Duke’s privately sold Fast Witness to make step up to stakes grade in McKenzie
Lightly raced Chester Warrior will also step out in Moonee Valley Listed feature race
When trainers Ciaron Maher and David Eustace inspected Sean Duke’s yearlings in a paddock in late 2020, they were taken by a Star Witness (Starcraft) colt out of Fastnet Rock (Danehill) mare Fast Shanti, so they made an offer which the Ballarat breeder accepted.
Syndicated by Maher and Eustace among stable clients, the now–gelded three-year-old Fast Witness, a last-start maiden winner at Cranbourne, lines up in tomorrow’s McKenzie Stakes (Listed, 1200m) at Moonee Valley.
Since Fast Witness was sold privately, the breeder has also parted with his dam Fast Shanti, a mare he bought in 2018 for $54,000, after Ealing Park’s Rebecca Lurati also made an offer to buy the broodmare having taken a shine to her while foaling her down.
“I was going to put him through a yearling sale, but Ciaron, Will (Bourne) and David came out to my farm, because they’re just next door to me, and they cast their eyes over the yearlings that I had before I sent them to be prepped,” Duke said yesterday.
“There’s Fast Witness and another horse, Royal Invader, who took their fancy and she’s not a bad little horse, either.”
As the name suggests, the Invader (Snitzel) filly ran third to the promising Hell Hound (Hellbent) at Sandown in April, in her only race appearance.
But back to the McKenzie Stakes and Fast Witness, a $14 chance who will wear blinkers on in the Listed race in which Foujita San (Maurice) is the $2.70 favourite, ahead of the unbeaten Crosswinds (Written Tycoon) ($5.50) and Let’srollthedice (Dundeel) ($6).
“When he won his last start, he was a bit green, but with the blinkers on we’ll see how he goes,” said Duke, who retained a share in the three-year-old.
“Ciaron and David are very happy with the horse, which is why they’re presenting him in a race like that. There were a few other options they could have gone to, which weren’t as strong, but they decided to have a throw at the stumps.”
As for his decision to sell Fast Shanti to Ealing Park, Duke said: “I am happy to sell a horse like her and I hope that they do well out of her. Everyone needs a lick of the ice cream, don’t they?”
Another horse deemed a double figure chance by bookmakers contesting the McKenzie Stakes is Chester Warrior (Zululand), a Greville Stud-bred $100,000 Magic Millions Tasmanian Yearling Sale graduate who is from the first crop of Graeme and Bart McCulloch’s resident sire Zululand (Fastnet Rock).
Trained by the in-form Lindsay Park stable of Ben and JD Hayes, Chester Warrior started his career with a third behind Thron Bone (Thronum) and River Ribble (Ribchester) at Caulfield in late July, before scoring by four lengths in a Swan Hill 1200-metre maiden on August 7.
“First-up in town was a fair ask up against horses with race fitness. He was beaten, but he took a fair bit of improvement out of that run, in fitness and experience, and I still think he’s got a bit to learn about racing. He’s making a few mistakes and is a bit green,” Bart McCulloch said.
“But then he went to Swan Hill and he did it pretty easily. We’ve been talking to the team at Lindsay Park and they’re pretty impressed with him and pretty happy with what he’s doing.
“They think he’ll continue to improve as he gets over a bit more ground and awakens and alerts to what he’s meant to be doing.
“Obviously, it’s a fair step up on Saturday, but you’d think, jumping from a good barrier [2], he’s going to give himself a chance.”
Chester Warrior, a half-brother to Tasmanian stakes winner Turk Warrior (Outreach), being out of Ehor (Val Royal), was one of six yearlings to make $100,000 or more at the Apple Isle’s 2021 sale.
“He’s probably taken a bit longer than what he looked like as a yearling, he looked like a really early type, but Zululand’s progeny have been later two-year-olds and look like they’ll be better at three [-years-old] over a mile,” McCulloch said.
“The mare Ehor is doing a good job. She leaves a great type and there wasn’t too much wrong with him and he’s obviously a half-brother to Turk Warrior, who was unbeaten at the time he was sold.”
Ehor has a yearling filly by another Grenville Stud resident sire in Stratosphere (Snitzel), whose first crop two-year-olds will be on the racecourse this season.
“She’s one of our best fillies at home, a half-brother to Chester Warrior, so that’s exciting,” he said.