Pierro’s march to the Caulfield Guineas and Cox Plate gained more momentum at Moonee Valley last night when he romped to victory in the Group Two Bill Stutt Stakes (1600m).
The champion three-year-old cruised away from his rivals to win by four and three quarter lengths in his first run in Victoria and extended his unbeaten record to eight.
The colt is now a hot favourite for the Caulfield Guineas – marked at $1.70 with Luxbet – the next closest in the market are all $7 pops.
He also heads betting for Australasia’s weight-for-age championship, the Cox Plate at $3.80. Luxbet has stablemate More Joyous on the second line with New Zealander Ocean Park at $6.
Pierro’s regular rider Nash Rawiller predicted bigger and better things from the racetrack sensation starting with the Caulfeld Guineas in a couple of weeks.
“He is going on to better things,” Rawiller said. “He needed this tonight.”
“I wanted to be as soft as possible but still wanted to get the job done and get a bit of improvement out of it.”
“(He handled the track) like he had been here 100 times. He is such an adaptable horse and that is what makes him as good as he is – he just adapts to situations.”
“I knew Gai would have him fit enough for tonight and there is still more improvement to come.”
“Tonight we just wanted him to show he was heading in the right direction and he certainly showed that,” Rawiller added.
A jubilant Gai Waterhouse was again reaching for the superlatives after Pierro’s latest demolition job of a feature race.
“He is such an exciting colt,” Waterhouse beamed. “It was a galloping lesson and I loved the way he lowered himself and found the line.”
“His acceleration at the end of the race, that was the best thing.”
“People said about him going from 1200 to 1600 metres, I knew it wouldn’t be a problem.”
“(The crowd) love him and rightly so. He is such a handsome horse – he takes your eye.”
Pierro, bred by Darley, was originally sold by that operation for $115,000 to David Kobritz at the 2010 Magic Millions National Weanling Sale.
Sent to Kobritz’s Musk Creek Farm in Victoria, the Lonhro colt was prepared for the following January’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale and he was purchased for the Kolivos family by Gai Waterhouse for $230,000.
Without doubt he’s turned out the buy of the Australasian yearling sales of 2011 having already earned over $3.15 million and a stud value of many times that.
One of 33 individual stakes winners by former champion galloper Lonhro, Pierro is the sole winner to date for the Sydney and French winning Daylami mare Miss Right Note.
Miss Right Note is a half sister to the crack Italian Group One winner Laverock – a very close relation to Pierro being by his grandsire Octagonal.
Winner: Pierro
Breeding: Lonhro-Miss Right Note (Daylami)
Race: MVRC Bill Stutt Stakes (1600m)
Sold for: $115,000
Sale: 2010 Magic Millions National Weanling Sale
Vendor: Darley
Buyer: David Kobritz
Sold for: $230,000
Sale: 2011 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale
Vendor: Musk Creek Farm
Buyer: Gai Waterhouse
Earnings: $3,154,950
Owner(s): G & Mrs D Kolivos
Trainer: Gai Waterhouse (Randwick)
