As arguably the most exciting 3yo colt in training, could it be that Godolphin’s Tentyris has gone to another level? If his win in Saturday’s $1m G1 VRC Lightning Stakes (1000m) down the Flemington straight is anything to go by, then we're in for some exciting viewing over the coming months.
Adding the Lightning Stakes to his prior win in the G1 VRC Coolmore Stud Stakes, just like exciting young sire Home Affairs who has already been represented by seven first crop stakes performers, the Anthony and Sam Freedmand trained son of Street Boss is clealry destined for bigger things.
When the gates crashed open, fellow Godolphin bred and raced colt Beiwacht (Bivouac) got a little squeeze before jockey Ben Melham urged him to the lead, while Damian Lane and Tentyris were content to drop to the tail of the field.
With Beiwacht leading out on his own, he had Golden Slipper-winning filly Marhoona and last start G1 Champions Sprint winner Giga Kick tracking him, while Lane was simply bidding his time at the tail.
As Giga Kick ambled up to Beiwacht and took the lead with 300m to run, the Coolmore Stud Stakes placed I Am Invincible filly My Gladiola came from back in the field to challenge, looking a serious threat.
But in the twinkling of an eye My Gladiola was swamped as Lane had asked Tentyris for his well-known final sprint and the colt simply charged past the grey filly, appearing to eclipse her in size as he flashed pack to post consecutive G1 victories.
Working home well into third in what would’ve really pleased her connections, the G1-winning Hellbent mare Benedetta showed she is on track for a step up in trip in the coming weeks.
With five wins and two placed efforts from just eight starts, future Darley stallion Tentyris has earned connections $2,583,245.
“He (Anthony) has been in the game for so long and he said to me at the end of the spring campaign, this might be the best horse you ever train," Sam said.
“(I said) I thought you might be suggesting you trained one better back in the 1990s and 2000s – there was a bit of cheek there, they had Mahogany and Schillaci – but he's building his own record that will hopefully be right up there with some of the best.”
“We just only had the one play with him with how he steps out of the barriers, it was just a risk whether the 1000 was going to be too short (but) it certainly wasn't,” Lane said.
"Mid-race I had to ask him to pick up the bridle and when he did, he really joined in well and as had become his trademark, that last bit of his race was outstanding."
Now favourite for the G1 VRC Newmarket Handicap (1200m) on March 7, a start would depend on the weight that the exciting colt is allocated.
“I would love to come to the Newmarket if he was not heavily penalised for the victory. It's not easy for a three-year-old to carry a big weight like that,” said Freedman.
“We'll have to have a chat about where he goes, but I can assure you it's a very good problem to have.”
A homebred for Godolphin, Tentyris is the lone stakes winner, from two winners, out of Deity, a metro winning half-sister by Exceed And Excel to stakes-winner Maternal, all out of the four-time G1 winner Divine Madonna.
Interestingly, Divine Madonna is a half-sister to the dam of the G3-winning, G 1 placed Angel Of Mercy who is in turn the dam of G1 winners Autumn Angel and this season’s G1 AJ Moir Stakes winner Baraqiel, who finished fourth in Saturday’s race.
Deity’s current 2yo is a filly named Parcae also in the Freedman stable, while the mare unfortunately slipped to Paulele the following season before foaling a filly by Champion Anamoe in mid-September, with the mare having since been covered by Too Darn Hot (GB).
Tentyris is one of 88 stakes winners for Darley’s Street Boss whose exciting G2-winning filly Tempted resumed last Saturday with an impressive win in the G3 Eskimo Prince Stakes and looks set to head to the G1 Surround Stakes for her next start.
