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Coco Sun wins G1, dam for sale at Riverside on Friday

4th May 2024

There were emotional scenes at Riverside today as the Tyreel Stud team watched one of their favourite fillies Coco Sun (The Autumn Sun) win the G1 South Australian Derby at Morphettville.

David Wallings – the father of Tyreel’s Linda Monds – died earlier this year and before his passing had identified Coco Sun as a star filly of the future.

So when the 3YO scored a dominant win in today’s feature – a week after finishing third in the G1 Australasian Oaks at the same track - the tears flowed freely as the magnitude of the result set in.

“I cannot even begin to tell you what this means to me and the family and the staff, it’s very special,’’ Monds said, choking back more tears.

“My dad would be so proud, he passed away in January and he’d be so proud of this moment.

“He mentioned last year that this filly was going to be something special and dad was right. I’m pretty sure he was riding on her back today.

“Dad watched her last year on the track and I just think he never missed watching the races and never missed following anything we bred and he was just so excited about the future in front of this filly and I think he got it right. He definitely got it right.’’

Coc Sun was given a dream ride by jockey Jamie Kah today, who settled third on the fence before making her run at the top of the straight.

She never looked in danger, running out the 2500m journey in fine style.

Coco Sun (pictured) is a graduate of the Classic Yearling Sale, where her trainers Tony and Calvin McEvoy teamed up with Damon Gabbedy to purchase her from the Tyreel draft for $250,000.

Tyreel also bred the filly.

Tony McEvoy described Coco Sun as “a gorgeous filly’’.

“She’s a really good filly. Calvin was here last week and both he and Jamie [Kah] were so bullish about backing her up and they were right. It’s very special,’’ the co-trainer said.

“She’s developed beautifully, she’s the most gorgeous filly. I’m very proud of her.”

The 2022 edition of the Inglis Classic Sale was a fruitful one for the McEvoy Mitchell/Belmont Bloodstock combination, as they also purchased WFA G1-winning colt Veight at the sale.

Coco Sun will now head to Queensland and be set on a G1 Queensland Oaks path, a race for which she is $7 third favourite with Ladbrokes.

Coco Sun becomes the 98^th individual G1-winning Inglis graduate since 2018.

Her dam, Miss Hufflepuff, is catalogued as lot 232 in Friday’s Australian Broodmare Sale at Riverside.

She is one of four mares in the Tyreel draft which also includes proven producers Sous la Terre, Tender and Catalonia.

To view the Australian Broodmare Sale catalogue CLICK HERE.

Earlier on today’s Morphettville program the 3YO filly Poifect (Pierro) beat the boys when winning the Listed Adelaide Guineas.

It was a third career win from just seven starts for Poifect and importantly a valuable first Stakes success.

Her trainers Ben, Will and JD Hayes bought Poifect for $200,000 at the Easter Yearling Sale, where she was offered by her breeders Coolmore.

The dam of Poifect, Without Exception, was purchased by Coolmore in conjunction with James Bester at the 2019 Chairman’s Sale.

To view the catalogue for the 2024 Inglis Chairman’s Sale, which will be held at Riverside on Thursday evening, CLICK HERE.

At Hawkesbury today tenacious galloper Just Folk (Magnus) rallied hard to claim the feature G3 Hawkesbury Gold Cup.

The 7YO is a $199,000 Inglis Digital purchase for his trainer Gavin Bedggood and Jack Dickens of Mailbag Bloodstock.

Since they bought him, Just Folk has raced eight times – all in Stakes races – for two wins and four minor placings and earned $400,000 in prizemoney.

“It’s the most money we’ve ever paid for a tried horse but Gavin and I identified him when we saw him on Inglis Digital and just thought he was a massive opportunity,’’ Dickens said.

“We did our usual due diligence and just thought we had to have a go at him because even though he was an older horse we knew he still had two or three preps in him at least and he’s been incredible.

“It’s a joy working with Gav, we work so well together, we plan the preps together, choose our riders together, it’s just good fun and when you get a horse like him it makes it easy.’’

Provided he pulls up well, Just Folk will back up in next Saturday’s $500,000 G2 Hollindale Stakes in Queensland.

And in New Zealand today the consistent 2YO Discretion Rules (Alabama Express) scored a first Stakes success at just his fourth career start when winning the Listed Champagne Stakes at Riccarton.

The Te Akau Racing-owned juvenile has not missed a placing in his career and showed his class today to score a comprehensive win.

Discretion Rules is a graduate of the Great Southern Weanling Sale, where Eva Heron’s Highline Thoroughbreds teamed up with Paul Moroney and Catheryne Bruggeman to secure him out of the Shadowbrook Bloodstock draft – who bred the promising 2YO - for $120,000.

The catalogue for this year’s Great Southern Sale will be released within the next fortnight.

Inglis’ Breeding Stock Sales Series begins at Riverside next week with the Australian Weanling Sale (Monday and Tuesday), Chairman’s Sale (Thursday evening) and Australian Broodmare Sale (Friday).

To view the catalogues CLICK HERE.