After a winning debut back in February last year, the Deep Field colt Bases Loaded has rung up placings in the Group 1 ATC Champagne Stakes, Group II Skyline Stakes, and Group II Pago Pago Stakes, so few could decry his stakes breakthrough in Saturday’s Group III Sky Racing Gunsynd Classic at Eagle Farm.
Ridden by Tim Clark for Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, Bases Loaded led at every call to defeat the Better Than Ready colt Port Lockroy by two lengths, with the Shooting To Win gelding Mchale a length back in third.
“He’s a very talented horse, and that is the style of racing that he likes. The mile is his pet distance and a sustained tempo, which he can do,” Adrian Bott said.
“I thought he broke their hearts in the mid stages the way he got rolling and was able to be tough enough to hang on.
“(Third-up) has been the key. He’s been a talented horse right from the outset. The best run of his career was in a group one placing at a mile to Militarize, so we’ve always been trying to get back to those conditions.
“It just took those couple of runs to really get the fitness improvement that we needed and get back to the right conditions. Getting him back on top of the ground today was the key.
“He’s a lovely big colt, so you could see why he’d struggle in those heavy conditions. He’s certainly been tough.
“On the back of this preparation, I think this is going to be an important campaign for him. Three nice runs freshened him up and set our sights higher in the spring for him now that he’s got that grounding to kick off and be a little more effective when he hits the ground in the spring.”
“He had the break because of immature knees that they had to look after.”
Bases Loaded advances his record to two wins, a second, and two thirds from eight starts with earnings of $341,300.
A $290,000 pinhook by Hunter Valley Bloodstock from the Rushton Park draft at the 2021 Inglis Great Southern Weanling Sale, Bases Loaded made $400,000 to the bid of China Horse Club / Newgate Bloodstock / Starlight, when consigned by Tyreel Stud to the Inglis Easter Yearling Sale.
Bred by Willaroon Thoroughbreds, Bases Loaded is a half-brother to stakes-placed Shebringzit (Sebring). He is the second winner from three to race out of the unraced Not A Single Doubt mare Passarelle.
Purchased by Heritage Bloodstock for $120,000 at the 2015 Inglis Australian Broodmare Sale, Passarelle is a half-sister to Group II WATC Lee Steere Stakes winner Silverstream, Group III AJC Adrian Knox Stakes winner Speedy Natalie, and dual Listed stakes winner Calanda.
Silverdale Farm consigned Passarelle’s Capitalist filly to the 2024 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale, where she failed to make her $500,000 reserve.
Passarelle has a weanling filly by Written Tycoon.
Bases Loaded is the 31st stakes-winner for Newgate Farm’s pensioned Deep Field.
