BEL ESPRIT RINGS IN DOUBLE

Champion Victorian Sire, Bel Esprit, is loitering just outside the nation’s top 10 sires by winners with a two state double on Monday (19 October).
Bel Esprit took his tally to 29 individual winners for the season when, firstly, Ring My Bel won over 1700m at Warrnambool, before Esprit of Eve scored a resounding victory over 1200m at Launceston.
Ring My Bel has been, well, ringing his bell for quite some time with four seconds and two thirds from 10 starts prior to the Warrnambool win.
Brian Donohoe reports in his Bel Esprit Blog that Ring My Bel has now had four trainers: Smokey Treloar (one start), Tony Vasil (five starts for two seconds and a third), Paddy Payne (two seconds from three starts) and currently Damian Hunter (a win and a third from two starts).
Smokey Treloar rode Bel Esprit throughout his highly successful 2YO season (including victory in the Blue Diamond-G1) and his wife, Noleen, bred Ring My Bel along with Danny & Nicki Quinlan.
Out of the Sober Star mare, Smoke There’s Fire, Ring My Bel raced at the rear for most of the 1700m journey before swooping in the final stages to grab the favourite by a head.
Esprit of Eve also dropped right back in her Launceston assignment but rapidly overtook her opposition to score easily.
This was Esprit of Eve’s second run for trainer Barry Campbell, having earlier finished third at Devonport on 5 October.
Previously trained by Chris Cook for a Hobart win in October of last year, Esprit of Eve was bred by Ken Williams and Ken Biggins and sold for $42,000 at the 2007 Adelaide Magic Millions.
Out of the Noalcoholic mare Apalachicola, Esprit of Eve is a half sister to three winners, including the stakes placed Ranch, and is a granddaughter of Moonee Valley black type winner Don’t Cry (dam of Flemington Group Two winner Tears Royal) and, in turn, a half sister to Caulfield Guineas winner Vitalic.
Bel Esprit statistician, Brian Donohoe, reports that Esprit of Eve is the third Bel Esprit to win in the Apple Isle, with Silver Bullion subsequently scoring at Moonee Valley.
Perhaps Esprit of Eve might follow suit?