HEAVENLY RUN BY GOD

One stallion who has been flying under the radar of late is God’s Own: now firmly lodged in the top 10 of Australia’s third season sires.

The Redoute’s Choice stallion lobbed with another winner yesterday when Heavenly Dreams (ex. Ruby Dream by Rubiton) scored over 1223m at Mornington (it was the mare’s first win – along with two placings – from just four outings).

On Sunday, the Bart Cummings bred, owned and trained, Angelican (ex. Bektris by Sir Tristram) missed out by merely a neck in the Royal Randwick on Facebook Handicap over 1600m at Warwick Farm behind Chris Waller’s Cups contender King Gladiator. Similarly, Angelican has been lightly raced with a city win and four placings from nine starts.

However, it was on Saturday that God’s Own almost produced a clean sweep with his three runners when Utah Saints (ex. Hard Rider by Maroof) scored at Caulfield and Halo’d Be Thy Name (ex. Blazing Aura by Blazing Sword) grabbed another victory in Queensland before Happy Soldiers (ex. Our Hollywood Miss by Woodman) finished second in Macau.

The Matty Ellerton/Simon Zahra trained Utah Saints (below) has been in stellar form this time in with stakes placings at Caulfield and Flemington prior to his win at Caulfield on Saturday.

It’s pretty much the same case for Halo’d Be Thy Name since he shifted north a few months back.

Resuming with a third at Doomben and third at Eagle Farm, his last three runs have all been at Toowoomba for two wins and a close second.

It’s worth noting that God’s Own has around 80% money earners to runners with his progeny now collecting cheques in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Macau.

FROM A GREAT HEIGHT ...

We don’t normally get ourselves involved in politics, but a team member – a Pom nonetheless – deemed the photo below to be in the national interest!

After all, he reckons that if we can have our Statue of Liberty, Aussie pigeons are entitled to a statue of their own …

This one comes under the header:

WITH BREATHLESS ANTICIPATION, THE CROWD

AWAITS THE UNVEILING OF THE JULIA GILLARD STATUE

WHOA FELLA ... WHOA!

Bagging jockeys is a national sport … certainly compulsory for anyone who has dropped their hard earned on the last.

Yet, even among us Riders in the Stand there is the occasional dip of the lid to the skill displayed by hoops and deference to the inherent risk of their trade.

Take for instance the travails of country jockey, Brendan Ward, who kicked home the winner of the first race at Gundagai yesterday, the $1.60 hotpot McFerrin.

We’ll let the video do the talking, but happy to say that both jockey and neddy returned to scale unscathed – much to the delight of winning connections!

SUPER RESULTS AT SALES

Close relations to 2010 Kentucky Derby winner and Eliza Park shuttler, Super Saver, have topped two of the world’s best thoroughbred sales.

First cab off the rank was the $1.2 million paid for the yearling half brother to Super Saver at Fasig-Tipton’s Saratoga Select in early August (above), catching the eye and considerable financial wallop of John Ferguson, buyer for Sheikh Mohammed’s Darley operation.

“Obviously the mare (Supercharger) has produced a Kentucky Derby winner (Super Saver), but not only that, it’s a fantastic family,” Ferguson declared.

Then just to top it off, a half sister to Super Saver’s dam, Supercharger, has produced a $1.4 million yearling (by AP Indy) to lead the way at Keeneland’s marathon September Yearling Sale this week.

Regarded as the world’s premier bloodstock auction, September has clearly gathered all the cracks to the fray, but it was Bob Feld – purchaser of multiple Breeders’ Cup winners – who held sway on the day.

“There aren’t going to be too many more AP Indys with that kind of pedigree! He’s priceless as far as I’m concerned”.

With no less than seven strains of the legendary La Troienne, Super Saver boasts a real stallion’s pedigree: considered by many to be the “first family of American thoroughbred breeding”.

After attracting an initial book of 140 plus mares at WinStar Farm in Kentucky – 100 of which were either stakes winners or stakes producers – Super Saver had the distinction of covering two Group One winners in his first six hours ‘on the job’ at Eliza Park.

A stakes record setting 2YO before winning the run for the roses last year, Super Saver is clearly the best value Kentucky Derby winner standing in Australia.

MONDAY PICK ME UP

Quite possibly the best commercial ever! Budweiser promo from the 2006 Super Bowl.

GREAT START FOR BEL

Despite a record breaking fourth consecutive sires’ premiership, Bel Esprit hasn’t been resting on his laurels in 2011/12 with top 10 spots on the national charts both in terms of earnings and individual winners.

Thus far, Bel Esprit has produced a double on 5 August with Island Bel (ex. Dawn Again by Marooned) and Silver Falls (ex. Swish Trish by Redoute’s Choice); another interstate double on the 14^th with Mystical Bel (ex. Mysterieux by Snaadee) and Undercurrent (ex. Rivers Secret by Flying Spur); an incredible ‘quaddie’ on the 20^th with Easter Esprit (ex. Easter Road by Revoque), Morphettville winner Forty Two Below (ex. Danish by Danehill), San Mateo (ex. Zippast by Lord Seymour) and Spirit of Many (ex. Lady Acumen by Sound Reason); a treble on the 27^th with Rosehill winner Balavan (ex. Danure by Flying Spur), Doomben flyer Belletrist (ex. Lady Nickelii by Roman Artist) and Easter Esprit scoring her second win in the month; yet another quaddie on 4 September with Spirit of Pompeii (ex. Pompeii Glory by Pompeii Court) and Undercurrent (his second win for the season), plus the Singapore pair – Peaceful Warrior (ex. Let’s Begin by Umatilla) and Zac Warrior (ex. Lessie by Belvic) … a great day’s work with four winners and a third from just seven runners!

You can also throw into the mix, Vigneron (ex. Lenswood by Woodman) who hails from Bel Esprit’s first crop and won again in NSW on Friday, along with Andrew Noblet’s Navillus Superman (ex. Sharna Cabarna by Dolphin Street) who is something of a superman with wins on 24 July, 11 August and 25 August before running a neck second over a mile at Morphettville on Saturday.

And then of course there is the clearly brilliant Bel Sprinter (ex. Gavroche by Snippets) who followed up his stakes victory at Caulfield on 13 August with a truly gutsy second in the Bobbie Lewis Quality-G3 at Flemington on 3 September after conceding weight to the eventual winner – a Group One winner in May – and being forced to cart them up in front. Although it was his first defeat, Bel Sprinter certainly lost no fans.

But it may well be the deeds Brisbane sprinter, Found The One, that has us reaching for the little black book!

Bel Sprinter

HAVE THEY FOUND THE ONE?

Found The One is a 4YO mare by Bel Esprit from Drop Anchor (At Talaq) and if the breeding looks a little familiar, it’s because she’s a full sister to Group One winner Bel Mer and Group winner Mooring.

Trained by John Thompson, Found The One first appeared as a late 2YO in June of last year but was all at sea on the heavy track. However, Found The One showed she was right up to becoming the sixth winner for her prolific dam when third at Warwick Farm on Australia Day and a half length second at Kensington in February.

Winning successive trials in July, she was then faced with another heavy track at Kensington on 27 July and finished well back as favourite.

Frustrated at trying to find a dry surface, Found The One was sent to Thompson’s Brisbane stable and had her first run in the Sunshine State last Wednesday (7 September).

Stepping out over the 1000m at Eagle Farm, Found The One was simply outstanding: swooping from midfield on the turn, the mare raced away to score by six lengths in a majestic performance in which she established a class record with the clock stopped at 57.36 seconds.

Stable foreman, Brett Killion, was quick to praise Found The One and predicted a bright future for the horse: “She’s been looking for a dry track … she’s got loads of ability and should go through the grades here.

“The only time she’s raced badly was on those two heavy tracks.”

Jockey Tim Bell concurred with the foreman’s remarks: “She doesn’t go too bad and should win a lot more races based on that effort.”