News

World champ Nature Strip eyes Royal Ascot following 3rd consecutive TJ Smith win

2nd Apr 2022

Royal Ascot glory – and a chance to defend his Everest crown – lay ahead for champion sprinter Nature Strip (Nicconi) following a record-equalling third consecutive win in today’s G1 TJ Smith Stakes at Randwick.

With everything conquered on the Australia racing scene, Nature Strip’s trainer Chris Waller and connections now have their sights set on the G1 Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot on June 18.

The 7YO – whose win today took his G1 tally to eight – will not race in Australia again this autumn and instead be set exclusively for a one-race Ascot campaign.

The Premier Yearling Sale superstar will be joined in England by his stablemate and fellow Inglis graduate Home Affairs, who will contest the G1 King’s Stand Stakes the same week.

Nature Strip’s win in today’s TJ Smith Stakes – considered Australia’s premier G1 sprint – continued a stunning dominance of Inglis graduates’ stranglehold on the race.

It’s now the eighth consecutive year an Inglis-offered horse has been successful following previous wins by Santa Ana Lane (2019), Trapeze Artist (2018) and Chautauqua (2015-2017).

Nature Strip (pictured), who jumped from the outside barrier 11 today, is one of 68 G1-winning Inglis graduates since 2018 and was offered by his breeder Golden Grove Stud at the 2016 Premier Sale.

He has now won 20 of his 37 races for a staggering $17,949,785 in earnings.

“Finally he might be recognised as a champion because he is one. He’s a freak horse,’’ part-owner Rod Lyons said.

“Take Black Caviar out of the scene and he’s as good as anything we’ve had, I’ll tell you.

“Now we go to England and try and do the same thing over there, then he can win the Everest again hopefully.’’

Waller added: “It’s very special, he’s a very special horse.

“As soon as the barriers came out I said to [jockey] James [McDonald] ‘what do you think about the draw?’ and he said ‘perfect’.

“I was even thinking about scratching him a couple of days ago but James just said that from the draw, we’ll just come across and do our own thing, we won’t have to get bustled, we can just get into his own rhythm and that’s what he likes and that’s exactly how it played out.’’

Nature Strip was one of several Stakes-winning Inglis graduates today.

Earlier at Randwick, talented 2YO colt Semillion (Shalaa) backed up his luckless G1 Blue Diamond Stakes performance to score a strong victory in the G3 Kindergarten Stakes.

It was a second career win from just four starts for the Hawkes Racing-trained Semillion, who won the Listed Inglis Banner at Moonee Valley on debut on Cox Plate Day.

Since then he has finished second in a Blue Diamond Prelude and a close-up fifth in the Blue Diamond, before today’s comfortable victory.

“I remember him at the Premier Sale, he was just a gorgeous colt as you saw today, beautifully put together with great muscle definition, he’s got a magnificent walk on him, a great stride,’’ Mark Player, who purchased Semillion for $300,000 from the Blue Gum Farm draft at the 2021 Premier Yearling Sale, said.

“And it wasn’t just me, the Hawkes’ were there and Neil (Werrett), the whole team was there when we bought him and they all loved him. The good ones usually are a team effort.

“He was a standout we thought and when you buy off a good breeder like Rob Crabtree you know they’re on the market and we were lucky enough to get him and hopefully there’s a lot more to come.’’

Semillion is out of the Bel Esprit mare Sistonic, a two-time winner for Dorrington Farm’s Crabtree, who bred with her following her six-start racing career and whose third foal is Semillion.

Semillion has now won $450,000 in earnings and is well on his way to making himself a future stallion.

Meanwhile next year’s G1 Doncaster Mile could be on the agenda for today’s impressive G3 Carbine Club Stakes victor Straight Arron (Fastnet Rock), says his trainer Chris Waller.

The untapped 3YO Straight Arron has raced only three times, now a two-time winner and finishing second at his only other start.

Waller purchased Straight Arron for $270,000 at the Easter Yearling Sale, where he was offered by his breeders Torryburn Stud.

“We’ve taken our time with him, been patient and it’s starting to reap rewards now and the more time we keep giving him the better he’ll get. He’s just a jet, he’s very well bred and has a great future ahead,’’ Waller said.

“We’ll slowly raise the bar, he looks like he’s a nice progressive horse, the owners are nice and patient and that’s given me the opportunity to give him that time.

“His pedigree suggest he’ll get 2000m and who knows, he might be back here for a Doncaster next year.’’

Straight Arron will next head to the G3 Frank Packer Plate at Randwick in a fortnight.

Torryburn will offer a Zoustar half sister (ex Imperial Lass) to Straight Arron as lot 223 at next week’s Easter Yearling Sale, which is at Riverside on Tuesday and Wednesday.

To view the Easter catalogue, CLICK HERE.

And Another One (Super One) led in an Inglis graduates trifecta in the $500,000 Country Championships Final when defeating Commando Hunt and Amulet Street.

It was an emotional result for winning trainer Gary Colvin and Another One’s connections, who had to watch the galloper finish a luckless second in the race 12 months earlier.

But today it was a much happier ending, with jockey Nick Heywood settling the 4YO in the second half of the field before sticking to the fence and saving ground in the home straight.

“It’s fantastic. He got back, I was a bit worried, but he was always travelling alright and Nick chose to go to the inside and it worked out brilliantly,’’ Colvin said.

“He’s had a great prep, it’s all gone to plan, he’s just gone so good. He’s been a lovely horse, he never got picked up in the Kosciuszko which was a bit disappointing but we targeted this race and he settled really well and was just too good. It’s amazing, this race is amazing for us country folk.’’

Colvin purchased Another One for just $18,000 out of the Highway Session at the 2019 Classic Yearling Sale, where he was offered by his breeder Bowness Stud. He has now won $650,000.

In the Inglis Sires, outstanding homebred filly Fireburn (Rebel Dane) proved too strong again, backing up her Golden Slipper win with another similarly dominant victory in today’s 2YO G1 feature.

She defeated Inglis graduates She’s Extreme and Let’srollthedice.

In Victoria, the Inglis Digital platform enjoyed another Stakes success when 3YO colt Gundec (Kermadec) won the Listed Bendigo Guineas.

Gundec was sold to Scone Equestrian for just $10,000 in the 2020 August (Early) online sale, where he was offered by his breeder St Aubins Scone Partnership.

The Simon Wilde-trained galloper is now a Stakes-winning colt with bigger aspirations ahead.

And in New Zealand, Te Akau 3YO Amalfi Prince (Sebring) scored a first Stakes success at just start No.7 when winning the G3 Manawatu Classic at Awapuni.

The Mark Walker-trained 3YO is a $150,000 Easter Yearling Sale buy from the Marquee Stud draft whose overall record now sits at 7:2.3.0.