A Blue Diamond Miracle on a milestone day
Ninety minutes after champion sire Redoute’s Choice reached his century of stakeswinners, his very first stakeswinner Not A Single Doubt made history when his 2YO daughter Miracles of Life brilliantly won the $1 million MRC Blue Diamond S. 1200m G1.
Pictured: Miracles of Life makes several fairytales come true in today’s $1 million Blue Diamond S. G1 at Caulfield. (PHOTO: Sportpix)
It was a fairytale come true for the filly’s trainer Daniel Clarken and jockey Lauren Stojakovic who displayed fine professionalism to withstand the pre-race pressures and achieve their first Group 1 successes.
It was a fairytale re-lived for Miracles of Life’s owner-breeder Muzaffar Yaseen and his bloodstock manager Iris O’Farrell who first visited the Blue Diamond winner’s circle 14 years ago, when Redoute’s Choice sensationally won the 1999 race at his second start.
It was Arrowfield’s long-held faith in Not A Single Doubt as a Group 1 sire prospect justified in the most emphatic fashion, in one of Australia’s major juvenile contests. He had previously sired the domestic Singapore Group 1 winner Always Certain, but Miracles of Life is the first of his 12 stakeswinners to succeed in a race with full international Group 1 status.
Not A Single Doubt is among six sons of Redoute’s Choice that have sired Group 1 winners, the others being, Snitzel, Stratum, Bradbury’s Luck, Duelled & Fast ‘N’ Famous.
He is also the fourth of Arrowfield’s resident stallions to sire a Blue Diamond winner in the past nine years, after Redoute’s Choice (Undoubtedly, 2005; Nadeem, 2006); Starcraft (Star Witness, 2010); and the retired Flying Spur (Sleek Chassis, 2007). Former Arrowfield sire Hussonet, now based at Cornerstone Stud, sired the 2008 winner Reaan (with first season sire All American second).
The Blue Diamond result was the cause of jubilant celebration at Arrowfield’s sister farm, Bellerive Stud where Miracles of Life, described in stud records as “”a very nice first foal with good bone and cover””, was born on 2 September 2010.
Bellerive’s Operations Manager Jo Monehan remembers, “”She was a very correct filly, always small, but full of fun, with lots of get-up-and-go. She was always the first to do everything – just as she was at Caulfield today!””
Her dam Dazzling Gazelle (by More Than Ready) remains at Bellerive where she is due to foal again to Not A Single Doubt this coming spring.
Miracles of Life settled perfectly just off the speed after jumping from barrier one, cornered sweetly and powered to a commanding lead which she maintained to the line, winning by 1.5 lengths from Fast’n’Rocking with a half-head back to Godiva Rock (by Stratum), in a time of 1.09.76.
Not A Single Doubt is the sire of 12 stakeswinners, six of them successful as juveniles, including Villa Verde, an early favourite for Australia’s other major 2YO race, the ATC Golden Slipper G1.
Miracles of Life has now earned $730,100 and is unbeaten in four starts. Her $615,000 Blue Diamond prizemoney moves Not A Single Doubt into second position of the Australian 2YO Sires’ list with season earnings of just over $1 million.
There are 13 Not A Single Doubt yearlings on offer at next month’s Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale, including a colt in the Arrowfield draft, and two fillies in the Bellerive draft – here .
