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 breeders

Always Hot is Derby material

Always Hot, who won the $50,000 Simpson Memorial at Menangle and is regarded as Derby material of the highest order, is a three-year-old colt by Always B Miki from Our Celebrity, a useful racemare who took a record of 1:55.1.

He is a member of the noted Trix Pointer tribe, which was represented by a winner at Cranbourne in Michaywey on the same night as Always Hot won. New Shuffle, a three-year-old winner at Geelong one night earlier, is also a member of this family.

Our Celebrity was a Mach Three mare from Celebrity Ball, by Presidential Ball from the Windshield Wiper mare Larrakeyah Lady, who established a great winning line for Victorian breeder Peter Gleeson and Bruce and Craig Cameron.

She left the A. G. Hunter Cup winner Safe And Sound 1:57 ($995,606), The Good Times (Tatlow Memorial), the exported Gold Rocket (1:51), Massarua (1:55.8), Safeguard (1:55.8) and others.

Always Hot ranks as a half-brother to the Tasmanian Derby winner Celebrity Royal (1:53,1) and the Listed winner Our Rocker (1:53), who is undefeated in three starts to far.

Unbeaten two-year-old colt

The Soho Tribeca colt Cease To React stretched his unbeaten sequence to two when he outsprinted his rivals to win the $30,000 Western Crown for two-year-old colts and geldings at Gloucester Park last Friday. A fortnight earlier he won at Pinjarra.

CEASE TO REACT REPLAY

Bred by Mike Howie, Cease To React is out of Orphan Reactor (1:58.9), by the great NZ pacer Auckland Reactor from the Christian Cullen mare Anabolic Elle, a half-sister to the Perth winners Suspicious Life (1:55.6) and Blissfull Cullen (1:57.2).

Cease To React has strong strains of colonial blood but he in none the worse for it.

Breeders quinella

The inaugural Group 3 $50,000 Laurie Kennedy, run at Gloucester Park, was a triumph for Wagga identity Dianne Kelly as the breeder-owner of the quinella pair, Steno and Peaceful, and for champion sire Sweet Lou, who left the first three placegetters.

Steno and Peaceful belong to the same family. Steno, a six-year-old mare, is out of the top racemare Lady Waratah 1:59.5 ($564,770), by Walton Hanover from Waratah Way, by Tompkins Hanover from the Select Yankee mare Yankee Leanne.

Peaceful, a five-year-old, is from the crack racemare and millionaire dollar winner Frith (1:50.1), by Four Starzzz Shark from Jackie Kelly, by Albert Albert from the broodmare gem Miss Paula, by Tompkins Hanover from Rich Sister, a half-sister to Yankee Leanne, the third dam of Steno.

Western Crown winner

The $30,000 Western Crown, the first classic for two-year-old fillies this season, was won by the Miss Red Velvet, a NZ bred filly by Always B Miki from the grand producer Presidential Affair, by Presidential Ball.

Miss Red Velvet was a National Yearling Sale purchase at Karaka in 2024 and ranks as a half-sister to the WA Oaks winner Maczaffair 1:52 ($693,515), the exported A Fair Ol Dance 1:49.2 ($338,375) and the WA Caduceus Club Classic winner Golden State (1:54.4).

Miss Red Velvet was bred by Alabar Bloodstock.

Magnetic Terror wins Devonport Cup

The most important race of the Devonport club, the $40,000 Devonport Cup at Launceston, was won by the Terror To Love gelding Magnetic Terror, who downed the favourite Star Major in a nail-biting finish.

Magnetic Terror, who began his career in NZ’s South Island, was later shipped to Victoria where he won three races at Melton including the Gordon Rothacker Memorial. He has won five races in Tasmania.

A seven-year-old gelding, Magnetic Terror is out of Clock Watcher (2:00.4), a handy racemare, by Man Around Town, a Towner’s Big Guy horse who belonged to the noted The Old Maid family.

Clock Watcher was out of Vested Power, by Smooth Fella from Armbro Gold, by Armbro Del from the U Scott mare Arahina, a sister to Arania, who won 12 races and was the champion racemare of her day.

Magnetic Terror was bred by Central Otago breeder Muriel Beckley.

First winner by Ultimate Sniper

The Bettor’s Delight horse Ultimate Sniper, an Inter Dominion champion and now at the stud in WA, was represented by his first winner when the two-year-old colt Usyk was successful recently at Wagga.

Usyk, who was making his first racetrack appearance, came from near last to win at a 1:57 rating for 1740 metres.

Raced and trained by his breeder David Jack, Usyk is out of the Group 1 winning Art Major mare Major Kiss (1:57.1),  whose dam, Kiss Kenny (1:55.3) was by Kenneth J from the Million To One mare Lombo Pow Wow, was a Moonee Valley winner and Bathurst Gold Tiara placegetter.

The Narcissist in 1:49.8

The Narcissist has joined the growing list of pacers to enter the 1:50 list at Menangle. He recorded 1:49.8 when he was successful in a $20,400 race last Saturday.

By the Always A Virgin horse Always B Miki – a multiple world champion – The Narcissist is from Smooth Sista, by Modern Art (a son of Artsplace) from the NZ bred mare Ice Lady, a half-sister by Soky’s Atom to the Group 3 WA winner Arctic Fire 1:51.6 ($357,872) and the NZ Oaks winner Classy Filly 1:57 ($200,890).

The Narcissist was bred by Rochester (Vic.) couple Garry and Kaye Coghill.

Up-and-coming Tassie mare
One of the most promising pacers racing in Tasmania is Tough Shaz, a Victorian bred mare who won the time-honoured Coastal Pacing Thousand at Launceston. A four-year-old, Tough Shaz is in her second season of racing, but from eight starts she has won five and been twice placed.

Tough Shaz has a background of blood second to none. Her sire, Somebeachsomewhere, has left the great American colt pacer and sire Captaintreacherous and the top Australian performers Our Waikiki Beach, Honolua Bay, Poster Boy and Act Now.

Her dam, Caitlyn Clarke (1:53.7), is by Art Major, the leading sire of juveniles for many years. She ranked as a half-sister to the Christian Cullen winner Rakero Rocket (1:55) and the thrice Group 3 winner Motu Premier 1:53 ($424,615).

Their dam, Motu Pocket O’Jewels, was a sister-in-blood by In The Pocket to the dual Tasmania Cup winner Motu Crusader.

The family, which traces to a noted foundation mare in Miss Poole, produced a top flight pacer in Franco Tiger (TT1:53.9), who won 43 races including the Miracle Mile, and other smart pacers in There’s A Franco (NZ Oaks), Three Blind Mice (WA Derby) and the Breeders Crown champion Audi Hare.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink