News

Reward Takes Victoria’s Premier Juvenile Feature

21st Feb 2009

Inglis graduates claimed a seventh Group 1 Blue Diamond in 10 years when Reward For Effort again underlined the quality on offer at the Melbourne Premier Sale when proving too strong in today’s $1million feature.

REWARD FOR EFFORT ($190,000 2008 Premier, 2c Exceed And Excel-Miss Prospect) was offered for sale by Basinghall Farm and secured by Dean Watt’s Dynamic Syndications, before entering the stables of Peter Moody.

Miss Prospect, a 16-year-old when she produced Reward For Effort, has been a wonderful producer, having also thrown the million dollar earner Consular.

Reward For Effort becomes the first Group 1 winner for top sire Exceed And Excel, who is represented by 13 yearlings at the upcoming Premier Sale.

The colt showed his class when taking the Blue Diamond Preview (LR) on debut before running second to Real Saga in the G3 Prelude two weeks back.

But he turned the tables today, comfortably holding off the challenge of the Tale Of The Cat colt, with Easter graduate MAKA ENA ($450,000 2008 Easter, 2f Exceed And Excel-Living Spirit) giving her sire a 1-3 finish in the Group 1 feature.

“It’s great to see the Premier Sale’s emergence as Australia’s fastest growing sale being matched by results on the racetrack,” Inglis Managing Director Mark Webster said.

“It was also fantastic to see so many people sharing in this success, with the winner being a syndicated horse, which is a reminder of the Inglis Sharemarket, where syndicators can post their purchases from upcoming yearling sales on the Inglis website.”

Today’s win was the 21st stakes win for Premier graduates in Australia this season and third Group 1 win, following Horse of the Year Weekend Hussler (Underwood Stakes) and Turnbull Stakes winner Littorio.

The Premier spotlight turns to Hong Kong tomorrow, where the World’s top sprinter from 2008, Sacred Kingdom, runs in the HK-G1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize.

The 2009 Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale will be held at Oaklands from March 1-4, with 780 lots catalogued.

Earlier at Caulfield, top class colt FRAVASHI ($550,000 2007 Easter, 3c Falbrav-Angelic Smile) confirmed himself as the firm favourite for next month’s G1 Australian Guineas when taking the G2 D’Urban Stakes.

A Group 2 winner last season, Fravashi had been luckless in two autumn runs, but found his best form at the end of today’s 1400m event.

Fravashi’s dam Angelic Smile (Dehere) has been a wonderful broodmare for Highgrove Stud, who will offer a Redoute’s Choice colt from the mare at April’s Australian Easter Yearling Sale.

Angelic Smile has also produced Group 3 winner Pure Joy (Fusaichi Pegasus), who like Fravashi was purchased out of the Easter Sale by Woodlands Stud.