Storm Leopard emerges as another star for Darley’s Ghaiyyath
Darley sire Ghaiyyath (Dubawi) continued on his unstoppable way when his son Storm Leopard powered to victory in Saturday’s Tulloch Stakes (Gr 2, 2000m) for three-year-olds at Rosehill.
Another prominent runner from the surging My Racehorse syndicate, the Team Hayes trained gelding had been working into form in his five starts before the race after only debuting in late November.
Wins at Geelong and Ballarat were followed by a fast-finishing fifth in Caulfield’s Vobis Guineas (1600m) on March 14, which ensured he came into Saturday’s test with strong support as a $4.20 second favourite.
Storm Leopard’s task became easier when $2.40 favourite Arcora (Justify) went amiss and was pulled up at the 1100-metre mark, but nothing could be taken away from the winner.
Travelling in fourth place for Tommy Berry, he had the job of carting the field up to tearaway leader Shangri La Boy (Pierro) and did so with a great tenacity, claiming his rival at the 200-metre mark and striding away to win untroubled by 1.81 lengths.
Matthew Smith’s $81 bolter Eureka Rebel (Fierce Impact) worked home well for second, almost two lengths to the good of Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott’s $5 shot Shangri La Boy (Pierro) and Ciaron Maher’s $31 hope Decalogue (Extreme Choice), who turned in a strong trial for the Australian Derby (Gr 1, 2400m).
Bookmakers wound Storm Leopard in to $6 for that $2 million feature next Saturday – behind only Godolphin’s $3.50 co-favourites Observer, another son of Ghaiyyath, and Green Spaces (Street Boss).
Storm Leopard’s connections have a decision to make over paying the $44,000 late entry fee for the Derby, however. Co-trainer Ben Hayes said the gelding’s original nomination was withdrawn with a view to instead going to the South Australian Derby (Gr 1, 2500m), but he had since made a compelling case for the Randwick Classic.
Berry joked that he might pay the fee himself if Storm Leopard’s owners and trainers demurred.
“I’m glad we went here, that was very impressive,” Hayes said. “We’re excited and we’re going to have a good discussion about what we do with this horse in the next couple of days. We’ll definitely consider running in the Derby.
“We took him out of the noms unfortunately. We were going to go to Adelaide. But then we changed plans because he started to go so well. It’ll be a good discussion to have. If he pulls up well it’s definitely something that will be considered.”
Berry was full of praise for Storm Leopard, especially due to the mid-race interference as Nash Rawiller pulled up Arcora, who had to be euthanised after suffering a near foreleg injury.
“He just got into a lovely rhythm and then my mind was on Nash to make sure he was alright. Then you’ve got to make sure you focus up again,” Berry said.
“He won with a lot of authority today. He had to chase a horse that was a tearaway leader. I tried to make it as easy as I could late because I’m hoping he’ll back up in the Derby.
“I would’ve loved to have something challenge him halfway down the straight because he felt like he was floating where he was. I had enough looks to make it as soft as I could late just in case he had to back up.
“He’s trained by a bunch of gentlemen that send their horses to Sydney in such great order, so if they decided to go that way it wouldn’t be an issue.
“He [Storm Leopard] is so clean winded, he’s a real stayer. The team have done a great job with him. I only got on for the first time today so thanks to the Hayes boys for the opportunity and [I’m] looking forward to hopefully riding him in the Derby.”
After going through his first season of Australian runners with no black type, Ghaiyyath’s progress via his current three-year-olds has been nothing short of stunning.
Storm Leopard became his fifth Australian stakes victor from 45 runners at 11.11 per cent, alongside two other stakes placegetters, among 15 winners overall. Worldwide he has ten stakes winners from 186 runners, at 5.4 per cent.
Ghaiyyath stood for Darley in Australia for four seasons but did not shuttle last spring, but his success this season – marked by the fact he has two of the three top market fancies for the Derby including dual Group 1 winner Observer – makes it a near certainty he will return this year.
“He’s done a great job so far,” Hayes said of the ten-year-old. “He’s coming out and winning everything.
“We’re very lucky to have a horse like him [Storm Leopard] in our yard, and My Racehorse are great supporters. Exciting times ahead.”
Bred by NSW’s Premier Bloodstock, Storm Leopard was bought for $125,000 at the 2024 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale by Team Hayes’s Lindsay Park, who will have placed great stock in his second dam.
He’s the seventh and best foal of the unraced Brilliance (Street Cry), but his unraced second dam Accessories (Singspiel) deserves blue hen ranking, being the dam of no fewer than five Group winners.
They include three Group 1 victors in subsequent sires Helmet (Exceed And Excel), who won three, and Epaulette (Commands), who won two, as well as current runner Pericles (Street Boss) – winner of February’s Futurity Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m).
Accessories also threw Group 2 and Group 3 winner Pearls (Exceed And Excel), but her stakeswinner most dear to the Hayes’s hearts would likely be Bullbars (Elusive Quality), who won only one G3 but is the sire of Lindsay Park’s stable star Mr Brightside, his outlier star performer.
Brilliance’s colt by St Mark’s Basilica (Siyouni) sold at the Gold Coast in January for $140,000, from Coolmore Stud’s draft to Dynamic Syndications. She now has a colt foal at foot by the same stallion, but missed to Home Affairs (I Am Invincible) in December.