Friendless in betting, I Am Courage was sent off a $61 chance at his career debut but he cut a swathe through nine opponents in a QTIS Two-Years-Old Handicap over 1050m at Toowoomba on Easter Monday to credit the First Season Sire frontrunner Sidestep with his fourth individual winner.
It was the first winner for his Warwick-based trainer Bill Brown since Suzy's Rose won a maiden at the Gold Coast in November 2017.
Ridden by James Orman, I Am Courage (pictured as a yearling) travelled midfield on the rails and finished strongly to defeat Patches (Whittington) by half a length with Gideons (Monashee Mountain) three lengths back in third.
The son of Sidestep was a bargain basement $7,000 purchase out of the Toolooganvale Farm draft at the 2018 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale.
He is the fourth live foal and second winner out of the winning Danewin mare Dane Set And Match, a $190,000 Inglis Premier Yearling who was purchased by Darrell Ible Bloodstock for $11,000 at the 2009 Inglis Australian Breeding Stock Sale
Dane Set And Match (Centaine) is a three-quarter sister to Group 1 SAJC Goodwood Handicap winner Centisle.
The Darley-owned Sidestep will stand for a fee of $22,000 including GST in 2019 at Telemon Thoroughbreds in Queensland.
The son of Exceed And Excel currently has a $900,000 lead over his closest chaser Better Than Ready for Champion First Crop Sire honours, due, in the main, to his Golden Slipper-winning daughter Kiamichi.
