New Years Eve at Melton saw 137 of the best 2yo, 3yo and 4yos of both pacing and trotting gaits line up in 12 Group One Vicbred Super Series Finals.
A total of 137 horses faced the starter and 57 of them have relatives in the 2022 Nutrien Yearling Sale catalogue and those relatives will be offered in either the Sydney or Melbourne Sales.
All up a total of 82 Lots had updates as a result of New Years Eve at Melton and here is a selection of some of the major ones – it really is a catalogue chock full of quality offerings.
Lot 12 in the Sydney Nutrien Sale is an American Ideal filly out of Someone To Love – a three-quarter sister to the sensational Ladies In Red which was again superb in winning the 3yo Fillies Final from Rogue Wave and Treachery and taking her earnings to more than $569,000.
Ladies In Red looks a shoe-in to add and Australian 3yo Pacing Filly of the Year title to the 2yo award she took out the previous season.
A half-sister to Ladies In Red in the 2yo filly Our Little Jet followed up her maiden win in a heat of the Vicbred Super Series with a highly creditable fourth in the 2yo Fillies Final won by Amore Vita.
Our Little Jet broke in the score-up and was driven conservatively early and finished strongly over the last 400 metres.
Whilst on the subject of the 2yo Fillies Final, star Captaintreacherous filly Encipher lost no friends with a gallant second to Amore Vita after racing outside the leader for the bulk of the 2240 metres.
Encipher has now won $278,358 in her first season of racing and her Betting Line half-sister will be offered as Lot 210 in the Melbourne Nutrien Sale.
Lot 210 is the second foal from the 15 time winner Our Cavort which is a half-sister to the Pink Bonnet winner Eliza Dushku p,1:51.2 $204,319.
Lot 92
Honolua Bay is being touted as a future star and on New Years Eve he brought up win number 14 at just his 21st start in a race in the 4yo Entires and Geldings Final downing Silent Major and Jay OK in the process.
Honolua Bay’s stakemoney now stands at an impressive $226,150.
Lot 92 in Nutrien’s Sydney Yearling Sale is an American Ideal colt out of National Gallery and not only is this colt a half-brother to Honolua Bay but he is a half-brother to two other $100,000 earners in Rocknroll Icon p,1:53.0 $192,405 and Mach Up p,1:53.0 $100,304.
The afore-mentioned Jay OK may have finished a close-up third to Honolua Bay (Lot 92) on Friday night but his half-brother will be offered immediately ahead when Lot 91 at the Nutrien Sydney Yearling Sale is in full-swing.
Lot 91 is a colt by Sweet Lou from the 2yo winning Sportswriter mare Naevia who is a daughter of the Victorian Silver Chalice winner Morgan Abby.
Jay OK is one of the elite group of sub-1:50 horses to have taken their record on Australian soil with his p,1:49.7 effort at Menangle in early December.
He has won 11 races and almost $155,000 in stakes.
Majestic Son 4yo gelding Cover Of Darkness finished a gallant fourth in the 4yo Trotting Entires and Geldings Final won by Rules Don’t Apply from Powderkeg and Quake Proof.
Cover Of Darkness took a record of tr,1:55.1 as a 3yo and after Friday night’s effort he has earninings of $114,360.
Lot 175 is a half-sister to Cover Of Darkness being by Father Patrick from Illawong Moonshine tr,1:58.1 $63,515.
This page got a further update when Illawong Stardust, a half-sister to Illawong Moonshine finished second to Queen Of Crime in the 4yo Trotting Mares Final.
Illawong Stardust took a record of tr,1:58.3 as a 3yo and the $16,000 she earned on Friday night has lifted her career earnings to $106,480 to join her half-sister and brother Spidergirl tr,1:56.8 $317,657 and Illawong Armstrong tr,1:56.0 $231,452 as $100,000 earners.
But, as the advertising slogan goes, wait there is more for Lot 175.
In the 3yo Trotting Fillies Final the Father Patrick filly Keayang Xena finished fifth to Fancy and the 3yo Australasian Breeders Crown runner-up appears under the third dam of Lot 175.
Lot 221 is a filly by the French stallion Quaker Jet and is the first foal from the lightly raced Ready To Shine.
The 4yo Trotting Entires and Geldings Final was won by Rules Don’t Apply from Powderkeg and Quake Proof in a slick 1:57.1 for the 2240 metres.
Quake Proof is a half-brother to Ready To Shine and interestingly is a son of Quaker Jet making him a three-quarter brother to Lot 221.
Ready To Shine is also a half-sister to NSW Franco Series winner Glenferrie Dreamer tr,1:52.8 $332,841 and Glenferrie Burn tr,1:55.5 $234,430.
She is also a half-sister to Glenferrie Dash which is the dam of Hautacam which finished fifth behind the 2yo sensation Plymouth Chubb in Friday’s 2yo Trotting Colts and Geldings Final.
A filly by Father Patrick from Gypsy Flair, Lot 168 also had three horses updated this week directly as a result of Vicbred Super Series night at Melton.
Lot 168 is a full-sister to Just A Bit Touchy tr,2,1:59.3 $77,380 which rounded out her first season on the race-track with a close-up third to Ebonys Avenger and Aldebaran Vera in the 2yo Trotting Fillies Final.
A couple of races earlier on the marathon 12 race programme Banglez, a half-sister to Just A Bit Touchy, finished fourth behind Fancy, Queen Invasion and Sangreal in the final of the 3yo Trotting Fillies division.
Banglez, which was voted Australian 2yo Trotting Filly of the Year 12 months ago lowered her mark to tr,1:57.8 this season and will start her 4yo season already having $121,380 in the bank for her owners.
Third placegetter Sangreal also appears on the page for Lot 168 as her grand-dam Flash And Flair is a half-sister to Gypsy Flair.
Such is the strength of this pedigree as there are only two dams required to fill the page.
He may have been very inexperienced in comparison to Heza Son Of Agun and Solesso Matuca in the final of the 2yo Colts and Geldings division but Captaintreacherous colt Captain Rival lost no fans with his gallant third to that pair.
Lot 56 is a Sweet Lou half-brother to Captain Rival being out of the Bettors Delight mare Delight In Decree p,1:58.1 $70,581 who is the dam of three winners from her only three foals of racing age. Lot 56 is her fourth foal.
Delight In Decree is a half-sister to Victoria Derby winner Courage To Rule p,1:51.1 $523,451 and the WA 4&5yo Championship winner Make The Rules p,1:51.6 $220,075.
In finishing second to star filly Ladies In Red in the 3yo Fillies Final, Somebeachsomewhere filly Rogue Wave maintained her seasons record of never missing the placings in seven starts.
The $77,000 she earned in 2021 lifted her career earnings to $124,705.
Rogue Wave’s half-brother by Art Major will be offered at Nutrien’s Melbourne Yearling Sale and this colt is a full-brother to a trio of Group Two winners in Perfect Major p,1:53.5 $272,379, That’s Perfect p,1:52.1 $166,878 and Perfect Look p,1:53.0 $55,929.
Their dam Perfect Life p,3,1:58.0 is a half-sister to 2yo Vicbred Super Series and New South Wales Derby winner Major Secret p,1:55.1 $464,872 and he too is a son of Art Major who has clearly clicked well with the mares in this family.
The finish of the 3yo Colts and Geldings Final was fought out between the $2.25 favourite Bondi Lockdown and the $151 outsider Narutac Prince with Spring In His Step in third place.
Lot 216 in Nutrien’s Melbourne Sale is the first foal from Narutac Prince’s full-sister Perfect Sense p,1:55.5 $143,530 and this filly is by the legendary stallion Bettors Delight.
Another full-sister to Narutac Prince in Treasure p,2,1:54.9 $161,402 won the Group Two South Australian Southern Cross Series as a 2yo while a half-brother in Turn It Up p,1:52.1 $558,443 won a trio of Group One races across the Tasman in an Auckland Cup, Easter Cup and 4yo Emerald.
Bondi Lockdown completed a clean-sweep of the 3yo Colts and Geldings section of the Vicbred Super Series taking out a heat, semi-final and final to finish his 3yo season with a mark of p,3,1:53.4 and career earnings of $230,020.
He is a colt by Somebeachsomewhere from the unraced Without Guile which is a half-sister to Annas Innocent p,3,1:57.2.
Lot 35A in Nutrien’s Sydney Sale is by Somebeachsomewhere from Annas Innocent which is a daughter of former Australian 3yo Filly of the Year Innocent Eyes p,1:57.6 $421,875.
What a fantastic start to the year.
Contact Mark Barton to find your next champion.
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