Mine and Refine – Why Storm Boy is in the Right Stable

Tara Madgwick - Tuesday September 3

Last week we ran a story highlighting the remarkable sireline that has been nurtured by Coolmore through four generations of stallions to produce their Epsom Derby winning Breeders’ Cup Classic contender City of Troy and in Australia Storm Boy is flying the sireline flag and he’s in the right stable if you believe history is a good form guide.

Read the first Mine and Refine story here.

Stallion

G1 Winner Trained or co-trained by Gai Waterhouse

G1 Wins

Hennessy 1993

Grand Armee

2003 Doncaster, 2004 George Main, Queen Elizabeth, Mackinnon, 2005 Chipping Norton, Queen Elizabeth, Ranvet

Johannesburg 1999

Once Were Wild

2010 Australian Oaks

Scat Daddy 2004

Con Te Partiro

2020 Coolmore Classic, Coolmore Legacy

Justify 2015

Can Storm Boy write his name here?

The first Australian progeny of Hennessy (USA) were born here in 1998 and that was back in the days when I was still working as a track work rider for Gai Waterhouse and we saw quiet a few of that first crop come into Tulloch Lodge and Bounding Away Lodge, which is where I rode out of.

Among them was a very hot chestnut filly called Allez France, who would become his first Australian stakes-winner when she won the Listed ATC Keith Mackay Handicap in the autumn, a race now worth a $1million and given Group status as the Group II Percy Sykes Stakes.

Grand Armee was a champion for Gai Waterhouse - image Steve Hart

Also in that first crop in the care of Waterhouse was a giant brown gelding that was physically and mentally the opposite of Allez France, but Grand Armee would go on to  become the best horse sired by Hennessy in the Southern Hemisphere.

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Waterhouse also put the polish on Johannesburg’s dashing grey Oaks winning filly Once Were Wild, who raced in the John Singleton colours and was a modest $50,000 Magic Millions purchase that was bred by John Muir’s Milburn Creek in partnership.

Waterhouse is also the only Australian trainer to prepare a Group I winner by Scat Daddy, who did his Southern Hemisphere shuttling to South America.

Con Te Partiro (USA) was a two time G1 winner in Australia by Scat Daddy - image Steve Hart

Newgate Farm and partners sent quality US mare Con Te Partiro to Waterhouse and her training partner Adrian Bott in 2019 and their faith was rewarded when she won both the Group I ATC Coolmore Classic and Coolmore Legacy in 2020.

Nobody outside of Aidan O’Brien in Ireland knows more about what it takes to get the best out of horses from this sireline, which historically was often thought to be a hot one in terms of temperament, so the progress of Storm Boy and what he achieves this season is going to be a fascinating watch.

Storm Boy is on a quest for G1 glory this season - image Steve Hart

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