Winner of the 2011 Group I MRC Caulfield Cup, South Australian bred star staying mare Southern Speed was retired to stud in Japan at the end of her career and was in the news this week when her four year-old son Cosmo Kuranda went within a whisker of winning the Group I Arima Kinen (2500m).

A three-quarter brother to Golden Slipper winning sire Farnan, Kooringal Stud’s Sandbar is a bargain priced alternative for the breed to race owners and he produced a brilliant debut two year-old winner at Canberra on Sunday when Bar Jester landed the $50,000 Clan O’Sullivan (1000m).