Westbury Stud’s stallion roster again made a widespread winning impact at the weekend with success across Australasia and further afield.
Swiss Ace’s homebred son Ace Of Diamonds was an emphatic victor in Singapore while El Roca and Reliable Man struck on the domestic front and Tarzino and Redwood were represented by winners in Australia.
Three-year-old Ace Of Diamonds played the first winning hand of his career when he trumped his rivals at Kranji on Saturday evening.
The Westbury graduate was making his fourth appearance after a couple of fifths and a runner-up finish and was dominant over 1200 metres.
Ace Of Diamonds is prepared by Ricardo Le Grange and was ridden in his breakthrough success by Bernardo Pinheiro. Bred by Gerry Harvey, he was sold through the Westbury draft at the Magic Millions National Yearling Sale where Sandy Javier secured him for A$100,000.
He is a son of the More Than Ready mare Go Kate Go, who is a half-sister to the two-time stakes winner Kakakakatie, with their dam St Kate a half-sister by Danehill to the Group 1 winners Bonanova, Fraternity and Telesto.
Go Kate Go has produced five winners, including El Roca’s Group-placed son Moeraki, and she has a two-year-old sister to Ace Of Diamonds and is due to foal again this season to Swiss Ace.
Model professional Old Town Road relished a drop in weight and his favourite underfoot conditions at Awapuni on Saturday to post another winning strike.
The El Roca six-year-old was partnered by apprentice Lily Sutherland whose claim reduced the sprinter’s impost to a luxurious 54kg and he duly proved too strong for his rivals in the open 1200 metre contest.
“The looser track definitely suited him too, I’m not convinced he is just a wet tracker but he does like rain on the day,” said trainer Lisa Latta.
Old Town Road travelled easily near the pace before Sutherland peeled four wide with 500 metres to run. He took control halfway down the straight and showed his customary fight to see off his rivals.
The gelding had placed in each of his two previous appearances, carrying 57kg at Otaki and then 59kg at Wanganui.
Reliable Man was represented by an inter-Island double with the progressive Chattahoochee accounting for his Rating 75 rivals over 1600 metres at Tauranga and The Grey Goose demolished her Rating 65 opposition over 1200 metres at Gore.
Chattahoochee has benefitted by trainer Debbie Sanders’ patient approach and the five-year-old has now won three of his seven starts. He was bred by The Oaks Stud and is out of the late Draci Brahma mare Auspicious.
Prepared by Jo-Anne Gordon, The Grey Goose has now won two of her six starts and showed a touch of quality last season when overcoming a slow start and an interrupted run to finish fifth behind subsequent Group 1 winner Romancing The Moon in the Listed NZB Insurance Stakes.
Meanwhile, trainer John Sadler believes the best is yet to come from his Tarzino mare Foreign Raider, who has overcome adversity to win two of her last three starts including victory over 1800 metres at Flemington on Saturday.
“She’s had a few hiccups. She had tie back throat surgery and, thanks to Dr John Russell, she was able to race after that and she has also had knee surgery,” he said.
“We now seem to have her going well. There's quite a bit of improvement to come.”
Bred by Rosemont Stud, Foreign Raider was also black type placed as a juvenile went third in the Listed Anzac Day Stakes.
Redwood gelding Red Flora has wasted little time in breaking his maiden for trainer Jarrad Humphries and led all the way at Kalgoorlie on Saturday to romp home by a wide margin over 1200 metres at his third start.
Bred by Gerry Harvey, the A$35,000 Magic Millions National Yearling Sale graduate is out of the Flying Spur mare Liliflora, a half-sister to G1 Australian Oaks winner Royal Descent, who has a juvenile son of Reliable Man and a yearling Redwood filly.