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Breeding authority Peter Wharton presents all the harness racing news on breeding from Australia, New Zealand and North America every week brought to you by Garrard’s Horse & Hound. 
Melton track record lowered
A fresh track record for 2240 metres from the mobile barrier was established by the Captaintreacherous three-year-old colt Captain Ravishing of 1:51.1 – bettering the previous record of 1:51.4 held jointly by Lochinvar Art and Hurricane Harley by 0.3 – when he won the $200,000 Breeders Crown at Melton.
Captain Ravishing, who has now won eight of his 12 starts – including a clean sweep of the Breeders Crown – is a member of the same family as Louvre.
Captain Ravishing ranks as a half-brother to the $100,000 NSW Regional Championship winner Let’s Get Rockin 1:54.1 ($156,910) and Mufasa Bart (1:58.7), being by Captaintreacherous from the Sportswriter mare Ravishing Girl (1:57.1), whose dam Ravaged was by Safely Kept, a top classic colt by Jate Lobell from Cosmophylla, by Thor Hanover from Calophylla, by Entrepreneur.
Ravishing Girl was a half-sister to the Victoria HRC 3YO Cup winner Tsunami Sloy (1:55.5) and the good metropolitan winners Aussieaussiestride (1:55.2), Surfer Dude (1:57.8) and Izit.
Their dam, Ravaged, was a sister to the exported Fourwing Sweepa 1:53.2 ($152,656) and Key To Freedom 1:53.4 ($134,508) and a half-sister to the Group 3 winner Prince Benji 1:55.3 ($255,998) and the Group 1 placegetter Miss Cosmonaut.
A sister to Ravaged in My Ami Lee really established this family to some purpose. She figured as the dam of the dual NSW Breeders Challenge winner Louvre, the NSW Oaks winner Miss Hazel, Renaissance Man (Derby winner and successful sire), My General Lee (Treuer Memorial).
My Ami Lee was the second dam of Benicio (1:50.6), the NSW Breeders Challenge True Blue winner Let’s ’o Top Brazil, Mister Brazil (1:51.2), Smoothe Style (1:54.2) and others.
Captain Ravishing was one of three Breeders Crown champions sired by Captaintreacherous, the others being School Captain and Encipher, a three-year-old filly of some real potential.
Major Delight leading two-year-old filly
When she won the $300,000 Breeders Crown last weekend Major Delight (Bettor’s Delight) proved herself the top two-year-old filly of the current season.
It was her ninth success on end, and she beat some of the best two-year-olds in the country in the Breeders Crown after leading from the outset and carving out the last sectionals in better than 30 seconds.
Major Delight in unbeaten in nine starts for $375,179 in stakes for NSW horseman Peter Lewis, who bred and races her. She is out of the five-time Group winner and dual NSW Breeders Challenge winner Lady Euthenia 1:53.3 ($461,285), by Art Major from the NSW Sires Stakes 4YO winner Reggae Miss, by Maple Lane’s Strike from Girl Next Door, by What’s Next.
Lady Euthenia left earlier winners in Max Delight (1:50), a winner of 22 races including the Victoria Cup, Breeders Crown and two Derbies and $787,860, Sunset Zeus (1:53.4), Lady Shakira (1:55.4) and Lady Delight (1:57.1).
Captaintreacherous trifecta
The $300,000 Breeders Crown Final for two-year-old colts and geldings was a triumph for Captaintreacherous as the sire of School Captain (1st), Perfect Class (2nd) and The Lost Storm (3rd) – rather a notable siring feat.
School Captain is a member of one of America’s most successful families, being a Captaintreacherous two-year-old colt from a useful racemare in Yankee Showgirl (1:56.5), a Bettor’s Delight mare who left last season’s two-year-old winner Tennessea Waltz (1:57.3).
Yankee Showgirl was out of the American-bred mare Aston Villa (1:58.1), a noted producer by Artsplace from Villa Storm, by Storm Damage and tracing eventually to Minnehaha, the leading source of million dollar pacers.
Aston Villa produced three high class pacers in Poster Boy 1:49.1($803,310), a winner of 22 races including the NSW Derby, Chariots of Fire and the Vicbred Finals at 2 and 3, the Breeders Crown champion Born To Rocknroll 1:52.5 ($300,684) and the Kilmore Cup victor Yankee Rockstar 1:52.2 ($329,048), now a successful colonial bred sire. Others from Aston Villa were the Victoria Sapling winner Beach Villa (1:53.2) and Zoliver 1:53.6 ($102,878).
A striking brown colt, School Captain was bred and is raced by Bill and Anne Anderson, of Lauriston Bloodstock, who also bred and own the Breeders Crown champion mare Ladies In Red (by Mach Three).
Inter Dominion runners
Woodlands Stud flagship Bettor’s Delight has the strongest entry in the Inter Dominion with nine – Bettor Be The Bomb, Bettor Call Me, Beyond Delight, Longfellow, Max Delight, Perfect Stride, Pitch Perfect, The Black Prince and Zeuss Bromac.
Rock N Roll Heaven has four runners (A G’s White Socks, Expensive Ego, Huli Nien and Wolf Stride), while Art Major (Focus Stride, Majestic Cruiser and Narutac Prince), Shadow Play (I Cast No Shadow, To Fast To Serious and Torrid Saint) and Somebeachsomewhere (Act Now, Honolua Bay and Sicario) have three each.
In the trotters’ section Majestic Son has the largest draft with seven – Anywhere Hugo, Majestic Harry, Majestuoso, Ofortuna, Royal Charlotte, Swiss Miss and Watts Up Majestic.
Next is Muscle Hill with six – Bolt For Brilliance, Illawong Stardust, Kyvalley Chief, Lotamuscle, Powderkeg and Vacation Hill.
Orlando Vici has three contestants (Adelle, Brandlo Prince and Just Believe), while Angus Hall (Hatchback and One Over All), Danny Bouchea (Leanne Leeann and Nephew Of Sunoko), Love You (Parisian Artiste and Queen Elida), Skyvalley (Cuchulainn and Pink Galahs), Sundon (Chinese Whisper and Sundon’s Courage) and Wishing Stone (Phoebe Onyx and Zarem) have two apiece.
Total Diva in top bracket
Total Diva, winner of the recent Group 3 Sue Kelly Ladyship Stakes at Menangle, continues to prove herself in the top bracket among the NSW mares. She has won seven races this season including five at the Sydney headquarters track and $115,368.
She is a grand stayer and the best racemare left by the Western Terror horse Terror To Love, a triple NZ Cup winner and dual Horse of the Year.
Total Diva’s dam, Jane, was unraced, being by the Australian bred horse Flashing Red, a dual NZ Cup winner from First Direct, who was only a moderate and by Motu Mister Smooth (son of Smooth Fella) from Amourea, by Nero’s B B and tracing to the taproot Accident.
Total Diva has strong strains of colonial blood but she is none the worse for it.
Breeders Crown winning family
The Locomotive, a two-year-old colt by Muscle Mass bred by Pat Driscoll’s Yabby Dam Farms, is the third Breeders Crown champion left by the champion racemare La Coocaracha.
She joins Dance Craze and Reina Danzante, who won the three-year-old Crown series in 2017 and 2015, respectively.
Another daughter of La Coocaracha in La Biscuit produced the Breeders Crown Silver winner Nieta, while Rosie Sambrosie, a Crown Silver victor, is also a member of this fine family.
By Sebastian K
The $100,000 Breeders Crown for two-year-old trotting fillies, one of the features of the juvenile trotting calendar, was won by Susan Is Her Name, a filly by Sebastian K from Hands Of A Star.
Sebastian K (1:49), a world champion trotter, sired classic winners in Europe, Australia and North America including the top flight square-gaiter Next Level Stuff prior to his untimely death two years ago.
Hands Of A Star, the dam of Susan Is Her Name, was by Cool Hands Nukes, a pacing bred stallion who sired some useful trotters, from Storm Star, a mare by the Niatross horse Guida who left the good Albion Park pacing winner Hands Up (1:58).
Susan Is Her Name ranks as a half-sister to Margaret Jean, who won the Breeders Crown 4YO Final in 2018.
Bandbox winner
Tasmania’s top race for three-year-old fillies, the $60,000 Bandbox, run at Launceston was won by the Sutter Hanover filly Iden Boutique, who had been passed over by three trainers.
Iden Boutique was forced to race without cover from the outset but raced to the front on the home turn and finally won decisively from May’s Place, Macaria and I Of The Hurrikane.
Bred by the Rattray family and raced by Elliott Booth, Iden Boutique was pre-trained by Christian Salter, who, after offering the filly to several other trainers to no avail, retained her for racing.
She is a filly by Sutter Hanover, a Most Happy Fella line stallion who has left smart juveniles, from Boutique Art, by Art Major from Barringtonboutique, by Torado Hanover from the broodmare gem Barrington Lass, dam of a record 15 winners.
Iden Boutique is the second foal of Boutique Art, whose family includes horses the calibre of dual Inter Dominion champion Beautide, former national two-year-old mile record holder Ignatius (1:48.6), Chip And Gale (Tas. Oaks), Ashkalini (Evicus and Granny Smith), Bar Ron Boy and Laterron, all top flight performers.
Granny Smith winning line
The $60,000 Granny Smith winner Looby Lombo is a four-year-old half-sister by Heston Blue Chip to El Jay’s Mystery, who won the classic in 2018, and to the dual Oaks winner Barynya and the cup class pacer Lombo Navigator.
She put up a record mile rating of 2:00.4 for the 2698 metres mobile, almost 10 seconds inside the previous mark for fillies and mares and only 0.7 outside the State record held by Elect To Live.
Looby Lombo has not done a great deal of racing, having averaged four starts a season. In three seasons of racing Looby Lombo has won twice and been six times placed from 13 starts for $50,200.
Looby Lombo is out of the Perfect Art mare Lombo Anastasia, a half-sister to the former outstanding South Australian juvenile Oztreos, who won five classics at two.
by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink
