Miraval Rose blooms in Twilight Glow
Highly promising three-year-old Miraval Rose (Grunt) became the second stakes individual winner for her second-season Yulong Stud sire in strolling to victory in yesterday’s Twilight Glow Stakes (Listed, 1400m) at Caulfield.
Trained by Grahame Begg at Cranbourne, the filly set the pace and made it two wins and two seconds from four starts in leading home the seven-horse field by three lengths on a soft 6 track. The Matt Williams-trained Flying Fizz (Street Boss) took second, a nose ahead of Anthony and Sam Freedman’s Right To Party (Zoustar).
Miraval Rose, a $250,000 yearling purchase for Begg and Rohan Hughes at last year’s Magic Million Gold Coast Yearling Sale, was a strong-fancied $1.70 favourite after two runs this campaign for an easy Kyneton maiden win and a second by millimetres in Brazen Style’s (Brazen Beau) Thoroughbred Club Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) at Caulfield on November 18.
Bred by Yulong, she’s the second black type victor for their nine-year-old sire Grunt (O’Reilly), now in his fifth season at the stud on a $22,000 (inc GST) fee, which was bumped up from the $13,750 (inc GST) he stood for in 2022 after his colt Veight’s success in last season’s VRC Sires’ Produce Stakes, which was followed by his victory in Caulfield’s McNeil Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) in early September.
Miraval Rose’s win yesterday propelled Grunt into the top-five on the Australian second season sires’ table by earnings. The dual Group 1 winner has nine winners from 29 runners this term, and ten from 35 overall.
Begg said Miraval Rose – who is out of winning mare Gypsy Tucker (Zabeel), making her half-sister to multiple Group winner and Group 1-placed Gypsy Diamond (Not A Single Doubt) – had handled yesterday’s wet conditions well, despite being comfortably beaten into second as favourite on a soft 7 in a 1200 metres Pakenham maiden on debut in May.
“A bit of maturity, a bit of racing and a bit of seasoning behind her and she handled it well today,” Begg said. “She’ll have a bit of a break now. We’ve just got to work things out a little bit, but there’s options all around the place.”
While Begg said Miraval Rose “might run a mile yet”, he nominated the Kewney Stakes (Gr 2, 1400m) at Flemington in March as a possible target.
Jockey Jordan Childs said the filly “showed a bit of class today” in scotching doubts about the damp surface.
“She managed to get through it well enough, even though I do think she’s definitely going to be better on top of the ground,” he said.
“It unfolded like I wanted it to. There were a lot of scratchings, so the speed came out of the race. I elected to jump and take it up. I had it my own way and she gave me a good kick around the corner.
“I really like her. She’s a classy filly. She’s very easy to ride. She’ll keep progressing through the grades. Going from a maiden up to Listed level in her second racing prep is a good effort. Hopefully she can keep stepping up.”
Miraval Rose is the seventh foal of Gypsy Tucker, who won over 1350 metres but whose star progeny Gypsy Diamond won up to 2000 metres and was second in Randwick’s Queen Of The Turf Stakes (Gr 1, 1600m). Yulong purchased the mare for $800,000 at the Inglis Chairman’s Sale in 2018.
Yulong have retained Miraval Rose’s year-younger sister Sing High, who’s also with Begg awaiting her first start. In September, Gypsy Tucker produced a colt by Yulong’s shuttler Lucky Vega (Lope De Vega) and was covered by Grunt again this season.