A POTENTIAL Group 1 stayer became Tom Hedley’s third Cairns Amateur Cup winner when 6YO gelding Multifacets won this year’s 2100m Cup on Saturday.
The $100,000 Cup was the feature event of the biggest prize money pool of $474,000 that Cairns has ever seen with almost 160 horses (including emergencies) accepting for the for the 15-race program held on Friday and Saturday, September 7 and 8.
Celebrating its 60th anniversary and regarded as the region’s pinnacle social event, Saturday’s crowd drew around 10,000 patrons for the two-day carnival run by the Far North Queensland Amateur Turf Club.
Cairns Amateurs Carnival CEO Graham Thornton said with almost 40 per cent of racegoers from inter or intrastate and an increasingly larger slice of the young demographic arriving trackside, it was great to see the Carnival thriving and maintaining its special place in people’s hearts.
“Over the years Cairns Amateurs Carnival has become a rich thread woven into the colourful fabric that is Cairns and Far North Queensland. It’s a wonderful event where country and city collide in what is a wonderful showcase for the region’s special attributes – from the people that live here to the natural wonders of reef and rainforest to the infrastructure that makes it all possible,” Mr Thornton said.
Bred in New Zealand, Multifacets is by dual New Zealand Group 1 winner O’Reilly from the Pins mare Swarovski – a pedigree that prompted premier Sydney trainer Chris Waller to pay $75,000 for him at the 2014 New Zealand premier yearling sale.
Multifacets showed enough potential as a 3YO with wins at Seymour, Canterbury and Warwick Farm that he was regarded as a black type contender. He justified that faith with a third in the 2000m Group 2 Tulloch Stakes at Rosehill and was one of four starters Waller sent round in the 2016 Queensland Derby at Eagle Farm.
Potential proved illusionary as Multifacets only won a further two races at Rosehill in November 2016 and March 2018 before Tom Hedley decided to buy him as his next Cairns Amateurs ‘cup’ horse to join Common Objective (2012) and Minor Play (1993) as his previous winners.
President of the Cairns Jockey Club for the past two years and a former president in a previous eight years stint, Hedley has raced ‘hundreds of horses’ over some 45 years and has maintained a continuous owner/trainer relationship with Tolga-based Roy Chillemi since 1984.
However, Chillemi had his stable full when Multifacets became available so the horse was given to Cairns-based Stephen Massingham. He almost struck pay-dirt immediately at his first start in the Hedley colours by running a narrow second to We Just Love It in the 2100m Cairns Cup but then atoned in the Cairns Amateurs Cup. What’s more, the $81,500 prizemoney he won at his two northern starts to date has taken his prizemoney past $366,000 with his race record now standing at six wins and eight placings from 43 starts.
MM quality 2YOs in Training Sale catalogue online
THE catalogue for Australia's best performing breeze-up style auction, the 2018 Magic Millions Gold Coast 2YOs in Training Sale, is now online.
To be held at the Gold Coast Sales Complex on October 9, the sale features 219 exciting prospects with buyers looking to secure their next stakes winning star.
Already some 23 graduates of last year’s catalogue have been winners for their connections headlined by recent Aushorse Golden Horseshoe winner Lim's Lightning in Singapore and Australian juvenile stakes winner Krone in Adelaide.
"This is a 2YO sale with proven stakes results for buyers. From the last six editions of the sale 46 stakes performers have emerged," Magic Millions Managing Director Barry Bowditch said.
"The Gold Coast 2YOs in Training Sale produces more winners and has the best strike rate of the three breeze up style auctions in Australasia. The reason for this is the professionalism of our vendors who are among the most experienced 2YO sale vendors in the region," he said.
In a boost for buyers 120 lots are BOBS Eligible, 54 are nominated to the Magic Millions Race Series, 12 are nominated for the Golden Slipper, 6 for the Blue Diamond Stakes and 33 lots are QTIS Fully Paid. Some 34 lots are Super VOBIS Nominated while another five are VOBIS Gold Nominated.
Prospective Singapore buyers will be inspecting the 205 lots eligible for bonuses during the Singapore Golden Horseshoe 2YO Series – a great pointer considering the three placegetters from this year's race were all bought from last year's Gold Coast 2YOs in Training Sale.
Youngsters will breeze at one of four sessions across three states in the lead up to the auction giving prospective buyers a great chance to see each lot gallop on a similar surface. All breeze-up sessions will be streamed live via the Magic Millions website and all completed breeze footage will be online from September 20.
The catalogue for the 2018 Magic Millions Gold Coast 2YOs in Training Sale is now available for download via the Equineline iPad app and can also be viewed online at http://www.magicmillions.com.au
Breeze-up dates, venues and sale details
Warwick Farm, NSW: Thursday Sept 13, 10am
Seymour Racing Club, Vic: Friday Sept 14, 9am
Gold Coast Turf Club, Qld: Monday Sept 17, 9.30am
Gold Coast Turf Club, Qld: Monday Oct 8, 9.30am
Gold Coast Sales Complex, Qld:
Inspection Days – Sunday Oct 7 & Monday Oct 8, 9am
Sale Day – Tuesday Oct 9, 11am
Gold Coast Spring Racehorse Sale to follow – entries being taken
Old firm still in business
THE ‘old firm’ was on show when senior Queensland sires Falvelon and Show A Heart featured in the pedigrees as maternal grandsires respectively of Group 2 winner Lean Mean Machine at Rosehill, Sydney and Listed winner Thrillster at Moonee Valley, Melbourne, on Saturday, September 8.
Virtually pensioned off when Glenlogan Park decided to exit its stallion farm operations prior to the 2017 season, the two stallions seasons have generated over 16 seasons almost 900 winners and progeny earnings of more than $70 million. Now it’s their daughters carrying on the winning tradition.
The two grand sires were also grand gallopers of their era and thrilled race patrons in 2002 when they quinellaed Brisbane’s two premier Group 1 sprints – the Doomben Ten Thousand at Doomben and the Stradbroke Handicap at Eagle Farm. Falvelon drew first blood when he won the second of his two Ten Thousands with Show A Heart runner-up. Show A Heart then responded with his fourth and final Group 1 victory in the Stradbroke relegating Falvelon to second.
Glenlogan Park, Innisplain in 2002 acquired Show A Heart for stud duties the same year followed by Falvelon a year later. Since then statistics state Show A Heart has sired more than 500 winners of more than $44 million including 24 stakes winners while his daughters have produced winners of more than $13 million with Thrillster being the latest stakes winner – specifically the 1200m Listed Atlantic Jewell Stakes.
Falvelon has also been a prolific sire with more than 360 winners of almost $27 million while his daughters have produced 75 winners of more than $3.6 million. One of his daughters was Listed BTC Tommy Smith winner and Magic Millions 2YO Classic runner-up She’s Meaner – a half-sister to Group 2 winner Love Conquers All – who is now the dam of dual Group 2 winner Lean Mean Machine. The first Group 2 win came in the BRC Sires Produce Stakes at Doomben at the recent Brisbane Winter Racing Carnival followed by the Group 2 Run to the Rose at Rosehill last Saturday, September 8.
With Love Conquers All succeeding on the track and at stud, there was strong demand when Lean Mean Machine – a son of Group 1 winner Zoustar – was sold by Glenlogan Park for $250,000 at the 2017 Magic Millions yearling sale. Importantly, from a Queensland breeding perspective, his syndicate of owners includes Canungra-based stud Aquis Farm which could be his ultimate home when he is retired from racing for stud duties.
Winning ends justify means
LEAN Mean Machine is a genuine Glenlogan product as both he and his dam were bred on the property.
She’s Meaner is by Falvelon from the Prince Salieri mare She’s A Meanie. A Group 1 winner in New Zealand, She’s A Meanie was acquired by Glenlogan Park in 2002 with her second mating by Falvelon producing She’s Meaner. The following season she went to Group 1 winner Mossman, foaled at nearby Noble Park Stud, with resultant colt foal being Love Conquers All. A $400,000 yearling at the 2008 Magic Millions yearling sale, Love Conquers All raced in the Nick Moratis colours and was trained by John Hawkes. Winner of more than $1.3 million, his eight wins included four black type races up to Group 2 level while his seven placings included three seconds at Group 1 level.
Bred in Queensland, Love Conquers All returned to his home state when Eliza Park Stud secured him for stud duties in 2012 at its former Queensland breeding base near Beaudesert – formerly named Racetree Stud and Noble Park Stud. The stud underwent a further name change when Sun Stud acquired Eliza Park’s holdings in Victoria and Queensland.
Then came the news in April this year that with the lease agreement at the Queensland property about to expire in May, Sun Stud would close its Queensland farm and focus all its operations on its home base in Victoria. This has included the relocation of Love Conquers All who will stand at a reduced service fee of $8800 compared to service fees ranging between $11,000 and $13,750 for his previous six books.
This appears to be a deliberate move to attract Victorian broodmare owners who may have overlooked his family’s winning credentials over three generations at Caulfield. His maternal grandsire Prince Salieri won the Group 1 Underwood Stakes, he won the Group 3 Betfair Stakes and his daughter Savanna Amour won both the Group 2 Angus Armanesco Stakes and the Group 3 Cockram Stakes last spring.