Lucy In The Sky delivered a memorable result on multiple fronts with her historic success at Riccarton.
The Cambridge Stud-bred and raced filly executed her southern plan to perfection on Saturday when the Tony Pike-trained juvenile was untroubled to triumph in the Listed Champagne Stakes (1200m).
Her victory stroll credited the farm’s young shuttle stallion Hello Youmzain with his first Southern Hemisphere stakes victory.
It was also the first running of a black-type event on a synthetic track in New Zealand after the feature two-year-old event was switched from the turf to the all-weather due to the weather bomb that hit the Canterbury region.
“There were five races at that distance and she was almost a second faster than the open handicap, the quickest of the day, so her time backs up the performance,” Cambridge Stud Head of Sales and Nominations Scott Calder said.
“It was an unfortunate situation with the weather, but for the stallion it was a great result and a well-deserved stakes win for the filly.
“I think she’s a pretty talented horse and Tony Pike’s view is that November at Riccarton for the Guineas (Gr.1, 1600m) is the longer-term aim.
“She is a very fast filly, but Hello Youmzain is starting to show in the Northern Hemisphere already that some of his progeny get over a bit of ground and hopefully a mile will be within her reach.”
It was a notable result for the farm at Riccarton as runner-up Queen’s Legacy is also a homebred graduate.
Lucy In The Sky is a daughter of O’Reilly’s unraced daughter Too Many Diamonds, also the dam of the Gr.2 Rich Hill Mile (1600m) winner Ruud Not Too.
“The mare is retired and Lucy In The Sky is her last living foal, for a mare of her age she didn’t have as many foals as we would have hoped for,” Calder said.
“We retained the filly to keep the family going and she’s a beautiful broodmare prospect for down the line.”
Cambridge Stud also celebrated a homebred success across the Tasman with the Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young-prepared Immediacy continuing his hot run of form at Caulfield with a dominant 2000m performance.
Successful over ground at his previous run at Mornington, last season’s Gr.2 Autumn Classic (1800m) winner is now likely to head to Queensland for the Gr.3 Chairman’s Handicap (2000m) and Gr.2 Brisbane Cup (3200m).
“He was obviously a quality three-year-old and it’s been good to see him step into the open ranks and hopefully he can add to his black-type record,” Calder said.
By Tarzino, Immediacy was originally purchased as a yearling from the draft of Kiltannon Stables at Karaka for $15,000 by Game Lodge and then secured by Busuttin and Group 1 Racing for $200,000 when offered by Riverrrock Farm at the Ready to Run Sale.
He is a half-brother to Cambridge Stud’s dual stakes winner Bella Waters with their dam the Irish-bred Pivotal mare But Beautiful.
Her Hello Youmzain filly was sold at Karaka last year for $280,000 to Busuttin and Andrew Williams Bloodstock.
“She has an Embellish weanling colt and unfortunately missed to Chaldean this year,” Calder said. – LOVERACING.NZ News Desk
