Widden Secure an Interest in Brilliant 2YO El Divino
An undefeated, Timeform Top 10 Highest Rated 2yo by Australia’s most commercial stallion and a half brother to the world’s best racehorse!
EL DIVINO is a superbly bred, striking young prospect and Widden Stud are thrilled to announce they’ve purchased an interest in the exciting 2yo colt.
Off two impressive trials victories, El Divino exploded onto the racing scene with an effortless five length debut win in sharp time prompting jockey James McDonald to state “He’s the real deal this colt with a great attitude. It’s like being in a Rolls Royce!”
His next outing saw him produce a courageous, determined victory in the Group III Widden Kindergarten Stakes on Day 1 of the Championships, leaving trainer Gai Waterhouse full of praise, “From his only two starts he’s showed a unique blend of raw brilliance & determination. This is a dream colt!”
The eye-catching performances led to respected form analyst Deane Lester to declare, “my performance indicator figures suggest that El Divino would have been a top 4 contender in the Golden Slipper. I have a very high opinion of this colt.”
Bred & raced by successful owner/breeder John Camilleri of Fairway Thoroughbreds, expectations were naturally high of the Snitzel colt given the exploits of his older half sister.
“We knew how special Winx was so it was always going to be difficult parting with this colt. He is stunning type with great presence and a good attitude and he has already developed physically into a very powerful racehorse. I’m so proud to have bred him.
“His future is all before him and to have Widden join us in recognising his potential as a racehorse & future Stallion is particularly pleasing. Widden have a remarkable record of launching Stallions and I did note that two of this decade’s most successful sires, Sebring & Northern Meteor, were both trained by Gai who went on to become champion young sires at Widden.”
Fairway Thoroughbreds will retain a majority interest in El Divino and as Camilleri explains, the future is one of great upside, “Winx has shown us that this is a family that can improve rapidly at three so what El Divino has done already is incredibly exciting. I know Gai feels we only saw a brief glimpse in the autumn of what this horse is capable of.”
It is this belief that saw the Waterhouse stable go to a sale-topping $2.3million to secure the full brother to El Divino at the recent Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale.
A spring program will be soon mapped out for El Divino with races like the Group 1 Golden Rose and Coolmore Stud Stakes appealing as potential targets.