Rosemont swoop for controlling stake in exciting Warrior
Anthony Mithen was unhesitant in his determination to secure the long term future of exciting stallion prospect Extreme Warrior (Extreme Choice) to the Rosemont roster ranks, as some of Australia’s breeding giants came circling for rights to stand the colt at stud following his impressive Blue Sapphire (Gr 3, 1200m) success at Caulfield on October 13.
Sporting the red gatecrasher silks of the Victorian stud farm, which had owned ten per cent of the three-year-old since his second in the Debutant Stakes (Listed, 1000m) as a juvenile, Extreme Warrior soared to the top of markets ($4.40) for Saturday’s Coolmore Stud Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) at Flemington after recording a dominant three-and-three-quarter-length success over stablemate Profiteer (Capitalist) to become the fifth individual stakes winner for Extreme Choice (Not A Single Doubt).
“After that win (in the Blue Sapphire) we were feeling pleased with ourselves with a live chance in the Coolmore, but he didn’t just catch our eye, and there were lots of enquiries to the stable as to the ownership structure and whether something could be done,” Mithen told ANZ Bloodstock News yesterday.
“He’d done enough for some other farms to be having a look at him and press the go button. So, we might have jumped the barriers and been half a length behind, but we’ve caught up pretty quickly and were able to come up with an agreement that suited everyone.
“We’ve now bought the controlling interest in the horse and we’re putting together a stud terms agreement. So, as long as he races himself into warranting a spot, he’ll be on the Rosemont roster. It’s very exciting.”
The Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr-trained colt took his record to two wins from five starts, and remained unbeaten as a three-year-old following a four-and-a-quarter-length maiden triumph at Echuca on October 1, which followed runner-up efforts in the Debutant Stakes and Blue Diamond Preview (Colts and Geldings) (Listed, 1000m), before weakening to fifth in the Blue Diamond Prelude (Gr 3, 1100m) to round out his two-year-old career.
Despite the undoubted potential his success in the Blue Sapphire Stakes offered, Mithen acknowledged that the horse still needs to earn his place at stud alongside the likes of Shamus Award (Snitzel), Starspangledbanner (Choisir) and Hanseatic (Street Boss).
“The energy around this horse after his win was pretty strong and there were some pretty significant players wanting to get involved and get an offer in front of the share owners,” Mithen continued.
“That Blue Sapphire win rated through the roof with some of the better form analysts from around the country, and that often triggers this sort of frantic activity when a colt puts in a special performance and shows that level of talent. It becomes irresistible for plenty of farms.
“We’re probably just half a step ahead of ourselves, because he does need to land a big one, albeit that was a bit of a ‘wow’ moment at Caulfield in the Blue Sapphire which makes you think he’s a serious headline grabber, so may he grab the back page headlines on Saturday.”
Out of Heart Of Thrills (Show A Heart), Extreme Warrior is a half-brother to the Rosemont-raced Thrillster (Starspangledbanner) as well as the stakes-placed Free Thrills (Unencumbered), while he is a grandson of New Zealand Group 2 winner Soleil Rouge (Red Tempo).
Furthermore, Rosemont purchased the two-year-old filly from the mare by I Am Invincible (Invincible Spirit) for $1.2 million at this year’s Inglis Easter Yearling Sale from the Glenlogan Park draft.
“We bought in (to the horse) after his first start in the Debutant, and that was a bit of a dose of circumstance,” Mithen said.
“The owner that sold us his share raced Thrillster with us and he quite generously came to me and said ‘a ten per cent stake in a future stallion prospect is probably more valuable to you than it is to me, and I’d like to see the horse end up at Rosemont’ and we got that percentage bought some nine months ago and the other owners were generous enough to allow the horse to race in our colours.
“I’d hazard a guess that he’s the best bred Extreme Choice out there given his beautiful female pedigree. There’s a lot to like about the overall package and he’s a beautiful, athletic, medium-sized, sprinting type, that if he throws them as flashy as himself there’ll be plenty of satisfied breeders out there. And he’s exactly what the yearling market comes for.”
The move comes as yet another significant sign of investment for the Gnarwarre operation, having secured precocious juvenile Hanseatic for stud duties this season, while the Rosemont-led Victorian Alliance began their $7.315 million splurge at this year’s yearling sales.
It is also amidst the backdrop of significant success for Rosemont’s stallions, with Caulfield Cup (Gr 1, 2400m) winner Incentivise flying the flag for Shamus Award, while Starspangledbanner’s State Of Rest struck for success in Saturday’s Cox Plate (Gr 1, 2040m).
“It would be quite extraordinary,” Mithen said of the prospect of Incentivise adding the Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m) to his stallions’ seasonal haul.
“It’s something we’re daring to dream about at the farm, and for State Of Rest to get the second leg of that trifecta has inched us that bit closer, so may it happen for Shamus Award and the owners and Steve Tregea and, God forbid, a Victorian stallion that is at our farm.”