Masterclass from Parnhams as Neufbosc takes Perth Cup
A one-time runner in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and the Melbourne Cup, Western Australia has brought out the best in the six-year-old
When Neufbosc (Mastercraftsman) had his final start in Melbourne in June, finishing sixth to Lord Belvedere (Archipenko) in an off-season staying handicap at Flemington, it seemed unlikely that he would ever find the form that saw him contest races like the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (Gr 1, 2400m) and the Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m).
In 12 starts in Australia as part of the Lindsay Park operation, Neufbosc had one solitary placing to his name, sticking on for third in the 2019 Sandown Cup (Listed, 3200m).
But a sea change from Victoria to Western Australia has sparked a revival, with the grey winning the Carbine Club of WA Stakes (Listed, 1400m) and the ATA Cup (Listed, 2200m) before scoring his biggest career success in the Perth Cup (Gr 2, 2400m) at Ascot yesterday.
Sent out the well-backed $3.60 second favourite behind Kingston Town Classic (Gr 1, 1800m) winner Truly Great (Dundeel), who drifted out to $2.80 at jump time, the Neville Parnham-trained Neufbosc (6 g Mastercraftsman – Nonsuch Way by Verglas) settled midfield in the two-wide line with Truly Great to his outside.
Jockey William Pike allowed Truly Great to improve with momentary cover from 2018 Mackinnon Stakes (Gr 1, 2000m) winner Trap For Fools (Poet’s Voice), while Chris Parnham on Neufbosc shifted out at the 1000 metres to take the trailing spot right behind the favourite.
Perhaps the decisive move, though, was made at the 600 metres when Parnham decided to switch off the heels of Truly Great – who was travelling as strongly as any of his rivals with Pike, in the words of racecaller Darren McAullay, “sitting as quiet as a church mouse” – and instead decided to come with a move to his outside.
With Truly Great carrying 60 kilograms to Neufbosc’s 54 kilograms and having endured a three-wide berth throughout, Pike held the favourite together as long as possible before resorting to a vigorous drive passing the 200 metres as the French import loomed large.
As the line crept closer, it appeared that Truly Great would record one of the truly great Perth Cup victories, fighting on doggedly against the odds. But, two strides before the line, Neufbosc finally saw his nose hit the front for the first time and, at the only place that matters, he was a long head in front.
In a pulsating finish, the pair came four and a quarter lengths clear of third-placed Midnight Blue (So You Think), with Trap For Fools a further long head away in fourth.
For the younger Parnham, who has had a month to remember after winning his first Group 1 on Truly Great in the Kingston Town Classic, he was instead the foil for the Grant and Alana Williams trainee yesterday by partnering Neufbosc to Perth Cup glory.
And while the Group 1 win was a dream come true, the Perth Cup perhaps held even more significance for the 23-year-old, having long desired the trophy his father won with Luna Tudor (Military Plume) in 2000.
“He’s probably watched it a thousand times,” said Neville Parnham. “When he was a little boy, his mum got him a replay of the race because it was all he wanted to talk about. He was just a toddler when I won my last Cup and, from the time he knew what was going on around him, he replayed it over and over, all the time.
“It’s been his dream to win a Cup and he’s got there. He’s finally won his Group 1 and he’s finally won his Cup.”
Added Chris Parnham: “It feels just as good as the Group 1 because the Perth Cup has been like a Group 1 to me. I’ve loved the race as long as I can remember and, even though it’s not the race it once was, it still has great meaning to me and my family and to everyone in WA racing really. And to do it for dad just makes it even more special.
“I didn’t want it to become a sit-and-sprint race because I knew he could stay, so that is why I peeled off at the 600 metres. I didn’t think I was going to get him at the 150 metres but it was probably the weight in the end that won me the race in the last 50 metres.
“All credit to Truly Great as well: 60 kilos, three-wide the trip, he’s a proper Group 1 horse.”
Winner of the Prix du Lys (Gr 3, 2400m) at Longchamp before finishing second to Kew Gardens (Galileo) in the Grand Prix de Paris (Gr 1, 2400m), Neufbosc finished 18th behind Enable (Nathaniel) in her second Arc at his last run for trainer Pia Brandt before he was acquired by Mark Pilkington and Darren Thomas under their Seymour Bloodstock banner.
Stepping out for David and Ben Hayes and Tom Dabernig in the 2019 spring, he struggled to find his feet but still made it to the Melbourne Cup, finishing 21st to Vow And Declare (Declaration Of War) after settling last on a dawdling tempo.
While he did place in the Sandown Cup following that performance, he again couldn’t find his best during the 2020 autumn, a preparation that continued into the winter. However, it has been the switch to Perth that has seen him find his best.
“I can’t explain why he’s going better,” said the trainer. “The only thing I can put it down to is he’s just acclimatised from the European way of life to the Australian way of life with a bit of sun on his back. I have to thank Mark Pilkington – he organised to buy the horse but he also organised for the horse to come to Perth. I think there was a bit of disappointment amongst the owners but they will be on a high today.
“Mark has been here since Christmas Day so unfortunately he’s self-isolating at South Yunderup at his mother’s place after Covid reared its head in Victoria. It is disappointing that the other owners couldn’t come here after having plans, but I’m sure they will still be enjoying it.”
Neufbosc became the third Australian Group 2 victor for Coolmore Stud’s Mastercraftsman (Danehill Dancer), joining Wakeful Stakes (Gr 2, 2000m) winners Luvaluva and Thunder Lady. Mastercraftsman, who shuttled to Windsor Park Stud in New Zealand for four seasons from 2010 to 2013, will stand at Coolmore’s Tipperary base for €15,000 (approx. AUD$23,650) in 2021.
He is the third of three foals out of the Group 1-placed Nonsuch Way (Verglas), with his family tracing back to globetrotter Le Glorieux (Cure The Blues) – one of the first horses to embark on a fly-in fly-out campaign in Australia when contesting the Tancred Stakes (Gr 1, 2400m) in 1988.
Yesterday’s victory took Neufbosc’s record to six wins from 27 starts with earnings of $811,007.
The Perth Cup capped a race-to-race double for the father and son duo after Indian Pacific (4 g Zoustar – Rosarino by Perugino) returned to form in the Summer Scorcher (Listed, 1000m).
Sent out as an odds-on favourite, Indian Pacific made it seven wins from 11 starts with a comfortable victory over Why Choose Her (Choisir) and Caracapo (Husson) and a campaign in Melbourne could now be on the agenda.
“They certainly made him earn the win today but he’s very speedy and he was just too good today,” Neville Parnham said. “He’s a pretty promising horse. We have races here like the Miss Andretti and the Scenic Blast, but I’ve always been keen to send him east. Whether he’s too deep into a preparation though, I’ll have to have a think about that.”
Indian Pacific, a $110,000 purchase from the draft of Bowness Stud at the 2018 Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale, is one of six winners out of Talindert Stakes (Listed, 1100m) winner Rosarino (Perugino). While Rosarino won’t be represented in the sales ring in 2021, having missed to Menari (Snitzel) in 2019, she produced a filly by Super One (I Am Invincible) in 2020 and she was served by D’Argento (So You Think) in September.
The other stakes race on the Ascot card, the La Trice Classic (Gr 3, 1800m), went to the Simon Miller-trained Dance Music (5 m War Chant – Fast Flowing by Dubawi), who added the Group 3 contest to her three Listed wins in the Starstruck Classic (Listed, 1600m), the Northam Cup (Listed, 1600m) and the Placid Ark Stakes (Listed, 1200m).
A pick-up ride for Brad Rawiller after Jye McNeil was grounded in Melbourne due to Covid restrictions, the jockey made the most of the opportunity, guiding Dance Music to a length win over Naughty By Nature (Trade Fair) with the same margin to Chantrea (Puissance De Lune) in third.
“At the weights, she was a good thing, but it was just about whether she’d get the 1800 (metres),” Miller said. “I’m more happy for Brad, we worked together back in the Robbie Griffiths days for six or seven years but I hadn’t found the right horse to put him on yet. I wanted to put him on a good thing rather than a maiden.”
Dance Music’s half-brother, by Deep Field (Northern Meteor), will be offered at next month’s Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale; he is catalogued as Lot 136.
Apache to ‘Chase’ Millions atonement
Fifteen years ago, Churchill Downs (Danehill) was sent out as a marginal favourite for the Magic Millions 2YO Classic (RL, 1200m), having won in Melbourne and Sydney on his way to the Gold Coast.
After bungling the start, he flashed home from near last, but Gimcrack Stakes (Listed, 1000m) winner Mirror Mirror (Dehere), also made tremendous inroads from the rear to take the spoils, with Churchill Downs relegated to the runner-up stall.
It has been a strange 15 years since, with Churchill Downs kidnapped by Libyan terrorists this time last year, but the family may be set for Magic Millions redemption in a couple of weeks after Apache Chase (3 g Better Than Ready – Silken Whisper by Diesis) – Churchill Downs’ half-brother – took out the Vo Rogue Plate (Gr 3, 1400m) at Eagle Farm yesterday.
Ridden near the speed by Taylor Marshall, Apache Chase kept finding and never really looked in doubt, defeating favourite Gotta Kiss (Not A Single Doubt) by a length and three quarters with Oscar Zulu (Epaulette) a further length and a quarter back in third.
Rather than the Classic, the Desleigh Forster-trained Apache Chase will target the $2 million Magic Millions 3YO Guineas (RL, 1400m) in 13 days. It is a race in which he will face a rematch with flying fillies Isotope (Deep Field) and Away Game (Snitzel), who soundly defeated him in the Gold Edition Plate (Listed, 1200m).
“We have been on the backburner because he did not have enough prize-money to get into the Millions, so we have been chasing it,” Forster said. “We did not really want to bring him here today. He has a high cruising speed and can quicken off that.
“Taylor (Marshall) knows him really well now. He is a serious horse.”
Purchased by owner Michael Sherrin for just $50,000 out of the Eureka Stud draft at the 2019 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, Apache Chase is the second stakes winner out of the American-bred Silken Whisper (Diesis).
In fact, she has struck stakes success with her first and last foals in Churchill Downs and Apache Chase, while she has also produced nine-time victor Rockette Rocket (Captain Sonador) among six other winners.
The day’s other stakes race at Eagle Farm, the Nudgee Stakes (Listed, 1200m), went to Godolphin’s Athiri (4 m Lonhro – Retsina by Redoute’s Choice), who made it two Listed victories in a row with an emphatic win. She is now eligible to contest the $1 million Magic Millions Fillies & Mares (1300m) on January 16.
Others to gain wildcard entries for Magic Millions races yesterday are The Buffering (1400m) winner Soxagon (Rocker), who can now accept for the $1 million Magic Millions Cup (RL, 1400m), and Shoot Out Quality (2206m) victor Barade (Havana Gold), who will line up in the $1 million Magic Millions Subzero (2400m). Another Guineas contender, Smart ‘N’ Sexy (Smart Missile), took out a Benchmark 75 against the older horses in impressive fashion.
However, perhaps the horse to create the biggest impression ahead of the January 16 raceday was the Annabel Neasham-trained Queen Of Wizardry (Not A Single Doubt), who looks to have emerged as a leading candidate for the $2 million Magic Millions 2YO Classic after scoring on debut yesterday.
Unwanted in the betting at 30–1, the Stephanie Thornton-ridden Queen Of Wizardry swept home with terrific acceleration to defeat Win Burn (Shooting To Win) by a long neck with odds-on favourite Ranch Hand (Fastnet Rock) – the most recent ANZ Bloodstock News Maiden Of The Week after scoring by three and a quarter lengths on debut – a further head behind the runner-up in third.
“She’s got a very sharp turn of foot and the 1200 metres suited her today,” Thornton said. “All credit to Annabel and her team. She was very professional and knew what it was all about. The blinkers were a good addition and kept her mind on the job.
“We were in a bit of trouble at the 300 metres, but when she saw a bit of daylight she came down the outside and nothing was going to beat her. Fingers crossed for the Magic Millions.”
Queen Of Wizardry firmed into $15 and the fifth line of betting for the Magic Millions 2YO Classic, behind Magic Millions Wyong 2YO Classic (RL, 1100m) victress She’s All Class (I Am Invincible) who holds the call at $4.
Purchased for $400,000 by Aquis Farm from the Tyreel Stud draft at last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, Queen Of Wizardry became the first winner out of Encosta De Lago (Fairy King) mare Miss Hufflepuff. She is a sister to Hong Kong’s 2011-12 Champion Stayer Liberator, while another sister Pink Siris produced Magic Millions Quality (1800m) and Doomben Roses (Gr 2, 2000m) winner Etana (Shamus Award).
A half-sister to Queen Of Wizardry, by the late Sebring (More Than Ready), will be offered by Tyreel Stud at this year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale. She is catalogued as Lot 549 and will go through the ring on January 14.
Miss Hufflepuff has a filly foal by The Autumn Sun (Redoute’s Choice), while she was served by Yes Yes Yes (Rubick) in 2020.