Three heats for juveniles over 900m were run at Rosehill on Tuesday morning and the winners included the highest priced yearling by Exceedance in 2025 and a filly by first season sire Tiger of Malay.
Team Hawkes won the Group I VRC Coolmore Stud Stakes with Exceedance and have had some luck with his offspring preparing G1 performer Swiftfalcon and last Saturday’s impressive winner Brave One and they also put the polish on Wild Atlantic.
He did everything right at his first trial jumping well to take the lead and then kicking clear for Tyler Schiller to win by more than three lengths over the blueblood Godolphin entry Portico, the first foal of Group II MRC Blue Diamond Prelude winner Arcaded by Exceed and Excel.
Wild Atlantic was a $320,000 Magic Millions purchase for Hawkes Racing from the Vinery draft and is a half-brother to Group III winner Aspect and stakes-winner Brown Ben. His dam Inishbeg is a well bred daughter of Lonhro that has had five to race all winners and it’s not hard to see this guy keeping her record perfect.
Team Hawkes also won with eye-catching Too Darn Hot (GB) colt Dr Hook, who was given a good education by Tyler Schiller. He was allowed to jump and find his feet from a wide gate and then gradually worked into contention under his own steam out wide. He surged to the line to win going away by a long head over Godolphin’s Wootton Bassett (GB) colt Letters Patent.
Dr Hook looks a big strong horse and was retained to race by his breeders Rob and Pam Crosby, who also bred and raced his dam Sylvia’s Mother, a multiple Group winner by Snitzel that was also prepared by Team Hawkes.
The Crosby’s have decided to sell the yearling from Sylvia’s Mother with the Home Affairs filly entered for Inglis Classic in the Berkeley Park stud draft as Lot 491.
John O’Shea and Tom Charlton produced the other heat winner with Tiger of Malay filly Tigroni improving sharply on her first trial at the start of the month when she ran last to Seeiaye. On that occasion, she showed plenty of pace, but was wayward over the last few furlongs, wanting to lay in before her fitness gave out.
She was more tractable this time and gave Dylan Gibbons a much better ride to the line as she kept to the task to win by nearly four lengths.
Tigroni was an $85,000 Magic Millions purchase from Newgate for O'Shea-Charlton Racing/James Bester Bloodstock/Ladies Syndicate and has a big crew of lady owners that would no doubt love to be at the Gold Coast in January.
She is the second foal of stakes-placed O’Reilly mare Campari, a grand-daughter of Group I winner Pernod and has plenty of quality NZ blood through her female family to offset the obvious speed of Tiger of Malay.
