Gollan’s Solar Star caps stellar year with Gai Waterhouse Classic win
Solar Star (Zoustar) significantly increased her value as a breeding prospect just nine days prior to going under the hammer with a breakthrough stakes win in the Gai Waterhouse Classic (Listed, 1350m) at Ipswich yesterday.
The victory, her fourth since joining the stable of leading Brisbane trainer Tony Gollan after last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast National Broodmare Sale and eighth overall, also backed up the judgment of well-known agent Damon Gabbedy and his client John Baxter who bought the mare 14 months ago.
Solar Star, who resumed in February after a successful first campaign for Gollan last spring, won at Eagle Farm in June, prompting Gollan to give her a chance at stakes level in yesterday’s $125,000 fillies and mares feature race.
She led on a track many pundits believed to be favouring those on-pace and closest to the rails to hold off the challenge of Jami Lady (Spirit Of Boom) by three quarters of a length. Multaja (Medaglia d’Oro) was another half length away in third.
Strome (Smart Missile) and Shalwa (O’Reilly), who will join Solar Star in the Gold Coast sales ring next week, ran fourth and fifth respectively.
“John Baxter bought her at last year’s sales and gave her to me to train for a year,” Gollan said of Solar Star.
“She has now won three from three at Ipswich and is a black-type winner.
“It means she really is a nice broodmare prospect and now she is going back to the sales.
“The win puts the icing on what has been a great season for everyone at the stable.”
Robbie Fradd, who rode the rising five-year-old mare, also believes Solar Star has the credentials to become a high-class broodmare.
“She is a lovely tough mare and hopefully she will go to a really top sire,” the jockey said.
Solar Star’s Listed win took her record to 25 starts for eight wins and seven placings. She has banked $263,430 in the process.
Originally purchased for $190,000 by BBA Ireland and Freedman brothers at the 2017 New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka Yearling Sale, Solar Star (4 m Zoustar – Petty Cury by Not A Single Doubt) was on-sold at last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast National Broodmare Sale for $105,000.
She was selected by Gabbedy’s Belmont Bloodstock Agency for Baxter’s Ruane Menangle operation and is catalogued as Lot 76 at this year’s sale where she will be offered on Monday week. She is being consigned by Milburn Creek.
Solar Star’s dam Petty Cury, who is a half-sister to the dual New Zealand Listed winner Rio Fortune (Captain Rio), was also a Group 3 winner across the Tasman before being retired to stud.
Petty Cury has an unraced two-year-old named Rose Crescent (So You Think) in New Zealand and she has a weanling filly by American Pharoah (Pioneerof The Nile).
Solar Star also becomes the 14th individual stakes winner for Widden Stud’s reverse shuttler Zoustar (Northern Meteor).
Bandipur back to winning ways at Ipswich
Almost three years to the day since taking out the Lightning Stakes (Listed, 1050m) at Morphettville, former Godolphin galloper Bandipur (Commands) landed his second black-type win in the Eye Liner Stakes (Listed, 1200m) at Ipswich yesterday.
Stuck behind a wall of horses in home straight, Jag Guthmann-Chester opted to ride for luck, sticking to the inside. And luck he did get, as a narrow gap opened on the rails and allowed Bandipur to burst through and take out the race by half a length.
Favourite Boomsara (Spirit Of Boom) flashed home for second with Monsieur Gustave (Al Maher) a nose away in third.
The five-year-old topped last year’s Magic Millions National Racehorse Sale when purchased by Mick Crooks’ Mishani Enterprises for $260,000 and joined the stables of Richard Laming, before relocating to the care of Kelly Purdy in Queensland earlier this year.
One of Queensland’s biggest owners, Crooks liked Purdy’s work ethic and thus gave her Bandipur.
“I was so thrilled to get a good horse from Mick. It makes getting up in the morning worthwhile,” Purdy said.
“We have won with Bandipur but he should have won a few more. He has had nothing but luck during the winter.
“He saw a lot of the outside fence at his last start in the Grafton Ramornie.
“I could see he was travelling so well today but I thought he might not get out. Thankfully the runs came for Jag.”
Purdy said Bandipur would now be spelled and come back to chase a wild card to the Magic Millions carnival.
Guthmann-Chester was Brisbane’s leading apprentice three years ago but has struggled for recognition since a stint in Sydney. However, he is gradually climbing back to the top with the support of several Gold Coast stables, where he is based.
The jockey said it was good to get a Listed win to put his name back in discussions.
“This is my first Listed win and it is great to get it for Kelly who has stuck by me,” Guthmann-Chester said.
“I don’t know how I got some of the runs I got. I had a lot of horse under me and I just need luck.”
Bandipur (5 g Commands – Pattamada by Viscount) has now had 33 starts for ten wins and seven placings, earning $722,805 in prize-money.
Bred by Godolphin, he is one of two winners from three to race out of Pattamada (Viscount) who herself is out of Dalquarren (Canny Lad).
Dalquarren is also responsible for 2009 Queen Of The Turf (Gr 1, 1500m) and Millie Fox Stakes (Gr 3, 1300m) victor Neroli (Viscount), as well as Chai (Viscount), the dam of Wellington Cup (Gr 3, 3200m) scorer Magic Chai (Magic Albert).
Badipur’s third dam is Ivy Cottage (Star Way), who is also the third dam of BRC TJ Smith Stakes (Gr 1, 1600m) scorer Benfica (Lonhro) and the fourth dam of stakes winners Multaja (Medaglia d’Oro) and Veranillo (Medaglia d’Oro).
Pattamada has a yearling filly by Puccini (Encosta De Lago) and missed to Sacred Falls (O’Reilly) in 2019.
Bandipur is one of 80 stakes for the late Darley sire Commands (Danehill), who died suddenly in 2014.
Not A Single Doubt filly an Instant hit with Oaklands Plate win
A plan to get Instant Celebrity (Not A Single Doubt) to the Thousand Guineas (Gr 1, 1600m) in the spring will be mapped out by connections, after the unbeaten filly overcame an interrupted campaign and a wide run to land the Oaklands Plate (Listed, 1400m) at Morphettville yesterday.
TAB immediately reacted to the impressive performance by firming Instant Celebrity’s odds for the October 10 Thousand Guineas at Caulfield to a conservative $15.
Ridden by Kayla Crowther, Instant Celebrity ($4 favourite) unleashed an impressive finishing burst to score by three quarters of a length over the Tony and Calvin McEvoy-trained The Brumby (Spirit Of Boom) ($10). Another Award (Shamus Award) ($12) was a long head away in third.
Tommy Stokes, the Adelaide foreman for his dual-state trainer father Phillip, was not surprised by the manner of Instant Celebrity’s victory.
“It didn’t work out today, but she was too good and probably made Kayla look good last start and today,” Tommy Stokes told Racing.com.
“It was a super effort and it’s a real credit to the team.”
Instant Celebrity won her first start over 1050 metres at Morphettville on June 20 by two lengths, and the Stokes’ were forced to take her back to the jump–outs to prepare her for the Oaklands Plate due to a lack of suitable races.
“I have got a really big opinion of this horse, although I was a bit worried just because the preparation hasn’t worked out 100 per cent right,” Tommy Stokes said.
“We didn’t have any lead-up runs for her because a fortnight ago it was a SABOIS race and she wasn’t eligible.
“We gave her a solid jump–out in between, made her work that day and it paid off.”
Stokes confirmed the Caulfield feature for three-year-old fillies was on the agenda for the homebred daughter of Not A Single Doubt (Redoute’s Choice), but again warned the promising juvenile would have to overcome the awkward timing of the race.
He said: “The (Thousand Guineas) will be the plan, but it’s probably not the ideal preparation (racing in July), so we’re going to look after her to make sure it happens.”
Instant Celebrity (2 f Not a Single Doubt – Celebrity Girl by Starcraft) has earned $90,100 in her two wins to date and added significant value to her pedigree, being the best performed of three winners out of dual Listed scorer Celebrity Girl (Starcraft).
Her dam is a half-sister to the Group 3-placed Lady Lakshmi (Lonhro) and the Listed-placed Albaicin (Redoute’s Choice), who in turn is the dam of the Group 3 successful Generalife (Lonhro).
Bred and raced by South Australia’s Trevor Robertson, Instant Celebrity is the fourth foal out of Celebrity Girl who was purchased by Aquis Farm in foal to Pierro (Lonhro) for $280,000 at last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast National Broodmare Sale.
The resulting foal, a colt, died after birth while Celebrity Girl was covered by Santos (I Am Invincible) but did not get in foal.
Instant Celebrity becomes the 72nd individual stakes winner for pensioned Arrowfield Stud sire Not A Single Doubt.