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Gai Checking Out What’s to Come from Pelican

Tara Madgwick - Wednesday February 21

Gai Waterhouse and her yearling inspection team are doing the hard yards in the Hunter Valley this week and while checking out the Inglis Easter draft at Coolmore she also took time out to see what’s in the pipeline for the family of her glamour two year-old colt Storm Boy.

Storm Boys is favourite for the Golden Slipper - image Grant Courtney

Waterhouse and her trainer partner Adrian Bott in conjunction with Kestrel Thoroughbreds  purchased Storm Boy from the Coolmore draft at Magic Millions last year for $460,000 and the Justify (USA) colt from Fastnet Rock mare Pelican has been the standout juvenile so far this season.

With three wins from three starts including the Magic Millions 2YO Classic, Storm Boy is now favourite for the Golden Slipper with Coolmore purchasing a controlling interest in the superstar colt, whose grand-dam is champion New Zealand mare Seachange, a seven time Group I winner and NZ Horse of the Year.

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Waterhouse and her team were quick to purchase the yearling colt by Pierro from Pelican at Magic Millions this year for $375,000 and she was keen to inspect the rising eight year-old broodmare with her stunning St Mark’s Basilica (FR) filly born last year.

Gai Waterhouse inspecting Pelican and her filly by st Mark's Basilica (Fr).

Owned by Coolmore, Eddie Irwin’s Marlhill House Stud and Robert and Barbara McClure, Pelican has made the perfect start to her stud career producing three lovely foals in a row and is now back in foal to Storm Boy’s sire Justify.

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