Weekly spotlight on breeding

Breeding authority Peter Wharton presents harness racing news on breeding from Australia, New Zealand and North America brought to you by Yabby Dam Farms & Racing!

Yabby Dam Racing, principal Pat Driscoll’s dream to breed and race world class trotters was born after seeing a billboard on the Champs Elysees in Paris advertising the famous trotting race the Prix d’Amerique. Driscoll attended the Prix d’Amerique and immediately a love affair with the trotter was formed.

Driscoll spent the next five years visiting world class trotting establishments in Europe before embarking on his own venture here in Australia where he has lead the charge in the significant advancement of Southern Hemisphere trotting.

Along the way Driscoll formed friendships with many of Europe’s leading owners and breeder.

Madam Publisher’s family background

Madam Publisher (Rock N Roll Heaven), who won the $150,000 Western Australian Oaks, is a New Zealand bred filly with an interesting and successful family background.

Bred by Les Whiteside, of Christchurch, she was got by Rock N Roll Heaven from Hot Off The Press, an Auckland bred mare by the Cam’s Chard Shark horse Bettor’s Delight. Madam Publisher, who took a record of 1:54.9 at Pinjarra, has run up a tidy score of seven successes and three placings from 11 starts for $123,716 in stakes.

Madam Publisher’s dam, Hot Off The Press (1:59.9), was out a fine racemare in Classical, who took a mile mark of 1:57.7, won two Group 1 races and $291,590 and became the dam of winners in Sonic Classic 1:55.8 ($215,066), Heeza Classic (1:56.3), Bryson Dechambeau (2:00.8), Major Classic and Absolute Classic, the unraced Classic Nymph (dam of My Kiwi Lady 1:51.6 and My Kiwi Mate 1:52.2) and Hot Off The Press (dam of Madam Publisher).

Classical was a Soky’s Atom mare from Class Act, by Smooth Fella from Patrician, by El Patron. Besides Classical, Class Act, a lightly raced winner, left the exported The Lead (1:52), the Australian winners Can’t Explain It (1:56.3), Evening Class (1:56.5) and Open Class (1:58.9) and Tact Philly, an In The Pocket mare who became the dam of winners in Max Phactor (1:49.6, a dual Listed winner in WA) and Sweetchilliphilly (1:52.1), the winner of the Bathurst Gold Tiara.

Another daughter of Class Act was Interact, an unraced mare who proved a prolific broodmare. She became the dam of five individual winners including the good Albion Park winner Strawb’s Ideal Act (1:54.5) and the grand-dam of the Australian Pacing Gold winner Park Life (1:53.2).

Siblings win feature races

Two of Australia’s star female pacers at present, and both winners of feature events last weekend who promise to be a force in the forthcoming classics, are Aardie’s Express and Aardie B Miki. Aardie’s Express took out the $30,600 Frith Stakes in 1:51.2 at Menangle, while Aardie B Miki won the opening heat of the Victoria Oaks at Melton.

Both owned by Canadian enthusiast Mike Tanev are by Always B Miki from Tatijana Bromac (1:54.2), a smart racemare herself, and who has left other winners in Aardie’s Flash (1:51.7), a Group 3 winner, and Mohs Em Down (1:53.5).

Tatijana Bromac was by the Western Ideal horse Rocknroll Hanover from a fine racemare in Tandia’s Courage 1:53.6 ($305,236), by Stoneridge Scooter from the grand producer Talk To Me, by What’s Next. 

Breeding of Victoria Derby heat winners

Miki To Success (by Always B Miki) and Best Deal (by American Ideal), the winners of the two Victoria Derby heats at Melton, both belong to very successful Victorian families.

Miki To Success has shown up as a young pacer of some worth, winning eight races and being seven times placed from 18 starts for $148,900 in stakes. He is a three-year-old colt out of Jo Louleonie, an Elsu mare who left a string of winners including the Group 2 victor Jo An Leonie and Serengeti Sunrise (1:55.6).

Jo Louleonie was a half-sister to the Blacks A Fake and Messenger winner Majestic Cruiser 1:51.9 ($896,757) and the Australian Pacing Gold winner Bus To Harland 1:55.6 ($317,869), being out of Tiz Herself, by Exotic Earl from Laurick’s Pride, by Dale’s Gift from the Ardri mare Jennaval, who established a great winning line for Bendigo area breeder Rick Hasty.

Bets Deal, the winner of seven of his nine starts this season, is a colt from the dual Listed winner Starburst Girl 1:53.6 ($143,670), by Art Major from Celebrity Ball, by Presidential Ball from the prized matron Larrakeyah Lady.

This family has been bred from extensively over four generations by Maryborough breeder Peter Gleeson and Bruce and Craig Cameron and includes the 2023 Victorian Derby hero Petracca.

Group 2 double by Volstead

The results of the Group 2 $50,000 Need For Speed finals for three-year-old trotters, run at Melton, proved a triumph for the Cantab Hall horse Volstead as the sire of both winners – rather a notable siring feat.

In the Princess Final, Volstead was represented by five runners in the eight-horse field with Keayang Zahara (first), Maori’s Mac (second), Dreams Of Love (fourth), We Can Have It All (sixth) and Nordic Reign (seventh).

Keayang Zahara, who is unbeaten in eight attempts to date, is out of the smart Muscles Yankee mare Keayang Yankee (1:55.4), the dam also of the Group  winner Keayang Xena 1:59.4 ($138,779).

Keayang Yankee, who won nine races, is from Dream Interest, by Dream Vacation from Maorimoon, by Entrepreneur from the dual Vicbred champion Maori’s Glory and tracing to the noted foundation mare Maori Miss.

Keayang Zahara was bred by Margaret Lee, who trains her, and her son Paddy.

Derek The Jet, the effortless end-to-end winner of the Prince Final, was one of three of Volstead’s progeny in the Group 2 with Remus Phoenix finishing third and Tunbridge (fifth).

Derek The Jet, who extended his unbeaten winning sequence to nine, is the first produce of the dual Group 3 winning Majestic Son mare Cyclone Jeter (1:58.4), a sister to the Great Southern Star and Maori Mile victor Glenferrie Typhoon 1:53.5 ($561,169) and a half-sister to the double Jewels winner Cyclone U Bolt 1:54.5 ($230,225), Cyclone Jake (1:55.6) and  Cyclone Dream (1:58).

Their dam, Cyclone Vance, was a winning half-sister to the Tontine Trotting winner Atlas Alliance 1:51.2 ($286,090), being by Safely Kept from Cyclone Betsi, a pacing mare by Vance Hanover.

Derek The Jet was bred by Pat Driscoll’s Yabby Dam Farms.

Won Waratah Final

The Tintin In America four-year-old King Tintin, who won the Waratah Final at Menangle, is not short of rich relations.

Bred by prominent Melbourne breeder-owner Harvey Kaplan, the chestnut gelding is out of the Live Or Die mare Narissa Franco, who left earlier winners in Crazy Shippo(1:54) and Telemachus (1:55.5).

Narissa Franco, who won twice, was a half-sister to the Kaikoura Cup and thrice Group 1 winner Franco Nelson 1:50.3 ($872,493), who sired several winners in Queensland before his untimely death, and the Menangle winner Franco Noriega (1:52.6), being out of Notafella Franco, by Falcon Seelster from New Review, a Nero’s B B mare descending to the King Quail mare Trilby.

From the New Review branch of it to which King Tintin belongs, others in Montana Chief (1:49), the NZ Spring Cup winner Fernleigh Cash, Franco New Deal (NZ Southern Supremacy), Franco Niven and Renesmae (SA Golden Nursery) are also members.

King Tintin was the second leg of a winning double for Tintin In America on the night, the other being Nerano.

Well related three-year-old

Chart Topper is proving himself a three-year-old of some worth in NSW and over the past fortnight he numbered the heat and final of $30,600 Canola Cup at Eugowra among his successes.

He is a gelding by Captaintreacherous from the Australian Pacing Gold winner Queen Of Pop 1:55.6 ($204,527), the best of whose several progeny is the NSW Oaks winner Just Hope 1:52.5 ($367,527).

Queen Of Pop ranks as a half-sister to the crack racemare and Breeders Crown champion in Speak No Evil (1:50.9), being by Art Major from the NZ Group winner Top Tempo (1:56.5), by In The Pocket from Kliklite (1:56.7), a Cup class mare by Holmes Hanover.

Chart Topper was bred by Bill and Anne Anderson’s Lauriston Bloodstock.

Siring feat by Bettor’s Delight

Bettor’s Delight took the siring honours at Gloucester Park with five winners on the 10-race card.

His winners were Sugar Shake, Dark Eyes, Steel The Show, Cloud Nine and Im The Black Flash. The Woodlands Stud flagship also ranked as the damsire of the winner of the WA Okas, Madam Publisher.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink