First Stakes Winner for Manhattan Rain

With Damien Oliver in the saddle, Moonovermanhattan held off the Not A Single Doubt filly Not A Happy Camper by a half-head with The Peter Moody-trained Street Cry filly Sweet And Speedy, completing a sweep for the Melbourne visitors, 3-lengths back in third.

A $100,000 purchase from the Arrowfield consignment at the 2013 Inglis Easter Australian Yearling sale, Moonovermanhattan (pictured as a yearling) is the fifth foal of the Listed SAJC Morphettville Guineas and Listed MRC Merson Cooper Stakes winner Lunaspur.

The daughter of Flying Spur has made a most encouraging start to her broodmare career.

Her first foal Moonlight Hussey (Hussonet) was a stakes-placed winner and her second foal, Forward Thinking (Charge Forward) placed at her only start. The third foal Lunaspur was the high class Colorado Claire the winner of five of her 14 starts including the Group II ATC Phar Lap Stakes.

Making the result more significant, Moonlight Hussey and Forward Thinking have been regular visitors to Manhattan Rain.

Lunaspur has a weanling colt by More Than Ready (USA) and was bred back to Charge Forward last spring.

Like the outstanding sire Northern Meteor, Manhattan Rain is a Group 1 winning son of Encosta de Lago. His 2014 service fee has been reduced to $16,500, which may well prove value as he has a number of promising types after a slow start.