Speed to Burn

While some Victorian farms are going down the Classic path in offering middle distance performers to breeders, Three Bridges Thoroughbreds have gone in the opposite direction with a brilliant juvenile that could well be the next Rory's Jester.

A dominant winner of the Magic Millions 2YO Classic earlier this year, Testa Rossa colt Unencumbered is the horse that put up and coming trainer Bjorn Baker on the map with a series of sensational wins.

"He has the best attitude of any young horse I have trained," Baker recalled.

"It's amazing what one great horse can do for you."

An extremely precocious juvenile, Unencumbered won five of his first six starts culminating with a memorable victory over stakes-winner Oakleigh Girl in the $2million MM 2YO Classic at the Gold Coast with the late Nathan Berry on board.

"We were happy retire him and put him to stud this spring as we believe he's done enough and in winning the Magic Millions Unencumbered has put himself in some very good company as so few colts have won it," Peter Liston pointed out.

"It's become a sire making race and even colts that were placed in it such as Snitzel and Not a Single Doubt have proven very successful at stud."

In winning the lucrative Gold Coast feature Unencumbered put his name alongside some stellar colts that have won and gone on to successful careers at stud including Snippets, General Nediym, Bradbury's Luck and his own sire Testa Rossa.

He retired with five wins and two placings from 10 starts and prizemoney of $1.9 million, the latter part of his juvenile career hampered by wet tracks on which he was unable to produce his brilliant trademark turn of foot.

Unencumbered is letting down into a lovely horse and the good temperament which made him such an effective racehorse has won over Pauline Liston, who has been riding the colt to keep him ticking over before the start of the breeding season.

Being by one of Victoria's favourite sons in Testa Rossa, Unencumbered has been afforded a warm welcome from breeders down south with strong early bookings and widespread interest in his stud career.

"Victoria has started off a number of leading sires over the years including Encosta de Lago, Danzero, Flying Spur and of course Testa Rossa, only to lose them to the Hunter Valley, so we would love to see Unencumbered succeed and remain as a leading sire for Victoria," said Liston.

A six-time Group I winner, rising 18 year-old Testa Rossa has left the winners of more than $60 million in prizemoney headed by 51 stakes-winners including Group I stars Ortensia, Rostova and Testafiable.

With 72% winners to runners, the progeny of Testa Rossa are fast, sound and easy to train with Unencumbered a glowing example of what he can produce.

Unencumbered has been well stamped by his sire as you can see in the conformation shots for each horse and when you consider Unencumbered is yet to turn three it's not hard to see what sort of stallion he will develop into!

The overall pedigree for Unencumbered makes plenty of appeal being from a stakes-winning daughter of Champion Juvenile Sire, More Than Ready (USA) in Blizzardly, while Golden Slipper winners Sir Dapper, Vain and Marscay also appear on his pedigree page.

For breeders wanting a source of precocious speed likely to deliver an early winner, Unencumbered will rate high on the list and Three Bridges Thoroughbreds will be offering very attractive lifetime breeding rights packages.

"We're not Coolmore or Darley with big broodmare bands to make a stallion, so we need the support of individual broodmare owners," Liston explained.

"We found lifetime breeding rights very successful with our other young sire Stryker in securing ongoing support for him, so we are going down that path again with Unencumbered."