Segenhoe Stud

Cover: Joliestar wins the Gr1 Thousand Guineas on 18-11-2023

The majority of farms wish they could boast of a 16% success rate for winners offered at auction. But Segenhoe sets the bar for excellence far higher, and when they speak of 16% it refers not to winners, but to Stakes performers sold at auction over the past five years. That makes it clear the Segenhoe draft is the obvious starting point for buyers wanting to give themselves the best chance of racing at the elite level. Headline acts by Segenhoe graduates have been In Secret, King Colorado, I Am Me, Tiz Invincible, Amazonian Lass and the mighty Amelias Jewel. Then to cap it all off the two spectacular consecutive Gr1 wins by front running Pride Of Jenni established her as one of the best mares in training and Joliestar’s emphatic win in the prestigious fillies classic the Gr1 1000 Guineas on the final day of the Victorian Spring Carnival really put the icing on the cake for the farm’s graduates.

Farm Manager Brian Clarke spoke to us about just of few of his favourites.

Brian began with a colt that should be challenging for top of the sale, Lot 423, the I Am InvincibleAmuletum full brother to Tiz Invincible bred by Phoenix Thoroughbreds. “We are really looking forward to selling this colt. Tiz Invincible won two legs of the Princess series and was unlucky in the Gr1 Flight Stakes. The colt is a very well-balanced individual with a great temperament.” It doesn’t hurt that his dam is a half-sister to the Gr1 Cox Plate winner Anamoe.

Flicking over a couple of pages in the catalogue Brian came to Lot 474, So You Think’s daughter out of Bellevue Girl. “She is a beautiful filly by arguably the best sire in Australia at the moment. So You Think sired The Everest winner Think About It and previously sired outstanding fillies like Nimalee, Nakita Jane and Fasika. This filly has great size and strength and exudes quality, and like most of her sire’s stock she has a terrific action. She is a half-sister to the young sire Bellevue Hill out of a fast Exceed And Excel mare, her damsire is one of the best we have in Australia for passing on speed. In short, the filly is the perfect package.”

Another filly that can expect little rest on inspection days will be Lot 623, the full sister to dual Gr1 winning sprinter In Secret, by I Am Invincible out of Eloping. “This pedigree needs no introduction Segenhoe having sold In Secret out of the Magic Millions Gold Coast Sale for $900,000. Bred by the partnership of Segenhoe and Longwood Farm, this filly has a lot of the same qualities of her sister and is sure to be one of the most popular lots at the sale”.

Brian explained that buyers looking for the ideal two year-old should add Lot 476 to their ‘must inspect’ list. “Bred by Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalfa al Maktoum, he’s by Snitzel who has already given us the Golden Slipper winners Estijaab and Shinzo, out of the five time winning mare Benetoite who was good enough to run fourth in the Gr1 Coolmore Classic. This fellow is what you would expect from a typical Snitzel and looks a fast, two year-old type.”

That makes it clear the Segenhoe draft is the obvious starting point for buyers.

In Secret

Another Snitzel, and one with plenty of pedigree to back up his good looks is Lot 492, a colt out of Breakfast In Bed making him a three-quarter brother to young sire King’s Legacy. Of course King’s Legacy is another Segenhoe/Magic Millions success story selling through this ring for A$1.4 million to James Harron before winning a pair of Gr1’s at two. There is no doubt Zoustar is the hottest young sire in the land, the Coolmore Stud Stakes win of Ozzmosis further evidence of his potency. Segenhoe will take their homebred colt out of Pretty in Pink to Bundall and Brian thinks he is a terrific sort. “This horse has great quality, a terrific action and is a tremendous representation of what his sire produces.”

Brian saved one of the best until last, the Snitzel – Warranty colt bred by Fairway Thoroughbreds. A three-time winning, twice Listed placed daughter of All Too Hard, Warranty comes from the family of Gr1 Railway Stakes winner Gathering and of the Gr3 winner Florentina who later became the dam of four time American Grade 1 winner In Italian. “An outstanding colt from a deep black-type family that John Camilleri has had great success with in the past, we are very excited about this colt’s prospects,” said Brian. So those were Brian’s top picks, seven horses from the 38 strong draft, and by coincidence as close to 16% as you can get!

That is the briefest of run downs on what is a standard, stellar Segenhoe draft for the Gold Coast. The statistics say finding a Stakes performer amongst their offerings will be easy, it’s up to you to decide just which one.