Yesterday at Flemington, exciting galloper Revelare (So You Think) cruised into the 2025 Melbourne Cup, unleashing a display of classy staying power to win The G3 Archer (the old Hotham Handicap) over 2500m at Flemington.
It was the eighth victory from eleven career starts for the five year old - and one look at his pedigree suggests that 3200m should be right in his wheelhouse.
Is it possible that Aussie bred horses could go back to back in the great race after Knight's Order (Extreme Choice) fought off all challengers in 2024?
Could a tide be about to turn?
For what seemed like an eternity, it looked like the era of the homebred Cup hero was slipping away forever.
Even the mighty Kiwis found themselves fighting a losing battle against the headwinds of change.
Like the thoroughbred version of an uncomfortable new climate reality, a jetstream of imported horseflesh would circle the globe and hit Flemington each year on the first Tuesday in November with the force of a Melbourne spring thunderstorm!
Once their trainers figured out the right sort of horse to bring, the NH bred stayers were virtually unstoppable. As “the raiders” took a stranglehold on the Cup our national pride took a beating and a quiet sense of desperation began to ensue.
It had been one thing for Lloyd Williams to spend gazillions on likely looking imports and throw them at the race. He was really just another Aussie chasing the Cup dream on a grand scale, like many a wealthy owner had done before him. We could smile wryly and think, well good luck to him.
(William's longtime trainer Robert Hickmott now gets his own shot at Cup glory with Revelare, after putting the polish on Green Moon and Almandin)
But things began to get a little ridiculous after the US-bred, French trained Americain charged to glory in 2010.
In the fifteen years since his victory, only five SH bred horses have won the Cup.
It had become a classic case of “if you can't beat ‘em, join ‘em” - with virtually all the major stables in the land hosting a conga line of well bred imports.
Sourced from Dundalk to York to Lingfield to Deauville, by syndicates sprouting like weeds and experts and agents feverishly poring over endless race videos, planeloads of these equine lighthouses of hope landed on our shores and planeloads of cash changed hands to get them here.
These horses have become part of our landscape now. They have forever changed the face of racing in Australia, and we love them. They are for the most part brave and enduring examples of thoroughbred gallantry. We've also seen some pretty jawdropping results when Aussies get their hands on them!
Look at Vauban! An 8Y0 ex hurdler, veteran of two Melbourne Cups, an Ascot Gold Cup and the like - just won the G2 Chelmsford Stakes at his first ever attempt at the mile.
Surely it can work both ways? - there's no logical reason that Aussie or NZ bred horses can't win big staying races in Europe if they are trained to do so.
Revelare and Knight's Choice have something in common pedigree wise despite being sired by vastly different types of stallion. Her name is Tessa Gillian.
Revelare's second dam Repremand is bred 4f x 3m to her, via the full brother and sister Supreme Court and Courtessa, the latter being the dam of Klairessa, the dam of Repremand's sire Kreisler, and most famously, the dam of Eight Carat.
The grand dam of Knight's Choice Black Pearl was sired by The Commander, a good sire but one of Eight Carat's “lesser” descendants, and is also out of a mare by Kreisler!
What about the freakish Verry Elleegant - 4f x 4f to Eight Carat's daughter Cotehele House
Vow And Declare - his fifth dam Lora was by Lorenzaccio by Klairon out of Courtessa, thus a three quarter sister to Klairessa.
That's the family stamp on three of the five SH-breds to win the Cup since 2010, pretty impressive. For the sake of this argument let's add a fourth - Without A Fight, as he descends from the mare Neolight, a close relation to Tessa Gillian!
What's interesting is how inbreeding the family is becoming more and more effective in further removes, and now a new avenue opens up - with those inbreedings working within the pedigree to strengthen the damline beneath them.
Because it's such a huge tribe the possibilities are truly endless!
Let's take a look at the smorgasboard of options (and there are so many I'm doubtless going to miss some)
From Eight Carat’s daughter Diamond Lover by Sticks And Stones (Star Kingdom tail male):
Don Eduardo and I Conquer by Zabeel, three full sisters including SW Peruzzi have all bred on
The Commander by Sir Tristram and his full sisters:
Champion Tristalove, dam of Kempinsky, Love A Dane, Viking Ruler and daughters Chimeara, Diamond Like, Lovetrista and Love Diamonds who all won stakes races and have left families to breed on.
Antwerp (dam of Viscount )and only two daughters - Crystals by Grand Lodge and Segue by Ad Valorem, the latter is a stakes producer.
From Marquise by Gold And Ivory came great mare Shower Of Roses by Zabeel who died ypung, and her full sisters Ultima and Mazarine, the latter is dam of G1 filly Hiyaam.
Asscher by Stravinsky has some very well bred daughters at stud.
Markisa by Danehill, a successful producer and Krisdahl by Rock Of Gibraltar.
From Cotehele House family (by My Swanee, Petition tail male)
Danewin, Commands, Bramshaw, Zed, Deep Field, Shooting To Win.
Cotehele House daughter Abbaye is of great interest Cup-wise being by Klairon’s grandson Ahonoora.
Her Zabeel-sired sons Dark Lord and Shadow Creek were relative stud obscurities (but so was Zed! covering draught mares in the back blocks for crying out loud) and their full sister Obey became a good producer.
Obey's half sister G2 winner Taimana by Woodman was a difficult breeder and produced only colts, but Jervaux by unfashionable Slavic and Onlyarose by relative flop One Cool Cat both became black type producers! This branch seems to produce mostly colts - but Sir P knew exactly what he was doing and there are descendants of both these mares at stud that might be hidden jewels!
Okay we're getting a bit obscure so let's go back to the produce of Cotehele House.
House Mouse by Zabeel and Cotoletta by Gold Ace left daughters but it was full sisters by the excellent stallion Imposing, Wycombe and Chalet Girl who founded stronger lines. The latter is the third dam of Verry Elleegant and her stakes winning brother Verry Flash.
Thank all gods, two daughters from VE's dam Opulence are breeding on and Black Lace by Towkay has already produced VE's highly talented “little sis” Belle Detelle.
VE's 2022 born full sister Verry Stella has been imported into Australia while Opulence half sisters Petit Leon (Shamexpress), Moonofklairessa (Towkay) Hermione (Viking Ruler) all went to stud.
So let's get to Kaapstad and the male line of Eight Carat.
He's an interesting one because he was blessed with more speed than a lot of them - and while a top sire and great broodmare sire, he has tended to appear less in pedigrees of horses that go further than 2400m
But that makes him a bit of a weapon when working with an intense linebreeding approach. For example, how about three sex balanced lines of Eight Carat in the fourth or fifth remove, with Kaapstad as a speed enhancing influence through the dam
Then we come to Octagonal. What more can be said about the Big O!
The great showman, the black beauty, possessor of extraordinary talent and huge personality.
Then came “Little O” as we called him at first - but that moniker was soon swept aside, as Lonhro became a superhorse in his own right and in time a far, far better sire than his old man, who was pretty good!
But Lonhro, who sadly passed away in 2024, was a once in a lifetime racehorse and sire. He also is loved and remembered for his intelligence and personable nature. Like his dad, he knew what the game was all about - he relished the challenge, was confident in his ability to meet it, and he loved putting on a show for his legions of adoring fans.
It's obvious that through Lonhro, with his vastly superior class and speed, we can access sons and daughters who offer prime linebreeding options for our Cup dreams- in particular his son Pierro.
But my feeling is that it is stamina-bred mares by stallions from Lonhro daughters that would really click with this sort of pattern, and this will apply more as we see the great stallion moving further back in pedigrees.
Even Deep Field and Shooting To Win can get in on this sort of act - Deep Field's great son Voyage Bubble is a HK middle distance champion (he descends from a daughter of Royal Charger's son Turn-To)
The final and vital piece in the equation of the dreamed Cup champion is the covering sire and High Chaparral is a standout on pedigree, class, electricity, absolutely everything needed.
So You Think, Dundeel and his sons and others - they will have a role to play in Cup history and of course, Galileo.
We need to think outside the box too! And not be afraid to use a stallion of a bloodline that isn't the obvious first point of call when we are thinking Melbourne Cups, to get the right balance of stamina and speed.
In the spirit of egalitarianism unique to Australasian racing, the amazing family of Tessa Gillian is available to all.
Hobby breeders are still “in the race” that stops the nation!
As for Revelare, he's not a dream - he's a real live Cup hope and why wouldn't he be?
So You Think loomed to win it and was a brave third on a wet track - even Bart later conceded the whole thing was a bit of an afterthought.
He's out of a Zabeel mare.
His granddam won the Sydney Cup.
Add in the Tessa Gillian family factor, and if he runs a big plonk of my money will be going on him!
