Darley’s domination of this year’s juvenile division continued in the G1 AJC Sires’ Produce Stakes at Randwick on Saturday.

Helmet (Exceed And Excel) and Uate (Ad Valorem) are both by Darley sires and they raced away from the rest of the field to fight out a thrilling finish to the time-honoured classic.  

A flashy chestnut, Helmet gained the upper hand near the post to bring up a winning hat-trick.  Darley has won all three Group 1 events reserved for two year-olds so far this season following Sepoy’s Blue Diamond – Golden Slipper double.

And, in a sign of things to come, Darley filly Anise (General Nediym) opened the Randwick autumn carnival with a G3 victory in the Kindergarten Stakes on Saturday.

Helmet (2c Exceed And Excel – Accessories by Singspiel) is a younger half-brother to Bullbars who won the G3 C S Hayes Stakes at Caulfield in February.  He then did best of the colts behind Shamrocker in the G1 Australian Guineas at Flemington last month.

Sheikh Mohammed sent their dam Accessories to Australia in June 2006.  The British bred mare is an unraced half-sister to French G2 winners Pozarica (Rainbow Quest) and Annaba (In the Wings).  She has a yearling colt by Commands and a filly foal by Street Cry.

Helmet is Exceed And Excel’s second juvenile Group 1 winner following 2009 Blue Diamond winner Reward For Effort.

Exceed And Excel has sired 9 individual two year-old winners in Australia this season and 4 of them have scored in black-type company.  Apart from Helmet, he has been represented by the Listed winners Chinchilla (TRC Elwick Stakes & SAJC Queen Adelaide Stakes), Anevay (VRC Talindert Stakes) and Rebel Call (WATC Perth Stakes).