The new generation of speed

This story appears in the December issue of Inside Racing, published by Slattery Media – subscriptions available.

It has been many years since horses sired by Victorian stallions have dominated the sprinting ranks as Black Caviar and Hay List have this season.

Black Caviar (pictured) is by Victoria’s leading stallion Bel Esprit (by Royal Academy (USA)); Hay List, bred in Western Australia, is by Storm Cat’s son Statue Of Liberty (USA). Both stallions stand at Eliza Park Stud, Kerrie.

Black Caviar, unbeaten in eight starts, won the Group 1 Patinack Farm Classic (1200m, Flemington) in such spine-tingling fashion that rival trainer Lee Freedman, who prepared superstars Schillaci and Miss Andretti, labelled her the greatest sprinter he had seen.

You probably have to go back about 40 years to the era of two of Australia’s best sprinters, Dual Choice and Century, to find a comparison. These two gallopers represented two of Victoria’s greatest stallions, Better Boy (sire of Century) and Showdown (Dual Choice).

Irish-born Better Boy (by My Babu (FR)), four times Australia’s champion stallion, stood at David Whiteside’s Range View Stud, Carrum Downs; Showdown (GB), by Infatuation (GB), was the top dog at Ken Cox’s famed Stockwell Stud, Digger’s Rest. Showdown won two Australian titles.

Dual Choice and Century were outstanding gallopers from the time they stepped on to the racetrack as two-year-olds. Unlike Black Caviar and Hay List, they didn’t clash, although they did run at the same Flemington meeting in the autumn of 1972 – when Century won his first feature race as a two-year-old, the Group 2 Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m), and Dual Choice, lumping a massive 60.5kg for a mare, chased home Crown in the Group 1 Newmarket Handicap (1200m).

They met three times in the breeding shed from 1979-81, producing two colts – Dual Century (two wins) and Contemplation (five wins).

The enduring Dual Choice won 14 Stakes races – seven that could be considered Group 1 races, and two Freeway Stakes (then regarded as a Group 2), but now the Group 1 Manikato Stakes. Dual Choice won the 1970 Craven ‘A’ Stakes, which is now the Group 1 Patinack Farm Classic.

Century won the Craven ‘A’ Stakes in 1973. He also had the 1973 Group 1 Newmarket Handicap and the 1974 Group 1 Lightning Stakes (1000m, Flemington) among his eight Stakes wins. He went on to join his sire as Australia’s champion stallion in the 1978-79 season from his Victorian base at Mornmoot Stud, Whittlesea.

As the spring breeding season comes to a close, Eliza Park’s owner Lee Fleming and his staff can feel that they have been able to establish a stallion band that will have a national impact – something Victoria has been lacking since Encosta De Lago left Blue Gum Farm, Euroa, to stand at Coolmore Stud, Jerry’s Plains, NSW, in 2004.

It is safe to say that the foundation of Encosta De Lago’s first Australian Leading Sire title, in 2007-08, came from the resulting progeny from his final seasons at Blue Gum. He won it again in 2008-09.

Bel Esprit has always needed that one “big horse” and it has come in the shape of a near 600kg monster mare, Black Caviar. The exploits of Black Caviar already have elevated Bel Esprit (as at November 15) into the top 10 on the Australian Leading Sire list.

Black Caviar’s dam Helsinge is owned by Rick Jamieson, of Gilgai Farm, Nagambie. She has a promising three-year-old brother, Moshe, to Black Caviar, but hasn’t revisited Bel Esprit since. She has a 2009 colt by Casino Prince and this spring foaled a filly by Redoute’s Choice.

Statue Of Liberty, like Encosta De Lago, first stood in Australia at Blue Gum Farm, where Hay List was born in 2005. He didn’t return for two seasons after 2006 after owners Coolmore Stud sold him to Japan. Eliza Park was quick to secure the horse after his early runners, headed by the classy Mic Mac, started to make an impact on the track.

Hay List’s is part-owned and bred by West Australian Terry Davenport, who sent Hay List’s dam Sing Hallelujah (by Is It True (USA)) back to Statue Of Liberty in 2009. She produced a strapping brown colt on September 22.

WHAT A START

Black Caviar is unbeaten after eight runs – the Australian record of nine is held by four famous horses:

Grand Flaneur (retired unbeaten) – 1880-1881; Mollison – 1927-28; Eye Liner – 1964-65; Rancher – 1981-82

The brilliant mare could go past them in the 2011 autumn.