Progeny of super sire Tavistock recorded a quartet of wins in four separate nations over the weekend. The Kiwi stallion has now left 13 stakes winners and his most successful son Werther was in sparkling form yesterday winning the $10 (HK) million Champions and Chater Cup, the final Group One in Hong Kong this season. Tavistock began his remarkable weekend in New Zealand on Saturday with Tomelilla at Ellerslie on Saturday, while on Sunday Tessastock won on the Sunshine Coast and in Singapore the exciting sprinter Tannhauser made it three wins on end. In total over the weekend Tavistock has eight runners for four winners, two second and two fourth placings. Werther was bought by clients of trainer John Moore after running an unlucky second in the 2015 Queensland Derby and in 11 Hong Kong starts has won five and been places five times He was bred by the same group of Kiwi owners who raced Tavistock. The group, which includes Ontrack client John Barnao, raced Tavistock on both sides of the Tasman and later sold him to Cambridge Stud supremo Sir Patrick Hogan. They retained breeding rights and bought the Zabeel mare Bagalollies and sent her to Tavistock.
They raced Werther before selling him to Hong Kong and have a full-brother called Gobstopper who has won two races. The group sold a full-sister for $400,000 at this year’s Karaka Premier Sale and they have a weanling sister. Ontrack’s Grant Morgan has long been a fan of Tavistock and was thrilled to buy a colt and a filly at this year’s Premier Sale in New Zealand. “Ontrack tried to buy several Tavistock yearlings at the 2016 Karaka Sale but they went for huge prices so we were interested again in January and felt the colt and the filly we secured were terrific value,” said Grant Moran. “The colt is bred on the same cross as Tarzino, winner of the 2016 VRC Derby for trainer Mick Price, so we are sending him the Mick’s Caufield stable, while the filly is going to Bjorn Baker at Warwick Farm. “They are both imposing types and like all the good Tavistocks they look being at their best over a bit of ground so we will take our usual conservative approach, but they broke in beautifully and are going along nicely,” said Grant Morgan. For more information on the Tavistock yearlings CLICK HERE. Up and comer Test The World is yet another nice horse picked out by Ontrack Thoroughbreds boss Grant Morgan. When Test The World latest win at Warwick Farm took her record to five starts for three wins and two minor placings for earnings of $82,200. Grant Morgan picked out Test The World at the 2015 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale, paying $40,000 for the daughter of Testa Rossa and Worldly. It was the same sale where he paid $70,000 for champion sprinting colt Brazen Beau two years previously. “This filly ticked quite a few boxes when I inspected her at the sale. Most importantly she was a good type and a great walking filly and that’s the first thing I look for when inspecting young horses. “She was the first foal of a young mare and though she was unraced, the family is strong with the second dam Glory Girl placed at Group 1 level a Group 2 winner. “The other big plus was that she was by a proven stallion in Testa Rossa. We either look for proven stallions or first season sires, so this filly had a lot going for her. “I decided to give her to Bjorn Baker at Warwick Farm because she was a BOBS filly and Bjorn had enjoyed great success with Testa Rossa progeny such as Unencumbered (Magic Millions) and Twilight Royale (VRC Sires Produce). “Bjorn has done a great job with the filly and his patient handling of her is now bearing fruit. She did not make her debut until December of her three-year-old year and that patient policy is the way Ontrack likes to operate,” said Grant Morgan. “Pushing young horses out of their comfort zone is a recipe for disaster, so Ontrack is all about being patient and waiting for horses to reach their full potential in a measured manner.” Bjorn Baker has always had a nice opinion of Test The World and believes her latest win will be a nice stepping stone to a Saturday race in Sydney. “We had her entered at Scone in the Denise’s Joy Stakes and the Scone Guineas, but unfortunately she was balloted out in both races. Her work leading up to the Scone carnival was excellent and she raced right up to that at Warwick Farm. “She is a very progressive filly and is learning plenty each time she goes to the races. Rider Ben Melham reported she just wanted to run out a little bit once she got to the front but that’s just a matter of inexperience and she’s got plenty of upside. “She came home after her latest win and ate up so there’s plenty of confidence that she can now go to a Saturday race in Sydney and be competitive. “We gave some thought to the Brisbane winter carnival, but the tracks up there are a major challenge and there are not a lot of races for a three-year-old filly so she can stay closer to home and race for some good money,” said Bjorn Baker. Congratulations to our owners: Forti Rossi, Garry Batchelder, Bruce Burnell, Alan Wetton, David Moretti, Denis and Margaret Frew, Michael Byrne, Peter Davis, Anthony Barbieri, Ray Barker, Pam Bayles, Tony Halloran, Gordon Henry, Ailsa Morrison-Galt, Wayne Muller, Kevin O’Brien, Mark Ostermeyer, Terry West. Lightly tried filly Cymbalism lived up to her early promise with an emphatic maiden win on the opening day of the annual Scone carnival. Cymbalism had been third and fourth in her only raceway outings for trainer Chris Waller and, in spite of some strong opposition at Scone, the good-looking daughter of Denman was well supported on the strength of that form. Chris Waller said Cymbalism showed the benefit of her earlier racing at Scone. “She arrived on course in good order and was settled and relaxed pre-race. She jumped well and pressed on from her good draw to go to the front early, before being crossed and eventually settling 2nd, one off the rail. She relaxed well in this position all the way to the turn and came off the leaders back in the straight. She hit the front at the 200m mark, edging away to win by 3/4 of a length. “Hugh was very pleased, reporting that she didn't quite know how to quicken away from her rivals but got the job done and will benefit a lot from the victory. She has pulled up and was well rewarded yesterday, after two previously encouraging runs and then to get a city win on the board yesterday was very good at only her third start. I feel she still has a bit of strengthening to do so we will have a good look at her over the next few days and see how she comes through the run,” said Chris Waller. A $130,000 purchase by Ontrack Thoroughbreds from the 2015 Magic Millions Sale, Cymbalism is from a family which produced plenty of good winners for the Ingham family’s Woodland operation. “Cymbalism is related to the good sprinters Yell and Anthems and she has always had her share of speed but has required time to strengthen and Chris has allowed her the time to build up and mature. She is not a filly who carries a lot of condition, so it won’t be a surprise to see her go out and have a nice spell and develop even further,” said Ontrack CEO Grant Morgan. “She is a Magic Millions filly so it makes sense to give her time and possibly consider the races available to Magic Millions graduates next season. “The Scone win continues the good form shown by Ontrack fillies in recent weeks with Savanna Amour taking the Group 3 Gold Coast Guineas and Test The World coming back from a spell to score at Gosford on Anzac Day. “They are all nice horses in great stables so there’s plenty to look forward to with this trio,” said Grant Morgan. Congratulations the winning connections of Cymbalism: Ontrack Thoroughbreds Cymbal Syndicate, Bobbin Along Syndicate, Beau River Racing, Andrew Connor, Alec Connor, Farrell Syndicate, Chris Burdon, C Connor, Dennis and Margaret Frew, Mark Ostermeyer, Russell and Jacqui Pawley, Andrew Tranter, WBC Racing, Lang Brothers Racing. Class prevailed when Savanna Amour made a triumphant return to racing in the $125,000 Gold Coast Guineas at the Gold Coast track on Saturday. The Group 3 win was Savanna Amour’s fourth from only nine career starts and she has recorded three placings for earnings of $375,000. She was fresh up into the Gold Coast Guineas but at her previous start she captured the Group 2 $200,000 Angus Armansco Stakes at Caufield and had also run third in a Group 3 Kev Hayes Stakes. “We have had a very high opinion of Savanna Amour for some time and you can make a case for her being unbeaten during her two-year-old campaign,” said Ontrack Thoroughbreds CEO Grant Morgan. “Following the Angus Armansco Stakes win we put her out for a short break to freshen her up for a Brisbane Winter Carnival campaign and the Gold Coast Guineas was the starting point race that we had picked out for her. “She showed us she was spot on for that with a very impressive jumpout at Doomben the week before the Guineas and she went to the Bundall race in fantastic order. Our confidence levels were boosted when she paraded in magnificent order and the fact she blew out to 16 was a mystery because we were quietly confident. “Ronnie Stewart rode her a treat and made full use of a perfect gate. She was very determined late and the New Zealand colt that run second is a proven Group One performer, so it was great to see her race right up to her best ratings,” said Grant Morgan. For trainer John Meagher, the win was another Group success in a long and illustrious career. John Meagher was a leading trainer in Victoria for many seasons and won the first $1 million Melbourne Cup with What A Nuisance in 1985. At the time, he trained Lloyd Williams’ team and he won virtually the major races while training in Melbourne. In 1999, John relocated to Singapore and he won 7 Group Ones in Singapore including the Singapore Gold Cup with Kim Angel and three Raffles Cups. He won 575 races in Singapore to go with nearly 3,500 Australia winners. John moved back to Australia and set up at Eagle Farm several years ago with sons Dan and Chris in the training partnership, but the boys have since returned to train on Singapore once more so John is now supported by son Paul. “Meagher Racing has always been a family operation and it was fantastic to have Paul here today because he is a hands-on team member who has done so much with Savanna Amour. She can be a filly who gets excited at times but Paul’s a great horseman and he gets on very well with her. “She is a talented filly and we are thrilled that she just keeps stepping up to the plate when we ask her to take on these Group races. There’s plenty more to come and I’m confident that you will see her at her best next season and beyond,” said John Meagher. Congratulations to the winning connections of Savanna Amour: Dennis Bates, Laraine Blades, FRF Racing, Haimes Racing, Peter Hanan, Bob and Gladys Harvey, Rob Hill, Paul Kitching, Bill and Glenys Knobel, Phil and Anne Leonard, Danny Lesjak, Paul McGavin, Dave Moretti, Barry Muller, Mark Ostermeyer, Darren Smeath, Dennis and Colleen Walker, Dale Watts. |
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