Eliza Park: SUCCESS STORY

What a great old horse Success Express (above) was … is. Currently living out his retirement in the Hunter, the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner arrived in Australia for the spring of ’89 where he served a couple of modest books at Heytesbury Stud’s Victorian division.

Then, according to a prominent agent, he had more moves than a chess board by heading to New Zealand for two seasons, the Hunter Valley for five, a couple in Queensland, back to Victoria for two more seasons and, by the time he stepped off the mound in 2006, he was back in Queensland.

(When Success Express returned from New Zealand, he was purchased by Peter Moran, who had established Noble Park in Queensland. Noble Park would later become Racetree and from this year on, is now known as Eliza Park Queensland).

The sire of Group One winners Al Akbar, Coogee Walk, Explosive Burst, Savannah Success, Quick Star and the Golden Slipper winner Polar Success, he’s also the sire of another Group One winner and highly prolific stallion in Mossman.

And while Success Express’ last actual stakes winner in Australia was Flash Trick (2007 VRC Hong Kong Jockey Club Plate), the grand old stager played a huge role in Saturday’s Doomben 10,000-G1.

Won by the John O’Shea trained Sea Siren – the first 3YO filly to capture the race since its inception in 1933 – Success Express is the sire of the winner’s dam, Express a Smile.

Sea Siren has just recorded her second Group One on the trot and her fifth win overall (and two placings) from seven outings. She is by boom sire Fastnet Rock and, given his son Wanted’s showing on the Gold Coast last week (with his first foals selling up to $255,000) don’t be too surprised if one or two Success Express mares find their way into No. 1 son’s book this spring!

Meanwhile, Mossman is the sire of Buffering who was beaten a head by Sea Siren on Saturday. Spare a thought for the Robert Heathcote trained 4YO who, in six runs since November has finished second to Black Caviar in the Patinack-G1, third to Black Caviar in the Lightning-G1, second to Hay List in the Newmarket-G1 (beaten a nostril), third to Foxwedge in the William Reid-G1, won a WFA at Eagle Farm in May and now finished second to Sea Siren in the 10,000! In 10 Group One appearances, he has finished in the first four in nine of them.

Buffering was bred by Kevin Dixon at Racetree (now Eliza Park Queensland), while his sire Mossman was bred by the Morans of Noble Park.