Australia’s revered royal family centred around blue hen Dancing Show (USA) has produced an outstanding mare in the Northern Hemisphere with In Italian returning for her first run this year to capture the $600,000 Group I Jenny Wiley Stakes (1 and 1/16thm) at Keeneland.
John Camilleri’s Fairway Thoroughbreds have bred their share of great horses ranging from Golden Slipper winner Vancouver to world champion racehorse Winx and one of the bluebloods they have bred and sold overseas is talented Dubawi mare In Italian.
The Chad Brown trained five year-old was a two time G1 winner last year and was also second in the Group I Breeders Cup Filly and Mare Turf.
She picked up right where she left off, leading all the way for Irad Ortiz to win by three lengths.
Owned by Peter Brant, In Italian has been handled patiently and has never missed a place in 10 starts starts with six wins and four placings netting over $1.6 million in prizemoney.
“She’s a wonderful mare,” said Brant.
“She’s been good from the very beginning, and we’re very proud to have her. She’s going to be a great broodmare for us. We’re so excited; to win this race this number of times has been a great thrill for us. This is one of the most important filly-and-mare races, and it’s just a great honor to win this race.”
A 475,000 guinea Tattersalls October Yearling Sale purchase for Mike Ryan on behalf of owner Peter Brant, In Italian is a half-sister to two Australian stakes-placed horses in Villa Carlotta and Fasano being the fourth winner from four foals to race from Australian bred Group III winning Redoute’s Choice mare Florentina.
A half-sister to Group I winner Gathering from the Twyla branch of the famed Dancing Show family, Florentina was bred by Fairway Thoroughbreds and retained to race.
She had four foals in Australia before being sent to the Northern Hemisphere where she was covered by Dubawi producing In Italian followed by a Kingman colt that was born in the UK and then sent back to Australia with his dam in 2019 when she was safely back in foal to Kingman again to Southern Hemisphere time.
The Kingman colt was sold at Magic Millions in 2021 for $1.8million and his mother Florentina was sold in 2020 at the Inglis Chairman’s Sale for $650,000 to the Towell family’s Jananth Pty Ltd. She did the right thing for her new owners producing a gorgeous Kingman filly that has been retained and named Fiorenza.
Florentina missed in 2020 and 2021, but was covered by So You Think last year and appears to be in foal.
