Zoustar), and the dam of Listed Dalrello Stakes winner Typing (Sebring). Gorgeous is Bellevue Girl's last foal.
Startantes family the gift that keeps on giving at Doomben
Robert Heathcote has cultivated the family of Cantantes (Just Awesome) and her daughters for quite some time - most fruitfully with her granddaughter G1 Tattersall's Tiara victress Startantes (Star Turn) - and the family delivered another female winner on Wednesday at Doomben.
Three-year-old Carbonara (Star Turn) is out of a Falvelon half-sister to Funtantes (Easy Rocking), Startantes’ Group 2-winning dam, and she took home her second career victory in the seventh race on the card. The filly overcame the favourite Hunter’s Mate (Sun City) by a neck to win the 1200-metre dash, with Enforceable (Star Turn) hot on their heels in third.
Video: Watch Carbonara win at Doomben, video courtesy of Racing Queensland
Her victory cemented a race to race double for Heathcote, who won the prior event with 4-year-old Estrondo (Spirit Of Boom).
Sales: As with her close relations, Carbonara is a homebred for Heathcote.
Pedigree: Carbonara’s dam Alle Vongole (Falvelon) was a three-time winner for Heathcote and is a full sister to another star in the family, 12-time winner and five-time Listed victor Excellantes. Ten of Cantantes’ foals are winners and all but one of them multiple times. Funtantes has also produced six multiple winners to date, including Startantes and G3 Ken Russell Memorial Classic runner-up Fabulantes (Star Turn).
Carbonara | Image courtesy of Trackside Photography
Startantes is one of the few lines of this family that Heathcote has relinquished, and she sold to Widden Stud for $1.15 million in 2024 at the Inglis Chairman’s Sale. She missed to Zoustar in her first season at stud, before visiting both him and Anamoe in 2025.
Alle Vongole has produced four fillies to date, including an Anders filly in the spring, after which she visited Spirit Of Boom.
