News

Top Mares In Search Of Myer Riches

7th Oct 2012

Top mares Mosheen and Hallowell Belle bounced back to strong wins at Group 2 level at Flemington on Saturday, with the duo on a path to clash in the Group 1 VRC Myer Classic in four weeks’ time.

Returning to her favoured Melbourne track Mosheen ( $250,000 2010 Easter, 4m Fastnet Rock-Sumehra) rebounded to form with a dominant one length win over Bonaria and Miss Stellabelle in the Group 2 VRC Blazer Stakes over 1410m.

The Robert Smerdon trained mare had undergone throat surgery earlier in the spring and after two fair runs connections were hoping for an improved showing. After being given a gun ride by Nick Hall the top class galloper duly delivered.

“I was bit anxious as they were going to the gates. I thought things were heading in the right direction, at home we thought she’s progressed and she had been looking for this,” Smerdon said.

“She’s got a great Flemington record, but in the back of your mind she has been pretty plain the first couple and excuses only go so far, so whilst we thought she was getting there today was a bit of an acid test.

“I think she’s still got some improvement to come, her bodyweight would tell us that and we’d like to think she could be back here in four weeks’ time peaking for the Myer,” Smerdon added.

Bred by Bylong Park Thoroughbreds Mosheen (pictured) was purchased for $250,000 by Troy Corstens and John Sadler at the 2010 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale for owner Phil Sly, who races the classy mare with leading Japanese owner and breeder Katsumi Yoshida along with Ms J M Mccauchey, Miss S E Sly, Mr P S Kelly, Miss B J Sly, Mr J H Kreuzer and Mr B A Wilson.

Saturday’s win was Mosheen’s eighth victory, taking her earnings to $2,774,450, much thanks to the four Group 1 wins the daughter of Fastnet Rock recorded in her three-year-old year last season.

Gai Waterhouse recorded a Group 1 double in Sydney on Saturday and racing’s first lady will be hoping to add another Myer Classic to her record with Hallowell Belle after the mare’s recent victory in Melbourne.

Hallowell Belle ($170,000 2010 Premier, 4m Starcraft-Bella Inez) recorded the biggest win of her career when defeating a strong field of sprinters down the Flemington straight on Saturday in the Group 2 VRC Gilgai Stakes over 1200m.

The daughter of Arrowfield Stud’s versatile stallion Starcraft had already recorded second placings in last year’s Group 1 MRC Blue Diamond Stakes and Group 2 VRC Danehill Stakes behind Sepoy, but the weekend’s win was Hallowell Belle’s first at Group level, a worthy addition to her breeding value for owners Mt Hallowell Stud & D K M Walpole.

The $780,000 earner was purchased by Denise Martin’s Star Thoroughbreds from the draft of Three Bridges Thoroughbreds at the 2010 Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale for $170,000.

Hallowell Belle started her racing career in Sydney under the care of Gai Waterhouse, but was transferred to Peter Moody for 2011 before returning to Gai’s care early this year. The Waterhouse stable are hoping the consistent galloper can add further to her record of three wins and 12 placings from 16 starts.

“It’s good to have her back,” Waterhouse’s Melbourne foreman Dave Meijer said after the Gilgai.

“Full credit to Gai, she’s a master at picking these races for her horses, she really clicks with these fillies and mares.

“It was great to bring Hallowell Belle here and the world is her oyster now. There are some 1400m fillies and mares races here or we could go to a Group 1 with her now”, Meijer said.

Worth $500,000 the Group 1 VRC Myer Classic is always hotly contested with many of Australia’s top fillies and mares aimed at the 1600m Melbourne spring feature.

Recent winners of the race include Australian Horse of the Year Typhoon Tracy and $3.5million earner Forensics, quality mares Divine Madonna and Hurtle Myrtle, plus Gai Waterhouse’s 2005 winner Lotteria.

This year’s weight-for-age Myer Classic will be run at Flemington on Saturday November 3.