Exciting three-year-old Veight looks on target for a big spring after making light of his stakes penalty in the Group III HDF McNeil Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield.
Ridden by Damian Lane for Tony and Calvin McEvoy, the son of Grunt tracked the early speed set by Coincide. Tacking a split between runners on straightening, Veight quickened impressively to defeat the previously unbeaten Justify (USA) filly Legacies by three-quarters of a length with the top-class Per Incanto (USA) colt Little Brose the same distance back in third.
The winner of the Group II VRC Sires’ Produce stakes at two, Veight advances his record to three wins from four starts with earnings of $405,490.
“We’ve never once doubted how he’s been going this preparation; I think many people read a little bit too much into the jumpouts,” Tony McEvoy said.
“He did as much as we wanted him to do, and what’s exciting today about his win is we’re six weeks from his grand final. There’s plenty of improvement, which makes the win even more special.”
“Beautiful from Frosty (Damian Lane), he drew a nice gate, we thought we might be able to get one out, one back. Unfortunately, we got stuck on the rails, but it never looked like he wasn’t going to get a run and the way he let down, he’s a proper horse.
“The plan we’ve been comfortable with all the way through is today, three weeks to the (Caulfield Guineas) Prelude, then three weeks to the Guineas.
“I think he’s going to come on leaps and bounds from today, and at this stage, that’s the plan.”
It was the second successive win in the race for Damian lane after Jacquinot 12 months ago, but he would not be drawn into comparisons.
“Different style of horses. I think Jacquinot was probably a little bit sharper, whereas this guy is giving me the feeling of a real Guineas type,” Lane said.
I think he’s going to love getting to 1400 and then a mile.
“He’s grown up and filled out. He’s a big, strong boy now, a man, and I was probably a little bit surprised at how well he went today off the back of his jumpouts.
“I thought he might need the 1400 before we saw him winning, but as good horses do, they can often exceed your expectations once they get to race day. He’s certainly done that again, and it’s three from four now, so he’s a real winner.”
Veight was a $220,000 Inglis Classic purchase for McEvoy Mitchell Racing / Belmont Bloodstock from the Sledmere Stud draft after he had been pinhooked as a weanling for $100,000 from Yulong at the Magic Millions National Weanling Sale.
Closely resembling his sire, Veight is the second winner from Group III, winning Fastnet Rock mare Neena Rock, the winner of the Group III WRC Cuddle Stakes (1600m) in New Zealand and the Group III Angst Stakes (1600m) at Randwick.
Yulong purchased Neena Rock for $500,000 at the 2015 Inglis Australian Broodmare Sale.
She is one of eight winners left by the Miesque’s Son (USA) mare Feminine Wiles (USA), a half-sister to the top-class racehorse and outstanding broodmare sire Quiet American (USA).
The daughter of Fastnet Rock has a 2-year-old sister to Veight and visited Tagaloa last spring after missing to the son of Lord Kanaloa in 2021.
Veight comes from the first crop of the Group 1 VRC Australian Guineas and Group 1 Makybe Diva Stakes hero Grunt (O’Reilly), who commands a fee of $22,000 at Yulong Stud this spring.
