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Tulloch Lodge throw trio of Slipper hopefuls into Randwick’s Pierro Plate
By Trevor Marshallsea
@ANZ_News
Celebrated two-year-old trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott have a three-horse squadron taking their next steps towards the Golden Slipper (Gr 1, 1200m) in another Randwick two-year-old event dominated by fillies on Saturday.
The Pierro Plate (1100m) somehow in this day and age manages to not have black type status but is invariably a strong guide to Sydney’s juvenile scene.
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This year’s edition is no exception and - as with the race a week earlier named after Pierro’s sire, the Lonhro Plate (Listed, 1000m) - the females by far dominate the males numbers-wise.
The Lonhro Plate drew four males and six fillies, with two of the latter filling the quinella.
Males are further into the minority in Saturday’s Pierro, with only three of them taking on nine fillies. It’s a situation mirrored in the Waterhouse-Bott stable, whose leading fillies include Gimcrack Stakes (Gr 3, 1000m) victor Shiki (Too Darn Hot) and the winner of that Lonhro Plate, Agrarian Girl (Tassort).
“We’ve probably got more depth to the fillies than we do with the colts, in terms of the horses who are on a potential Slipper campaign,” Bott told ANZ News. “Sometimes that’s just the way it falls.”
Tulloch Lodge has a strong chance of further juvenile success with their three fillies in the Pierro.
They’ll saddle third-starter Miss Chanel (Tagaloa), who’s rated a $3 favourite to give her Yulong sire his second winner from his latest racing crop, along with second starters Caloocan Beauty (Justify) at $13 and Better By Far (Farnan) at $14.
Bookmakers have another filly as $4.60 second-elect in Chris Waller’s Godolphin runner Sequinned (Pinatubo), who had no luck in a debut seventh and is seeking to become her sire’s first Australian winner amongst nine runners.
The royal blue will also be carried by Michael Freedman’s Outspan (Bivouac), the $5.50 shot carrying the top impost under the set weights and penalties scale as he seeks to continue his father’s strong run of results following a second-start Rosehill win.
Miss Chanel, a $270,000 Magic Millions Gold Coast buy from breeders Yulong for Waterhouse-Bott, and who’s the third foal of the stakes-placed Talented (Snitzel), debuted with a third in the race won by Outspan at Rosehill on January 17 after travelling on the pace.
She then enjoyed the one-one trail before just failing to catch leader Chilly Girl (Trapeze Artist) by 0.32 lengths in the fillies’ Widden Stakes (Gr 3, 1100m), with the third horse 2.42 lengths further back.
“That was a really good effort,” Bott said. “She got a lovely run in transit, and things went her way no doubt, but she and the other one still skipped away from the rest, so it was a strong performance from both horses.
“Our girl maybe bumped into a better one on the day, but she showed nice improvement off her debut performance, and she seems to have improved again off the run.
“She’s thriving in her work at present, she’s still well placed under the conditions, and this looks to be a nice stepping stone for her
“She’s thriving in her work at present, she’s still well placed under the conditions, and this looks to be a nice stepping stone for her.”
The Yulong-bred Miss Chanel will have an obstacle to overcome, having drawn gate nine for Regan Bayliss.
“It’s a bit of a sticky gate, but she’s got a good amount of tactical speed, and we’ve also seen her be versatile in her racing pattern to date, so she’s got a few options that she can use to get herself out of trouble if needs be,” Bott said.
“Of our three, she’s coming through the strongest formlines, most certainly.”
Blue Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Tagaloa (Lord Kanaloa), who covered 46 mares at $22,000 (inc GST) at Yulong last spring according to latest studbook figures, made a fair start last season with five winners from 25 runners including one stakes victor in Spicy Lu, and finished ninth on the Australian first season sires' table.
He now has two stakes winners among nine stakes horses, from 68 runners.
“We’ve got a couple by the stallion,” Bott said. “She’s one we picked out of the Magic Millions, out of a Snitzel mare who was well performed early.
“Physically, this filly looked like she’d always be a mature type of filly, so it’s no surprise to see her up and going at this early stage. She had strength, maturity and athleticism to go with it, so we could see her being a precocious sort of horse.”
Caloocan Beauty is a rare specimen. A daughter of Justify (Scat Daddy) - sire of Waterhouse-Bott’s former star juvenile Storm Boy - she was bred and foaled in the US and imported to Australia aged 11 months. She was then bought for $475,000 by Waterhouse-Bott and associates at Inglis Easter from Sledmere Stud’s draft.
Perhaps more anticipated as a three-year-old, she’s the third foal of Sahara Breeze (More Than Ready), who won a 1300-metre maiden in Canada and is a half-sister to Gayego (Gilded Time), a five-time stakes winner including at the elite-level in Oak Tree’s Ancient Title Stakes (Gr 1, 6f).
After her first barrier trial in December, Caloocan Beauty debuted with a fourth in a Randwick two-year-old handicap over 1000 metres on January 24, racing off the rump of the leader before fading in the straight to finish fourth, beaten 5.66 lengths. Tim Clark retains the ride, from barrier two.
“She ran an honest race first time out and will have the benefit of that experience,” Bott said.
“She was sort of dictated to at her first start. Hopefully with that experience now she can be that little bit sharper and put herself in a better position where she might be able to dictate things.
“She’s had some good time between races now and has had plenty of time to show us improvement at home. She looks to have done well, and the inside gate will help of course.
“She’s probably that one preparation less than maybe the other fillies have had, but she’s a nice style of filly.
“She’s got a good bit of physical improvement to come. She's going to be better still next campaign but she’s showing us enough at this early point.”
The well-named Better By Far - by Farnan (Not A Single Doubt) out of Brisbane Listed winner Better Reflection (Better Than Ready) - was a $180,000 buy for Waterhouse-Bott and Kestrel Thoroughbreds at Magic Millions Gold Coast.
After a 2.68-length Randwick trial win she debuted as a $1.85 favourite in a 900-metre Scone two-year-old handicap, but after travelling four-wide was nosed out on the bob of the head by Rodney Northam’s gelding Savage Look (Wild Ruler), who subsequently ran third as the first male home in the Lonhro.
“Scone was a good effort,” Bott said of the daughter of Farnan, who’s running a narrow second on the Australian second season sires’ table, to Ghaiyyath (Dubawi).
“She was caught wide but stuck on well, and there was plenty of merit to her performance. She’s up in grade but she’s an improver, and the form out of that race has stood up already.
“She looks a natural two-year-old, so there’s plenty of positives to make for her as well. She’s a neater style of filly, but very forward and looks like she’ll appreciate this early racing.”
Though Shiki has two wins from four starts and Agrarian Girl is currently Tulloch Lodge’s shortest-priced Golden Slipper contender, at $26, Bott said there was no clear shortlist of the stable’s top seeds for that feature as yet.
“It’s a bit early. They’ve all kicked off their campaign and they’ve all put in a positive performance that’s indicated they deserve their chance,” he said.
“They’ve all gone their different paths to get the best chance to qualify. Over the next two or three weeks, we’ll see whichever one of those is really going to go ahead and put their hand up. That could be any which one.”
