New Zealand colt Lion Tamer punched his ticket for a Group 1 Australian campaign with a convincing victory in the Listed Ming Dynasty Hcp at Randwick on Saturday.

Lion Tamer (3c Storming Home – Lioness by Generous) finished too well along the fence to defeat Praecido by a half length in the 1400m feature.  The colt had earned a trip across the Tasman with Listed wins in the Counties Challenge at Pukekohe and Champagne Stakes at Ellersie.

Cambridge trainers Murray and Bjorn Baker will set him for the G3 Gloaming Stakes (1800m) at Rosehill and G1 Spring Champion Stakes (2000m).

Lion Tamer is a homebred for Phil Bayly who sent his unraced mare Lioness to Storming Home when the horse shuttled to Stoney Bridge from Darley’s Japan base for a one-off season in 2006.  The mare is a direct descendant of My Blue Denim who was a G1 winner of the STC Tancred Stakes, Auckland Cup and AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

Lion Tamer is one of 34 foals from Storming Home’s sole season in New Zealand.  He has been prevented from making the trip again by travel restrictions imposed by Japanese authorities in the wake of E.I.

Storming Home (Machiavellian) is by the same sire as Darley champion Street Cry and was a G1 winner of the Champion Stakes at Newmarket where he defeated Dubai World Cup winner Moon Ballad.  He was transferred Stateside to win the G1 Charles Whittingham Hcp and was all set to make it a G1 double in the Arlington Million when he propped and unseated jockey Gary Stevens just metres from the post.

Storming Home made amends to beat Johar in the G1 Clement Hirsch Memorial at Santa Anita but any hopes of a winning farewell were dashed when he was galloped on in the Breeders’ Cup Turf.

Storming Home was retired to Shadwell’s Nunnery Stud in England before transferring to Japan. His European stock have built up a 66% winning strike rate highlighted by Flying Cloud’s G2 victory in the Ribblesdale Stakes at Royal Ascot.