Classy West Of Swindon bidding for Pago Pago glory
Prominent owner Rupert Legh will have a strong hand on Saturday at Rosehill and his contingent is headlined by his progressive colt West Of Swindon (Wootton Bassett) who takes his chance in the Pago Pago Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m), while his talented mare Coeur Volante (Proisir) shoots for Group 1 glory in the Coolmore Classic (Gr 1, 1500m).
Currently sitting as the $2.90 favourite for Saturday’s contest, West Of Swindon is yet to register a maiden victory, but boasts two eye-catching runner-up performances from as many starts, including flashing home to finish second on debut behind North England (Farnan) in the Golden Gift (1100m).
The Michael, John and Wayne Hawkes-trained juvenile then went on to finish second behind talented Godolphin colt Beiwacht (Bivouac) in the Silver Slipper (Gr 2, 1100m), with current Slipper joint-favourite Wodeton (Wootton Bassett) behind in third.
A win in the Pago Pago would be invaluable for West Of Swindon, who is co-owned and sports the maroon colours of Qatar Racing, and could affirm the ownership group’s ambition that he could one day retire to the stallion barn.
Previous of the Pago Pago have found homes at stud, with the likes of Shinzo (Snitzel) (2023), Cosmic Force (Deep Field) (2019) and Written By (Written Tycoon) (2018) having all triumphed in the Group 3, but further back, the honor roll includes the likes of All Too Hard (Casino Prince), Stratum (Redoute’s Choice) and Rory’s Jester (Crown Jester).
Shinzo, Stratum and Rory’s Jester are three of the four winners of the Pago Pago who then went on to taste Golden Slipper glory.
Legh told ANZ Bloodstock News that he was looking forward to Saturday’s race and was hoping West Of Swindon can stamp his authority on the Group 3.
“He is a special, special horse. Not just in his makeup, but has the personality you need, particularly with colts. He’s got a very placid nature which is perfect for a stallion, nothing bothers him, he is a magnificent type of specimen and he’s got the ability to go with it,” he said.
“Obviously they’ve got big plans for him at stud. He has already proven that he is capable of mixing it with the best, and whilst he hasn’t won, he’s had two very impressive seconds off what I would call unlucky runs.”
Despite being well found in the market for the Golden Slipper, the team are unsure West Of Swindon will head to the race, believing based on type and breeding that he would be better suited over further, and believe a race like the Sires Produce Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m) at Randwick on April 5 would be the ideal target.
“We just feel, particularly with his breeding, that he’s going to be more of a 1400-metre to 1600-metre horse. That doesn’t mean to say we wouldn’t run him in a Golden Slipper. I mean, he’s running in the Pago Pago this weekend. If he comes out and he blouses them we’ve got to give serious thought to running him in the Slipper, it’s a very open Slipper this year, and you’ve got to take your chances.
“They are only two-year-olds once and if they can win a Golden Slipper, then obviously their stud value will skyrocket. But if we don’t think he’s going to be a 1200-metre horse then obviously we’ll stick to our original plans and head towards the Sires’ Produce.”
Arguably the sire of the moment here in Australia, Legh said that he had a big opinion of Wootton Bassett (Iffraaj) early in his career, and so when John Hawkes – who bought the youngster for $350,000 from the Widden Stud draft at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale – offered him a share in an impressive colt by that stallion, he jumped at the opportunity.
“I buy a lot of horses with John and if he thinks there’s something that suits what I like, he’ll give me a call and I normally do take a shareholding in the horse.
“I think we were the first ones to buy a Wootton Bassett and actually race it in Australia. We bought a yearling at Newmarket and we identified [Wootton Bassett] as a potential stallion very early days when he was first bought by Coolmore.
“The horse that we bought, his name is Altivo – who came out and won his first three starts convincingly and then we had a bit of an injury issue, but he’s back on track now and he’s back in work. He was one of the first Wootton Bassett’s to race in Australia so we’ve always had a very big opinion of him, hence we bought quite a few of them.”
If West Of Swindon were to land the Slipper, it would be Legh’s first win in the race.
“It is a race that has escaped me, not deliberately. I’ve just never been a big purchaser of horses that are going to run early in those Blue Diamonds and Golden Slippers,” Legh said.
“Most of my horses are normally run as late two or early three-year-olds. I seem to be buying a lot more of these earlier types, which I’ve particularly done this year as well. There are some nice two-year-olds coming, but I think it might just be a little bit too early for them.
“Headwater came fourth in the Slipper – he had a very unlucky run, I mean I’m sure every other owner would probably have an unlucky story, but with luck, I’d say he would have featured in the finish in that race.
“You want to win all of those Group 1s. That’s why I’ve been a bit more active, particularly last year and this year and buying those earlier two-year-olds, because having been in the industry more than 40 years, it probably wasn’t on my agenda. But it is one of the races you want to win, so you’ve obviously going to go and buy the right types to win those types of races.
“We’ve been buying horses with good trainers like Gai Waterhouse, John Hawkes, Mick Price, Mike Moroney and they’re all very good trainers of sprinters, in particular, the early two-year-olds. So hopefully in the next year or two we might feature and be part of one of the winners.”
Saturday also has the potential for a fairytale result for Legh, with his mare Coeur Volante set to tackle the Coolmore Classic.
The four-year-old mare was a Group 2 winner in the spring of her three-year-old campaign, and finished fourth behind three subsequent elite-level winners in Joliestar (Zoustar), Kimochi (Brave Smash) and Skybird (Exosphere) in the Thousand Guineas (Gr 1, 1600m).
After a six month spell, she travelled north for a fruitless Queensland winter campaign, and was spelled for another six months, making a racetrack return with a midfield finish in the Geoffrey Bellmaine Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) on February 1.
She then came out in the Mannerism Stakes (Gr 3, 1400m), where she made a mess of her rivals, securing a four–length romp ahead of So Glamourous (So You Think) and Quintessa (Shamus Award).
“It’s a quality race. I mean better than the quality, it’s the top of the pops for that one, but we wouldn’t put her in a race we didn’t think she could be very competitive in. We’ve always had a very big opinion of her, I know Mike Moroney had a big opinion of her, but she just needed a bit of time in the paddock to develop in strength before we put her back to the races.
“That’s why we gave her a big six months off because we knew exactly what sort of motor she had. And that spell has vindicated the decision to give her that spell because her last win was pretty convincing, and I think she deserves a crack at the high end.”
A win on Saturday would mean a lot to Legh, a close friend of the late Michael Moroney for over 25 years.
“It would be a pretty emotional day because she has been one of his favorites, particularly over the last couple of years. It’s unfortunate that he won’t be there, he was actually there to watch her win the Mannerism at Caulfield, and that was the last time he was at the races.
“The reason I put Kerrin McEvoy on is that the relationship between Mark and Kerrin goes back to winning the Melbourne Cup. So we thought it might have been an omen to put Kerrin on this horse on Saturday.
“So it would be a fitting result, particularly in lieu of the fact that he had his memorial service [on Tuesday] and he’s got his actual funeral in New Zealand on Monday. So what a great way to send Mike out. It would be pretty special for Mike, Karen, Anthony and the stable, and all the other owners will be a fitting result.”