Beautifully bred filly Victoria Cristal boosted her future broodmare value when she scored a strong win in the Sky Racing Plate (2040m) at Doomben today.
In the familiar Shoot Out colours of Graham and Linda Huddy, Victoria Cristal came with a perfectly timed run under talented apprentice Justin Wood to win by a neck.
Victoria Cristal is by Shoot Out’s sire High Chaparral and is prepared by John Wallace, the man who puts the polish on the multiple Group One winning star.
Wood allowed Victoria Cristal to find her feet during the early and middle stages before they were able to come with a strong sprint in the straight to win in good style and record a valuable metropolitan success.
The ride was the first for Wood since a stint on the sidelines through suspension and he showed he’d lost none of his form and timing with the heady ride.
Graham and Linda Huddy purchased Victoria Cristal for $45,000 from the 2009 Magic Millions National Yearling Sale. She was bred and sold by John Barnes and Joy Mackay of Canning Downs.
Barnes and Mackay are preparing a half sister to Victoria Cristal from the historic Darling Downs property for January’s 2011 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.
The filly, brown in colour, is by former outstanding galloper Haradasun – a Group One winner on both sides of the equator.
“She’s a lovely filly,” Magic Millions Bloodstock Consultant Barry Bowditch reported. “She is a classic style filly.”
“Each time I’ve seen her she has developed nicely and she will make into a lovely yearling and then race filly.”
“And she has a great pedigree being a half sister to a Group One winner and now an impressive city winner today,” Bowditch added.
As well as being a half sister to Victoria Cristal, the sale bound filly is a half sister to the twice New Zealand Group One winner Grout – since a winner in Hong Kong under the name of Raider.
Dam Kaapstad Glamour, a lightly raced daughter of Kaapstad, is a half sister to the stakes placed First Touch as well as the dam of Charles Laird’s South African based stakes winner and fellow Magic Millions graduate Curved Ball.
Further back it is the family of the Gold Coast sold Melbourne Cup hero and crowd favourite Subzero.
Meanwhile, the good judges were impressed at Doomben today when the very promising Falvelon galloper Excellantes sizzled home in the second event.
Prepared by Robert Heathcote, Excellentes stopped the clock in the class record time of 1 minute 3.68 seconds for the 1110 metre trip – coming home his final 600 metres in a blistering 33.02 seconds.
Excellentes was a lovely yearling and was purchased from last year’s QTIS 600 Yearling Sale for $105,000 by leading New Zealand based agent Paul Willetts.
The gelding, a half brother to group winner Funtantes, cruised home by four lengths and looks a progressive young galloper who’s up to better class into the future.
