News

Caviar Caps Memorable Week

31st Mar 2011

Aushorse - Thursday, 31 March 2011

A memorable week for Australian-bred horses, which began with a weekend Group 1 international treble, was capped today when Black Caviar was confirmed as the highest rated racehorse in the world.

The Peter Moody trained unbeaten daughter of Bel Esprit was allotted a figure of 130 by the International Federation of Horse Authorities (IFHA) in Paris today.

The figure emanated from her crushing win under 58kg in the Group 1 Newmarket Handicap at Flemington on March 12 and the run was rated as the best individual performance in the world for the six months from October 1 2010 to March 27, 2011.

“This is a historic day for Australian racing and breeding,” Aushorse Chairman Antony Thompson said. “Not only does it show our breeders can breed the very best horses in the world, but it also shows the respect in which Australian racing is now held.”

Greg Carpenter, Chairman of the ANZ Classifications Committee and Australia’s representative on the World Thoroughbred Rankings Committee, described the feat as a landmark day for Australian racing.

“Winners at the Dubai World Cup meeting, US Breeders’ Cup meeting, Hong Kong International meeting and the Arc De Triomphe have all been rated inferior to Black Caviar, (which) puts into context the enormity of her achievement,” Carpenter said.

Black Caviar, bred by Rick Jamieson and sold through the Swettenham Stud draft at the 2008 Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale for $210,000, has won each of her 11 starts for earnings topping $2.5million.

Her 130 rating puts her ahead of Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Blame (129) and the Arc de Triomphe hero Workforce (128).

The elevation sets a raft of records headed by the fact she is the highest rated sprinter since the ratings began, easily bettering the 125 mark by Oasis Dream in 2003.

She is also the first sprinter to head the rankings, the first Australian horse to head the rankings, the highest rated Australian horse since the ratings began and the equal highest rating mare (joining Goldikova, who notched her 130 mark in 2009).

Black Caviar’s elevation followed a string of important racetrack successes at Group 1 level for Australian horses.

Singapore idol Rocket Man finally netted the international Group 1 he so thoroughly deserved when easily taking the Golden Shaheen in Dubai at the weekend.

After four near misses against international opposition, Rocket Man posted a winning margin of more than two lengths when atoning for his second in this race 12 months ago.

The five-year-old is the winner of 14 races in 18 starts, with his worst ever finish being second.

In Japan, Kinshasa No Kiseki made it repeat wins in the Group 1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen.

The Australian-bred son of Fuji Kiseki now has earnings closing in on $A10million with the eight-year-old having won 12 races in 31 starts.

He was recently crowned JRA Champion Sprinter/Miler for 2010 and he becomes the first dual winner of the Takamatsunomiya Kinen.

The foreign success was rounded out in South Africa when Galileo filly Igugu dominated her own age in the Group 1 SA Fillies Classic (1800m), winning by more than 10 lengths.

Igugu has won five of her seven starts to date.