Growing Empire shows his talents with Breeders’ Stakes victory
Pricey Yulong colt Growing Empire (Zoustar) gave another loud hint of his immense future, while serving justice to his family’s impressive past, with a scorching first Group victory in Morphettville’s Breeders’ Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) on Saturday.
Bred by a group including Vinery Stud part-owner Neil Werrett, and sold from that farm’s draft to Yulong at Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale last year for $700,000, Growing Empire made it two stakes wins from three starts by leading throughout from gate ten of 11 and coming away to score by 4.5 lengths.
Solidly backed from $3.20 to start $2.80 favourite, the Ciaron Maher-trained two-year-old became the eighth Australian Group winner this season for Zoustar (Northern Meteor), and put him first among two-year-old sires on the score of stakes wins (four) for the current season.
Widden Stud’s flagbearer is a runaway leader on the general sires’ table by winners, starting yesterday with 173 to second-placed I Am Invincible’s (Invincible Spirit) 147. Zoustar also shares top billing with the same stallion by stakes-winners, with Growing Empire becoming one of his 14 at his previous start in Moonee Valley’s St Alban’s Stakes (Listed, 1200m).
While that two length triumph – which followed a narrow debut second at Kensington in February to subsequent Group 3-placed Yulong teammate Chateau Miraval (Zousain) – looked impressive, it was nothing compared with Saturday’s romp down the middle of the Morphettville straight under Mark Zahra.
“I’m surprised really. He’s a very good colt, but he had a few tricks that we had to iron out early in his career,” Maher said.
“It’s great to train a winner for Mr Zhang [Yuesheng] and Yulong. I think he’s a pretty progressive colt. He’ll probably have a breather now, prepare for spring, and improve again.
“He was a little bit immature mentally, but he’s come along in leaps and bounds, and there were no surprises today.
“Mark did his track assessment prior to the races and thought that was the place to be. The horse had a bit of a look around, so he might have been getting away from the winning post.”
Growing Empire is the second foal of the Group 2-placed mare Miles Of Krishan (Snitzel), whose mating with Zoustar effected a 3f x 3m duplication of the great Redoute’s Choice (Danehill) – Zoustar’s damsire and Miles Of Krishan’s grandsire.
Trained by Greg Eurell before a transfer to Lindsay Park, Miles Of Krishan won five races, three in Melbourne metro class, and was Group-placed when third in a race that was another highlight of yesterday’s Adelaide program, the Queen Of The South Stakes (Gr 2, 1600m).
The mare appears to have carried on her strong work at stud. Her first foal Dancing Alone (I Am Invincible) – the equal-fourth top lot at Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale in 2021 when bought from Vinery’s draft for $1.4 million by Ellerslie Lodge and trainer Bryce Heys – has stormed to six wins in eight starts.
The four-year-old mare won her first four starts – her country maiden at Canberra, before three provincial victories at Kembla Grange – then franked the form with benchmark wins at Flemington and Caulfield in the spring before a third in the VRC Begonia Belle Stakes (Gr 3, 1100m) on Derby Day.
Growing Empire looks well on the way to a glittering career, though the pause button will likely now be hit until the spring.
He and Dancing Alone have a lot to uphold. Miles Of Krishan is a half-sister to New Zealand’s Champion Two-Year-Old of 2007-08 Il Quello Veloce (Captain Rio) – winner of the Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m) and later twice placed at the top level – and Listed winner Donna Cattiva (Captain Rio).
And third dam Classy Twiggy (Twig Moss) was a Listed-winner who threw the super dam of four stakes victors – Group 1 heroes Terravista (Captain Rio) and Tiger Tees (Dubawi), plus four-time Group 2 winner Ball Of Muscle (Dubawi) and dual Singapore Horse of the Year Super Easy (Darci Brahma).
The 11-year-old Miles Of Krishan – bought by Vinery for $500,000 at the 2017 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale – now has Dancing Alone’s yearling sister by I Am Invincible, and Growing Empire’s weanling sister by Zoustar. She was covered by I Am Invincible again last year.
Zahra was highly impressed after his first ride on Growing Empire yesterday.
“When I asked him to let rip, he had a look at the winning post and it was very soft.
“He was laying out as well, but I let him go where he was happy in the straight.”
Fillies completed the first four places behind Growing Empire. The Patrick Payne-trained maiden Flattered (Yes Yes Yes) took second for her third stakes placing, a neck ahead of Jason Warren’s Flyer (Exceedance), with $4.20 second-favourite Karavas (Alabama Express) fourth.
Seonee reigns at Morphettville
Former speedster Winning Rupert’s (Written Tycoon) resurgence since crossing the country continues apace.
About to stand his first season at Western Australia’s Geisel Park, having previously been moved on from his first home Newgate Farm to Queensland’s Grandview Stud – Winning Rupert finally made some headlines this autumn.
Heading into the Sydney carnival with just two Listed winners to his name from more than 170 runners, he realised his first two Group winners in the space of three weeks, both at Randwick when Semana took the Triscay Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) and the ill-fated Tintookie the Wenona Girl Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m).
And on Saturday at Morphettville a third daughter stamped herself the ten-year-old stallion’s new best performer when Seonee – who became his second Listed victor at the same track last August – went two rungs better in the Queen of The South Stakes (Gr 2, 1600m).
Well ridden by Billy Egan, with a soft pace suiting his forward position, the Patrick Payne-trained Seonee powered down the centre of the straight, heavily favoured by that time of day, to win by a length-and-a-half, as a $6 third-favourite.
Fellow four-year-old mare, the Seymour-trained Lady Jones (Toronado) gained her first piece of black-type by taking second at $9, with local hope Silent Surrente (Fiorente) running a second successive stakes third, after the City Of Adelaide Handicap (Listed, 1500m).
Bought from Yarraman Park’s draft by Prime Thoroughbreds for just $80,000 from Book 2 of the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale of 2020, Seonee on Saturday earned her ninth win from 22 starts, and pushed her prize-money to almost $600,000.
The victory capped a strong and ultra-consistent progression from benchmark grade last winter for the mare, bred by Bill Mitchell – brother and associate of Yarraman’s Arthur and Harry. Wins in 78 grade at Mornington and 90 class at Flemington were followed by her sterling success in the Leilani Series Final (1400m), also at headquarters, before her next-start rise to stakes-winner in the Leon McDonald Stakes (Listed, 1400m).
This campaign, Seonee resumed with a third in The Mystic Journey (1200m) on All-Star Mile day, returned to Caulfield to gain her first Group placing with a half-length second in the Victoria Handicap (Gr 3, 1400m), before this weekend’s resounding success.
While trainer Payne is notoriously sparing with his racecourse appearances – including on Saturday – Seonee’s win, and the resultant boost to her breeding value, was heartily enjoyed by her large band of owners gathered from across the nation.
“We’re absolutely thrilled. We’ve got a heap of owners here today,” said managing owner Joe O’Neill, Prime Thoroughbreds’ founder and managing director.
“She’s just a lovely mare. We didn’t pay much for her. She’s been fantastic. Paddy Payne, just a marvellous training performance, and Billy Egan, what a ride.
“Full credit to Yarraman Park. We buy a lot of horses off Yarraman and have had a lot of success. It’s just fantastic.
“She’s now won nine races. She’s the second-most winning mare out of the [2020] Gold Coast Magic Millions sale, behind Imperatriz.
“So she’s done a great job. Paddy’s just brought her through her grades, gently brought her along, let her develop, didn’t push her, and look what we’ve got today [Saturday].”
O’Neill said Eagle Farm’s $700,000 Tattersall’s Tiara (Gr 1, 1400m) in late June could be Seonee’s next target, while next autumn’s Coolmore Classic (Gr 1, 1500m) at Rosehill could also be on her horizon.
“She’s a lot stronger now,” he said. “She’s a much better mare if we can get a wet track, we just haven’t had them.”
Egan, celebrating his fifth win on Seonee, said he was confident throughout the run, as the pace set by eventual fourth-placegetter Legacies (Justify) proved soft despite the large field of 16 fillies and mares.
Seonee trailed Legacies throughout, Silent Surrente followed Seonee and Lady Jones sat on the leader’s rump. The race set up poorly for backmarkers including Te Akau Group 1-winner Campionessa (Contributer), the $5 second favourite, and $3.60 favourite Foxy Frida (Foxwedge), who battled to make ground and finished ninth and tenth respectively.
“I thought I’d only need to come four or five horses off the fence,” Egan said. “And everyone wanted to get away from the fence. Either way, whether I was going to come inside one and then come out into the middle, or one was going to drop off … I was always going to get in the clear.
“It worked out perfectly. I was very glad that Legacies went to the front. That’s a good horse here, a bunny who can take me a long way.
“Seonee’s got a terrific record. It’s good to see her win at the mile as well.”
From the 89-foal first crop of Winning Rupert, Seonee is the second and best foal of the placed mare Mowgli (Not A Single Doubt), a half-sister to Hong Kong’s Champion Sprinter of 2018-19, dual Group 1 winner Beat The Clock (Hinchinbrook).
After failing to get in-foal in 2021 and 2022, Mowgli now has a weanling filly by Hellbent (I Am Invincible) and returned to that same Yarraman stallion in November.