News

Beautiful Filly Wins First Australian 2YO Race

26th Sep 2011

Breednet - Tara Madgwick - Sunday, 25 September 2011

The first Australian two year-old race of the season was run and won on Saturday and while the winner was long odds, she was the best bred horse in the race.

She may have trialled fourth last week, but Beautiful Crown (USA) filly Crown of Coureuse had enough gusto to shoot past her rivals to win Australia's first two-year-old race of the season on Saturday at Clifford Park.

A crowd of almost 1000 watched on as the John Thompson trained filly downed favourite Canningly ($3.20 fav) by three and a quarter lengths as well as star trialler Prefect ($5.10) in the capacity field Fitton Insurance Hopeful Plate 1000m.

Crown of Coureuse opened in the betting at $24.60, somewhat justified by her fourth placing in a Two-Years-Old Fillies (1) 650m barrier trial on September 13, which was won by Neville Saunders-trained Prefect.

Stable foreman Chris Hull said her preparation gave a good indication of what she could do.

"She's a very sensible filly. She was only beaten by a length and a half in the trial in Toowoomba last week,” Hull said.

He said trainer John Thompson has the facilities at their base at southeast Queensland town Canungra to trial their own horses.

"We can trial at our place which is great,” he said.

With $48,000 going to the winner of the $75,000 25-year-old race, it indeed seems Crown of Coureuse paid dividends for owner Patinack Farm Racing, who purchased the filly for $64,000 as a weanling from the Torryburn draft at the 2010 Inglis Select Weanling Sale .

A daughter of prolific winner getter Beautiful Crown (pictured), who is in the veteran sire category now at age 20, Crown of Courese is the half-sister to HK stakes-winner Sichuan Success and stakes placed Tom Coureuse, Yellow Diamond and Pirouettes being one of eight winners from top producer Coureuse.