The $1million Group I MRC Blue Diamond is run at Caulfield this Saturday and a full field of 16 will face the starter with race favourite Samaready drawn in gate 8.
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One of three runners in the race bred by Gerry Harvey (he also bred The Travelling Man and General Rippa), the Mick Price trained More Than Ready (USA) filly Samaready was a $150,000 Inglis Easter purchase.
Samaready (pictured courtesy Bronwen Healy) was originally entered for the 2011 Magic Millions Yearling Sale in January under the Baramul Stud banner, but later withdrawn and sent to Easter as part of the Vinery Stud draft, Mr Harvey being one of the share-holders in Vinery Stud.
Adam White of Vinery Stud takes up the story of Samaready (pictured below as a yearling) .
"She was up at Gerry Harvey's Armidale based farm Broombee and was entered for Magic Millions, but she hurt herself and while it wasn't a serious injury, it was enough to mean she couldn't be cleaned up and prepped for the sale in time," White revealed.
"Gerry decided to send her down to us along with about nine other yearlings for Easter and she arrived at the farm while we were still at the Gold Coast.
"We hadn't seen her before then, although we'd heard reports that she was a good type and she certainly was a lovely filly.
"When they are in your draft you get a chance to really see how they cope with things... how they eat, how they relax and how they cope with work.
"The longer we had her there, the more we liked her.
"Several of the Vinery Stud partners had decided to get together and buy some fillies to race and straight away she was on the short list, so we asked Damon Gabbedy to bid on her as she was being consigned by us."
Samaready's dam Samar is proving a fine producer, the half-sister to triple Group I winner County Tyrone, also the dam of top class West Australian filly Night War, a Group II winner, who recently won the $100,000 MM 3YO Trophy in Perth.
Not surprisingly Mr Harvey has elected to keep a Northern Meteor filly from Samar that passed in shy of her $150,000 reserve at Magic Millions in January and the mare has a Testa Rossa filly foal to follow and was covered by Exceed and Excel last spring.
"Mick Price has always had a high opinion of Samaready and after seeing her win last start you have to think she's a little bit special," White said.
"Vinery Stud have gone close twice before in the Blue Diamond, Halibery running second in 2003 and Perfectly Ready third in 2005, so we'd really love to be able win this year, especially with a two year-old by our champion sire More Than Ready, although it's racing and anything can happen."
