Desert King’s Group 2 winner Real Love will race on next season instead of retiring to stud.

The rising six year-old mare will spell in Queensland and return to training with Darren Weir for a spring campaign.  She raced at least once every month from October until June this season and was last seen finishing fourth in the G2 Brisbane Cup a fortnight ago.

“She’s been in work for almost a year and is one tough mare,” owner Bob Peters said.  “She pulled up well after the Brisbane Cup and is doing so well, we have decided to push on.”

Real Love won last year’s G2 Perth Cup (2400m) and commenced this season with a Group 3 victory in the Asian Beau Stakes (1400m) at Ascot before transferring to Victoria.  “It’s hard keeping them up that long,” regular rider Brad Rawiller said.  “But she’s a real professional and is as genuine as they come.”

Desert King (Ire) stands at Euroa-based Lauriston Park and is best known as the sire of Melbourne Cup legend Makybe Diva and Group 1 weight-for-age star Desert War.

Apart from Real Love, his feature winners this season include stablemate Rainbow Storm (Hamilton Cup), Desert Jeuney (Moe Cup) and Desert Glow (Broome Cup).

Desert King’s latest new winner Escargot Fabuleux broke through during the Swan Hill carnival on June 11.  Working up to 2100 metres at his fourth start, the gelding was always prominent and stayed on strongly to score by a head for Mornington trainer Trent Pennuto.

Escargot Fabuleux is a homebred for Stefan Seketa of St Elmo Racing and is the only named foal from Iblits (Strategic).  Desert King is available for a $6,600 (inc gst) service fee in 2016.