Red letter day at Caulfield as Tagaloa downs favourite Hanseatic
Shock win in Blue Diamond Stakes provides Busuttin and Young with a first Australian Group 1
An on-pace track bias at Caulfield may have corrupted some outcomes, and certainly thwarted the aspirations of many, but history will nonetheless record the winners as they stand and note yesterday’s Blue Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) meeting as something of a red-letter day for many others.
Arrowfield Stud was certainly among the beneficiaries as Tagaloa (Lord Kanaloa) became the second Blue Diamond winner bred by the Arrowfield-Northern Farm partnership, following Reaan (Hussonet) in 2008. It was the fourth Group 1 winner, and first in Australia, for Japanese sprinting sensation Lord Kanaloa (King Kamehameha).
Likewise it was momentous for winning trainers Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young as the precocious on-speed running juvenile provided them with their first Australian Group 1 winner since relocating from New Zealand to Cranbourne in 2016. Tagaloa, indeed, was their first Australian two-year-old winner at Moonee Valley back last November.
The 25/1 chance was another longshot top-level Caulfield winner for Michael Walker who’d endured a difficult spring carnival, under media and social media scrutiny, and then been sidelined through injury.
It was similarly a noteworthy day for those associated with the two other Group 1 winners who, significantly, each led throughout – Pippie (Written Tycoon) taking the Oakleigh Plate (Gr 1, 1000m) and the gritty Streets Of Avalon (Magnus) winning the Futurity Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m).
Pippie’s win was jockey Linda Meech’s second Group 1 victory – as she became the first female to win the race – and the first Group 1 win for father-and-son training team John and Chris Meagher, while Streets Of Avalon, a homebred for Warren Racing, critically secured his place in the $5 million All-Star Mile (1600m) at Caulfield on March 14, for trainer Shane Nichols and jockey Ben Melham.
Those less inclined to rejoice in how the day unfolded certainly included trainer Anthony Freedman who had two Group 1 seconds – with Super Seth (Dundeel) and Hanseatic (Street Boss) – who were each beaten just a head.
In many ways, the day revolved around Tagaloa’s Blue Diamond win. He may not be Japanese–bred like last year’s Caulfield Cup (Gr 1, 2400m) and Cox Plate (Gr 1, 2040m) winners Mer De Glace (Rulership) and Lys Gracieux (Heart’s Cry) but he is by a Japanese stallion from a Japanese mare and his win – along with the success of Farnan (Not A Single Doubt) in the Silver Slipper Stakes (Gr 2, 1100m) – understandably prompted some Twitter joy from the Arrowfield team…and why not with the offspring of their three Japanese stallions to come….and a couple of fillies, by Lord Kanaloa, at Easter.
Arrowfield, who sold two Lord Kanaloa colts for $625,000 and $650,000 at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale in January, offers two fillies by the stallion at the the 2020 Australian Inglis Easter Yearling Sale. Lots 1 and 468 – the former out of German 1,000 Guineas (Gr 2, 1600m) winner Kali (Areion) and the latter – maintaining the Japanese connection – from the Zenno Rob Roy (Sunday Silence) mare, Glare Channel. Bhima also offers an interesting Lord Kanaloa filly – Lot 74 from an unraced half–sister to dual Group 2 winner and Royal Ascot Group 1 runner-up Gold Fun (Le Vie Dei Colori).
Tagaloa (2 c Lord Kanaloa – Vasilissa, by Heart’s Cry) – was Arrowfield’s 19th Group 1 winning sales graduate since 2013 , the operation proudly boasted on social media, while Farnan became Not A Single Doubt’s (Redoute’s Choice) 10th individual Group winning two-year-old when he landed the Silver Slipper.
Busuttin Racing bought Tagaloa for $300,000 out of the Arrowfield Stud draft at the 2019 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, while Farnan was a $550,000 Magic Millions purchase from the Vinery Stud draft for Phoenix Thoroughbreds Ltd and Aquis Farms Pty Ltd.
“He’s a Lord Kanaloa we bought off Arrowfield and to win a Group 1 in Australia, which has been eluding us for a while, is unbelievable,” an emotional Busuttin said.
“I can’t believe it, I’m a bit of an emotional wreck to be honest,” he added, “to train a Group 1 winner in Australia, it’s been eluding us for a little while but it’s unbelievable and thank you to everybody who has supported us.”
Busuttin detailed that Tagaloa will have his next start in the $300,000 Todman Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m) at Randwick on March 7 ahead of the $3.5m Golden Slipper Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) at Rosehill on March 21 before musing that “he won’t be around next season” if he happened to win the Slipper.
Nothing went to plan for the runner-up Hanseatic. His regular rider Luke Currie fell at Moonee Valley on Friday night and was ruled out because of injury. The Street Boss (Street Cry) colt was then delayed en-route to the course and had the racing pattern less than in his favour.
Meech made the most of that pattern aboard the free-running Pippie (4 f Written Tycoon – Coupe Express, by Ne Coupez Pas) who recorded the fastest-ever time in the time honoured Caulfield 1100 metres sprint – holding off the Mathew Ellerton and Simon Zahra– trained duo Zoutori (Zoustar) and Crystal Dreamer (Stratum).
Streets Of Avalon (5 g Magnus – Kamuniak, by Black Minnaloushe) – the fourth elite level winner for Sun Stud’s Magnus (Flying Spur) – similarly made all in the Futurity, staving off a determined three-year-old Super Seth who just failed to add to the imposing record of his age group against the older horses this season.
“I thought Super Seth, with less weight than us, stalking him was going to be a problem, but god he’s tough,” Nichols said, “I just assumed Super Seth was going to get us but I knew he wouldn’t wilt.
“Bring on The All-Star Mile. We might change the gear, pull the blinkers off or tamper with the gear a bit. Might as well have a crack for the big cash as he’s smashed through the million-dollar barrier.”
Super Seth is also scheduled to be All-Star Mile bound, although the allure of further Group 1 success may see him switch course to Sydney.