Weekly spotlight on breeding

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.

Up and coming youngsters

Two outstanding young horses to win at the Group 1 meeting at Wagga were My Ultimate Ronnie (Bettor’s Delight), from Campbelltown (NSW), and the Victorian mare Soho Historia, who both took out their respective divisions of the $100,000 Riverina Championships.

My Ultimate Ronnie, who has won 14 of his 23 starts and $213,946, is a four-year-old entire by Bettor’s Delight and was bred by Ron Littler.

My Ultimate Ronnie looks certain to take a tighter mark and as a stayer he has a bright future. He ranks as a half-brother to the prolific Menangle winner Little Bliss 1:52 ($159,328), being out of Gifted Bliss (1:54), by Blissfull Hall from Lotus Lobell, by Jeremy Lobell and tracing to the Ribbonite mare Laura Pic.

MY ULTIMATE RONNIE REPLAY

This family has consistently produced a number of good winners over the years. A close relative of My Ultimate Ronnie in NSW is Better Than Max, winner of the Hondo Grattan Sprint. Better Than Max is a half-brother to Gifted Bliss, the dam of My Ultimate Ronnie.

Soho Historia, who is rated by experienced judges as one of the best young mares in the country, was bred by Robert Watson and trained by Emma Stewart. She looks to have terrific potential.

Soho Historia is a four-year-old by Courage Under Fire from Soho Tokyo 1:54.2 ($176,316), a multiple Group 1 placegetter and dual Vicbred and Breeders Crown finalist. Soho Tokyo was a Bettor’s Delight mare from the outstanding racemare Pelicanrama 1:53.4 ($730,271), a Panorama mare from the noted Linton family.

Sunny Sanz star stayer

Sunny Sanz (Sportswriter) advanced strong claims to being the best stayer in Tasmanian today when he scored an effortless win in the $75,000 Easter Cup at Launceston.

It was his 18^th win and second at Group level. Earlier in the season he disposed of He’s Ideal, Like A Wildfire and others in the Devonport Cup and last season he established a Tasmanian mile record of 1:54.1 at Hobart.

Sunny Sanz has not done a great deal of racing, having averaged nine starts a season. In five seasons of racing Sunny Sanz has won 18 races and has been 15 times placed from 48 starts for $229,490.

By the Artsplace horse Sportswriter, he is out of Soho Summer, by Western Ideal from Lombo Portrait (1:59.9), by Perfect Art from a fine racemare in Lombo Adreamin 1:56.8 ($337,575), by Classic Garry. Sunny Sanz is a half-brother to the Dandy Patch winner Colby Sanz 2:00.2 ($139,311) and Stormy Sanz (1:59.4).

Cheyella is Queen of the Pacific material

Cheyella (Heston Blue Chip), who won the $30,000 Blossom Lady at Melton and is regarded as Queen of the Pacific material of the highest order, is a five-year-old mare by Heston Blue Chip from Chiquita Bromac, a useful racemare who took a race record of 1:58.7.

She is a member of an old-time North American family, which was represented by a winner at Melton in District Attorney a week before Cheyella won.

Chiquita Bromac is a McArdle mare from Classic Blue Jeans, by Camluck from the American mare Oh Please, by Albatross from No Secrets, a mare by Oil Burner. Classic Blue Jeans, who was unraced, left a string of winners including the Franklin Cup winner Attorney General 1:48.4 ($323,098), who won six races in America inside 1:50, the Victoria Derby heat winner Crown Bromac 1:54.1 ($139,878) and Cullen Bromac 1:55.1 (Vic. Youthful).

Crown Defender, a Life Sign mare from Classic Blue Jeans, and her half-sister Crown Counsel (by Western Hanover) both founded good winning families.

Crown Defender became the dam of the NZ Cup winner Cruz Bromac 1:50.1 ($1.1million), Carter Bromac 1:52.4 (Breeders Crown Silver) and others in Churchill Bromac (1:57.3) and Coltrane Bromac (1:57.5), while Crown Counsel left five winners including the Menangle and USA winner Our Cullen’s Crown 1:52 ($491,044).

Cheyella ranks as a half-sister to the NSW Evolution winner Celerina (1:57.5) and promising three-year-old filly Chirripo (1:56.5).

Renshaw Cup winner

Penrith’s top race for pacers, the $50,000 Renshaw Cup, was won by the Somebeachsomewhere gelding Port Au Prince, who was last foal bred by Auckland identity Rod Croon.

Port Au Prince was sent straight to the front at barrier rise, was able to dictate his own terms and finally won decisively from Total Diva, Naturally Gifted and Petes Said So.

He was sold as a weanling for $12,000 along with his dam Maheer Princess as part of the dispersal of Croon Bloodstock at NZ Bloodstock’s All Aged Sale at Karaka in 2018. He is a five-year-old gelding by Somebeachsomewhere, a Mach Three horse who is a champion sire, from Maheer Princess (1:58.8), by Christian Cullen from a fine racemare in Fern Glen (1:59), by New York Motoring from Chateau Margaux, by Goodray from the Bachelor Hanover mare Ann Hanover and tracing to a noted foundation mare in Precision.

Maheer Princess, who won four races, was a sister to the 1:52 Menangle winner Feel The Burn and a half-sister to the Rotorua Cup winner Full Speed Ahead 1:57.1 ($171,632) and the Gloucester Park winner Good Times Ahead 1:57.8 ($141,112).

This has been a most successful family, as Fern Glen, the second dam of Port Au Prince, left the WA Pacing Cup and NZ Sires Stakes 3YO Championship winner Maheer Lord and a smart pacer in Lavros Glen.

Well related three-year-old

Compete (Sweet Lou), who won the $50,000 Vicbred Platinum Home Grown Classic for three-year-old colts and geldings, one of the features of the Easter meeting at Melton, is a Sweet Lou gelding from the same family as that which produced a top Victorian pacer in Ride High.

Compete, who did not race as a two-year-old, has won two of his four starts and has shown up as a very useful pacer, and it was a smart field he beat at Melton.

By Sweet Lou, and one of the fourth crop of the American horse to race in Australia, Compete is out of the Victoria Oaks placegetter Celebrity Guest (1:55.2), a half-sister by Mach Three to All The Magic, dam of Ride High (1:49), Rocknroll Magic (1:54.5) and Always Fast (1:52.8), all Group winners.

Compete was bred and is part-owned by prominent Maryborough breeder Peter Gleeson.

Blue blooded colt

Bay Of Biscay, who won the Shakamaker Classic on debut at the Easter meeting at Melton, is a two-year-old colt who can claim some worthwhile blood.

By Somebeachsomewhere, by Mach Three from Where’s The Beach, by Beach Towel, he is out of the champion racemare in Nike Franco 1:48 ($913,870), by McArdle from the Harness Jewels winner Nearea Franco 1:54.4 ($440,875), by Badlands Hanover from the American-bred mare No Paba, by Abercrombie.

Bred by Alabar Bloodstock, Bay Of Biscay looks a two-year-old with the potential one would expect of his breeding.

Lennytheshark quinella

The $50,000 Vicbred Platinum Home Grown Classic for three-year-old fillies, run at Melton, was a triumph for Lennytheshark as the sire of the winner Little Miss Lily and runner-up Lenny’s Angel – rather a notable siring feat.

Lennyshark, the richest son of Four Starzzz Shark, is standing at the new Wingate Farm at Wagga (NSW).Little Miss Lily, who notched her second success, is out of the Village Jasper mare Mystic Jewel (2:01) and the first of her produce to race. Mystic Jewel was a half-sister to the Australian Pacing Gold winner Mindarie Priddy 1:53.8 ($284,659) and the Group 3 winners Mister Bling 1:51 ($176,919) and Apennyspent (1:57.6), Ourbellabro (1:55.9) and others.

Their dam, Kellyarmbro, was unraced but she left seven winners. She was out of the grand producer Kelly Sheffield, by Classic Garry from the Thor Hanover mare Sheffield Thor, a cup class pacer who established a great winning line for the Pangrazio family of Rochester, the breeders of Little Miss Lily.

Hector is well bred

Hector (Bettor’s Delight), who won his second race from three starts in WA in the $50,000 Garrard’s Horse & Hound Easter Cup at Gloucester Park, is a five-year-old gelding expected to graduate far beyond his present rating.

A member of Kim Prentice’s Pinjarra team, he has a good deal more in his favour on the score of blood than most. By champion sire Bettor’s Delight, Hector is out of the Christian Cullen mare Kamwood Blue Chip, whose dam, Kamwood Cameo, was by Cam’s Trickster from the Alba Byrd mare Kamwood Byrd, dam of the dual-gaited Bold Kamwood 1:58.1 ($133,431) and the exported Winforus 1:54.6 ($118,237) and Kamwood Jasper (1:54.8).

Kamwood Byrd is also the third dam of the Harness Jewel and Franklin Cup victor Lancewood Lizzie 1:52.7 ($258,477).

Other members of the ‘Kamwood’ family include the NZ country cup winners Anotherchristian and Nassa.

Promising sire’s absence a loss

The results of juvenile racing in Western Australia further demonstrated the loss of Rock N Roll World to breeders.

With only a few representatives racing, he sired the Gloucester Park winner Remarkable Rock, who finished third in the Gold Bracelet and APG Sales Classic, and the WA provincial winners Worlds Above, Maximum Rock and Arionrock.

And in NSW, Lil Miss Crocker, Rock N Roll World three-year-old from the Art Major mare Lisa Crocker, was a winner in 2:00 at Bathurst.

In all, Rock N Roll World’s progeny has won five races with 26 placings for $82,060, making him the leading first crop sire in Australia.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink