G1 Aussie Season – Best of the Best

Tara Madgwick - Monday July 1

The $700,000 Group I Tatts Tiara (1400m) at Eagle Farm last Saturday was the last of 74 Australian Group I races run this season that produced 54 individual Group I winners, so let’s take a look at the best of the best.

Imperatriz won five Australian G1 races this season - image Grant Courtney

Sold for $6.6million at the recent Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale, outstanding sprinter Imperatriz was the most prolific Group I winner claiming five victories at the highest level and ordinarily that would be enough to ensure the Kiwi trained daughter of I Am Invincible top honours as Australian Horse of the Year, but this is no ordinary season.

Multiple G1 winners were:

5 G1 wins Imperatriz (5m I Am Invincible)

4 G1 wins Mr Brightside (NZ) (6g Bullbars)

3 G1 wins Pride of Jenni (6m Pride of Dubai)

3 G1 wins Riff Rocket (3g American Pharoah (USA)

2G1 wins Alligator Blood (7g All Too Hard)

2G1wins Bella Nipotina (6m Pride of Dubai)

2G1winsBroadsiding (2c Too Darn Hot (GB)

2G1wins Celestial Legend (3c Dundeel)

2G1wins Fangirl (5m Sebring)

2G1winsMagic Time (4m Hellbent)

2G1wins Tropical Squall (3f Prized Icon)

2G1wins Without a Fight (IRE) (7g Teofilo)

2G1wins Zougotcha (4m Zoustar)

Zoustar sired four individual Aussie G1 winners this season.

The most successful sires with more than one G1 winner are as follows with Widden Stud’s Zoustar at the top of the list as the only sire with four G1 winners!

4 G1 - Zoustar – 4m Zougotcha, 3c Ozzomsis, 3f Joliestar, 4m Climbing Star

3 G1 - Savabeel – 6m Atishu, 5g I Wish I Win, 3f Orchestral

3G1 - The Autumn Sun – 3f Autumn Angel, 3f Vibrant Sun, 3f Coco Sun

2G1 All Too Hard – 7g Alligator Blood, 3f Stefi Magetica

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2G1 Dundeel (NZ) – 3c Celestial Legend, 3c Militarize

2G1 Hellbent – 4m Magic Time, 4m Benedetta

2G1 Pride of Dubai – 6m Pride of Jenni, 6m Bella Nipotina

2G1 Written Tycoon – 2f Lady of Camelot, 3c Southport Tycoon

The most successful broodmare sires of G1 winners are as follows with Coolmore’s recently retired champion sire Fastnet Rock and Darley’s former shuttle sire Street Cry (IRE) heading the list with five winners each:

Fastnet Rock is now enjoying retirement at Coolmore.

Fastnet Rock –Zougotcha (4m Zoustar), Joliestar (3f Zoustar), Climbing Star (4m Zoustar), Lady of Camelot (2f Written Tycoon), Veight (3c Grunt)

Street Cry (IRE) – Broadsiding (2c Too Darn Hot (GB), Romantic Warrior (IRE) (6g Acclamation), Cascadian (GB) (9g New Approach), Cylinder (3c Exceed and Excel), Tom Kittten (3c Harry Angel(IRE)

4 G1 Encosta de Lago – Alligator Blood (7g All Too Hard), Fangirl (5m Sebring), Lady Laguna (4m Overshare), Coco Sun (3f  The Autumn Sun)

3 G1 Dubawi – Without a Fight (IRE) (6g Teofilo), Zardozi (3f Kingman), Militarize (3c Dundeel)

2 G1 More Than Ready (USA) – Rediener (4g Redoute’s Choice), Southport Tycoon (3c Written Tycoon)

2G1 Commands – Hayasugi (2f Royal Meeting (IRE), Socks Nation (3f Sioux Nation (USA)

2G1 Daylami – Bois de Argent (GB) (7g Toronado), Kalapour (IRE) (7g War Command)

2G1 Galileo  – Via Sistina (IRE) (5m Fastnet Rock), Circle of Fire (GB) (4g Almanzor)

2G1 O’Reilly – Pride of Jenni (6m Pride of Dubai), Orchestral (NZ) (3f Savabeel)

2G1 Pins – I Wish I Win (NZ) (5g Savabeel), Dom to Shoot (6g Shooting to Win)

Imported stayer Without a Fight (IRE) won both the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups last year - image Grant Courtney.

Country of origin is always interesting and given we are in Australia, we expect to see the Aus bred thoroughbreds on top of the table and they are although in the longer races for all aged horses they made scant impression.

There were 13 Group I races run over 2000m or further for all aged horses and 10 were won by European imports, plus one by the Kiwi bred Atishu, so just two Aussie bred G1 winners at 2000m and they were Pride of Jenni and Alligator Blood, so if you want to be competitive in the big staying features you need to be looking to Europe no question.

Australia -38 G1 winners

European (GB, IRE, FR)- 9 G1 winners

New Zealand – 7 G1 winners

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