Deploy Flies Under The Radar
One who was barely mentioned until last Saturday was Deploy (Fastnet Rock) but his performance to win the Theo Marks Stakes (Gr 2, 1300m) at Rosehill by four lengths in a track record time of 1:14.92 must surely have highlighted his leading claims.
Top-class mare Egg Tart (Sebring) finished strongly to be second but was no match at the distance for Deploy, who took the lead early and never looked being in danger of defeat. Deploy’s winning time shattered the 27-year-old course record of 1:15.08 set by the sire Alquoz (Caerleon) in the same race back in 1990 and he covered the final 600 metres in 33.57 although in no way pressured.
This scintillating exhibition by Deploy followed his narrow last start victory in the Show County Quality (Gr 3, 1200m) at Randwick in which he also set a course record of 1:08.06 over the track and distance of The Everest.
Winner of the BRC Moreton Cup (Gr 3, 1200m) in Brisbane in June, Deploy is clearly on an upward spiral and now looks worthy of gaining a place in the world’s richest turf sprint.
Deploy was bred at the Cornish family’s Torryburn Stud in the lower Hunter Valley, selling him for $450,000 at the 2014 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale in Sydney when knocked down to Segenhoe Stud. Torryburn retained a quarter share to race the horse in its distinctive “white, red heart” colours in partnership with Segenhoe Thoroughbreds Australia, Stallion Racing and Mcennis Racing Pty. Ltd.
The five-year-old gelding is the third foal out of his dam Crimson Reign (Red Ransom), one of the better two-year-old fillies of the 2003-04 season, winning three races in Sydney, most important of which was the Kindergarten Stakes (Gr 3, 1100m). She was also runner-up to the outstanding Alinghi (Encosta de Lago) in the Reisling Slipper Trial Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m).
Crimson Reign trained on to be a useful, stakes class sprinter at three and four years but was not quite able to match her form as a juvenile.
Retired to stud, her first two foals, geldings by Redoute’s Choice (Danehill), were minor winners and following Deploy came the winning, Sydney placegetter Red Hearts (Lonhro). Her 2014 colt Wokurna (Snitzel) is so far unraced while still to come are the two-year-old colt Guards Red (Sebring) and a yearling colt by Smart Missile (Fastnet Rock), a three-parts brother to Deploy. The mare was covered by Pride of Dubai (Street Cry) late in the 2016 season.
Crimson Road, Deploy’s second dam, introduced this excellent American female line to Australia when imported in the late 1990s but after a promising start to her breeding career, producing the fillies Crimson Lane (Danehill) and Crimson Reign as her first two foals, her next foal died and the rest of her career was something of a disaster as over the next 14 seasons she missed nine times, leaving only five more foals, the best of which was Landy (Galileo), a winner of three minor races up to 2600 metres.
Bred by Allan E. Paulson, Crimson Road won six sprint races including a Listed event in the United States and her importation to Australia returned the blood of her famous father Strawberry Road (Whiskey Road) to his homeland.
A champion in Australia, Strawberry Road campaigned with great distinction in Europe and the United States in 1984 and 1985, winning the Grosser Preis von Baden (Gr 1, 2400m), the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud (Gr 1, 2500m), the Prix d’Harcourt (Gr 2, 2000m) and other races as well as finishing second to champion Pebbles (Sharpen Up) in the Breeders’ Cup Turf (Gr 1, 12f). He was later bought by Allen Paulson, adding to his racing achievements before retiring to stud in Kentucky where he became a successful and influential sire.
Deploy’s father Fastnet Rock (Danehill) was Australia’s champion sire in 2011-12 and again in 2014-15. He has made a bright start to the 2017-18 season and could well win a third title when the season closes on July 31 next year.
A top-class, short course sprinter himself, Fastnet Rock has many times proved his quality as a stallion in both hemispheres and while the majority of his progeny are at their best up to 1600 metres, a number have been Group One winners at 2000 metres and beyond.
Deploy’s maternal grandsire Red Ransom (Roberto) was similarly versatile in terms of the winning distances of his stock, leaving 110 stakes winners worldwide before becoming a renowned sire of broodmares.
The pedigree of Deploy features linebreeding to Nijinsky (Northern Dancer) and to Northern Dancer’s sire Nearctic (Nearco) in generations four and five while another plus in his background is the appearance of Mr Prospector (Raise A Native) as sire of Deploy’s third dam Bejat.