In this business timing is everything, just ask Twin Hills Stud's
When Twin Hills acquired Smart Missile for Twin Hill's in 2018 the son of Fastnet Rock was coming off his quietest season in his six years at Arrowfield Stud.
After covering a career-low 63 mares in 2017, Smart Missile covered a career-high 222 mares at his first season at Twin Hills.
A service fee slashed from $22,000 to $13,200 may have helped but so did the volley of stakes-winners he churned out in 2018.
They were led by the Group 1 ATC Spring Champion Stakes winner Maid Of Heaven whose half-brother Castelvecchio (Dundeel) so impressively won Saturday's $2 million Millennium at Warwick Farm.
But there were other stakes-winners for Smart Missile in 2018 including the Group II MRC Thousand Guineas Prelude and Listed VRC Cap D'Antibes Stakes winner Smart Melody, the Group II SAJC Euclase Stakes winner Ill Have a Bit and the Listed MVRC William Crockett Stakes winner Beauty who has three wins from her four starts.
Smart Missile had winners spanning the continent on Saturday with Parko at the Gold Coast, Hawksmoor at Yarra Glen and Jericho Missile keeping his record at a perfect two for two in the valuable $250,000 Magic Millions WA 2yo Classic-(RL) at Pinjarra.
Under an ice cool ride by William Pike, Jericho Missile charged home to defeat
The winner of the $100,000 Crystal Slipper Stakes (1100m) on debut at Ascot in December, the David Harrison-trained gelding gave Pike his first WA 2yo Classic and he only gained the mount after Paul Harvey injured an ankle.
It was a third win in the race for Harrison, who won with Rose Of Thunder (2003) and Western Fever (2011).
Harrison paid $77,500 for Jericho Missile (pictured as a yearling ) out of the Maluka Thoroughbreds draft at the Magic Millions Adelaide yearling sale last year and said it was love at first sight.
"Smart Missiles don't usually win as two-year-olds like this and he's two-from-two so he's pretty special," Harrison said.
"I just loved him from the first time I saw him.
"It was just one of those times when you buy a horse you think I've got to have this horse and I didn't care what he was going to go for, I was going to buy him and we connected straight away, I just love him.
Jericho first went through the sales ring in the Holbrook Stud draft at the 2017 Magic Millions National Weanling Sale where he made $32,000.
His success has proved timely for Holbrook as the historic nursery will offer a half-brother by Press Statement late in the Monday session of the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale.He is the fourth foal of the talented One Cool Cat mare Onecatstoomany whose first three foals are all winners.
From a hugely successful family nurtured by Sir Patrick Hogan, Onecatstoomany is a daughter of the stakes-placed Zabeel mare Sursum Corda who is a sister to Group 1 winners Champagne (dam of Group 1 winner Charmont) and St Reims and a three-quarter sister to the granddam of NZ Horse Of The Year Bonneval (Makfi).
Herself a $360,000 2008 Karaka yearling, Onecatstoomany has a filly foal by Star Turn and was bred back to the Vinery Stud stallion again last spring.
Jericho Missile becomes the ninth stakes winner for Smart Missile.
