Benedetta Half-Brother Leads Mill Park Premier Prospects

Sponsored Content - by Tara Madgwick - Thursday February 22

With an extraordinary record for producing Group I winners over many years, South Australian vendors Mill Park Stud have been in hot form this season with a slew of new stakes-winners including budding sprint queen Benedetta, who runs in the Group I MRC Oakleigh Plate this Saturday with her half-brother one of the Mill Park stars for Inglis Premier.

Chris Watson and his family are committed to producing quality thoroughbreds and their carefully nurtured pedigrees and bloodlines translate into tough athletes bred to withstand the rigors of racing.

Benedetta wins the G3 Cockram Stakes - image Grant Courtney

Offered at the 2021 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale, Benedetta proved an astute purchase for Eales Racing Syndications when they snapped up the daughter of Hellbent for $75,000. Trained by Jason Warren, Benedetta has the impressive record of six wins and three placings from 10 starts with prizemoney nudging towards $1million and gets her chance at Group I level this weekend with a good barrier, light weight and Daniel Stackhouse to ride.

“Mares have got a good first-up record in the race," Jason Warren told Racenet.

"She's not wound as tight as she can go. Although she's ready to run well, but you'd expect to see natural improvement as the preparation goes on.

"She's in good order, she's had two trials and the icing on the cake was the gallop at Caulfield on Tuesday.

"She's ready to go."

Victory would see the spotlight fall well and truly on her yearling half-brother by promising first season sire King’s Legacy that will be offered as Lot 62.

Lot 62 - the half-brother by King's Legacy to Benedetta.

From good producing Group II placed Domesday mare Whatalovelyday, the colt is a half-brother to not only Benedetta, but also Group II placed Whatafox and smart three time winner Sunset Dreaming, winner of the $175,000 VOBIS Gold Eureka Stockade at Ballarat.

“This colt is quite typical of the family on type with a great style and quality about him,” said Chris Watson.

“He is a very athletic style of horse, good strength to his hindquarter and a lovely fluid action.”

He also has depth of pedigree to match his physical credentials with his grand-dam a half-sister to Group I winners Leica Guv and Light Fantastic.

Benedetta will look to build on the impressive run of recent success from Mill Park through star graduates such as Group I winner Attrition (Churchill (IRE), Group winning mares Rose Quartz (Written Tycoon), Brazen Style (Brazen Beau), Foxy Frida (Foxwedge), stakes-winning filly Arctic Glamour (Frosted(USA) and Group II placed Attractable (I Am Invincible) winner of the $3million ATC The Big Dance on Melbourne Cup Day.

Mill Park produce sprinters, stayers, classic horses and juvenile stars with their draft this year featuring many youngsters from familiar Mill Park families, click to see all 11 yearlings with highlights below:

Lot 166 Colt Farnan x Champagne Jane, by Starcraft

From the first crop of Golden Slipper winner Farnan and is a half-brother to Group III placed Pimm’s Party and two more metro winners from a winning half-sister to Group I winner Run Fox Run, stakes-winner Guard of Honour, stakes-placed Battle Strike and this season’s talented 2YO Counteroffensive, a last start third in the Group III MRC Chairman’s Stakes.

Lot 236 Filly Astern x Fire and Glory, by I Am Invincible

Three-quarter sister-in-blood to multiple Group winner Seradess (Astern) and is the second foal of an unraced half-sister to Seradess and also Group winner Rose Quartz with those two mares winning over $1million between them. Other stakes-winners in the family include Danedina, Aptego and Amarina.

Lot 299 Filly Capitalist x In Style (NZ), by Fast ‘n’ Famous

Half-sister to Group III MRC Thoroughbred Club Stakes winner Brazen Style and Group III placed Total Babe plus two more winners and is from Group I winning sprinter In Style, who traces back to the family of Group I VATC Thousand Guineas winner Savoir.

Lot 395 Colt So You Think x Miss Otto, by Elusive Quality (USA)

Full brother to multiple Group winning million dollar earner Peltzer, who is now at stud with his first yearlings selling this year. He is also a three-quarter brother-in-blood to stakes-winner So You Are with Group III winner Crown Towers also on the page.

Lot 453 Colt King’s Legacy x Persistence, by I Am Invincible

Second foal of an unraced half-sister to Champion 2YO Filly Away Game and stakes-winner Modern Wonder and her first foal Hypercube is now a winner.  There is also new Black Type in the family with Innervisions (2c I Am Invincible x Modern Wonder) placing in the Listed MRC Blue Diamond Preview.

Advertisment
More Reading...
Sires With Winners - Monday September 8
Here is the full list of 18 stallions which had winners throughout Australasia today with winners and result details.
Barneswood Farm Trans Tasman Strike
A trans-Tasman ownership double prompted long and enthusiastic celebrations for Ashburton’s Barneswood Farm.
El Vencedor Crowned NZ Horse of the Year
Rich Hill Stud’s standing as a centre of thoroughbred excellence has been further emphasised with El Vencedor named New Zealand’s Horse of the Year.
$3.3million Gun Runner Colt Tops Keeneland September Day 1
Keeneland’s 2025 September Yearling Sale began Monday with double-digit gains while posting a record average price of $653,208 and selling 15 horses for $1 million or more led by a colt by Gun Runner for $3.3 million to M.V. Magnier and Peter Brant’s White Birch Farm. The average topped the previous record $611,038 for a single session set during Day 2 in 2024, and the number of seven-
G1 Manikato Next for Alabama Lass
New Zealand sprinter Alabama Lass will press on for a tilt at the Gr.1 Manikato Stakes (1200m) at The Valley later this month following her runner-up effort in the Gr.1 Moir Stakes (1000m) at the Melbourne track last Saturday.
Vale, Fastnet Rock
Fastnet Rock was a crowd pleaser when paraded as a living legend at the Coolmore stallion parade last month, but sadly this spring was to be his last. 
2025 NZB Ready to Run Catalogue Online - World’s Most Successful 2YO Sale
The catalogue for the 2025 edition of the leading sale of two-year-olds is now online and in mailboxes, with NZB excited to unveil another stellar offering at the Ready to Run Sale.
Sire Power Highlights Quality MM Horses in Training Catalogue
An incredible selection of the country's best proven and hottest young sires will feature at the 2025 Magic Millions Gold Coast Horses in Training Sale in October.
Aussie Bred Sprinter Wins G3 in South Korea
Australian bred Deep Field gelding Self Improvement was the pride of Hong Kong on Sunday when the Manfred Man trained gelding captured the Group III Seoul Korea Sprint (1200m) in South Korea.
Sir Stanley Goosman’s Impact on the National Yearling Sale
Karaka 2026 will mark the 100th National Yearling Sale in New Zealand, and a prominent buyer during the history of the Sale was Stanley Goosman (later Sir Stanley).  He was a key player at the Sale during the World War II era, and headed the list of winning owners in New Zealand on 10 occasions.