De An Andretti (AUS)
2 f I Am Invincible – Aloha by Encosta De Lago
O: Gerry Harvey
B: Mr G Harvey
T: Ron Quinton
W: 2YO Fillies Maiden Plate, 1100m, April 14, Hawkesbury
“She’s got up! Libertini’s sister got there on the wire,” exclaimed the call from Darren Flindell at Hawkesbury on Wednesday afternoon, as the two-year-old filly De An Andretti flew home down the centre of the straight to nab her rivals on the line in what was an impressive debut performance from Libertini’s little sister.
Libertini was beaten on her first start, albeit finishing second at stakes level in the Kindergarten Stakes (Gr 3, 1100m), but went on to win her next four starts, the latter two when she returned in the spring as a three-year-old and claimed the Silver Shadow Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m) and the Furious Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m) and De An Andretti showed plenty of potential in suggesting she can follow suit.
A homebred for Gerry Harvey, with De An Andretti the fifth foal out of his Group 1-winning mare Aloha (Encosta De Lago), the filly travelled within herself in a fast-run race at the second half of the field, before being angled into clear air by Andrew Adkins and delivered for a race-winning run to defeat Your Too Good (Your Song) by a quarter of a length, with Hoover Lucy (No Nay Never) a half-length further back in third.
Trainer Ron Quinton said she was a talented filly, who would now look to target the spring carnival.
“That was an outstanding effort, I thought,” he said. She came out very awkward out of the gate, which she’s never done before, but I think that would tell us that she’s a pretty good filly on the way up.
“She’s beautifully bred and a monster of a filly, for a two-year-old, but that’s what we’ve got to take care of. She’s so big on those legs. She’ll be a very good three-year-old. She’ll probably go for a holiday now and come back for the spring. It’s really exciting.
“When you’ve got one in the yard like that, you don’t mind coming in, that’s for sure.”
From the famed ‘Tennessee’ family, her last five dams are either Group 1 performed or Group 1 producers, deriving from three-time Group 2 winner Tennessee Vain (Whiskey Road).
Libertini’s dam, Aloha, a winner of the Coolmore Classic (Gr 1, 1500m), is one of seven winners out of two-year-old stakes winner Tennessee Midnight (Danehill), while further back this is the family of Malaguerra (Magnus), Snitzerland (Snitzel), Sooboog (Snitzel) and this year’s new addition to the stallion ranks Cool Aza Beel (Savabeel).
Aloha has an I Am Invincible (Invincible Spirit) yearling colt named Hawaii Five Oh, while she was put back in foal to the stallion last year.