Who are we highlighting this week? - Analysis of the G1 winning 3YO’s for this season has made us realise how many horses on this list took giant strides from two to three, so we are looking into the crystal ball to find some juveniles we believe could end next season as G1 performers if not G1 winners.
Click here for the story on 3YO G1 winners for 2024/2025.
Our highlighted horse this week is a potential star of the upcoming 3YO filly features, the promising Autumn Blonde ( The Autumn Sun).
This John Sargent trained youngster recently took the eye in a Randwick trial as she builds towards her racetrack return.
Though the obviously immature Autumn Blonde remained a maiden from four juvenile starts, three of those were in stakes races and she was tested and held her own against a couple of more precocious peers who became stars of the season.
After an unplaced Gimcrack debut in October, the filly kicked off her Autumn campaign with a gutsy third to the eventual Golden Slipper winner Marhoona (Snitzel) over 1100m at Canterbury, despite racing greenly.
Autumn Blonde was then stepped up to G2 level for the Sweet Embrace Stakes and defied her $100-1 starting price when she raced wide all the way but still ran a bold fourth, only a length off the winner Within The Law (Lucky Vega) - that filly went on to finish third in the G2 Percy Sykes to the Golden Slipper placed Tempted (Street Boss) and was only narrowly defeated in the G1 Champagne Stakes by exciting colt Nepotism (Brutal) at her next two starts.
Autumn Blonde on the other hand was spelled after an unplaced run in the G2 Magic Night, and she didn't contest the G1 juvenile features.
Nevertheless, the daughter of The Autumn Sun had shown plenty and marked herself as out as one who, with the benefit of time and the right trainer, may well emerge as a force to be reckoned with at three.
Fortunately she has the right trainer!
John Sargent is widely recognised as about the best in the business when it comes to training Oaks fillies.
The gifted Kiwi-born horseman has notched up training premierships in NZ, Malaysia and Australia.
Sargent's first Aussie G1 came back in 2012 with Queensland Oaks victress Quintessential (Fast ‘N’ Famous) and was followed by Kirramosa (Alamosa) 2013 VRC Oaks, Miss Mossman (Mossman) 2014 New Zealand Oaks, and the memorable Gust Of Wind (Darci Brahma) who won the 2015 Australian Oaks in which she beat none other than Winx by.
The stable's Luvaluva and Thunder Lady, two fillies by Mastercraftsman, counted the G2 Wakeful Stakes among their victories.
Last Spring the Sargent trained Powers Of Opal (Ocean Park) was runner up in both the Wakeful and VRC Oaks to the freakish filly Treasurethe Moment (Alabama Express).
When asked about his remarkable affinity with fillies and mares Sargent once joked:
“You probably don’t have to train them as hard as the others, just keep them happy, pretty much like your wife.”
A winning formula!
Back in 2023 another talented John Sargent filly Gin Martini (Rip Van Winkle) placed in the G1 Australian Oaks before going on to a highly successful staying career.
Gin Martini was a beautiful filly who stood out in the parade ring - a bright chestnut liberally splashed with white, she was a real eyecatcher.
Our subject Autumn Blonde bears quite a striking resemblance to Gin Martini and that's entirely by design, as she was a yearling purchase by the same syndicators, who clearly love their flashy fillies!
James Moss’ Tricolours Syndications paid a relatively modest $80,000 for Autumn Blonde at the 2024 Inglis Yearling from the Arrowfield draft.
Like Gin Martini (a savvy $40,000 Karaka Book 1 purchase by Tricolours in 2020) Autumn Blonde runs for a large syndicate of hopeful owners.
And though a beauty, there is nothing skin-deep about her pedigree - she’s by a champion sire from an extremely well credentialled and currently successful family.
At the sales, the baby Blonde still had lots of growing to do and was the first foal of an unraced mare, which will put a lot of buyers off - but Tricolours were happy to take the punt.
Autumn Blonde's dam is Arrowfield's unraced Shalaa daughter Tall Blonde, a half sister to the brilliant G2/3 winning colt Doubtland (Not A Single Doubt) now standing at Widden, and his stakes winning full sister Pretty Fast.
Doubtland and Pretty Fast are the two stakes winners to date from the NZ G3 placed daughter of Ustinov, Miss Sharapova.
She was no star on the track but stakes class, durable and extremely genuine. Her sre Ustinov (by Seeking The Gold out of the all time great race mare Let's Elope) won the G2 AAMI Vase over the Cox Plate trip at The Valley, bringing back memories of his dam who famously featured in one of the more unforgettable Cox Plates.
Three of his five stakes winners were fillies, and it was a given that in time this beautifully bred stallion would appear in a few good pedigrees!
Miss Sharapova is still breeding at Arrowfield. Of her six to race, five have been winners and two stakes winners.
Miss Sharapova has a 2024 colt by Snitzel on the ground and is currently carrying one of the champion sire's last foals following his passing this year, and I wager Arrowfield will be hoping it's a filly! Her matings to Snitzel have produced only colts to date.
Autumn Blonde's dam Tall Blonde who was foaled in 2018, was withdrawn from sale and retained by Arrowfield.
Her third dam Young and Free by the outstanding broodmare sire Kenmare was twice a winner at 1600m and predictably became a quality producer with her eight to race all winners.
Her best performer was the speedy filly Villa Verde (Not A Single Doubt), G2 placed at two and later a winner of the G2 ATC Challenge Stakes and placed in the G1 ATC Galaxy.
Her winning daughter Bringing Joy was dam of five winners including the stakes placed mile-middle distance gelding Faulconbridge by Peintre Celebre (7 wins) while two other of her race winning daughters became multiple winner producers
Young and Free was out of the well named and very quick G3 winning juvenile Sushi Rocket by Salmon Leap from Rory's Rocket and thus a half sister to the champion 2YO, champion sire and breed shaping broodmare sire Rory's Jester, by champion Baguette’s son Crown Jester - to SW filly Rory's Twig and to Rory's Girl, who when mated to Crown Jester produced a filly, Very Droll.
This three quarter sister to the great Rory's Jester became the dam of G1 Golden Slipper and Flight Stakes winning filly Ha Ha by Danehill.
To Danehill Very Droll also produced a son - the Listed Glasshouse Hcp winning sprinter Dry Humour - and Ha Ha's full sisters Rising Eagle (grand dam of stakes winners Air Assault, Essay Raider and Go Indy Go) and Golden Eagle ( dam of the hugely talented G1 Caulfield Cup winning mare Southern Speed.
Autumn Blonde's tail female line traces to the taproot mare Pawn, by the famed black racer and sire Trumpator whose daughters founded some of the studbook's best families.
The best example - Pawn's full sister Penelope became the taproot mare of North America's ptemier family, that of La Troienne who was descended from Penelope’s grand daughter Filagree ( inbred to Trumpator, her great grandsire).
We’ve left the crystal ball behind and are instead peering back through the mists of time here, but such is the nature of horse breeding - and this link to Trumpator blood is important in the mating of Tall Blonde to The Autumn Sun!
His damsire Galileo is very strong in the Trumpator influence - his Blue Hen dam Allegretta is by Lombard who descends from a Penelope daughter, is bred x 2 to her and carries another Trumpator daughter in Remnant. His third damsire Birkhan traces to a daughter of Pawn, Autumn Blonde's own ancestress.
But now let's look at Arrowfield's outstanding sire, the last son of Redoute's Choice to stand at the famous stud.
The Autumn Sun was the best performed of all the legendary sire’s sons, which is some achievement.
As a five time G1 winner who was the complete package - speed, stamina, oodles of class - so much was expected of the strikingly handsome colt from one of the late HH The Aga Khan's most revered families.
He hasn't let anyone down, in fact he has delivered in spades - unleashing 10 stakes performers from his first crop which included three G1 Classic winning fillies.
They were Autumn Angel ( x Hussonet) who won the Australian Oaks at Randwick having also collected the G3 Ethereal Stakes and placed in the G2 Stutt Stakes 1600m against the boys.
Then there was G1 2000m Australasian Oaks winner Vibrant Sun (x Written Tycoon) and Coco Sun (Encosta de Lago) - third to Vibrant Sun in the Australasian Oaks, next start she came out and trounced the future QLD Derby hero Warmonger in the G1 South Australian Derby 2500m.
In 2023 the precocious Autumn Ballet ( x Street Cry) had claimed the honour of becoming The Autumn Sun's first stakes winner when she blitzed the field in the G3 Black Opal at Canberra as a juvenile, returning in the spring to win the G2 Silver Shadow Stakes 1200m.
Star fillies have been his stock in trade including:
Tutta La Vita ( x Red Ransom) created industry headlines after the three x G1 placed filly was secured by North America's Resolute Racing for $3.2 million at the 2024 Inglis Chairman's Sale. Since being shipped to the USA Tutta La Vita has raced three times and twice placed.
Tulsi (Lonhro) placed in the G1 Sistema Stakes at two and both the G2 Soliloquy and G1 NZ 1,000 Guineas at three; and Private Legacy (Husson) was runner up in the G1 Australasian Oaks to the aforementioned Vibrant Sun, giving the sire a remarkable trifecta in that race.
The Autumn Sun provided the quinella in the 2024 G2 Tea Rose Stakes 1400m, when the unbeaten Autumn Glow (Var) defeated Snow In May (Siyouni) - the latter going on to run a brave third in the G1 Flight 1600m to a genuine superstar in Lady Shenandoah.
But the Autumn Sun isn't “just” a filly sire - his sons Know Thyself, Matusalem and this season's unbeaten two year old Autumn Boy are stakes winners while Plymouth, Kosgei and Amazing Fluke have all placed at Group level. In Hong Kong his exciting three year old Sky Jewellery was just announced Champion HK Griffin for 24/25.
The Autumn Sun was foaled by the unraced Galileo mare Azmiyna, a three quarter sister to stakes placed Galileo's Star and a half sister to the four times G1 winning Champion 3YO of Ireland and Champion Older Horse of Europe, Azamour (by Night Shift) - a very successful sire who sadly had his stud career cut short when he did not survive a stable accident.
Imported /exported by Arrowfield Azmiyna is also the dam of The Autumn Sun's three quarter sister Archanna by Snitzel ( a $1.3 million yearling repurchased by her breeder for $900,000, after three wins in an eight start career with Chris Waller), the NH-bred stakes winning filly Azada (Siyouni) and stakes placed colt Azimpour (Dubawi), plus three other winners, all her foals to race.
The Autumn Sun's stakes winning second dam Asmara by Roberto's highly influential son Lear Fan was dam of eight winners, three stakes winners - and herself a half sister to G1 winner and multiple G1 placed Astarabad by Alleged, at stud.
Azamour was her finest product and he became a G1 sire of Classic performing fillies in particular, while his son Best Of Days became a G1 warhorse for Godolphin in Australia.
The Autumn Sun's third dam Anaza was a stakes winning daughter of one of the all time great broodmare sire, Darshaan, was dam of ten winners and a G1 producer - like her daughter and grand daughter.
This is one of HH The Aga Khan's best families with a power packed pedigree page that is literally awash with black type.
The family (4-i) goes back to the taproot mare Lady Alice Hawthorne whose notable descendants include Quest For Fame and Falbrav.
Family members Unbreakable (the grandsire of Native Dancer) and the great French broodmare sire Alcantara are very prominent in Autumn Blonde's damsite Shalaa through his lines to the brothers Kris and Diesis.
Another family member Hourless is a key sire on the damline of Redoute's Choice.
Alice Hawthorn is also the taproot mare of the Fanfreluche family ( Encosta De Lago, Flying Spur etc etc. - and Azamour's sire Night Shift)
Let’s Elope comes into focus here through her sire Nassipour. Through his dam that great sire carried multiple lines to this family.
Shalaa has all the ingredients to become a broodmare sire of note. Bred 3mx 3m to Danzig, one line comes through Green Desert’s breed shaper Invincible Spirit which is by far the most successful iteration of this pattern - especially if a further introduction of Danzig is to come via Danehill, as is the case with Autumn Blonde's pedigree.
Unsurprisingly Shalaa was blessed with plenty of the precocious Danzig speed and was a champion 2YO in Europe.
He consistently passes that speed on.
Additionally Shalaa's grandsire Green Desert and broodmare sire War Chant are bred on the same cross - the former out of a daughter of Kris by Sharpen Up and the latter out of a daughter of his full brother Diesis. Both brothers became broodmare sires of the highest order - and Shalaa carries a close-up double dose of this prepotent blood.
His damsire War Chant won the Breeders Cup Mile and proved to be an excellent and consistent sire. Taller and leggier than the typical Danzig, with a quirky but lovable character, the stallion died at the age of 27 last year, having been domiciled at Yarradale Stud in Western Australia since 2014.
War Chant spent his first years at stud shuttling between the USA, WA and Chile.
Shalaa's tail female line goes back to Rose Red, a daughter of Blue Hen and global matriarch Marchetta (family 1-w) and this is another indication of his bright prospects as a broodmare sire.
Marchetta's famous daughter Aurora produced the full brothers and legendary broodmare sires Alycidon and Acropolis, and their important half brothers Agricola and Borealis.
Acropolis became the grandsire of Galileo's third dam Anatevka - and analysis of The Autumn Sun's stakeswinners shows that he particularly loves this family.
Shalaa already has a G1 ATC Oaks and G1 Australasian Oaks placed filly Jennilala from a Manhattan Rain mare who descends from a daughter of Rory's Jester, (Autumn Blonde's family ) and Autumn Blonde's fourth dam Sushi Rocket is bred x 2 to Alycidon daughters.
The Marchetta family is also prominent in the Autumn Sun's G1 nick with Hussonet through My Babu, whose son Milesian is the damsire of Kenmare.
Autumn Blonde's tail female line (1-m) through Kantara by Alycidon goes back to Glare daughter of Footlight - also ancestress of her third damsire Kenmare. This ties in beautifully with The Autumn Sun's ancestress Orphne by Delirium, tail male to Panorama out of Footlight's daughter Serpentine.
While Autumn Blonde has been blessed with some good speed, I do think she'll be looking for 2000m and beyond this prep.
There's a great chance this spectacular looking filly will become yet another Oaks contender for John Sargent!
The Autumn Sun did not cover at Arrowfield last season due to an injury but fortunately he's now back in action.
The champion sire stands on a fee of $66,000 for 2025.
