Comin’ Through stakes his Epsom claims
Acting for Filipino clients in the 1990s, Albert O’Cass set up a small stud, Kingmaker Park, at
Scone, imported the superbly bred United States performer Bite The Bullet (Spectacular Bid), winner of the Sanford Stakes (Gr 2, 6f), as a foundation stallion and also brought to Australia several well-related American mares.
Comin’ Through is out of Mica’s Pride, a daughter of Bite The Bullet from one of those American mares, Gainesville (Afleet), so his career and that of his dam provide something of a tribute to O’Cass’s influence on the breeding side of the industry.
Before returning directly to Comin’ Through, it is worth relating that Bite The Bullet, a member of the Missy Baba (My Babu) family that produced A P Indy (Seattle Slew), overcame limited opportunities to leave such major winners as Sniper’s Bullet, Pleasure Giver and The Jackal, while his daughters have bred 16 stakes winners, three at Group 1 level.
Comin’ Through’s mother Mica’s Pride (Bite The Bullet) produced four of those stakes winners headed by Criterion (Sebring), while her daughters and sisters are responsible for a number of others, as will be mentioned later.
Fresh from his Doomben Cup (Gr 1, 2000m) win in May, Comin’ Through hit the front in last Saturday’s Tramway about 100 metres out and held off perennial placegetter Tom Melbourne (Dylan Thomas) to score by a neck, with Dixie Blossoms (Street Sense) a close third in a race in which Egg Tart (Sebring) and Youngstar (High Chaparral) also caught the eye just behind the placegetters.
This was Comin’ Through’s seventh win and fifth Group success in 18 starts, which have brought in $1,786,521 for his New Zealand-based owner/breeder, Sir Owen Glenn’s Go Bloodstock, whose filly Pure Elation (I Am Invincible) made it an especially memorable occasion later in the afternoon by winning the Darley Furious Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m).
Comin’ Through’s twice-champion sire Fastnet Rock (Danehill) also had a stakes double at
Randwick last Saturday when ATC Australian Oaks winner Unforgotten, also
trained by Chris Waller, took the Chelmsford Stakes (Gr 2, 1600m) in dashing style. Little more needs to be said here on the stud achievements of Fastnet Rock in both hemispheres other than to note he has a total of 139 black type winners worldwide.
Mica’s Pride, dam of Comin’ Through, was a very talented sprinter whose three metropolitan wins in Sydney were highlighted by her success in the 2002 STC Research Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) but her deeds at stud have far outshone those on the racetrack. Now 20 years old, Mica’s Pride has been an excellent breeder in that she has so far left 11 foals, nine of them winners and four of those stakes winners, the standout being near-champion Criterion, now standing at Newgate Farm.
First of the black type winners for Mica’s Pride was Silently (Anabaa), herself dam of Muwaary (O’Reilly), a Group winner in South Africa. Varenna Miss (Redoute’s Choice), winner of the BRC QTC Cup (Gr 2,1200m), was the third foal of Mica’s Pride with her best foal, Criterion, arriving in 2010. Criterion carried Sir Owen Glenn’s colours across the world, winning seven races from 1100 to 2400 metres, including four Group 1 contests, also placing in another 10 Group 1 events, among them a VRC Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m), to earn more than $7 million.
Comin Through’s three-year-old brother Sir Owen (Fastnet Rock) showed promise when placed last season, while Mica’s Pride has a yearling filly, a sister to Criterion by Sebring (More Than Ready), but missed to Snitzel (Redoute’s Choice) last season.
High fertility runs in Mica’s Pride’s family, as her unraced dam Gainesville also produced 11
foals, all of which won, among them Amah Rock (Fastnet Rock), winner of the MRC Mitchell
McKenzie Stakes (Listed, 1200m), stakes-placed Money Begets Money (Bite The Bullet), dam of Moqueen (Uncle Mo) and second dam of Malice (Teofilo), Rose of Cimmaron (Bite The Bullet), dam of Kingstar Farm’s stakes winning sire Bull Point (Fastnet Rock) and Joleur (Bite The Bullet), dam of stakes winners Gaze On (Intergaze), Butane Dane (Danehill Dancer) and Upon This Rock (Fastnet Rock) and second dam of the brilliant Najoom (Northern Meteor).
Gainesville, whose dam is by champion Alleged (Hoist The Flag), is a sister to stakes winners Afleetaffair (Afleet) and Justadarling (Afleet) and a half-sister to two other black type winners so this is a family of tremendous depth up close.
Comin’ Through’s sire Fastnet Rock is linebred 3 x 4 to Northern Dancer (Nearctic) while his
dam Mica’s Pride is linebred to Raise a Native (Native Dancer) and Bold Ruler (Nasrullah) with a remote line of Northern Dancer producing a build up of once beaten champion Native Dancer (Polynesian) in Comin’ Through’s background. Comin’ Through also carries three lines of influential champion Buckpasser (Tom Fool).