By John Holloway
A wonderful array of equine stars captured headlines worldwide last weekend, with group 1 races here, there and everywhere. But it was perennial superstar Galileo who shone brightest with his European exploits.
The Kentucky Derby was the biggest feature although it was run on a track declared "sloppy" by Churchill Downs officials, and the conditions took the gloss off the race – similar to the tracks during our Sydney autumn carnival.
The progeny of Galileo, owned by the Coolmore conglomerate, are invariably prepared by their trainer Aidan O'Brien. He grabbed the headlines at Newmarket's two-day meeting and back home in Ireland at Leopardstown.
O'Brien completed his third Guineas double in England, with his champion juvenile, Galileo's son Churchill, making a winning start to his three-year-old season in the 2000 Guineas for colts and geldings.
Willing: Abel Tasman carries the China Horse Club colours to victory in the Kentucky Oaks. Credit: AP
Churchill gave O'Brien his eighth success in the race, all with horses carrying the Coolmore silks. The winning sequence began in 1998 with King Of Kings and followed on with Rock Of Gibraltar (2002), Footstepsinthesand (2005), George Washington (2006), Henrythenavigator (2008), Camelot (2012) and Gleneagles (2015).
Last Sunday the three-year-old filly Winter gave the Coolmore, O'Brien and Galileo team a winning quinella in the 1000 Guineas, beating her more fancied stablemate Rhododendron in the mile classic and taking Galileo's group 1 winners to an incredible 64 worldwide.
Amazingly, O'Brien has trained 50 per cent of Galileo's major winners.
At Newmarket at the weekend, the Coolmore trio also took out the group 2 Jockey Club Stakes with Seventh Heaven. That came on an afternoon when Fastnet Rock's stayer Somehow shared in some of the gloss by winning over 2400 metres in group 2 company for Coolmore and O'Brien.
At Leopardstown, Galileo supplied the trifecta in the group 3 Derrinstown Stakes, with Douglas McArthur, Yucaton and Capri the first three home for the Coolmore team. That win took Galileo's stakes-winning tally to a staggering 236.
Able filly
The Kentucky Derby carnival commenced with Australasia playing an important role for the China Horse Club part-owned Abel Tasman, who came from last to win the Kentucky Oaks.
New Zealander Michael Wallace was on hand as general manager of the China Horse Club accompanied by chairman Teo An Khing, who has been responsible for making the club one of the most powerful buying organisations in world racing.
The China Horse Club commenced in 2013 and now has shares in 20 stallions worldwide including at least six in the NSW Hunter Valley.
The CHC is seeking further group 1 glory at Doomben on Saturday with Russian Revolution, an exciting son of Snitzel prepared by Team Snowden, a warm favourite to win the 1200 metre Doomben 10,000. Russian Revolution has already won in excess of $800,000 with his major win being in the group 1 The Galaxy at Rosehill on Golden Slipper Day.
Contented owners
There was a huge Australian involvement in the Hong Kong Champions meeting last Sunday with two of the winners – Contentment and Lucky Bubbles – products of Inglis yearling sales.
Contentment won the Champions Mile for trainer John Size and took his earnings to $5.9 million, a huge return on the $65,000 agent John Foote paid for the colt at the 2012 Inglis Classic Sale in Sydney.
Lucky Bubbles, ridden by Hugh Bowman, won the Champions Sprint and he was a 2013 Inglis Premier Sale buy in Melbourne for $90,000, and is now the winner of $4.7 million.
Tasty Egg Tart
On the home front and there were two marvellous group 1-winning performances at Morphettville with the Chris Waller-trained Egg Tart scoring a huge win in the Australasian Oaks, 2000 metres.
Egg Tart became the third Australian group 1 winner for her sire Sebring, joining Dissident and Criterion, and the Widden-based stallion registered his fourth group 1 success with Lucky Bubbles' Sha Tin win the following day.
Secret Agenda won the Robert Sangster Stakes for Mick Price and Damien Oliver and she was the sixth group 1 winner for Not A Single Doubt.
Redoute's Choice, who, like Not A Single Doubt, stands at Arrowfield Stud, had two group 1 wins in South Africa for trainer Mike De Kock as well as a highly promising New Zealand win by Ardrossan, who is about to link up with Mick Price at Caulfield.
Bold Declaration
* Coolmore shuttle sire Declaration Of War, who stands at Ashford Stud in Kentucky and at the Hunter Valley base, registered his first winner on Monday – in Britain. Declarationoflove won over five furlongs in a most comfortable manner and looks a good value buy at the €28,000 paid by Grant Pritchard-Gordon at the Goffs Orby Sales.
* Frankel's close relation Bullet Train had his first Australian winner at Wangaratta last Monday when the John McArdle-trained two-year-old filly Egyptian Bullet won over 1000 metres. Bullet Train will serve his fifth consecutive season at Bowness Stud in 2017 for $8800.
* Andrew Williams has made another quick impact in the thoroughbred buying business since going solo after a number of years with Arrowfield Stud. He was active at the New Zealand Bloodstock Weanling Sales on Monday, buying the top two lots – a colt by Holy Roman Emperor for $NZ175,000 ($164,400) and a Savabeel colt for $NZ170,000.