Weekly Spotlight on Breeding

Breeding authority Peter Wharton presents all the harness racing news on breeding from Australia, New Zealand and North America every Friday brought to you by Garrard’s Horse & Hound.

Encipher unbeaten two-year-old

The Captaintreacherous filly Encipher, who was bred in South Australia and is trained in Victoria, won the $100,000 The Allwood at Globe Derby Park by a wide margin and looks a two-year-old of some potential. She is undefeated in two starts so far.

A well developed youngster, possessing both speed and stamina, Encipher is a particularly ‘easy going’ juvenile and is the third Allwood winner trained by Emma Stewart, who brought out Treachery (2020) and Pandering (2019. Encipher’s earnings total $63,379.

Encipher’s dam, Our Cavort NZ (1:57.9), a winner of 15 races, was by Falcon Seelster from the In The Pocket mare Bizzie Girl, who produced others in the NSW Pink Bonnet winner Eliza Duskhu 1:51.2 ($193,040), My Mei (1:53.6), Comeon Howzat (1:57.8) and Bizzie Lou (1:59.9).

Bizzie Girl was a half-sister to the NZ Winter Cup victor Im Percy The Punter 1:56.4 ($332,067) and All The Way 1:57.9 ($118,675), being out of True Lies (2:01.6), by Holmes Hanover from Laudit, by Lordship from the NZ Oaks winner In Or Out (1:59.7).

Encipher was bred and is raced by Kadina horseman Tyson Linke.

Encipher – Graham Fischer

Inter Dominion prospect

One of the stronger Inter Dominion candidates, particularly among the youthful brigade will be Max Delight, who has proved himself in the top flight and has won his way back to Grand Circuit class with three Melton successes recently.

His latest winning run in the Free-for-all over 1720 metres was a terrific performance. He led from the outset to win decisively at a 1:54.1 rate.

The winner of $431,980, Max Delight is a five-year-old entire, being by Bettor’s Delight from a champion racemare in Lady Euthenia 1:53.3 ($461,285), dam also of useful winners in Sunset Zeus (1:53.4) and Lady Shakira (1:55.4).

Lady Euthenia was a half-sister to the cup class pacer San Domino 1:49.2 ($382,104), now racing successfully in North America, the NSW Sapling Stakes winner Reggae Cowboy (1:59.4) and to Tears To Maple 2:06.9, dam of the Group 3 winner Gracie Taljuice 1:53 ($140,850).

An unraced half-sister Lady Euthenia in Leslie Jay (by Grinfromeartoear) figures as the dam of the Bathurst Gold Crown and Rod Fitzpatrick Memorial winner Castalong Shadow 1:54.6 ($164,293).

The next dam, Reggae Miss (2:00.3), won 18 races including the NSW Sires Stakes 4YO Final and $123,087 in stakes and was a top racemare in her own right. The family then traces by mares by the leading sires Maple Lane’s Strike, What’s Next, Express Byrd and Allegiance to the taproot Flee Step, the ancestress of Jamin (NSW Golden Mile), Defibrillator (Tas. Easter Plate), Yankee Doodle Dandy (SA Golden Nursery), My Gal Sale (Ballarat Cup) and the dual Oaks winner Mayfield Scott.

Queensland Triad winning line

The $102,200 QBred Triad 3YO Final winner, Talent To Spare, is a Hurrikane Kingcole filly from the same family as that which produced the Triad champions Trend Setter and Bonnie Jujon.

Talent To Spare, who was a Triad finalist as a two-year-old, has only been lightly raced, but she has shown up as a very useful pacer, and it was a strong field she beat at Albion Park. She has now won four races on end and from 13 lifetime starts she has won seven with three placings for $94,359 in stakes.

Talent To Spare is out of the Grinfromeartoear mare Talented Tess (2:00.1), the dam of earlier winners in Timeless Appeal (1:52.9) and Bombadier Jujon (1:53.8), who ran third in the Triad 4YO Final on the same night as Talent To Spare won.

Talented Tess, an Albion Park winner, was out of the Triad finalist Tycoon Tess (2:00.6), by Safely Kept from the Present Laughter mare Trendy Brooke, a NZ bred mare who left a fine racemare in Trend Setter 1:55.6 ($199,414) who became the dam of the NSW Breeders Challenge winner Heavens Trend, who held the Australian two-year-old mile record for some years at 1:52.1.

Talent To Spare was bred and is raced by Kevin and Kaye Seymour.

Talent To Spare – Dan Costello Photography

Star four-year-old by Hes Watching

Hezacrocwatcher, who won the Group 3 Country Clubs Championship Final at Melton, has now won five races and is rated one of the brightest prospects in his class. He ranks as a four-year-old half-brother by Hes Watching to a smart racemare in Shes Pukka 1:50.4 ($232,979), now racing successfully in North America.

Hezacrockwatcher has a good deal in his favour on the score of blood. Apart from being by Hes Watching, and one of the first crop of the American Ideal horse, he is out of the  Grinfromeartoear mare Pukpuk Princess, a half-sister to the exported Pukpuk Power 1:52.6 ($180,615) and Kuai Diam 1:53 ($184,926), being out of Likely Franco (TT1:59.6), by Caprock from Lalique, by Nero’s B B from the Armbro Hurricane mare Lancia.

This is the family which produced such winners as the ‘Cups King’ Franco Ledger 1:53.7 ($667,966), the Derby winners Late Bid and Lotsnlots, Ohoha Arizona (NZ 2YO of the Year), the dual Oaks winner Ok Rock, Hawthornden (Newcastle Cup) and the top racemare Letitia Franco (1:51.2).

Hezacrockwatcher – Stuart McCormick

Siblings win at Albion Park

It was no mean feat for the half-brothers Manila Playboy (by Pet Rock) and Bangkok Deejay (by A Rocknroll Dance) to win feature races at the QBred meeting at Albion Park.

Manila Playboy effortlessly won the $102,200 QBred Triad Final for three-year-old colts and geldings, while Bangkok Deejay took out the Breeders Classic 2YO Consolation.

Bangkok Dancer (1:56.4), the winning dam of Manila Playboy and Bangkok Deejay, was out of the unraced Killarney Beauty, a Caroldon Lehigh mare. Besides Bangkok Dancer, she was also the dam of the Paleface Adios Classic winner Perfect Pegasus 1:55.7 ($150,702), Courageous Cam 1:56 ($104,154) and Pegasus Park (1:55.9).

Killarney Beauty was a sister to the prolific Albion Park winner Manila Lover Boy (1:59.1), being from the Stormyway mare Killarney Betty, a close relative of the NSW Carousel winner Messenger Hanover.

Manila Playboy – Dan Costello Photography

Cat King Cole leading two-year-old filly

When she won the QBred Breeders Classic at Albion Park Cat King Cole proved herself the top two-year-old filly in Queensland of the current season.

It was her fourth success on end, and she soundly trounced the best two-year-olds in the State in the QBred Classic after leading from the outset in a 1:55.9 rating over 1660 metres.

In five starts Cat King Cole has now won four – she had traffic problems at her only other appearance – for $45,127 in stakes for part-owner and trainer Darren Weeks.

She is a product of the ill-fated Hurrikane Kingcole, sire of a top colt pacer in Youaremy Sunshine, and out of the P B Bullville mare Catwalk Beauty 1:58.2 ($156,566), who won the Breeders Classic herself and left earlier winners in Werelivingthedream (1:54.3) and Matron Jujon (1:55.4).

Catwalk Beauty, who won three Group races, was a half-sister to the QBred 2YO Triad winner Attack Life 1:57.7 ($132,832), being out of Down The Catwalk, by Vanston Hanover from the noted producer Sweet Mover, dam of the dual Breeders Classic winner Son Of Fortune 1:58.3 ($118,537), the exported Jaccamo 1:53.6 ($281,471) and Joy To Behold (1:56.2), a Listed winner who, in turn, left the QBred Triad winners Joys A Babe 1:51.7 ($400,818) and Jasper 1:55.8 ($131,431).

Other members of this family, which was founded in NZ by the imported mare Norice, were the QBred Triad and Breeders Classic winner A Good Chance 1:50.2 ($265,042), Jakes A Joy (1:54.2), Saldivar 1:57.6 (Whyalla Cup) and Lyrical Genius (Bathurst Sales Classic).

Cat King Cole – Dan Costello Photography

Group success for Parmesan

The winner of the Group 3 The Pure Steel at Gloucester Park was the Betterthancheddar gelding Parmesan, who is expected to make WA Pacing Cup class.

Only a four-year-old, he showed up last season as a three-year-old above average. He won 14 races including five at Gloucester Park.

Parmesan is a member of an old-time New Zealand family, which was also represented by Texas Tiger, who is undefeated in eight attempts in WA this year.

Tristar Brigade, the dam of Parmesan, was a Mach Three mare from Smithie’s Delight (1:58.1), by Smooth Fella from Smithie’s Choice, by Surmo Hanover from Paula Brigade, by Lord Butler.

Smithie’s Delight, who won twice, left a fine racemare in Trigirl Brigade (2:00), who won seven races and $143,710 in stakes, and later became the dam of the dual Kaikoura Cup winner Classie Brigade 1:54.6 ($496,244), the Wyndham Cup winner Triroyale Brigade (1:56.9) and the Albion Park victor Trilight Brigade (1:55.1).

Others from Smithie’s Delight were the Albion Park winner Doubledelightbrigade 1:51.8 ($137,351), Delight Brigade 1:57.9 ($156,312), Starlight Brigade 1:55.1 (a winner in three in Perth) and Delightful GNP (1:56.7).

Parmesan – Jodie Hallows, Paceway Photos

Classic winner by Gotta Go Cullect

The Christian Cullen horse Gotta Go Cullect, a Group winning juvenile in NZ and now at the stud in South Australia, was represented by a feature winner at Albion Park when Dangerzone effortlessly won the QBred Breeders Classic Final for two-year-old colts and geldings.

Dangerzone is now unbeaten in two starts, having won the Changeover 2YO Classic at Albion Park in March.

Bred and part-owned by Tim Malloy, Dangerzone is out of the Mach Three mare Sheza Machstar (1:58.7), whose dam, Fake Star was by Fake Left from the Tiff N Time mare Camelot Miss, who left several useful winners including the Harold Park performer Earthquake.

This is a long established NSW family and an earlier top juvenile belonging to it was Tiff’s Mystery, who won 15 races at Harold Park.

Dangerzone – Dan Costello Photography

Deltasun in 1:51.8

Deltasun has joined a select list of Australian bred trotters to enter the 1:52 list in America. He recorded 1:51.8 when he was successful in a $US22,500 race at The Meadowlands recently.

By the A Go Go Lauxmont horse Tennotrump – a top trotter himself – Deltasun is from Deltasu, by Elsu (a son of Falcon Seelster) from Pikelet, by the French Chef horse Souffle.

Deltasu, the dam of Deltasun, was a half-sister to the pacing winners Revonah Notlaw (1:57.9) and Tigermon, their dam Pikelet being a half-sister to the Menangle trotting winner Happy Valentines.

Deltasun has strong claims of colonial blood but he is none the worse for it.

Shepparton winner’s breeding background

The four-year-old Final Bow, a longshot winner at Shepparton last weekend, is a Victorian bred mare with an interesting breeding background.

By the Blissfull Hall horse Bitobliss, and one of his first crop, she is out of Georgina Bow, a daughter of Blissfull Hall, giving her a 2×2 cross to the son of the great Cambest.

Furthermore, Final Bow carries a 3×3 cross to Exotic Earl with Bitobliss and her grand-dam, Georgina Bow, both being sired by the Cam Fella horse.

Georgina Bow was a granddaughter of the Adover Rainbow mare Tiptoe Bow, who established a great winning line for Sutton Grange breeder Ivan Collison. She left the Myrtleford Bow 1:58.8 (a winner of 67 races and $134,301) and the Echuca Cup winner Aston Bow.

By Peter Wharton