Farnicle out to further boost his sire’s excellent start to stud
Co-trainer Adrian Bott is confident Farnicle (Farnan) can provide a powerful ending for an impressive first season of runners for his sire as he seeks to turn the tables on win machine Cool Archie (Cool Aza Beel) in Saturday’s J.J. Atkins (Gr 1, 1600m).
Tulloch Lodge’s Golden Slipper (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Farnan (Not A Single Doubt) has made a brilliant start to stud life.
The Kia Ora Stud stallion is third among first-season sires by earnings, behind Ole Kirk (Written Tycoon) and Wootton Bassett (Iffraaj). But he ranks second to Ole Kirk by both winners (11 to ten) and stakes winners (four to three), as well by the score of his 13 wins to Ole Kirk’s 16.
Farnan sits seventh on the two-year-old sires’ title by earnings, but is fifth by winners and equal-fourth for black type success.
With only seven weeks left in the season, he would be unlikely to rise higher than his current position, by earnings, on the first season ladder even if Farnicle claims the first prize-money of $600,000 in the Atkins, with more than $800,000 currently separating Farnan and Wootton Bassett in third and second place.
But regardless, Bott believes Farnicle is well poised to strike third-up from a break as he strives to stop Cool Archie’s win streak at four, having run second to the Queenslander in their last start in Eagle Farm’s Sires’ Produce Stakes (Gr 2, 1400m) on a bottomless Heavy 10.
The first foal of outstanding New Zealand Oaks (Gr 1, 2400m) winner and NZ Filly of the Year Jennifer Eccles (Rip Van Winkle), Farnicle has long been expected to prosper as his trips grow longer.
Bought from breeders Kia Ora for $600,000 at Inglis Easter by Waterhouse-Bott and Kestrel Bloodstock – with Kia Ora staying in the ownership alongside others including Rupert Legh and TFI – the colt debuted with a narrow, workmanlike victory over 1100 metres at Kensington on March 26.
Put away to prepare for the Atkins with an eight-week let-up, he won a Randwick barrier trial on May 5 and ran a solid seventh in Doomben’s Champagne Classic (Gr 2, 1200m) before his fighting 2.8-length second in the Sires’, racing on the pace and leading the 13 beaten runners home once Cool Archie had skipped clear. Such was the state of the track, the meeting was called off straight after that race, the fifth on the card that day.
Bott said while Cool Archie was impressive, he hoped the extra 200 metres this Saturday would work in his colt’s favour.
“Farnicle’s in excellent order,” Bott told ANZ Bloodstock News.
“This is the race he’s been primed towards. First-up from that short break, he was always going to be vulnerable over 1200 metres, but I thought he was excellent there, and then he showed the necessary improvement stepping up to the 1400 [metres] in the Sires’.
“It’s likely we can expect improvement again from him stepping up to the mile, which has always looked like it’d be the type of trip he needs, and with the additional fitness off the back of that last run as well, these are all positives for him.”
With a handful of Farnans at Tulloch Lodge, including his highest earner in two-time winner North England, Bott said Farnicle was “a nice mix” of his blistering sire and his Oaks-winning dam.
“He looked a quality individual at the sales,” Bott said. “A nice, athletic and mature type, with plenty of scope.
“Being out of Jennifer Eccles, that’s what’s always given us the confidence to head towards a race like this, banking on that pedigree to kick in, and those genetics to help over a tough mile.
“But in saying that, I do feel Farnan is physically able to stamp his horses. Looks-wise, Farnicle has certainly got a lot of the old man about him, the way he’s developed. He’s got more scope than Farnan, and he’s a lovely sized colt and he’s still furnishing.
“So maybe it’s a nice mix of both parents there. But no doubt on the racing profile side he’ll have that element of stamina, though I don’t think he’ll get quite as far as his dam got.”
Reporting North England was back in work with an eye to spring three-year-old sprints, Bott said the future looked bright for Farnan.
“We’ve had plenty represented through his first season, and we’ve got another great representation of his second crop coming through,” he said.
“All things look very promising for Farnan. A few of them have been precocious, importantly at the top level, and a horse like Farnicle as well looks like he’ll be able to train on and be effective in those three-year-old Classics. So there are some very promising signs there for the stallion.”
Kia Ora couldn’t be more pleased with the start of stud life for Farnan, the winner of his first five starts, whose service fee has been bumped from $55,000 to $77,000 (inc GST) this spring.
“Ten winners and three stakes winners? If someone had offered us that at the start of the season, you’d bite their hand off to take that,” said the stud’s racing manager Luke Wilkinson.
“He’s done a good job, plus he’s popular in that the trainers like his stock.
“There’s a lot of Not A Single Doubt about Farnan, regarding how his horses handle being in training. They’re tough and straightforward like Not A Single Doubt, they’re uneventful and uncomplicated in the way they handle training, and then they go to the races and do what they’re asked.
“He’s doing a fine job and we think he’s going to have a good spring, too. And we’re hearing good reports from the early training of his second crop, so it’s exciting times.”
Wilkinson reported Farnan, who covered 181 mares last season, was full for the coming spring, his fifth at stud.
“The people who’ve supported him in his first few years are reloading, so it’s exciting times,” he said. “There’s some lovely quality mares that we see pop up in front of us on his book, so we’re confident there’ll be good times ahead.”
Farnicle, who’ll jump from gate four with Tim Clark again in the saddle, was on the fourth line of betting on Wednesday for the Atkins at $8, behind Chris and Corey Munce’s $3.70 favourite Cool Archie, who has barrier nine for regular rider Martin Harley.
Chris Waller’s Yulong colt Hidden Achievement (I Am Invincible) was at $5 after a win and two placings from his first three Sydney metro starts. The Kelly Schweida-trained local hope Grafterburners (Graff), who was sixth in the Sires’, was at $6.50.
Bott said Farnicle had, in typical Tulloch Lodge style, been “up on speed and making our own luck” in the Sires’, a path he’ll likely take again this Saturday.
He said the Sires’ will have had its share of unlucky horses and runs to forget due to the bog track, the proof of which could become clear in the Atkins, but that Cool Archie was again the horse to beat.
“There were plenty of hard luck stories through the Sires’, plenty that got back in parts of the track where they didn’t want to be, or didn’t handle the heavy conditions at the time,” he said.
“I’m sure there were plenty of hidden runs in there, and it’s hard to measure things up in those conditions. So we could see horses jumping out of the ground who could be threats this time, but no doubt the Sires’ winner [Cool Archie] has done it all, at every time of asking.”
Meanwhile, Bott said North England – an Inglis Classic buy out of a four-time winning mare up to 1600 metres – would likely resume in Rosehill’s San Domenico Stakes (Gr 3, 1100m), with a main spring goal of Flemington’s Coolmore Stud Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m).
“He’s just come back into work and he’s looking great,” Bott said.