Widden Sires Run Hot Through Spring
The thrill of spring racing and the arrival of so many gorgeous new foals during our breeding season make this the most exciting time of the year for thoroughbred breeders and Widden Stud’s team of top class stallions have been making headlines for all the right reasons.
Our champion sire STRATUM is again running hot and recently notched up his 50th winner for the season to sit comfortably in the top three leading sires of winners in Australia. His star progeny are headed by glamour mare Streama, winner of the Group II MRC Tristarc Stakes and emerging Western Australia sprinter, Texan, a multiple stakes-winner of more than $300,000 in prizemoney.
The last month has been particularly exciting for everyone at Widden with the running of the first juvenile races and all three of our freshman sires Sebring, Northern Meteor and ill-fated War Pass (USA) have already posted winners.
SEBRING has kicked off in great fashion with impressive metropolitan winners Bring a Ring for Tony McEvoy in Adelaide and Criterion for David Payne in Sydney. Criterion took the eye of many good judges in the yard and despite racing greenly had too much ability for last start city winner Sweet Idea. He will go to the paddock now and appeals as a horse to target towards the rich two year-old races in the autumn.
NORTHERN METEOR has enjoyed a host of trial winners for the new season and his first race winner came in the shape of the Matt Williams trained Ticket to Toorak. He came from last on turn to win on debut at Ballarat and will step out next in the $200,000 Magic Millions Clockwise Classic at the same venue on November 25.
WAR PASS has also made his presence felt through the Gooree Stud homebred Never Can Tell, who ran out an easy debut winner at Rosehill last month for Anthony Cummings. The feedback we have received from trainers would suggest War Pass may be a stallion to consider at the yearling sales next year considering it will be sadly, his final crop of yearlings.
The first crop foals by our dual Group I winner STAR WITNESS have the Hunter Valley buzzing and he will be kept busy right to the end of this season covering some 150 mares. Already you can see the good bone, strength through hindquarter and overall quality you like to see and on appearance the Star Witness foals look like they will relish the tough Australian conditions.
Sons of Redoute’s Choice are having a great run over the last few seasons highlighted by the likes of Stratum, Snitzel and Not A Single Doubt and it is with this in mind we feel the outstanding juvenile TICKETS has a big future ahead of him. A son of the ‘Blue Hen’ Staging, Tickets was Australia’s most popular new stallion last season on numbers covered and this season will again cover a strong book of over 100 mares off the back of quality foals.
First crop yearlings by NICCONI will hit the major sales next year beginning with Magic Millions and, like Star Witness, one could not be more impressed with how well he has stamped his stock. Both good looking, genuine Group I sprinters – they fit the mould as to what becomes a Champion Sire in Australia.
We consider him ‘The Best Value Stallion in Australia’ and so do many others which is why SNIPPETSONwill cover a full book of mares this year as more and more breeders recognise what great value he is in the market place.
