Best in the west: The proven and emerging Perth stallions

Cover image courtesy of Darling View Thoroughbreds

The Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale is coming up at the end of this week, and the catalogue is a typical mix of stallions across the 358-lot catalogue. In 2026, nineteen local stallions make up 253 lots in the catalogue, with 59 eastern state-based stallions accounting for 101 lots. The lone New Zealand based sire Tarzino (NZ) has four lots in the sale.

West Australia hosts 78 of Australia’s 600 plus stakes races each season, and the tyranny of distance means their locally based stallions have less opportunities to compete for black type than on the eastern seaboard.

A spotlight on Rommel

A stakes double for Rommel on Saturday puts him firmly in the limelight ahead of the Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale. With four yearlings on offer at the sale, he is one of 79 different stallions with progeny catalogued for the two-day sale.

Winner of the G2 Western Australian Guineas, Rommel went into the weekend with two stakes winners being full siblings G3 WA Sires’ Produce Stakes winner Snowdome and R. Listed Magic Millions 3YO Trophy winner Pixie Chix.

He emerged on Saturday night after an incredible hour of racing having doubled his stakes record after Maria Lucia won the R. Listed Magic Millions 2YO Classic and Twisted Steel joined Pixie Chix on the R. Listed Magic Millions 3YO Trophy winner’s board. It’s a reasonable effort for a sire whose largest crop are his current juveniles with 39 foals born in 2023.

Three first season sires spark interest

Three local first season sires will make their debut at this sale, being Home Affairs’ half-brother Aysar, Lightsaber, and Marine One. Aysar and Lightsaber have 26 yearlings apiece in the catalogue, while Marine One has 19.

Geisel Park Stud must be thrilled with the way Home Affairs has started his stud career as they stand his stakes-winning half-brother Aysar, a son of Deep Field, whose first yearlings should be sought after in Perth.

A winner at two, Aysar ran second to Ole Kirk in the G1 Caulfield Guineas at three, training on to win the Listed Chautauqua Stakes as an older horse. He was popular in his first season, standing at $8800 including GST, with 61 live foals. Of those, 26 are catalogued for the Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale with plenty of nice local pedigrees on offer.

One yearling who is interesting is Lot 52, the second foal of Poker Face (Snippetson) whose first foal is juvenile winner All On Red (Doubtland), and Poker Face is a winning half-sister to boom juvenile Karuta Queen (Not A Single Doubt).

Lightsaber, who stands alongside Playing God at Darling View Thoroughbreds, is a G2 VRC Sires’ Produce Stakes winning son of Zoustar. He trained on at three to add a Group 3 win and place behind Hitotsu in the G1 Australian Guineas.

Lightsaber has 64 live foals in his first crop of yearlings, and he stood at a fee of $6600 including GST in 2023. Like Aysar, he also has 26 yearlings catalogued in the sale, including Lot 337 who is a colt from a half-sister to the dam of recent Group 1 winner Sepals (Calyx {GB}).

“He's well represented in the sale for his first year and there's been some really good comments about his stock on grounds here already. I've had a number of trainers that have come around and said that they've seen a really nice horse by him. We are really proud of what he's been able to have here at his first sale and hopefully, they sell well and, and go to the right homes,” said Atwell.

“He covered over 100 mares in his first year and a lot of breeders bred to him. We've also got some good partners in the horse. There's a lot of drafts with a Lightsaber.”

Marine One placed in the G3 Maribyrnong Plate at two, training on to win the G2 Rubiton Stakes at three. The son of Capitalist is a full brother to Group 3 winner Cannonball with both out of Listed winning juvenile Golconda (Snitzel).

“We are impressed with how he has stamped his stock. You can see him in all his progeny, not only physically but they’ve got his head in terms of his personality. They look well, they eat well, and they are easy to work with,” said Colin Brown of Mogumber Park Stud.

“The feedback we are getting that they are nice horses who are strong without being heavy. They have an athleticism about them. What he’s delivered with his yearlings, we couldn’t be happier with. They want to be racehorses.”

And Mogumber Park Stud have an added incentive for anyone who buys a Marine One yearling from them in 2026.

“Anyone who buys a Marine One from us in 2026 and the horse wins before the 2027 sale will get $20,000 from us to spend on another yearling in our 2027 draft. We did this with Safeguard when we launched him too. It’s our way of saying thank you to those who supported him.”

Sixteen of Marine One’s 19 yearlings in the sale are in the Mogumber Park Stud draft. That’s 16 chances to get a discount on next year’s yearling. Lot 322 is a colt from the family of Maria Lucia, as is Lot 145, while Lot 197 is a colt from a young Pierro half-sister to last year’s exciting juvenile Shining Smile (Spirit Of Boom).

Splintex is the lone second season sire

West Australia has only one active second season sire. Darling View Thoroughbreds’ Splintex has his oldest crop as 2-year-olds to make him the only second season sire in the west. The G2 Arrowfield 3YO Sprint winning son of Snitzel has made a solid start at this early point in his career with the winner They’reallsisters.

They’reallsisters ran second to Maria Lucia in Saturday’s R. Listed Magic Millions 2YO Classic, while Splintex also provided third placed Yamanex.

“He got second and third in the Magic Millions race on Saturday. He didn't quite get across the line, but they're showing good potential and good early ability. Splintex didn’t win his first race until he was a May 2-year-old,” said Atwell.

“They're a bit earlier than himself. And they are well represented in the sale with a very even line of horses. I think the matings for this crop are a little bit different (to his first crop) as people have worked out what mares suit him better.”

He has 26 yearlings catalogued for this week’s sale. Lot 216’s dam is closely related to Rey Magnerio (Magnus) who was third in this year’s G1 Winterbottom Stakes, while one for the linebreeders is Lot 114, a colt who carries three lines of Redoute’s Choice up front and whose dam is closely related to Group 2 winner Haut Brion Her (Zoustar).

Lot 350 is a half-brother to $800,000 earner and triple Listed winner Acromantula (Written Tycoon), out of juvenile Listed winner For Your Eyes Only (Bletchley Park).

Playing God dominates the numbers

Proven sire Playing God has a mammoth 52 yearlings in the Perth sale, which is 57% of his 2024 foal crop of 92 foals. Since retiring to stud in 2014, the tough dual Group 1 winner has sired 25 stakes winners from only 270 runners. With such an outstanding strike rate, his fee has risen steadily from $6600 including GST in his first season to a peak of $49,500 including GST in 2024.

His current yearlings, sired at a $33,000 fee, are also his largest crop. Western Australian runners only get three cracks at a Group 1 race, and for the past four years, the G1 Winterbottom Stakes has gone to eastern-state trained horses. This impacts Playing God’s ability to translate stakes winners into Group 1 winners but he does have two being Kay Cee and Bustler.

“Playing God keeps going from strength to strength. Playin’It Sweet won the Listed Challenge Stakes on Sunday at Ascot, which is her second stakes win this prep. She’s going super, a great tough little filly,” said Brent Atwell.

“He’s got a really good number of yearlings in the sale, and no doubt they'll be highly sought after. Every trainer wants one in their yard. How can you deny he’s the champion sire?

“They show enough early, and then train on at three, four, five, six, seven. They keep winning races. His horses are like a fine bottle of wine, just gets better with age.”

His recent stakes winners include Listed Cyril Flower Stakes winner Almighty Class, dual Listed winner Playin’It Sweet, while Rope Them In added the Listed Crawford Stakes to his record this spring.

Four other West Australian sires have sired Group 1 winners being Awesome Rock (who has 11 yearlings in the sale), Manhattan Rain (three yearlings), Shooting To Win (four yearlings), and Super Easy (NZ).

Table: Top 10 West Australian sires in the Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale catalogue by number of progeny