Santos relocates to New Zealand’s Highview Stud
Group-producing first-season sire Santos will become the first son of Australian sire sensation I Am Invincible (Invincible Spirit) to stand in New Zealand when he relocates to Highview Stud for the 2023 season.
Highview owner Brent Gillovic officially reached a deal to relocate the formerly Queensland-based Aquis Farm stallion to his New Zealand-based nursery, where he will stand alongside fellow Group-producing stallion Wrote (High Chaparral).
With 11 of his progeny having hit the track, Santos’s headline act is the high-class two-year-old filly Ulanova, who followed up her debut victory with an empathic seven-length triumph in the Taranaki 2YO Classic (Gr 3, 1200m).
The Stephen Marsh-trained filly then capped off her preparation by finishing runner-up in the Sistema Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) last month, but she is likely to be promoted as the winner after first past the post Tokyo Tycoon (Satono Aladdin) subsequently returned a post-race positive result to Meloxicam.
“It’s a very exciting acquisition and he is a magnificent looking individual. Ulanova is a very speedy filly who ran well in the Group 1 and looks like she will be awarded the race,” Gillovic said of Santos.
“He’s had reasonable numbers and hopefully he can build on that. When we started negotiations, the filly [Ulanova] had won the Group 3 at Taranaki and then ran a bottler in the Group 1 and I thought that might go against us securing him, but Aquis were outstanding and straightforward to deal with.
“My son Kurtis and I went over to Australia to have a look at him and the pictures don’t really do him justice, he is as good-looking a horse as you would ever see.”
A winner of the Skyline Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m), Santos covered 253 mares in four years standing in Queensland and Gillovic is confident he will suit the New Zealand mares.
“He is the first son of I Am Invincible to stand in New Zealand and I think he will put a bit of quality into New Zealand mares,” explained Gillovic. “New Zealand are well known to breed horses that go a mile and beyond, but I think he will mix really well with the New Zealand broodmare base, so when the breeders here get to see him they will be very impressed.
“He is a big, strong and masculine horse and I don’t think you can beat a bit of Australian two-year-old form. He won the Skyline which has been won by fantastic stallions in the past including Snitzel and Choisir, so I think he will fit in nicely.
“In New Zealand we have a really strong tried horse market and for horses like him, for those breeders that don’t really want to breed commercially for the sales, he will be a good option at the fee we are going to stand him at and he will be well within reach of most breeders.”
Santos becomes the second stallion in seven days to relocate from Aquis Farm, with Brave Smash (Tosen Phantom) set to join the Yarraman Park Stud roster and Aquis Stallions director of sales, Jonathan Davies believes Santos will be well-received in New Zealand.
“Santos has kicked off his career in fantastic fashion and has a potential Group 1 winner on his hands in the brilliantly fast Ulanova, there is immeasurable upside with a stallion of his looks and credentials,” said Davies.
“We are incredibly excited for the future of Santos and know he is perfectly placed in the New Zealand market at Highview Stud. The Gillovic family flew to Queensland recently to inspect Santos and as anticipated they were blown away by his good looks, strength and athleticism. They are as passionate about Santos and his future success as we are.”
A fee for Santos will be released at a later date.