Best On Breeding

Mark Smith - Thursday November 23

Four of Kermadec's seven stakes-winners have achieved success at the elite level, which advances to five from seven if Lim's Kosciuszko, a multiple Group 1 winner in Singapore, is counted.  

Included in the select group is the MRC Toorak Handicap winner Tuvalu who will need to hump 58kgs to claim a second Group 1 in Saturday's $1,500,000 Furphy - Railway Stakes (1600m) at Ascot.

Victory for Tuvalu in the Toorak (image Grant Courtney)

Trained by Lindsey Smith, Tuvalu has been off the board in three of his 20 starts. The 6-year-old gelding rarely strays away from the top level, with five starts at Group 1 and four at Group II.

He began his autumn campaign with a fourth in the Group II P.B. Lawrence Stakes at Caulfield, third in the Group II John F. Feehan Stakes at Moonee Valley, second to Alligator Blood in the Group 1 Underwood Stakes at Caulfield, and third, beaten less than half a length in the Group II Crystal Mile at Moonee Valley.

Bred by Merricks Station, Tuvalu was a $200,000 purchase by Boomer Bloodstock (FBAA) / Lindsey Smith out of the Merricks Station draft at the 2019 Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale.

At the same sale five years earlier, Craig Rounsefell's Boomer Bloodstock and Lindsey Smith paid $180,000 for a Not A Single Doubt colt named Scales Of Justice.

Tuvalu will carry the colours made famous by the 2016 WATC Railway Stakes winner, Scales Of Justice, who also won the Group 1 Memsie Stakes in a memorable career in which he banked $2,311,600.

Tuvalu is, by some way, the best of two winners from four to race for the Exceed And Excel mare Hangin' Tough, whose highlight on the track in a seven-start career came when second in a maiden at Pakenham.

Tuvalu a $200,000 Inglis Premier yearling

Hangin' Tough stakes-placed dam Ancelin (Sadler's Wells) boasts some influential siblings, which includes the Group III Park Hill stakes winner Anna Of Saxony.

A daughter of Ela Mana Mou (IRE), Anna Of Saxony is the dam of the Group III winner Anna Palariva (Caerleon), the dam of Group III winner and Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas runner up Anna Salai (Dubawi), whose son Adayar (Frankel) won the 2021 Epsom Derby and King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

Anna Of Saxony's unraced daughter Angel Falls (Kingmambo) is the dam of Widden Stud's short-lived shuttler National Defense (Invincible Spirit) winner of the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere.

Advertisement

Ancelin's half-sister Anna Of Kiev (Salse) is the dam of the Group 1 Premio Vittorio di Capua winner Anna Monda (GER). Still, another half-sister has made a giant mark in Australia.

Accessories (GB) never made it to the track, but she is a jewel for the Godolphin empire.

When Pericles won the Group II Autumn Classic (1800m) at Sandown-Lakeside in February, he became the fifth stakes-winner for Godolphin's blue hen.

Tuvalu as honest as they come (image Grant Courtney)

The son of Street Boss (USA) subsequently won the Group II ATC Tramway Handicap, and it took the high-class Japanese visitor Obamburumai (JPN) to deny Pericles a victory in the $10 million Golden Eagle.

Pericles is a half-brother to triple Group 1 winner Helmet, dual Group 1 winner Epaulette, Group II winner Pearls, and Group III winner Bullbars, the sire of 4-time Group 1 winner Mr Brightside.

Accessories (GB) has a yearling colt by Microphone named Lavalier.

After missing in 2021, the 20-year-old daughter of Singspiel foaled a filly by Ghaiyyath (IRE) on October 24.

Hangin' Tough has a 2yo colt by Impending, a $40,000 buy for Tony Noonan from the Merricks Station draft at the 2023 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale.

After foaling a Capitalist colt last spring, Hangin' Tough missed to Home Affairs.

Advertisment
More Reading...
Tuvalu Strikes in Wangoom
It was back to where it all started for the gallant 6-year-old Kermadec gelding Tuvalu, who humped his top weight of 61,5 kgs to victory in the $200,000 Listed The Midfield Group Wangoom Hcp (1200m) at Warrnambool on Wednesday.
2025 G1 The Metropolitan Field and Barrier Draw
Chris Waller and Ciaron Maher are set to have half of the Group I Metropolitan field between them with the Waller trained Birdman an easing favourite after drawing a wide gate for Saturday’s race.
Tara Talks Racing - Insights from a Legend - Darren Beadman
Beiwacht upstaged his more fancied rivals to win the $1million Group I ATC Golden Rose last Saturday in course record breaking style to become the hottest colt in Australia giving us the opportunity to chat to a legend that has been very much involved in his story so far.
Pedigree Potential –NZB Ready to Run – Nicks that Click
A quality packed catalogue for the 2025 NZB Ready to Run Sale is now online and in the lead up to the sale we’ll go looking each week for some horses of interest that jump out on pedigree for various reasons.
2025 G1 Epsom Handicap Field and Barrier Draw
The field and barrier draw has been decided for the Group I Epsom Handicap on Saturday with odds-on favourite and unbeaten mare Autumn Glow drawing the extreme outside gate in a field of 14.
Equimillion This Long Weekend – Draws and Start Lists
Racing NSW have their annual Equimillion event coming up this long weekend at Sydney International Equestrian Centre at Horsley Park and for people interested in off the trackers it’s a showcase for the sport, so let’s take a look at who’s who in the zoo.
Resolute Racing Purchase Top Lot Goffs Orby Day 1
The Goffs Orby Yearling Sale kicked off overnight and the top lot on Day 1 was a colt by Blue Point purchased by John Stewart’s Resolute Bloodstock for €675,000, while Wootton Bassett produced the top selling filly, whose half-brother Trinity College is now in Australia.
She's Unusual Keeps Good Times Rolling
Continued success with resident stallion Unusual Suspect and their racing team has kept Nigel and Adaire Auret busier than they may have envisaged, but without any complaints.
Autumn Glow Epsom Challenge - Just How Big Is This Task?
With the unbeaten Autumn Glow set to run as the first odds-on favourite this century in the Epsom Handicap on Saturday we thought we’d run some data to see how big this mountain is that she’s attempting to climb, and turns out, it’s pretty big.
Karaka Million Dreaming for Out of the Blue
Te Akau Racing marketing manager Julia-Rose Hayes has had plenty of success syndicating horses selected by her father, David Ellis, and that has continued with her latest syndicate.