Exciting Wootton Bassett colt Maranoa Charlie went on his winning way overnight at Longchamp in France taking out the Group III Prix Paul de Moussac (1400m), a race won last year by high class 3YO Lazzat, who then finished second in the $10million Golden Eagle at Rosehill.
Trained by Christopher Head and ridden by Aurelien Lemaitre, Maranoa Charlie won three of his four starts last season at two including a G3 victory before ending the year with a fourth in the Group I Saint Cloud Criterium International.
He has come back at three in a similar vein winning first up over 1400m in the Group III Prix Djebel at Deauville, before dropping back to 1200m for a try at sprinting which proved unsuccessful when he could only finish fourth.
Back to his sweet spot for this latest assignment, Maranoa Charlie rolled to the front as is his customary pattern and he cruised home to win by two lengths and has now won five of seven starts.
“I can't wait to see him in the Jean Prat (G1 1400m) next time,” Christopher Head said.
“He's showing that he's not a sprinter or a miler, he's in between. He can also do well in soft ground and he keeps surprising us–these Wootton Bassetts are really incredible.”
Given his Australian ownership it’s seems hard not to think the Golden Eagle wouldn’t be somewhere on the radar for a colt, whose profile very much fits what is required to be competitive at Rosehill.
Maranoa Charlie was bought for €220,000 at the Arqana Deauville August Yearling Sale by the Broadhurst Agency and runs for Australian owners Peter Maher, Carl Fitzgerald and John Baxter.
Bred by Haras D’Etreham in partnership, he is the first winner from Koubalibre, a winning half-sister by Galileo to Group I winner Tiggy Wiggy, who is now in Australia at Coolmore.
Her yearling colt by Frankel was sold at Inglis Easter this year for $750,000 to Chris Waller Racing / Mulcaster Bloodstock and she has a St Mark’s Basilica (Fr) colt to follow and is now back in foal to Maranoa Charlie’s sire Wootton Bassett.
