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Home Affairs a Natural for First-Season Sire Honours

By Karl Patterson

PHOTO: Natural Fling pictured before selling for $550,000 at the Magic Millions Sale

PHOTO: Moldover makes $1 million in foal to Home Affairs at Chairman’s Sale

PHOTO: Desert Lightning (Luke Nolen) wins the So You Think Stakes at Moonee Valley

PHOTO: Australian Bloodstock’s Jamie Lovett (left) and Luke Murrell

Coolmore Stud sire Shinzo (Snitzel) topped the Inglis Australian Weanling Sale this week with a first-crop filly that made $600,000 and Coolmore principal Tom Magnier fired another top-priced salvo at the Inglis Chairman’s Sale on Thursday evening with a stunning $5.6 million bid to buy 2yo filly Chayan (I Am Invincible).

 

Not to be outdone at the Foal Sale, Coolmore sire Home Affairs (I Am Invincible) topped turnover ($2.15 million) and he was also in vogue at the Chairman’s Sale when Tony Santic sold Moldova (Snitzel) with a PPT to Home Affairs to Yulong Investments for $1 million.

 

Home Affairs is the Champion Australian First-Season Sire-elect and he can go further ahead with Natural Fling or Shooting Brake in Race 1 at Caulfield today.

 

Australian Bloodstock Director Jamie Lovett has been a strong supporter of Home Affairs from the outset and he was on the mark with $220,000 for the second-crop colt from Andalusia (Brazen Beau) at the Inglis Australian Weanling Sale on Tuesday.

  

Australian Bloodstock also bred the promising 2yo filly Natural Fling by Home Affairs out of his first book at Coolmore and sold her for $550,000 through Yarraman Park at the 2025 Gold Coast Magic Millions. 

 

Natural Fling won Flemington and Caulfield 2yo trials for Tony and Calvin McEvoy last month and has opened a $2.40 favourite on debut for the Sportsbet Feed Hcp (1100m) at Caulfield this afternoon.  “I spoke to Cal after those hit-outs and he said she’s a lovely filly and keeps progressing,” Lovett revealed.  “Hopefully, she’s the 9th individual winner by Home Affairs on Saturday.

 

“Her dam The Natural (Fastnet Rock) has been a very good mare to me.  Her first foal Wootton Lass (Wootton Bassett) won a Randwick juvenile this time last year and she earned black-type when placed in the Hawkesbury Guineas (Gr 3, 1400m) last Saturday.

 

“I have three mares in foal to Home Affairs from his 2025 book and that’s looking good now that Coolmore has increased his service fee from $82,500 to $176,000 this year.”

 

The Natural won at Morphettville and Cranbourne for the McEvoys and is a half-sister to Fiveandahalfstar (Hotel Grand) who was a front-running Group 1 winner of the VRC Derby (2500m) and ATC BMW (2400m).

 

Home Affairs is double-handed in the Sportsbet Feed Hcp (1100m) at Caulfield with Shooting Brake who carries the same Fastnet Rock cross as Natural Fling.  Bred by Coolmore affiliate Katom, he is trained at Flemington by Dom Sutton and came from midfield to finish a length second to Rubare (Rubick) on debut at the Heath last month.

 

Shooting Brake is also bred to show up as the first foal from Carmen Lucia (Fastnet Rock).  Second-dam Fontein Ruby (Turffontein) was a 2yo winner at Sandown Lakeside and trained on as a spring 3yo to land the VRC Edward Manifold Stakes (Gr 2, 1600m) and MRC Caulfield Classic (Gr 3, 2000m).

 

Australian Bloodstock’s portfolio includes a Home Affairs – Fever Pitch colt that changed hands for $180,000 at the Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale in March.  The sharp-looking chestnut was offered by Emirates Park and is with Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman.

 

“We went shopping for an early 2yo type on Day 1 and he was a standout,” Lovett explained at Oaklands Junction.  “We love what we’ve seen in the Home Affairs progeny and Peter agreed.  We were both very keen and Peter felt he was one of the better colts he had seen by the sire this year.  Athletic and strong without being too heavy.”

 

His dam Fever Pitch (Flying Artie) retired unraced but is a well-related half-sister to the Snitzel black-type winners Sprightly Lass (Gr 3 SAJC McKay Stakes) and Le Cordon Bleu (ATC Listed Canterbury Classic).

 

Moody and Coleman can play another Coolmore-sired hand later today with Desert Lightning in the Group 1 Goodwood (1200m) at Morphettville.  The NZ-bred gelding is one of 24 Stakes winners by Coolmore stallion by Pride Of Dubai (Street Cry) and four of them carry the same cross with the late, great Coolmore sire High Chaparral (Sadler’s Wells).

 

Desert Lightning won a Captain Cook Stakes (Gr.1, 1600m) at Trentham and Avondale Guineas (Gr.2, 2100m) at Pukekohe for his Barneswood Farm owners Chris and Sarah Green before crossing the Tasman where he has added the MRC Sandown Stakes (Gr 3, 1400m) and MVRC So You Think Stakes (1500m).

 

“We wouldn’t have sent him over there if we didn’t believe he was good enough,” Chris Green told NZ Racing Desk.  “Peter is a good communicator, the horse is going well and we expect him to improve off that first-up run in the Hareeba Stakes (Listed, 1200m) at Mornington.”

 

And no preview of Saturday’s Stakes schedule would be complete without mentioning fan-favourite Pride of Jenni in the Hollindale Stakes (Gr 2, 1800m) on the Gold Coast.  The Pride Of Dubai mare has earned plaudits from around the nation for her tearaway tactics that have delivered over $12 million in prizemoney.

 

Pride of Jenni hasn’t troubled the judge since winning the VRC Empire Rose Stakes (Gr 1, 1600m) on Derby Day at last year’s Melbourne Cup carnival, nevertheless, she has opened a $3.80 second favourite behind $3.40 market-leader Half Yours (St Jean) for the Hollindale Stakes.  There’s $500,000 on the line but leading her back to scale a winner will mean much more than just money in the bank for her devoted owners Tony and Lynn Ottobre.