The accolades were flying for the talented Remarque after he lowered the colours of some of Australia's best sprinters in Saturday's Group III Concorde Stakes at Randwick.
Having his first run since March, the classy five-year-old recorded the fifth win of his 14 start career and co-trainer Michael Hawkes is confident that the best is still to come from the horse he hopes can secure an Everest booth.
"We have been extremely happy that the horse has come back bigger, stronger, better" he told the media on Saturday, describing the good-looking bay as "an elite horse."
"This is a horse we’ve always believed in... to me, this horse is in the Chautauqua mould."
With his next target being the $1 million Gr.2 The Shorts, Remarque has plenty more to offer with Hawkes noting that "he's not there in the coat yet, he's just going to improve out of sight."
Jockey Tyler Schiller could not help but be impressed - "he wasn't in an ideal spot three-deep no cover, but I think he's the best horse and he has obviously shown that."
Remarque is a son of the outstanding mare Response - winner of the Gr.1 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes and the Gr.1 Robert Sangster S. and a mare who is really doing the job at stud... also producing the Gr.1 Golden Slipper winner Estijaab as well as the promising Chris Waller trained three-year-old Congregation who looked good winning his first two juvenile starts.
And then there is De Gaulle - the Quilly Park owned, Bombora Downs based stallion who is a definite case of 'what might have been!'
Unraced due to injury, the son of Exceed And Excel showed plenty of talent at the trials - at his first hit-out at Randwick for the Snowden stable in the fastest time for the morning putting 2 1/2 lengths on Diamond Tathagata who just a few weeks later (en route to Gr.2 success in the Skyline Stakes) at debut ran second to subsequent Golden Slipper winner She Will Reign.
Meanwhile De Gaulle was taking part in his second trial, this time proving too strong for Banish who would go on to enjoy Gr.2 success in the Moonee Valley Classic. He would have a third trial , finishing a close second 2 1/2 lengths ahead of Pariah who two weeks on won the Gr.3 Canonbury Stakes on debut, later on adding the Gr.3 San Domenico Stakes to his resume.
And so, whilst De Gaulle who'd had the Golden Slipper in sight did not race, his trial form stood up for months afterwards... making his retirement due to tendon injury all that harder to cop for connections.
But now he is providing the owner/breeder with a great chance to access outstanding bloodlines on a budget and from limited books De Gaulle is already showing that he can get a good one... such as the Flemington winner Madame Du Gast and the lightly raced and talented Bonjour De Gaulle.
Quilly Park's Richard Anderson is excited about what is to come for De Gaulle, a horse who sires such good types that broodmare owners are coming back for more - the bay last spring serving his biggest book yet with the bookings coming in very well for 2023.
"He is about to go bang!" Anderson enthused, taking note of the number of yet to race De Gaulle horses who have been performing very well in recent jump-outs and trials... such as Champagne Doctor, After Sunset, Prince Sonic (three impressive wins) and Pasteur who so impressively won his trial that an offer from Hong Kong was quickly on the table.
And that three-year-old is now in the Sha Tin stables of Jamie Richards where he is settling in nicely.
"I am really looking forward to seeing what Pasteur can do in Hong Kong," said Anderson who has 16 of his own De Gaulle foals due this spring and excited to have the season underway with the stallion serving his first two mares on the weekend.
"He is in unbelievable condition," he said - "he is still a playful horse but he is a real man now, he has let down beautifully."
For further details on De Gaulle, an ideal VOBIS horse who stands at a fee of $5500 (incl gst) contact Richard Anderson on 0412 560 051.
