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.

Magnificent Storm wins WA Pacing Cup

Western Australia’s most important race on the calendar, the $450,000 WA Pacing Cup, was won by the American Ideal gelding Magnificent Storm, who led from almost the outset before surviving a protest from the runner-up Jumpingjackmac.

Magnificent Storm settled down second but crossed to the front 500 metres after the start, causing interference to Jumpingjackmac and a result the winning driver Aiden De Campo was suspended for six weeks.

The winning cheque of $258,390 boosted Magnificent Storm’s stake tally to over $1million. He has won 34 of his 56 starts.

MAGNIFICENT STORM REPLAY

A six-year-old gelding, Magnificent Storm is a product of the Western Ideal horse American Ideal, who sired earlier winners of the WA Pacing Cup in Mighty Conqueror (2020), SohoTribeca (2018) and My Hard Copy (2015 and 2016).

Splendour (1:56.2), the dam of Magnificent Storm, left others in Stamford (1:54.9), the winner of four races at Gloucester Park to date, and this year’s Addington winner Amazing Me.

Splendour, who won the Gold Coast Oaks, ranks as a sister to the Victoria Derby and NZ Sires Stakes winner Maxim 1:53.8 ($494,436), being by Bettor’s Delight from the unraced Splendid Deal, by In The Pocket from the Dream Away mare Splendid Dreams, a half-sister to NZ’s first sub 1:50 racemare Adore Me (1:47.7).

Magnificent Storm was bred by respected Pukekohe horseman Todd Macfarlane. 

NSW Tatlow winner by Sweet Lou

Royal Cruiser (Sweet Lou), the season’s latest two-year-old classic winner, in beating a useful field in the Tatlow Stakes at Menangle, gives the impression that he could develop into one of next season’s top three-year-olds.

A strongly built gelding, Royal Cruiser was gotten by Sweet Lou from Royal Story (1:52.9), a talented racemare who numbered the NSW Breeders Challenge 3YO and Menangle Country Series among her 15 successes.

Royal Story, the winner of $220,716, was an Always A Virgin mare from Leagueofherown, by Fake Left from Colada Lady, a half-sister by Land Grant to Colada Hanover, dam of the pacing standout Blacks A Fake.

Royal Story was a half-sister to the good Menangle winner and dual Breeders Challenge Final placegetter So Kool Harry 1:53.8 ($217,595).

SA Oaks winner

Delightfully Tammy (Bettor’s Delight), who effortlessly won the South Australian Oaks at Globe Derby Park, showed ability as a two-year-old last season when she qualified for the semi-finals of the Vicbred Super Series and Breeders Crown.

She has enjoyed a stellar three-year-old season, winning nine races including the Vicbred Silver, SA Mermaid Stakes, SAHRC Derby and now the SA Oaks.

Delightfull Tammy is a filly by the Cam’s Card Shark horse Bettor’s Delight from Rockin Tammy, dam also of Oh So Easy (4 wins).

Rockin Tammy ranks as a half-sister to a grand pacer and NSW Derby and Vicbred winner in Ideal For Real and the country cups winner Can’t Top This, being by Rocknroll Hanover from the American-bred Tamara Hall, by Real Desire from the Canadian 2YO Filly of the Year Tabloid, by No Nukes. 

Delightfull Tammy was bred by Bruce and Vicki Edward, of Durham Park Standardbreds, Ballarat.

Country Cups double

Inter Dominion bound Serg Blanco (Bettor’s Delight) , who won the Yarra Valley and Swan Hill Pacing Cups recently, is one of the most capable young pacers racing in Victoria at present.

He was now won 13 races and $171,005 in stakes.

Bred by Woodlands Stud, Serg Blanco is a five-year-old Bettor’s Delight gelding who has a wealth of breeding on his dam’s side, being out of the Live Or Die mare Ca Cest Lamore, a member of the prolific Bell Aurore family.

Ca Cest Lamore, who was unraced, was a half-sister to a fine racemare in Copper Beach 1:58.6 ($179,794), a winner of nine races including the NZ and Victoria Oaks. Their dam, Les Payzen Star, was a half-sister to the champion pacer Elsu 1:53.6 ($2million), being out of Interchange, a Listed winner, and also the dam of Revonez 1:56.1 ($264,670) and Falcor 1:53 ($228,231) and grand-dam of the dual Oaks winner De Lovely 1:54 ($613,355) and a cup class pacer in Zadaka 1:54.4 ($203,066).

This has been one of NZ’s most successful families over a long period. Among other winners from it have been this year’s Miracle Mile hero Catch A Wave (1:48.8), Magic Four (NZ Harness Million 3YO), Sirletic ($299,673), the Group 2 WA winner Queen Shenandoah, and current leading NZ juvenile Vessem 1:55.6 (NZ Kindergarten).

By Terror To Love

Anna Love (Terror To Love), who won the $52,000 Forever Gold Mares’ Open at Albion Park – Uptown Beachgirl and Shez Notorious filled the placings behind her – has made rapid progress through the classes.

She is a smart sprinter and one of the best racemares left by the Western Terror horse Terror To Love, who sired talented pacers of the calibre of Total Diva, Terry, Lavazza, Smiffy’s Terror, Yoha and others.

Anna Love is a four-year-old mare from Anna Ivy (2:00.1), by Bettor’s Delight from the Tinted Cloud mare Anna Livia, dam of two high class pacers in Ana Afreet (1:48.6), a winner of 34 races and $409,076 in stakes, and Anna Malak (1:49.8), who won 15 races including the WA Golden Nugget and $361,688.

It is a pedigree with some real background with a strong staying influence behind it.

Our Money Rocks in 1:50

Our Money Rocks (A Rocknroll Dance) has joined the growing list of horses to enter the 1:50 list in Australia. He recorded 1:50 when he was successful in a $20,400 race at Menangle last weekend.

By the Rocknroll Hanover horse A Rocknroll Dance – a top pacer himself – Our Money Rocks is from Fuller Vee Em, by Modern Art (a son of Artsplace) from the grand producer Macrandra, by the Garry Rowan horse Classic Garry, a WA Golden Nugget winner and one of the best horses of his era.

Macrandra, the dam of 14 winners, founded a most successful branch of the Parisienne family including the Vicbred champions Distant Memory and Sahara Breeze, Hows The Memory, Delightful Angel and this year’s Mildura Cup winner Sahara Tiger.

A star from Petousa

A star three-year-old in Queensland this season is Jeseeka (Art Major), bred and raced by former top NSW horseman Wayne Honan.

A filly by Art Major, she is out of a fine racemare in Petousa 1:57.3 ($180,217) and is her seventh winner from nine foals to race including the Group 3 winner Our Road To Mecca 1:54.5 ($163,331), a full sister to Jeseeka.

Jeseeka won the 3YO Fillies Classic at Albion Park last week and before that finished a close second in the QBred For Life and looks a three-year-old with the potential one would expect of her breeding.

Norm’s Daughter Classic winner

Beyond The Sea (Sunshine Beach), the upset winner of the $100,000 Norm’s Daughter Classic at Gloucester Park, continues to prove herself in the top bracket among the female pacers in WA. She has now won 10 races and worked her way back to a NR87 mark.

Bred and raced by Perth enthusiast Trevor Lindsay, Beyond The Sea is a member of one of NZ’s most successful families, being a four-year-old Sunshine Beach mare from a useful racemare in Robyn’s C C 1:56.5 ($122,578), a Christian Cullen mare who earlier left the WA Listed winner Beat The Bank 1:56.1 ($120,619).

Robyn’s C C, who won 13 races, was out of Robyn’s Finale, by Holmes Hanover from Ryal Robyn, a good producer by Nevele Bigshot and tracing eventually to the Young Irving7ton mare Dolly.

Ryal Robyn produced the smart racemare and NZ Oaks winner Robyn’s Treasure 1:57.7 ($152,245), the Harold Park winner Robyn’s Turn (1:58.9) and the Albion Park victor Spirit Of Robyn (1:57.5) and was the second dam of the Queensland Listed winner Deano Robyn 1:52.8 ($255,752) and the NZ country cups winners Robyn’s Cullen, Lee Robyn, Grenfell Robyn and Jazmin Robyn.

A top flight NSW pacer in Salty Robyn belongs to this family. He won 20 races in NSW and Victoria including the NSW Tatlow and Hondo Grattan Sprint before being sold to North American interests where he took his lifetime mark of 1:49.2.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink