Sepoy – the uncomplicated star

If Rancher and Bel Esprit are Maseratis, Zeditave a muscle-car Monaro and Redoute’s Choice a Rolls-Royce, then what is the latest young galloping star, Sepoy?

This uncomplicated, uninspiring-looking little chestnut is a T-model Ford. Crank him up and away he goes.

On Saturday, the unbeaten Sepoy won the Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m, Caulfield) by a record margin of almost five lengths, and he ran the distance in 1min 8.55secs, the second fastest in history – Hurricane Sky’s 1.08.1 was regarded as a world record for a 2YO on turf when he won in 1994.

There was nothing jaw-dropping about Sepoy when he walked into the parade ring at Caulfield; no gasps from the crowd as he nonchalantly went about his paces, it was more like, “Oh, that’s him.” He’s neat little horse with an easy movement, nice head and a big rear end; but, after a quick summation, you are on to the next horse.

However, Sepoy has all that it takes to be a great two-year-old – push-button speed; tremendous economical action; relaxed, unfazed temperament; and stamina – especially the ability to do the work both ends of a race as he did in the Blue Diamond Stakes.

Darley Australia general manager Henry Plumptre said that Sepoy has been an athletic horse from the time he was born. “He was always a very good walking horse, even though he wasn’t a big horse,” he said.

The fact that Sepoy has emerged, unbeaten in four starts, as the best two-year-old to race in Australia under Sheikh Mohammed’s maroon and white livery, is a lesson in the mysteries and vagaries of thoroughbred horse racing.

The little colt is a product of two “rejects”, sire and dam. His sire Elusive Quality (USA) was banished from Australia after covering the last of six seasons in 2008. He arrived in Australian in 2003 with much fanfare and few breeders didn’t fall in love with him as he’s a magnificent looking stallion.

Although Elusive Quality’s books were limited in those early seasons – he covered 83, 88 and 84 mares in his first three seasons – he received a big boost internationally when his star colt Smarty Jones emerged in 2004 to win the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.

Camarilla, a close relation to Sepoy – she is a daughter of Camarena, a sister to his dam Watchful – came from Elusive Quality’s first crop. The big filly won the 2007 Group 1 AJC Sires’ Produce Stakes, but she and Sepoy are Elusive Quality’s only southern hemisphere Group 1 winners from a disappointing result of only nine Stakes winners.

Elusive Quality lost the faith of trainers, who regarded his progeny as soft-boned horses that needed a long time to strengthen to be racehorses and who didn’t handle the rigours of the Australian training regime – the opposite to the precocious Sepoy. It shouldn’t have been a surprise, as Elusive Quality the racehorse didn’t hit his straps until he was four.

Sepoy comes from Elusive Quality’s biggest season of 173 mares in 2007 – the equine influenza year – which came about through necessity. That year, Elusive Quality stood for a fee of $137,500, and many other breeders used him. Last season those breeders took a big knock when the stallion’s yearlings were relatively unwanted at the sales – Elusive Quality’s papers were stamped for a future back in North America where he has had greater success.

Plumptre said Darley has 48 two-year-olds in training this season. “He was the only decent stallion we could use that year,” he said, acknowledging that Elusive Quality’s career has been resurrected by chance, although there are no plans at this stage to return him to Australia.

Watchful, bred by Darley, was originally named Swingin’ Miss, but her name was changed before she raced. She won a trial in 2004 at Warwick Farm, but was retired to stud after finishing third at Randwick in April 2004. She was first mated to Reset in 2005 to produce a colt, named Twitcher, who is unraced. In 2007, she produced a brother to Sepoy, Cautious Time, a bay, who is a maiden after six starts and is racing around the Muswellbrook and Scone district.

Darley cashed in Watchful, in foal to Dubai Destination (USA), at the 2009 Inglis Easter Broodmare Sale for $55,000. It has been a windfall for her new owner, His Excellency Nassar Lootah’s Emirates Park Stud, which has kept the Dubai Destination colt, now a yearling. After sending Watchful to its own stallion Eavesdropper (by Kingmambo (USA)) in 2009 for a missed result, Emirates Park put her in foal last spring to Darley’s exciting young stallion Domesday (by Red Ransom (USA)).

There is much conjecture as to the value of Sepoy as a stallion, which is irrelevant as Darley won’t sell him. The biggest conjecture is whether Australian breeders will warm to, or risk, a son of Elusive Quality, remembering that Elusive Quality’s best son, Smarty Jones, who retired with much fanfare, has been a stud flop. Smarty Jones stood at Three Chimneys Farm, Kentucky from 2006 to 2010. He is currently covering a book at Ghost Ridge Stud, Pennsylvania, but he will shuttle to the southern hemisphere later this year to Uruguay.

Sepoy’s first mission is the Golden Slipper in early April. He is aiming to be the fifth 2YO to win the Blue Diamond-Golden Slipper double, joining Courtza (1989), Bounding Sway (1986), Manikato (1978) and John’s Hope (1972). It’s no easy feat, and only Manikato has been able to take the double and return in the spring to win the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas.

It’s highly unlikely that Sepoy will be any better as a 3YO than he is now. This is his time. Others will catch up to him, so I suspect that his future is in the northern hemisphere where his sire-line will be appreciated by breeders, especially if he can win a Group 1 race in Europe or North America.