5 minute read
Emirates Park
from 2024 MMGC Magazine
Emirates Park’s steady build up in both numbers and quality on the Gold Coast has been noted, and, importantly, rewarded through the success of graduates like Charm Stone and Bodyguard. And the success stories don’t have to be seven figure yearlings, there is something in this year’s draft for every budget.
If we had to name three horses pivotal to the reemergence of the Emirates Park brand as a commercial vendor they would have to be Charm Stone, Bodyguard and Tassort. A dual Gr.3 winner including the Ottawa Stakes at two, there is no better advertisement for investing in quality and trusting Emirates Park than Charm Stone. Then there is Bodyguard, who at his only run reaffirmed the declaration made by Charm Stone by winning the Listed Maribyrnong Trial Stakes in outstanding fashion and setting himself on a path to the Golden Slipper. Both horses came through the Magic Millions ring, and both look sure to repay their purchase price, and then some. But as Emirates Park’s Bryan Carlson explained “Importantly those horses at the top end of the market like Charm Stone and Bodyguard are returning a dividend, but it doesn’t matter the budget, we are producing quality horses for all levels of the market.”
The other name on the rise is Tassort. It was a show of faith by Emirates Park that the stud retained all of their first crop Tassorts to race, a decision that was vindicated by the determined win of Manaal, his first starter, in the Gr.3 Gimcrack Stakes.
In the expectation that the market will be desirous of his stock, Emirates Park will take to the Gold Coast five fillies and a colt. Amongst them is Lot 277 a half-sister to last season’s Gr.3 WATC Sires’ Produce Stakes runner up Brave Strike suggesting precocity runs on both sides of the family.
Bryan also believes Lot 999 carries plenty of quality and is a Tassort half-sister to Bohemian Lad who won at his first start as a two year-old.
The dam Nahab is a Snitzel three-quarter sister to the Gr.1 The Galaxy winner Sweet Idea and her Gr.2 winning brother Showtime.
Moving away from the Tassorts, a colt to go through as Lot 190 has a fascinating pedigree being by reigning Champion sire I Am Invincible out of the Gr.2 Golden Pendant and Tristarc Stakes winner Shumookh. Shumookh in turn is out of the outstanding Emirates Park mare Shamekha who pretty much did it all on the track winning the Gr.1 Coolmore Classic and the Gr.1 Autumn sprint double of the T J Smith and All Aged Stakes. And Shumookh is already off to a flying start with her first foal already a winner this year in Britain as a two year old.
The farm will also showcase a pair of Capitalist’s best colts led off by one out of the Fastnet Rock mare Tumooh making him a half-brother to Bodyguard. By a Magic Millions 2YO Classic and Golden Slipper winner out of a daughter of a Golden Slipper winner in Mossfun, the colt’s credentials leave nothing to be desired. Bryan summed him up simply as “a quality colt”.
The other Capitalist also has a quality pedigree, his twice winning dam Maroon Bay the mother of four winners from as many to race including the brilliant Ebhaar, winner of the Listed Merson Cooper Stakes. Maroon Bay is a full sister to Merchant Navy who of course won the Coolmore Stud Stakes and the Diamond Jubilee Stakes and to Jolie Bay, dam of Gr1 Caulfield Guineas winner Joliestar at the recent Victorian Spring Carnival, so this colt has an illustrious family.
For fans of the former top filly Sunlight there is Lot 181, a Zoustar colt out of Sheikha. His twice winning dam was placed third in the Gr.3 Kindergarten Stakes at Randwick and given she is a Sebring half-sister to Sunlight that makes the colt a three-quarter relation to the three-time Gr.1 and Magic Millions 2YO Classic winner.
Amongst the draft Emirates Park will offer five quality yearlings on behalf of Merricks Station from Victoria. Bryan is impressed with the I Am Invincible filly out of the three time winning Drumbeats mare Ra Ra Epic that sells as Lot 76. Ra Ra Epic is one of nine winners out of Miss Argyle amongst the others being the comet that was three-time Gr.1 winner Incentivise and exciting young New Zealand based sire Ardrossan. Early shoppers should be all over the filly by Bivouac out of the excellent producer One Funny Honey that sells as Lot 6. By an exciting first season sire she is a half-sister to Gr.1 Kingsford-Smith Cup winner Vega One, and to One More Honey, winner of the Gr.2 Sweet Embrace Stakes at two. Merricks Station have also sent up a smashing Pierro colt out of Murtle Turtle, a winner at two and twice Gr.3 placed as a juvenile and a Written Tycoon filly out of the Listed winner Military Reign.
