Begg’s mares bidding for precious black type in the Bletchingly

Grahame Begg will saddle up a pair of mares both determined to seize their final chance this season of adding some invaluable black type to their respective pages in Saturday’s Bletchingly Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) at Caulfield.

While Begg is quick to concede that the market is on the money in pricing his Group 2-winning mare Miraval Rose (Grunt) at considerably shorter odds than her stablemate Samangu (Written By), you get the distinct impression that the trainer’s sentimental side would dearly love to claim the first Australian stakes victory of the current campaign for a stallion who helped put his name back up in lights.

After a spell in the relative wilderness for Begg, Written By’s (Written Tycoon) dominant victory in the 2018 Blue Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) reminded the racing world of his conditioner’s training talents and delivered a first Group 1 success for the humble horseman following his relocation from Sydney to Melbourne.

Nicknamed “Nugget”, the stocky juvenile – who was bred by Begg’s Hall of Fame father Neville out of his prolific producer Yau Chin (Tobougg) – secured his future at stud with a topline triumph which he is yet to replicate in the stallion barn, although it is still relatively early days for the Widden resident.

Written By, whose famous father Written Tycoon (Iglesia) was also prepared by Begg for most of his career, has six stakes winners on his CV and has sired a creditable 70 winners so far this campaign, most recently when promising juvenile I’m Relevant carried the black and white Begg family colours to victory at Wyong on Wednesday.

Over the past 12 months, however, stakes success has eluded Written By in his native land, although his emerging stayer Bona Sforza did claim the NZB Insurance Stakes (Listed, 1600m) across the Tasman. But Begg remains hopeful that Samangu can correct that anomaly when the five-year-old mare bids to break a 16-month drought and claim a sixth career win in Saturday’s $200,000 feature.

“Of course I’d love to give him [Written By] a lovely little kick-along by winning the last stakes race of the season,” said Begg, who purchased Samangu for $200,000 in partnership with his racing manager Rohan Hughes.

“We’ve only got two by him in the barn, the other is an unraced two-year-old filly and although Written By was very precocious, I tend to find that his stock generally takes a little bit more time to come to hand. He’s going along well enough, but as a stallion obviously producing stakes winners is the name of the game so hopefully Samangu can deliver the goods for him and for us on Saturday.

“There’s no doubt the market is right in favouring Miraval Rose in the Bletchingly, because she was very good first-up [in the Sir John Monash Stakes] and brings much better form lines. But I do think Samangu is well over the odds [she opened at $26] and you can put a line through her run in the Santa Ana Lane [Sprint Series Final] at Flemington, which was a farcically run race.

“She was still only beaten two lengths that day, but having said that she does need to improve because it’s a step up in grade on Saturday. But I think she’s quite capable of turning her form around, and we’ve been particularly pleased with her work at home leading into this race. She’s drawn to get a good run just off the speed [from barrier four], so I think she’s ready to run a cheeky race.  

“She’s from a lovely family but we’ve had to take our time with her, because she’s had a few issues in the past. She hasn’t needed any surgery but she did have some developmental issues as a younger horse, which meant she needed some time off to get things right. But she’s in great order now and it would be great to get some black type for her connections. It’s obviously the last throw of the dice on Saturday, so we’d love to end what has been another good season for the stable on a high note.”

Samangu’s dam Estelle (Fastnet Rock) never made it to the racetrack, but the fact that she is a full-sister to the multiple stakes winner Driefontein – who captured the 2014 Robert Sangster Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) for Gai Waterhouse before retiring to stud in Japan – persuaded Taghadoe Stud’s Peter Burke to pay $30,000 for the mare through the 2021 Inglis March Online Sale.

The intention had been to offer Estelle at last year’s Inglis Australian Broodmare Sale, but she was withdrawn and subsequently made her way to Yarraman Park, where she was served by Hellbent, after the Mitchell brothers purchased her privately.

She has a colt by Newgate’s Cosmic Force (Deep Field) on the ground and, should Samangu become the mare’s first stakes winner on Saturday, it would not only elevate her profile but also lead to a sharp increase in the potential value of said colt when he is presented at the sales next year.

Given the success he has enjoyed with Samangu, no doubt Begg will take a keen interest in her half-brother at the 2027 yearling sales but in the more immediate future, he is looking forward to unleashing some of his stable stars during the upcoming Spring Racing Carnival.

They include last-start Tatt’s Tiara (Gr 1, 1400m) heroine Splash Back (Le Havre), who is enjoying a well-earned winter rest in sunny Queensland; and Zakouma (Crowded House), who earned a shot at Australia’s most revered race courtesy of his dashing display in the Andrew Ramsden Stakes (Listed, 2800m).

For all his success, Begg is yet to saddle up a runner in the Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m) after suffering the bitter disappointment of seeing Lunar Flare (Fiorente) – who birthed a colt by the late So You Think (High Chaparral) last year – withdrawn in both 2022 and 2023 having earned her place in the great race.

Begg is therefore hopeful it is a case of third time lucky as he prepares his progressive stayer – who is rated a $21 chance in the early markets – for a tilt at the $10 million showpiece, not least as even the final horse home receives $100,000 this year.

“It’s been very exciting to get some of our good horses back into the stables as it gives all the staff an extra reason to get out of bed in the morning,” Begg told ANZ News.  

“Zakouma’s back in work so we’ll probably look to kick him off in the Heatherlie Stakes at the end of August. We’ll work out what we do with him from there, but the beauty of having the ticket into the Cup is that we don’t necessarily have to stick to a rigid plan with him as there are a few different paths we could go down.

“Willie Pike is friendly with the owner [breeder Trevor Delroy] and he’s obviously won on the horse before, so I believe the ride is his if he wants it. I don’t think that’s all been confirmed just yet but I’d be surprised if he didn’t want to ride the horse in the Cup because we think he’s got a good chance in it.”