Legacy Coolmore Stud Stakes bound after Flemington victory
Exciting gelding Legacy Bound (Ole Kirk) showed he belonged in the top echelon of Australia’s three-year-olds and brought up a first black-type success of 2025-26 for last term’s champion first season sire Ole Kirk (Written Tycoon) with a stirring victory in Saturday’s Poseidon Stakes (Listed, 1100m).
Ahead of Legacy Bound’s resumption following 1200-metre wins in his first two starts at Ballarat and in stakes grade in Adelaide, trainer Robbie Griffiths told ANZ News he had one reservation: how the inexperienced Vinery Stud homebred would adapt to his first try up the Flemington straight.
But Legacy Bound handled the often tricky initiation like a veteran, although he ultimately needed all his reserves of courage to score by 0.02 lengths.
Sent out on the fourth line of betting at $6, and jumping from gate three of eight for Mark Zahra, the hulking Legacy Bound was fast away but took an early sit on the inside just off a comfortable pace.
Just as Legacy Bound took the front-running from Shining Smile (Spirit Of Boom) at the 150m, favourite Tycoon Star (Written Tycoon) and $26 bolter Navy Pilot (I Am Invincible) also grabbed a share of the lead on the outside.
While the disappointing Tycoon Star fell away to run third at $2.30, Legacy Bound had to dig deep to repel the challenge of Navy Pilot, but prevailed on the bob of the head.
After winning Morphettville’s Breeders’ Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) on the gelding at his previous start in April, Zahra had compared him to the colt he’d ridden to victory in the previous year’s runner, Growing Empire (Zoustar), who’s now covering his first book at Yulong Stud.
Legacy Bound will now likely follow a similar path to that taken by Growing Empire 12 months ago, with hopes high from the stable he can do better than that colt’s third in the Coolmore Stud Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) at Flemington on Derby Day.
“I was really cautious today as I said pre-race, he’d never been down the straight, and the key runners had had two runs [this time in] each,” Griffiths told Racing.com.
“Ironically, the two first-up horses ran one-two, but he [Legacy Bound] is a good horse.
“He’s got room to improve and it gives us a lot of excitement now going into the Danehill Stakes in three weeks, and then the Coolmore.
“One thing about him, he’s not the bravest – he likes to follow a mate. He had to have a mate in the pony here today. So when he is in front, he doesn’t exert any energy. He’s sort of too busy having a look around, so I think that’s a real plus for him.
“I’m rapt about today, but I’m looking forward to the Danehill next because now he’s had that straight track experience, it’s going to help him.”
Griffiths said he had opted to concentrate on sprints with Legacy Bound as a campaign towards the Caulfield Guineas (Gr 1, 1600m) would likely have entailed racing on wet tracks in Sydney through a Golden Rose (Gr 1, 1400m) path.
“He hates the wet and he won’t prepare well on it,” he said. “So, trying to prepare him for the Guineas when the tracks are wet in Sydney, you’d have to run in the Run To The Rose, interstate trip, possibly a wet track like a soft seven today, and go into it third-up.
“So, we thought he’s a big horse, he hasn’t fully matured. We’ll keep it simple, run him in the sprints, and we can stretch him in the autumn.”
Zahra was glowing in his praise of Legacy Bound, who was wound in to become an $8 equal-second favourite for the Coolmore.
“He’s got a good will to win,” he said. “He’s a horse you have to ride very smooth because of his wind. It just worked out nicely. We had to quicken up inside the 400 when they sprinted. It was a fight late but he was up for it and it was a good win.
“He’s come on, he’ll improve a lot for this run today. It’s a handy field he beat today and most of them had runs under their belt so for first-up he’s done a good job.”
The fourth – and best – foal of another Vinery homebred in the maiden-winning Sanaya (More Than Ready), Legacy Bound was entered for last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale but was withdrawn when complications arose. Vinery then made him the first horse they’d sent to Cranbourne-based Griffiths.
Legacy Bound’s second dam Astrodame (Flying Spur) won Moonee Valley’s Stocks Stakes (Gr 2, 1600m) alongside six Group placings. And the gelding’s fourth dam was the outstanding Midnight Fever (Luskin Star), winner of the 1987 Blue Diamond, three Group 2s, two Group 3s and a Listed.
Sanaya now has a yearling sister to Legacy Bound, and earlier this month produced a filly by fellow Vinery Stud stallion Exceedance (Exceed And Excel).
Ole Kirk took the debutant sires’ title in a season that brought him four stakes winners from just 32 runners at a clip of 12.5 per cent, which prompted Vinery to make him their top-ranked stallion with a fee rise to $99,000 (inc GST).
Legacy Bound’s Poseidon win gave him seven winners from 20 runners this season, and made him the first second-season sire with a stakes winner for the new term.
The Ciaron Maher-trained Navy Pilot was highly impressive, in his first start since running seventh in Eagle Farm’s JJ Atkins (Gr 1, 1600m) in June.