Racing at its Best
Ramornie winner bred on pattern speed
Ramornie winner bred on pattern speed
ROCK ROYALTY, winner this week of one of Australia's most prestigious country sprints, the $150,000 Ramornie over 1200m at Grafton in new track record time of 1:08.87, is bred to go fast. Produced in New Zealand for Blackrayne Pastoral Pty Ltd, Queensland, this Liam Birchley Eagle Farm trained 6-year-old gelding is by dual hemisphere used Elusive City (USA) and from Vying, a modest winner to 1400m by brilliantly bred Vyner's Orb.
New Zealand and France used Elusive City, a son of the Gone West sire Elusive Quality (USA), the source of 470 foals from visits 2003-2008 to Darley, Hunter Valley, and Star of Paris, a mare by the Danzig sire Dayjur, was ranked Europe's third best juvenile of 2004 after winning three races to Group1 from four outings. He had the first two stripped off him due to an irregularity in a test following ulcer treatment.
As a sire Elusive City has had Group1 winners in each hemisphere, including Elusive Wave (won France's Two Thousand Guineas), Xanadu (two Group1s NZ) and Famous Seamus (BTC Cup, ATC Premiere Stakes).
Rock Royalty's maternal grandsire Vyner's Orb was a modest winner at 1000m by Zephy Bay, one of the fastest horses to race in Australia, and from Royal Tiara, a daughter of dazzling Baguette.
The dam Vying is a half-sister to Loader (13 wins to 1400m NZ, two at Group1), Native Chief (12 to 2200m NZ, Group1 second) and to Strike a Rose, winning dam of Shizu (won Caulfield Thousand Guineas, third Victoria Oaks).
Shizu has gone on to produce Zupaone, a Flying Spur winner six races to 1200m and Group 3. He stands at stud in Victoria.
Although he his six, Rock Royalty, has only raced 17 times. He has won seven of those starts, all at 1200m or shorter and beside the Ramornie, including successes at Doomben, Ipswich, the Gold
Glenlogan sire's record six juvenile winners in nine days
WHEN the Tony McEvoy trained gelding Jacksay won at Gawler (metropolitan racing) on Saturday (July 11) at his second start, and 24 hours later Regal Roth scored at Cairns (Sunday) it provided the Glenlogan Park Stud (Innisplain Valley, Qld) sire Rothesay with the sensational feat for a first crop sire, or for that matter any sire, of six winners of juvenile races in a space of eight days.
It could be a national record for so many juvenile winners by the one sire in such a short space of time.
Bred by Glenlogan and sold at the Gold Coast yearling sales for $120,000, Jacksay was got Rothesay from So In Need, an unraced daughter General Nediym's sire Nediym. So In Need has three other winners and a Rothesay yearling filly who has already named, Social Vampire.
Backing up from a win in North Queensland on June 28, the Sunday winner, Regal Roth, was bred by G.D. Ramsey, Qld using Regal Theatre, a mare by the Glenlogan Park briefly shuttled Sadler's Wells sire King's Theatre.
The Rothesay sequence of six winners in nine days began when his colt ShotacrossThe Bow turned in one of the most impressive performances in juvenile racing seen in recent weeks in taking out the $100,000 QTIS race over 1400m at the Sunshine Coast on July 4. Drawn at 16, trapped wide and well back 100m out, he came with big strides to grab the leader, Real Good, and career away to score by nearly three lengths.
It was the second eye catching win for the David Murphy, Eagle Farm trained colt as he had romped home by four lengths at Toowoomba on May 30. The Sunshine Coast win, however, was more significant as it was an indication that Shotacross the Bow like his sire is likely to be formidable at three at 1600m or further.
It also suggested that the stud which hosts the Fastnet Rock Queensland Guineas and Brisbane Lord Mayor's Cup winning Rothesay, the Jon Hasler established, Steve Morley managed Glenlogan Park has chosen another good sire for their stallion yards.
This win and those that followed since consolidated Rothesay's position in 2014-15 racing, a year concluding at the end of the month, as Queensland's leading first season sire by money and wins. Also in the national statistics he is now first season leader by Australian winners (11) and fourth on earnings.
All told Rothesay has 13 2-year-old winners, the others being one each in New Zealand (Enigma Machine – one start) and Korea (three outings, two wins and a second), and eight others place – two Brisbane.
Among others showing up him as an emerging good sire have been Shadow Lawn (three starts, debut winner by seven lengths Doomben, nose second Ipswich), In His Stride (won four lengths Doomben, second Listed Dalrello Toowoomba, twice third Doomben), Too Good to Refuse (three starts, followed a Sunshine Coast second in February with an eye catching two lengths win at Beaudesert on Sunday July 5 – came from last), leading Rockhampton 2-year-old Legal Procedure (six starts, wins two lengths and 1 ½ lengths, four other places), Rock de France (debut winner Sunshine Coast July 8) and Oberland (debut winner Gunnedah July 10).
Rothesay, in Glenlogan Park sire tradition, is exciting the racing fraternity to the extent Steve Morley reports that every trainer they have spoken to has held good opinion of his youngsters. Like most of the Fastnet Rock progeny, those by Rothesay (2015 fee $11,000) look set start to really shine as they are allowed to mature.
Rothesay's dynamic Sunshine Coast winner Shotacross the Bow, a $60,000 Gold Coast yearling, is a good advertisement for the quality of breeding in the Innisplain Valley as he was bred by the hosts of his sire, Glenlogan Park, using Reshoot, an unraced daughter of Mossman. Reshoot and Mossman were both bred by Peter and Wendy Moran on nearby Noble Park (now Eliza Park Queensland).
Also dam of two other winners, Upshot (Stratum, three in Sydney) and Imagery (More Than Ready, winner Brisbane, Singapore), Reshoot is three-quarter sister to Success Express fillies Snapshots (Listed winner, Group 2 and 3 second) and unraced Express A Smile, dam of stakes winners Sea Siren (Group1 winner Australia and Ireland), Lady Dehere (Group 2 winner New Zealand), Oratotio (Group 3 Melbourne) and Discorsi (Listed winner Melbourne).
As Sea Siren, like Rothesay, is by Fastnet Rock, he has much in common in blood with Shotacross The Bow.
The Sunshine Coast race won by Shotacross The Bow was nearly a trifecta result for Glenlogan sires as another, Real Saga (by Tale of the Cat), supplied runner up Real Good and fourth placed Honesta is by Monaco Consul and from Always Loyal, a mare bred by Steve Morley using the Glenlogan sire Bradbury's Luck (Redoute's Choice).
Steve Morley can be accessed at Glenlogan Park on 0428 617 367, email steve@glenloganstud.com.au.
Coast and Sunshine Co
Rock of Gibraltar dynasty on the move
TWO of the first Australian bred offspring of Ireland produced Rock of Gibraltar, one of the greatest Danehill racehorses and successful sires, have had winners in recent weeks. They are Murtajill, a former Patinack sire transferred this year to Brett Cavanough's Jindera Park Stud in the Albury district, and Proart, now a resident at Geisel Park Stud, Myalup WA after starting off at another of that State's studs, Korilya Park.
A tough racehorse in WA who won nine races to 1600m and up Group 3, Proart has had restricted sire use to the extent so far only seven of his first crop have been named and two raced. Both have won on Perth tracks and have made him WA's second top first season behind Alfred Noble (Ire) (by Danehill Dancer, six starters, two winners) and put him in the top dozen among the new sires on earnings. Also he is the only one in the top 20 first season sires stats with a 100% strike rate.
Fillies, the two Proart performers are Rosmarni (from the Verglas (Ire) mare Rosmopolitan), a spectacular winner Belmont June 24 (second start, by 4.75 lengths, 1400m) and July 8 (4.25 lengths, 1700m), and Glitterbell (from Terevega, by Laranto), winner Ascot (4.0 lengths, 1200m) and six Perth places.
Murtajill, the first son of Rock of Gibraltar to go to stud, has had 44 winners, 39 others placed and earners of over $1.6million in 2014-15, a year in which his oldest are four. They have included winners Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Macau.
A grey three-quarter brother to Bradbury's Luck (by Redoute's Choice, stands Glenlogan Park), Murtajill knocked on the door of greatness as a racehorse, his 19 starts including five in Sydney at two, wins in the Skyline Stakes and Breeder's Plate, a third in the Silver Slipper and fourths in the Golden Slipper and Sires' Produce Stakes.
At three his efforts included seconds in the All-Aged at Randwick, Doomben 10,000 and Hobartville (Rosehill) and a fourth in the Invitation (Caulfield).
Murtajill (2015 fee $5,000) and Proart are among over 98 stakes winners (11 Group1) worldwide by the 3x3 Northern Dancer inbred Rock of Gibraltar. He is a Coolmore stallion who in 13 starts (2 and 3) won ten, in the process setting a world record of seven Group1s in succession – five at 1600m. He was one of the best juveniles of his year and for his exploits at three named European Horse of the Year and Champion 3YO Colt.
His influence as a sire has good prospects by being spread by Golden Archer in Australia and Mount Nelson (UK) and Society Rock (Ire) in the northern hemisphere.
A son of Pins (by Snippets) quality New Zealand race filly Viennetta, coming up to his third season at the Basil Nolan family's Raheen Stud, Gladfield (Warwick) Qld, Golden Archer raced 20 times (1000m-1200m) for 12 stakes cheques. Eight wins included five stakes to Group 3, four seconds to Group 2 and a third in the Group1 VRC Lightning.
This year on a fee of $6,600, he has had books of 87 (90.5% fertility) and 109.
A Group1 winner at two and three, Mount Nelson, the first son of Rock of Gibraltar to go to stud in Europe, has got off to a good start as a sire with seven stakes winners and seven others stakes placed in his first two crops.
Put to stud at Tally-Ho, Ireland last year, standing alongside Cornerstone Stud, South Australia 2015 visitor Zededee (GB) (by Invincible Spirit), Society Rock was a prominent European sprinter for four years. He was first and second (twice) in Royal Ascot Golden Jubilees, won the Haydock Park Cup-G1 and York Duke of York Stakes-G2 and twice placed in the Newmarket July Cup-G1.
Turangga graduate 2015 Hong Kong Horse of Year
IF THERE is currently a halo over the gateway to Stuart Ramsey's Turangga Stud at the northern end to the Se genhoe Valley, Scone, it is well deserved for one of its products has become the first performer raised in the Hunter Valley since Fairy King Prawn at the turn of the century to capture the prestigious title of Hong Kong Horse of the Year.
Sold by Turangga for $550,000 to George Moore Bloodstock at the 2011 Easter Yearling Sale, he is the Shamardal gelding Able Friend, a galloper regarded as one of the best horses ever seen in Hong Kong.
Since the 2014-15 racing year commenced, Able Friend has raced eight times for six successive wins 1400m-1600m in Hong Kong, all by clear margins and five at Group1.The only losses were a first up fourth and a sixth in the Golden Jubilee at Royal Ascot last month.
Now winner of 12 of 18 starts and earner of over HK$52million, the John Moore trained Able Friend was admired so much for his performances in 2014, he was assessed in the World Rankings the second best miler of the year and the World's equal third best racehorse of the year. Awarded a Timeform of 130, he is officially the highest internationally rated Hong Kong racehorse in history.
Stuart Ramsey bred Able Friend using Ponte Piccolo, a New Zealand bred Volksraad winner of the Illawarra Keith Nolan Classic, Doomben Bracelet and AJC Claymore Handicap and runner up AJC Adrian Knox and Doomben Roses. She is a half-sister to Global News, a Jetball winner to Group 1 in South Africa, and from Baronia, a winning sister by Half Iced (USA) to Big Barron (12 wins, VRC Dalgety Handicap, second to Subzero in the Adelaide Cup.
