Starcraft & Snitzel make Group 2 quinella at Flemington

Snitzel and Starcraft began their stud careers together at Arrowfield in 2006 and yesterday they delivered a pair of important stakes results on a major carnival card at Flemington.

Pictured: Hallowell Belle (outside, gold & purple silks) holds out a gallant King’s Rose in Saturday’s VRC Gilgai S. G2. (PHOTO: Sportpix)

Starcraft’s 4YO daughter Hallowell Belle (ex Bella Inez by Beautiful Crown) made a cracking season debut in the $220,000 VRC Gilgai S. 1200m G2, taking the lead at the 200-metre mark and fighting hard to win in the smart time of 1:08.83. King’s Rose, the high-class 5YO daughter of Redoute’s Choice , was also having her first start for the season and put up a fine effort to finish second, three-quarters of a length away, with Spirit of Boom third and Galah (also by Redoute’s Choice) running home well for fourth.

Hallowell Belle was bred by Michael Christian’s Saconi Thoroughbreds, was purchased for $170,000 by Star Thoroughbreds at the 2010 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale and is trained by Gai Waterhouse for Craig Thompson & David Walpole. She is one of Starcraft’s 12 stakeswinners, and like G1 Star Witness, G3 Do You Think and SW Ain’tnofallenstar, is from a Danzig-line mare.

Pronto Pronto, a 3YO colt by Snitzel from the Darshaan mare Teresa, realised the potential he had shown as a Group-placed juvenile winner, with a determined, all-the-way victory in the $120,000 VRC Poseidon S. 1410m LR.

His front-running tactics were not part of trainer Jason Warren‘s pre-race plan but the colt’s speed out of the gates gave jockey Ben Melham no option but to let him run. Pronto Pronto came back under his rider by mid-race, and found plenty when challenged and briefly headed by Limes in the straight, to win by a half-length with Union Gap third.

A $160,000 purchase from the Rich Hill Stud draft at the 2011 New Zealand Premier Sale, Pronto Pronto is raced by Steve Benson, Anthony Caldrone, Colin Clements, Matt Cook, Nadia Foran, Matt Hanson, Anthony Roberts, Jeff Sutcliffe, Yasmin Warren, Scott Warren & Scott Williams. He is the tenth stakeswinner for his sensational young sire, and the second of his stakes-winning progeny bred by Carl Holt, who has been a strong supporter of Snitzel and is also responsible for Zelsnitz (2010 MRC Twilight Glow S. LR).