The progeny of Coolmore-owned stallions enjoyed an almost incomprehensible level of success on Saturday afternoon in Australia and New Zealand.
The G1 Darley Australian Cup produced a Coolmore whitewash with the admirable eight-year old Zipping, a son of nine times champion sire Danehill, grinding out a narrow win from the resurgent six-year old Sirmione, a son of current champion sire Encosta De Lago.
It bears testament to the concrete constitutions of both horses that at an age when many of their contemporaries have cried enough, they were taking in their fifteenth and sixteenth G1 contests respectively, with Sirmione, already a dual winner at the highest level, only just being denied in a pulsating finish by the deserving maiden G1 winner Zipping.
Moatize, by another Coolmore Australia shuttler in Danehill Dancer, returned to form with a strong finishing effort in third and on this evidence he should be approaching a peak for next Saturday’s G1 Ranvet Stakes at Rosehill.
Fastnet Rock’s stampede towards greatness continues to gather pace with his son Rock Classic demolishing some big reputations with an arrogant display in the G1 Crown Australian Guineas.
On only his fifth start, he could be sighted travelling ominously well rounding the turn and once asked by jockey Michael Rodd, he let down in the style of a high-class horse to surge clear of his rivals.
That brings to six the number of group stakes winning three year-olds from the first crop Fastnet Rock. Tellingly, his own sire, nine times Australian champion sire, Danehill produced four group stakes winning three year olds in the whole of his first crop.
No less eye-catching was the run of the third-placegetter in the same race Linton, a son of former shuttler Galileo, who charged home in the closing stages from the rear of the field. Another unexposed 3yo, it will be no great surprise to see both Rock Classic and Linton lock horns in a number of next spring’s biggest weight for age tests.
The success of Fastnet Rock’s progeny wasn’t confined to Flemington either. At Randwick, his beautifully bred son Hinchinbrook enamoured himself to many with his relaxed disposition in the yard prior to the G3 Skyline Stakes.
He was anything but pedestrian in the race itself, zooming through the field from last at the top of the stretch to score a stylish win. The colt, a three-parts brother to G1 winning sprinter Snitzel, appears to have left a positive impression on anyone to have had anything to do with him, none more so than trainer Gerald Ryan, who declared the colt the “real deal”.
It is an assessment that is hard to disagree with. The fact that he ran the fastest time ever for a two-year-old over the distance of 1200m at Randwick is further endorsement of the horse’s quality.
It takes an awesome effort to break any track record, particularly one that has stood since 1975, but an awesome effort is exactly what four year-old Tale Of The Cat mare De Lightning Ridge produced in a searing victory in the G2 Challenge Stakes over 1100m at Randwick.
Trainer Joe Pride has certainly helped the attractive mare realise her immense potential and she will surely be amongst the leading fancies for the upcoming G1 Galaxy. Amongst those looking to topple her in that race will be the fast finishing third place getter from the Challenge, the Ingham family owned colt Stryker who is yet another top-class son of Fastnet Rock. He looked to carry plenty of condition in the yard and must have a big chance of providing his sire with a fourth individual G1 winner from his first crop in the Galaxy.
Three year old entire The Mikado is somewhat infamous as the most inexpensive yearling from the 2008 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale. He only realized $25,000 but doesn’t know his price tag and has now earned over $200,000 following a dashing win in the Listed Strada Stakes over 1200m. The handsome son of Danehill Dancer swept through a gap to go clear of a competitive field and was geared down in the closing stages to score a near two-length win.
Joining Moatize and The Mikado among Danehill Dancer’s candidates for Autumn honours in Sydney is the beautiful Keith Biggs owned filly Amber’s Waltz who produced another stellar effort when second in the G3 Sweet Embrace Stakes over 1200m.
Her moment in the limelight will come! Not to be outdone, Danehill Dancer’s barnmate at Coolmore Australia, his lightning quick son Choisir, also got in on the act when his daughter Sacred Choice claimed the Listed Aspirational Quality Stakes over 1600m for fillies and mares. She is further evidence that her sire has really joined the big league – it is his seventh individual stakes winner of the season.
Looking to emulate the likes of red-hot young barnmates Fastnet Rock and Choisir is the Irish Oratorio and it is hard to knock the early efforts of his progeny, especially after his daughter Banchee registered a G1 first in the Diamond Stakes over 1200m at Ellerslie, New Zealand.
That of course means that Oratorio (Ire) has sired two year-old G1 winners from his first crop in both hemispheres, nothing short of a spectacular effort. Banchee’s tenacity during the stretch battle mirrored the attitude of her own sire during his own distinguished race career and she may well make the trip to Sydney in search of more two year-old G1 riches.
Only one sire in Australia or New Zealand can touch Fastnet Rock in terms of success with their first three year old runners this season and that sire is another Coolmore owned stallion in High Chaparral.
No sooner had Fastnet sired his third individual G1 winning three year-old of the season, High Chaparral was doing the same with his son Shoot Out producing a miraculous effort to claim the G1 Randwick Guineas, despite being pole axed midway down the straight.
Shoot Out was of course his second stakes winner for the day, with his daughter Chaparella already having claimed the 1400m New Zealand Bloodstock Insurance Stakes for three year-old fillies.
Another Coolmore sire to have shuttled to Windsor Park in New Zealand over the years is of course Montjeu and his son Lord Tavistock, already a dual G1 winner in New Zealand this season, claimed his first win at group level in Australia with a comprehensive win in the G2 Blamey Stakes over 1600m at Flemington.