Caulfield mare I Love It became the second Group 3 winner of the week to be bred on the El Prado – Danzig cross when turning the Bow Mistress Trophy into a procession on the Friday evening program in Tasmania.

Trainer John Salanitri was unable to attend the meeting but his brother and part-owner Frank was on hand to greet the mare in the enclosure. “This plan was hatched last year and it also is a very emotional win,” Frank Salanitri said. “We lost our brother Don and he always wanted to win a Group race with this mare and now she has achieved it so it is very special.

“We bred her and to do that today at only her 8th start is just fantastic. She had surgery to remove knee chips as a spring three year-old and I’m sure she has a great future ahead.”

Salanitri confirmed I Love It would not stay in Tasmania to contest the $125,000 Vamos Stakes in Launceston on February 18. She will be prepared for the good mares races at the autumn carnivals.

“She was cruising and, when we had to get going about the 500m, she hauled them in pretty quickly and,” jockey Steven Baster said. “She has such a brilliant turn of foot powered home to win easily and showed that today.”

I Love It becomes the 25th stakes winner by Emirates Park Victoria sire Artie Schiller (USA).  She made the trip over from the mainland as the winner of three races from just seven starts before proceeding to thrash a quality field to open up her black-type account.

She scored by close on four lengths, taking her collective earnings to a figure just over $190,000. A five-length winner on debut as a spring 3-year-old was followed by a stakes-placing in the Group 3 MVRC Champagne Stakes.

I Love It is a maternal grand-daughter of the imported Danzig stallion Foxhound (USA). As such, she is the second locally produced Group winning daughter of Artie Schiller to be bred on a Danzig cross. The first, Big Chill (G3 SAJC Breeders’ Plate), is a maternal grand-daughter of the former Cambridge Stud stallion Maroof.

The Bow Mistress result followed that of Vancouver in last week’s Group 3 Canonbury Stakes in Sydney. He was a debut winner of the LR Breeders’ Plate in the spring and is a second-crop son of Medaglia D’Oro from Danehill mare Skates.

Darley shuttler Medaglia D’Oro is one of only two significant sire-sons of El Prado to stand at stud in Australia.

The other?  Emirates Park-owned Artie Schiller and he has 14 yearlings catalogued for the Inglis Melbourne Premier in just three weeks.

I LOVE IT