Since it’s elevation to Group III status in 2014 the Sunshine Coast Guineas boasts a very respectable honour roll.
The winner that year was the admirable Hopfgarten (Mossman) a wonderful servant for the Heathcote stable who bowed out of racing twelve months ago with six stakes wins next to his name while banking $900,000 for connections.
The following year along came Winx (Street Cry) who would elevate the race to new heights when she charged home from last on the turn to begin a sequence of wins that would make headlines around the world.
In 2016 the striking High Chaparral (IRE) colt Tivaci used the Sunshine Guineas as a springboard to success in the Group 1 ATC All-Aged Stakes and a spot on the Waikato Stud roster.
The Liam Birchley-trained Crack Me Up, another brilliant money spinner by Mossman, won the Guineas in 2017 on his way to chalking up six stakes wins including the 2017 ATC Villiers Stakes and fourth in the Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap while earning almost over $730,000.
(The) Bostonian arrived unheralded from New Zealand in 2018 but made his name known with three consecutive wins culminating in the Sunshine Guineas. Twelve months later the son of Jimmy Choux returned to the Sunshine State to claim the Group 1 Doomben 10000 and Group 1 Kingsford Smith Cup.
That sets a high bar for the 16 three-year-olds set to tackle the race on Saturday.
The David Vandyke-trained Baccarat Baby was a victim of a wide barrier in Group 1 Tatts Tiara when she was caught three wide without cover and she has worryingly drawn wide again on Saturday.
But on the positive side, she has proved she can handle the heavy ground and is three from three on her home track.
Baccarat Baby is a homebred daughter Vinery Stud’s Casino Prince (image above Mark Smith ), who is often referred to as a good bread and butter sire, which may sound a touch disparaging as he has a champion in All Too Hard and a classic winner in Escado.
The dam of Baccarat Baby, Meerlust, won one and placed in two of her five starts after she was purchased by Matthew Irwin and Peter Harris for $22,000 at the 2009 Scone Yearling Sale.
Her sire Johannesburg (USA) shuttled to Coolmore for five seasons. A magnificent two-year-old, Johannesburg (USA) left the Group 1 ATC Australian Oaks winner Once Were Wild and the dual Group 1 winner and successful stallion Turffontein.
But Johannesburg (USA) (image below Mark Smith )has found new fame through his tragically short-lived son Scat Daddy who has four sons standing at Coolmore this year.
Johannesburg’s daughters are also doing the job with the Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks and Group 1 Irish Oaks winner Seventh Heaven (Galileo), Grade 1 Pacific Classic winner Collected (City Zip), Group 1 Irish One Thousand Guineas winner Jet Setting (Fast Company), and Group 1 Middle Park Stakes winner Crusade (Mr Greeley) out of Johannesburg mares.
A granddaughter of the blue hen, Fanfreluche, Meerlust’s imported dam Flying Visit (USA) is out of a three-quarter sister to L’On Vite (the dam of Holy Roman Emperor) and to Grand Luxe the dam of Casino’ Prince’s sire Flying Spur and granddam of Encosta de Lago.
