This Yankee is a Rockstar!

Yankee Rockstar, who is standing this season at Llowalong Farms, Kyabram (Vic.), is one of the most interestingly bred harness racing horses available in Australia today.

Boasting an all-American parentage, Yankee Rockstar is a son of the former USA Horse of the Year and world champion Rocknroll Hanover out of the Artsplace mare Aston Villa, the Australian Broodmare of the Year in 2019.

One of America’s leading sires and broodmare sires, Rocknroll Hanover, the sire of Yankee Rockstar, was the greatest son of the mighty Western Ideal, and he retired from racing with earnings of $2.7 million, a string of Stakes successes and six sub 1:50 miles.

Rocknroll Hanover is now the sire of 84 in 1:50, and his progeny have banked almost $130 million. His sons as sires are now making their mark in both hemispheres.

Aston Villa, the dam of Yankee Rockstar, has been one of the gems of the Australian stud book. She is the dam of six individual winners, five of whom took records of better than 1:55, including Poster Boy (1:49.1), Australia’s leading first crop sire this season.

Yankee Rockstar was a champion pacer in his own right, winning at Group or Listed Level from two to five years.

He won his first six starts as a two and three-year-old including the Victoria Sapling Stakes and Premiere Stakes, while at four he won seven out of nine highlighted by the Victoria 4YO Bonanza.

Yankee Rockstar put an exclamation mark on his career during the summer of 2015/16. In the space of three months he captured three of the jewels of the Victorian country cups circuit – the Kilmore, Cranbourne and Stawell Pacing Cups.

In all, Yankee Rockstar had 35 starts for 22 wins and seven placings and was only three times further back than sixth. He amassed $329,048 in stakemoney.

Retired to stud in 2017, Yankee Rockstar’s oldest stock are five-years-old and include the Tasmanian Golden Slipper winner Rock Artist ($120,453), the Melton winners Nothingbutwaves and Champagne Rockstar and the Vicbred finalist Chermear Princess.

Yankee Rockstar has so far left 18 winners from 27 starters – an excellent 66 percent strike rate.

Dr Kath McIntosh, the principal of Llowalong Farms, said: “The Yankee Rockstar’s are strong and a good size, and are impressing breeders and trainers with their kind temperaments.”

Yankee Rockstar has everything in his favour to distinguish himself as a sire – an impeccable background of blood, a brilliant race record and he looks the part. He should prove an ideal outcross to mares boasting Cam Fella, Mach Three and Abercrombie blood.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink