The first foal of the outstanding race mare Sister Madly was presented at the sale by Segenhoe Stud at Scone, and after a fierce  bidding battle was purchased by the US based Spendthrift Farm. 

He will head to the stables of Hawkes Racing.

The Segenhoe team purchased Sister Madly from the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale as a stud prospect for $1 million. 

She was a group two winner and group one placed, ironically to Sepoy, for her new connections before heading to stud.

Those people within racing will remember Sepoy as a brilliant  juvenile contender, one of the best two-year-olds to have raced     anywhere in the world this century.

Sepoy dominated the juvenile division in Australia in the 2010/2011 season, taking out both the Blue Diamond and the Golden Slipper. 

He was arguably even better as a three-year-old, when he rattled up a brilliant five timer during that spring. 

Not only an outstanding racehorse but a pedigree that hails him as a stud success. 

His dam, Watchful, ran a number of placings and boasts as her sire the mighty Danehill. While her dam Canny Miss has Golden Slipper numbers to burn, through her sire Marscay, Biscay and Star Kingdom with her half-brother by Bletchingly, Canny Lad also a Golden Slipper winner.

His overall statistics were 26 yearlings sold for an average of $286,346, which emphasises the future he has in Australian racing.

Spare a thought

Showcasing champions is integral to horse racing and the ground at Ascot for QIPCO British Champions Day reflected on what was a memorable and exciting afternoon of Flat action.

Noble Mission and Al Kazeem served up a finish fit for such an occasion in the Champion Stakes, their dual down the Ascot straight set to go down in history as one of the most thrilling battles ever seen at the top level in Britain.

It proved, unsurprisingly, an emotional victory for Lady Cecil, who took over the horses and licence from her husband, Sir Henry Cecil, when he passed away in 2013. 

For Noble Mission to replicate his brilliant brother Frankel and win the Group 1 prize is a truly remarkable achievement for all concerned with Khalid Abdullah’s homebred.

As we know in Australia the  overuse of a whip is frowned upon by officials and can cost jockeys a suspension or fine, so spare a thought for jockey James Doyle the rider of Noble Mission, the winning margin a half  neck. 

Doyle copped a seven-day ban and a £10,000 ($20,000) fine for excessive use of the whip. The rules as they are do not discourage jockeys from keeping to a limited number of strikes in such high profile events, simply because they know the result will not be affected.

Rod’s Rocket

Following the win of Big Money at Doomben in December comes an interesting story courtesy of breeding expert Les Young who relates the following: 

Back in 1986 I bought - for not a lot of money - Big Money’s second dam Love of Money (New Regent) on behalf of clients at the Adelaide Yearling Sale.

While no star, Love of Money, under the care of trainer Brian Mayfield-Smith, won two races including a 1550 metre event at Canterbury.

Her owners did not want to breed from the mare when she finished racing so I recommended her as a broodmare prospect to another client, Lisa Randle of Pine Lodge at Scone, and for an inexpensive purchase Love of Money did a fine job, producing seven winners, including Brotherly Love, by a variety of mainly unfashionable sires.

In 1995 Pine Lodge purchased for stud the Nijinsky stakes winner Human who was mated to Love of Money in 1998 to produce the handy sprinter Lyn’s Money, a three-time Sydney winner now better known as the dam of Big Money, Okane (eight wins and $285,865) and another winner, Holy Opera from just three foals to race.

Sadly, Lyn’s Money died shortly after producing Big Money, but breeder Phil Gunter still owns her only daughter, Holy Opera, and she may be able to continue the line.   

Milestones

A record of 93,746 spectators crushed into Randwick to watch The Diver win the 1948 Doncaster Handicap. 

Racing was at a peak of popularity. 

The Australian car, the Holden, began production.

Sol Green, the Cockney immigrant who arrived in Melbourne in 1885 with six pence in his pocket and became one of the great     bookmakers, died leaving his heirs an estate of £50,000 ($100,000). 

The philanthropic Green had been so powerful that in 1904 he paid Sir Hugh Denison £100,000 ($200,000) after the knight had chosen Poseidon and Apologue to win the Caulfield-Melbourne Cups double. 

After this staggering payout the bagman was still able to announce that his book showed a profit of £20,000 ($40,000).