Microphone Secures First Group 1 As the Championships Get Underway at Randwick
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Microphone secures first Group 1 as The Championships get underway at Randwick Sunday, April 7, 2019 RETIRES TO WIDDEN IN 2019 Angel Of Truth Read Tomorrow's Issue For: dominates The Week Ahead Derby What's On Stakes races: Pinjarra (WA) - Pinjarra Racing News Cup (Listed, 2300m) Race meetings: Gundagai (NSW), page 11 Wellington (NSW), Echuca (VIC), Sunday, April 7, 2019 Mornington (VIC), Sunshine Coast (QLD), Oakbank (SA), Pinjarra (WA), Pukekohe Exceed And Excel colt Park (NZ) International meetings: Kranji (SGP), Sha Tin (HK) shows class with strong International Group races: Kranji (SGP) - Chairman’s Trophy (Listed, 1600m) - Sha Tin (HK) - Sprint Cup (Gr Sires’ victory 2, 1200m), Chairman’s Trophy (Gr 2, Cummings and Bowman laud exploits of Group 1-winning 1600m) colt Microphone Stud News Written By joins Widden Stud Blue Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Written By (Written Tycoon), the winner of six of his 11 starts having amassed $1,808,700 in prize-money, will stand at Widden Stud in 2019. The Grahame Begg-trained Written By, who was bred and owned by his father Neville, came onto the radar of studmasters following his Microphone sportpiX dominant Blue Diamond Stakes victory last year, By Tim Rowe, Lydia Symonds, Lewis of the two-year-old Group 1 races this season. with Widden Stud last night confirming it had Lesbirel and Chris Humpleby Sheikh Mohammed’s Australian operation secured standing rights for the six-time winner. has won the Blue Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) Written By won four of his five starts as a icrophone (Exceed And Excel) with Lyre (Lonhro), the Golden Slipper and the juvenile, with his only defeat coming when he has all but assured himself of Sires’, but it is arguable that Microphone’s Group was fourth - and the first colt home - in last a place at stud on the roster 1 success holds the most significance given the year’s Golden Slipper Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m). of Darley stallions after the dramatic jump in his value as a stallion prospect. Widden Stud principal Antony Thompson Mconsistent colt scored an important Inglis Sires’ The James Cummings-trained Microphone was delighted to be able to add Written By (registered as ATC Sires’ Produce Stakes) (Gr 1, ($4.60), who was ridden by Hugh Bowman, to the historic farm’s stallion roster this year. 1400m) win at Randwick yesterday. defeated Loving Gaby (I Am Invincible) ($4.20 The news comes only weeks after Widden The victory by Microphone, who was favourite) by three quarters of a length, with Stud and owner Bert Vieira had agreed to runner-up to stablemate Kiamichi (Sidestep) in a half-head back to Kiamichi ($7.50) and terms for multiple Group 1 winner Trapeze the Golden Slipper Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) last Castelvecchio (Dundeel) ($10), who dead- Artist (Snitzel) to also stand at Widden month, also continued Godolphin’s dominance heated for third. Continued on page 2>> Stud. Stud News page 21 | 1 | Brought to you by Exceed And Excel colt shows class with strong Sires' victory | 2 | Sunday, April 7, 2019 << Continued from page 1 Godolphin’s Australian head trainer that’s deserving for the horse.” Cummings has prepared two of the three Group 1 juvenile winners this Bowman was also full of season and was far from complaining, but he did lament the impact a praise for Microphone after Golden Slipper victory would have had on the stallion profile of ‘star colt’ yesterday’s impressive win and Microphone. has no doubt the colt would “I think back to the Tuesday before the Slipper and he absolutely handle the step up in distance exploded for us in a gallop,” Cummings said. if he continued his autumn “We would have loved him to get up for the farm, but to present Sheikh preparation. Mohammed with a Golden Slipper meant more than that and for him to “I will be surprised if he isn’t come here, with the effort of the guys to hold him together, we barely had the best horse out of the Golden to breathe on him for this race today. Slipper,” he said. “(We) just had to be confident in the horse. We didn’t do too much “I think he will improve on with him and his class shone through.” what we saw today. The track The win by Microphone is also the 12th individual Group 1 winner for is racing beautifully but in my his champion Darley stallions-based reverse-shuttling sire Exceed And opinion it is heavy and, despite Excel (Danehill), himself the grandsire of Kiamichi. that, I think we will see him better Hugh Bowman sportpiX Cummings would not be drawn on whether Microphone would press on top of the ground. on to the ATC Champagne Stakes (Gr 1, 1600m) at Randwick on Saturday “The best will be seen when he gets to 1600 metres.” week. James McDonald, who rode runner-up Loving Gaby, said the He said: “He has gone to the line like a top-class colt. He’s a star horse rain-affected surface had played against the Ciaron Maher and David and I can’t tell you how proud I am of him. He stormed to the line once Eustace-trained filly. again in another top-class two-year-old race. “She is a beautiful filly who was unlucky not to win,” he said. “I think the longevity of his campaign, his strength, his class, all point “She’s got tremendous ability and if it was good ground today she to him being the best two-year-old in the country this season and think would have given the winner an even bigger Continued on page 4>> • Current top 10 Sire by winners (2018/19) •Top 10 3yo Sire this season and last by winners • Leading Third Season Sire by winners VINERY.COM.AU Get one of his next winners at Easter | 2 | Brought to you by In Australia our top colts are MORE AFFORDABLE than other markets and, if you buy a stallion prospect, the RETURNS ARE BETTER than elsewhere. [click through] to our INVESTORS’ GUIDE to learn more PURCHASE OFPRICE TOP 50 COLTS Australia $562,487 5-year average ($USD) USA $945,120 (2014 - 2018) Europe $1,131,288 AVG. SERVICE OF Australia $25,692 TOP 10 FRESHMANFEE SIRES USA $25,120 7-year average ($USD) UK $18,932 THE LAND OF (2012 - 2018) Ireland $15,761 OPPORTUNITY France $6,760 Aushorse.com.au Exceed And Excel colt shows class with strong Sires' victory | 4 | Sunday, April 7, 2019 << Continued from page 2 scare. She just lost her footing from about Santa Ana Lane earns overseas trip after T J the 600 metres to the 400 metres and that’s where she lost the race.” Smith win Josh Parr rode the Richard Litt-trained Castelvecchio and the jockey said the colt tired late against race-fit horses having bypassed the Golden Slipper. “It was a terrific effort. I chimed in like I was going to win, but a couple of those horses who have been up and racing just had the fitness edge on him,” Parr said. Microphone (2 c Exceed And Excel - Sung by Anabaa) has won four of his six starts and finished runner-up twice, in the Blue Diamond Preview (C&G) (Listed, 1000m) and the Slipper, for prize-money earnings of $1,588,600. The colt is one of three winners from four to race for the Listed winner Sung, who is a sister to three-time Group 1 winner Yell and a half-sister to Shouts (Strategic), herself the dam of Darley Group 1 winner and Victorian-based sire Holler (Commands). Godolphin sold Sung, who was not in foal, for $70,000 to Craig Santa Ana Lane sportpiX Rounsefell of Boomer Bloodstock at last year’s Magic MIllions Gold Coast National Broodmare Sale and was subsequently covered by Eureka An international campaign culminating in a tilt at Royal Ascot beckons Stud-based stallion Spirit Of Boom (Sequalo) last December. Rounsefell for high-class sprinter Santa Ana Lane (Lope De Vega), who produced a purchased Sung on behalf of Plaintree Farm’s David and Heather Pascoe. brilliant performance against elite opposition in the T J Smith Stakes (Gr Godolphin retains ownership of Sung’s yearling colt by Teofilo 1, 1200m) yesterday. (Galileo), who has been named Choir. Santa Ana Lane confirmed his reputation as one of Australia’s best Exceed And Excel has 13 lots catalogued at this week’s Inglis sprinters with his emphatic come-from-behind win in the $2.5 million Australian Easter Yearling Sale. race, his fifth at the highest level. Trainer Anthony Freedman admitted he had worked out how best Related Links | Inglis Sires' race replay to train Santa Ana Lane, which has seen the Continued on page 6>> Inglis Easter Yearling Sale Draft: 199 b c Hinchinbrook - Prostar IVERSDALE 265 b c Not a Single Doubt - Siennas Fury 401 b f Dundeel - Cerberus Gal 418 b/br f Pierro - Danesiri Recent stakes winners sold by Our 2019 Easter Riverdale include draft has plenty of sting. Come and Meryl, Irukandji, see us in Barn I Samadoubt and Stables 55 - 58 Nettoyer www.riversdalefarm.com.au | 4 | Brought to you by The most GROUP 1 WINNERS OFFERED ACCESSIBLE FOR SALE BEFORE THEIR BLOODLINES GROUP 1 WIN in the world. 63% A greater proportion of Australia top class winners in Australia are available 39% at auction before their Europe Group One win than [click through] to our elsewhere in the world. INVESTORS’ GUIDE to learn more THE LAND OF OPPORTUNITY Aushorse.com.au Santa Ana Lane earns oversees trip | 6 | Sunday, April 7, 2019 << Continued from page 4 gelding’s dramatic turnaround in form over “It was an amazing victory,” the past two seasons.