A bountiful day of racing across the country saw four graduates of Inglis sales, and the siblings of seven which will walk through the ring in the coming months, adorn their pedigrees with a multitude of black type.
At Caulfield, three-year-old filly Heatherly posted a stellar Group 2 MRC Rubiton Stakes performance, and two-year-old Flying Artie and Burning Front were brilliant in their Group 3 events, while Big Money took out a Group 3 contest at Royal Randwick.
Winx, Samara Dancer, Perignon, Mahuta, Flying Artie, Tuscan Sling and Burning Front all added favourable updates to the pedigrees of their siblings which will be offered at the upcomingInglis PremierandInglis Easter Yearling Sales.
Inglis graduateHeatherly (Lonhro x Dancing Heather)added a first stakes win to her wonderfully consistent record with a dominant six-length victory in the Group 2 MRC Rubiton Stakes at Caulfield over 1100m for Barrie and Midge Griffiths. The Victorian-based owners are no strangers to success with Inglis graduates, having purchased and raced dual-Group 1 winner Response.
After jumping well the filly flew straight to the front to lead the field by a length. Her performance proved too strong as she extended that lead and cruised home nicely. Trained by Mathew Ellerton and Simon Zahra, Heatherly was ridden to victory by Katelyn Mallyon, who said she was keen to board her again when she lines up for the Group 1 Oakleigh Plate.
"She was super impressive and was just in a race of her own from the start, I knew we had it won from a long way out. She just did it comfortably in the end," Mallyon said
Heatherly was bred by Standard 2080 syndicate and consigned through the Broadwater Thoroughbreds (now Bhima Thoroughbreds) draft at the 2014 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale, where she was purchased by her owners for $90,000. Only out of the money once in eight starts, four wins and three placings has seen the filly earn in excess of $270,000.
Earlier in the day at the same track, Mick Price added another serious Blue Diamond hope to his portfolio alongside fellow Inglis graduate Extreme Choice, whenFlying Artie (Artie Schiller x Flying Ruby)swooped in to claim Group 3 MRC Blue Diamond Prelude (c&g) over 1100m.
A brilliant performance saw the colt overcome an outside barrier, where he travelled three-wide until the home turn, where he dug deep to mow down his rivals. The colt was ridden by Damien Oliver, who faces the difficult decision of which of Price's Blue Diamond hopefuls he will ride in two weeks' time, with Price saying "Flying Artie is a red-hot chance in the Blue Diamond. They can't fluke it."
Both Price's colts dominate the market for the Group 1 contest later this month along with Tony McEvoy's Inglis Classic graduate Concealer, which stormed home for second in the Blue Diamond Prelude today.
Flying Artie was a $50,000 purchase for Paul Whelan from the Goodwood Farm draft at the 2015 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale, and has now earned his connections over $140,000 from his two starts for Whelan's Luskin Park Stud Racing, Aston Bloodstock and Mrs R J Mula.
Goodwood Farm will offer a half-brother by Helmet to Flying Artie asLot 309at the 2016 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale. The colt joinsLot 135andLot 131, whose siblings Winx (Group 2 ATC Apollo Stakes) and Mahuta (Group 2 MRC Autumn Stakes) provided them with desirable updates to their Easter pedigrees today.
Scone trainer Rod Northam took home the Group 3 ATC Southern Cross Stakes over 1200m at Randwick with his Inglis Scone warhorseBig Money (Choisir x Lyn's Money). A $75,000 purchase from the Middlebrook Valley Lodge draft for Phillip Gunter, the gelding took his earnings past $700,000 with today's win.
The Group 3 MRC TS Carlyon Cup over 1600m at Caulfield was secured byBurning Front (Primus x She's A Knockout), one of three victories today for the trainer-jockey duo of Darren Weir and Brad Rawiller. After failing to meet his modest $40,000 reserve when offered from the Caithness Breeding draft at the 2012 Melbourne Autumn Yearling Sale, Burning Front was retained to race by his breeder Justin Lovatt and a syndicate of owners, for which the five-year-old has now earned over $540,000.
Hollylodge Thoroughbreds will offer a half-sister by Written Tycoon to Burning Front asLot 672at the upcoming Inglis Premier Yearling Sale in Melbourne.
Other siblings to stakes-winners on Saturday to be offered at Oaklands are a half-brother by Savabeel to Group 2 MRC Blue Diamond Prelude (f) winner Samara Dancer from Phoenix Broodmare Farm(Lot 149); a brother to Group 2 ATC Light Fingers Stakes winner Perignon from Blue Gum Farm(Lot 94); and a half-sister by Lonhro to Group 3 MRC Geoffrey Bellmaine Stakes winner Tuscan Sling from Newgate Farm(Lot 5).
Inglis Release
