Our Boy Malachi
Our Boy Malachi true Champion
Our Boy Malachi
Top Echelon a sire who stood the 2014 season on a fee of $4,000 at the Bob Wood and Sheridan Victor conducted Oakwood Farm at Haigslea, forty minutes' drive west of Brisbane, could have the opportunity of providing the quinella in one of this year's historic Brisbane sprints, the $750,000 Doomben10,000 (May 23) or the $2million Stradbroke (June 6).
Success in the Stradbroke would also provide Top Echelon with his second successive winner of the latter race. Either feat would be a remarkable achievement for a sire standing on a modest fee.
Both races this year are over 1350m and at Doomben, because the adjacent Eagle Farm is under reconstruction. Normally the Stradbroke is hosted over 1400m at Eagle Farm.
Both Central Queensland bred geldings of humble origins raced by their breeders, two performers by Top Echelon who could challenge each other this year are Our Boy Malachi, a 6-year-old who was enjoying his seventeenth win in nineteen starts when he easily defeated a strong field of sprinters in the $150,000 Group 3 Hall Mark Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on April 18, and year older River Lad, the winner of last year's Stradbroke.
Bred and raced by Childers brahman cattle breeders Sarna Pty Ltd (Ray Anderson) and trained by Natalie McCall at the Sunshine Coast, River Lad was racing for the 41st time when he returned to racing after a six months break in the $200,000 Group 2 Victory Stakes at the Gold Coast on Saturday. He tailed the field home, but, going on his record, a big improvement during the winter would not surprise.
In earning $1,771,500, River Lad has won13 races, including the Stradbroke, BRC Sprint-Gr.3, W.J. Healy Stakes-Gr.3 in Brisbane and Bribie Handicap-LR and a $100,000 Quality at the Gold Coast. He finished a nose second in another crack at the Healy, a neck in the Prime Minister's Cup at the Gold Coast and was also runner up in the Group 2 Expressway at Randwick.
Coincidentally, one of his early wins was at Rockhampton, the launching pad for the racing career of Our Boy Malachi. Prepared at Rockhampton for locals, the Donovan family, for his first 15 outings by John O'Sing, he got tagged the Rocky Rocket in winning 13 of them. The first was at Gympie by 11.5 lengths, eight on the home track – margins up seven lengths – and one of them at Eagle Farm.
Late last year, Our Boy Malachi was transferred to the Hawkes stables at Rosehill and since then has lit up Sydney in winning all four outings, three of them stakes, by clear margins. He is booked into three Group 1 sprints at Doomben and could receive a Bernborough like reception on return home to Queensland.
At the height of his powers at six in1946 when trained in Sydney, Queensland bred Bernborough, one revered as the Toowoomba Terror for his exploits in that city, had two starts for wins under huge imposts in Brisbane. They were appearances in the Doomben 10,000 (10 stone 5 lbs - 65.7 kg) and Doomben Cup (10 stone 11lbs – 68-5 kg).
A three-quarter brother to a Top Echelon colt which was purchased by Rockhampton trainer Bryan Dixon for $10,000 at the Capricornia Yearling Sale on April 12, Our Boy Malachi is from Rusticate, a handy Brisbane juvenile by Sequalo's sire Rustic Amber.
A Victorian bred grey son of the Mr. Prospector grandson Umatilla and from Advisory, a grandaughter by1990 Melbourne Cup Kingston Rule (USA) of Sunset Sue, a stakes winning sister to Gunsynd, Top Echelon was a prominent Brisbane juvenile in 2001-02.
He looked after 107 mares last season, double his previous biggest book, one of 53 mares in 2006.
Kentucky's Spendthrift hosted Two Australian Hall of Famers
Spendthrift Farm, the distinguished Kentucky stud whose current owner, billionaire B Wayne Hughes, has expanded his thoroughbred interests by acquiring the highly regarded Yallambee Stud at Romsey in Victoria, back in the middle of last century stood two the greatest racehorses bred and raced in Australia.
Both now in the Australian Hall of Fame, they are the Darling Downs, Queensland, bred Bernborough and the Kia Ora Stud, Scone produced Shannon.
Bernborough dismayed Australia when he broke down in the McKinnon at Flemington in the spring of 1946, but, bought by Hollywood movie maker Louis B Mayer, he became a good sire at Spendthrift. He included among his progeny Berseem, a champion American sprinter, and Bernwood, establisher of a new world record for a mile.
Also sold to America, Shannon added to his illustrious Australian record with startling performances in California. In earning in1948 the title of Co-Champion American Male (shared with Citation), he equaled world records for nine furlongs (1800m) and ten furlongs (2000m).
Put to stud beside Bernborough at Spendthrift, he died at 14 but still provided leading American performers Clem (defeated Round Table in track record time in the Washington Park Handicap) and Sea O'Erin (won the Citation Handicap and18 other races).
The Spendthrift connection with Australia also continued in the1960s. Among forty sires they had in use in 1967 were Australian bred Australian Star (by Star Kingdom) and also Edmundo (GB) (a brilliant sire at Widden exported at mid age), Dark Star (Kentucky Derby winner by exported Caulfield Cup winner Royal Gem) and Clem Pak (by Shannon's son Clem).
Also at Spendthrift at this time were breed shapers Turn-To, Tudor Minstrel, Raise a Native, Never Bend, My Babu, Prince John and Nashua. Among the sires that followed these greats to Spendthrift were American Triple Crown winners Affirmed and Seattle Slew.
Spendthrift currently stands19 sires in Kentucky and has six others at studs in other States or Canada. Heading their Kentucky roster are Malibu Moon (sired 2013 Kentucky Derby winner Orb), Tiznow (Dubai World Cup winner Well Armed), Into Mischief (two times Breeder' Cup Dirt Mile winner Goldencents in first crop; stands Spendthrift) and two who had runners in Saturday's Kentucky Derby,Temple City (first crop runner Bolo finished midfield) and inline of David (runner up Firing Line) and Warrior's Reward.
The last named sire, Warrior's Reward, is the only one of three young sires that are to visit the Victorian Spendthrift in the coming season that has runners. Accoladed the fastest son of prominent Darley shuttler Medaglia d'Oro, the source of Group1 winners in Australia, America and France, he was one of the leading American first crop sires in 2014 and has followed up by being prominent among the two crop sires.
Last year he was a leader among new sires by black type stakes performers and is credited in the American Blood-Horse Stallion Register having all his first 8 starters win on debuts. He is to stand here on $13,750.
Accompanying Warrior's Reward to Australia will be Jimmy Creed (USA) (fee $11,000) 2009, chestnut by Distorted Humor (grandson of Mr. Prospector) and from Hookedonthefeelin, by Citidancer (Dixieland Band) and Can The Man (USA) ($5,500), bay 2011 by Into Mischief (by Storm Cat grandson Harlan's Holiday) and from Smolensk, by Danzig.
In his second season in Kentucky, Jimmy Creed was a brilliant performer in California whose ten starts included four wins, two of them the Group1 Malibu Stakes and Group 2 Potrero Stakes, and two Group1 thirds, the Santa Anita Sprint Championship and the Bing Crosby.
Retired to stud this year, Can The Man won three of six starts, including two stakes at Santa Anita, one at two and the Group 3 Affirmed Stakes (8.5 fur) at three. He finished in front of California Chrome when a length third at two in the Group1 Del Mar Futurity.
Can The Man represents one of the world's best modern families? Briefly his Group 2 winning dam is a half-sister to American Broodmare of the Year Better than Honor and from a half-sister to the dam of Redoute's Choice (by Danzig sire Danehill) and they are closely related to Show Lady, third dam of Al Maher. He is the Danehill Group1 winner located at Emirates Park, Hunter Valley who supplied Delicacy, the winner this year of five successive stakes, the last three the Western Australian Oaks, Western Australian Derby and Saturday's Australasian Oaks (Morphettville).
Acquisition by Spendthrift of Yallambee adds to the image of their input in Australia as it has been one of the leading Victorian studs in the ownership of three generations of the Woodard family. They launched the stud career of the very successful sire Testa Rossa and included in early sires Forest Glow (USA), Kenny's Best Pal, Mookta and Spartacus.
The Woodard family are still actively involved with the stud, Rick and Christie Woodard joining Spendthift Australia as farm managers. The general manager is Garry Cuddy, a man with many years' experience in Australia and internationally in breeding and racing.
