ANOTHER DAY IN THE SUN

The late, great Desert Sun has produced yet another stakes winner. Breednet’s Mark Smith reports.

It’s been just over 12 months since Desert Sun (below) departed this world but not before siring one of the modern day greats, Sunline, and the damsire of another great, Black Caviar.

For a non-stakes-winner, the son of Green Desert proved a remarkable overachiever. When the Darren Weir-trained Magnifique Soleil cracked it for his first stakes win in Saturday’s Listed Winter Championship Final (1600m) at Flemington, he became the 32nd stakes-winner for Desert Sun (GB) who left just eight foals from his final crop in 2009.

In a career restricted by injury, Magnifique Soleil takes his overall record to 9 wins, 3 seconds and 1 third from 22 starts for earnings of $285,526.

“He’s come back from a third tendon injury now so it’s a great effort and it’s a great effort for all of the staff at Warrnambool that do all the hard work,” Weir said. “It was a good, tough win.”

Bred by Barree Stud, Magnifique Soleil is the seventh named foal of the At Talaq mare Neutron Belle: a daughter of the Italian stakes-winner Bomba Atomica (IRE) (Prince Tenderfoot), Neutron Belle produced three previous winners including the stakes-placed Better Jetsetter (Jetball).