Prost turns it on in Arrowfield Canonbury

Snitzel’s 54th 2YO stakeswinner Prost obviously got the memo about the sponsor of his first two races!

The bay colt was a hard-fought 3rd in last September’s Arrowfield Breeders’ Plate G3 and resumed at Rosehill on Saturday with a resolute victory – in class record time of 1:03.25 – in the $250,000 Arrowfield Canonbury S. 1100m G3. 

Prost joins a list of 141 stakeswinners (9.3% of all runners) by Arrowfield’s super-sire. At the halfway mark of 2023/24, Snitzel has already compiled 7 stakeswinners and clicked over $10 million prizemoney in Australia for the 8th consecutive season.

Another 2YO winner for the @GaiWaterhouse1-Bott stable! Prost gets the job done in the Canonbury with @clarkyhk in the saddle. pic.twitter.com/yE8039HvZU

— SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) February 3, 2024

Jockey Tim Clark reviewed Prost’s performance: “He began well from the inside and when the other horse was racing keenly outside me, I let him go and it gave him a chance to have something to chase. He was probably a sitting shot the last 100 metres, but to his credit he pulled out plenty and held his rivals at bay.”

Prost’s trainers Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott and owners including Tony Fung Investments & Kia Ora Stud elected to give the colt a good break after the Breeders’ Plate and miss the Magic Millions 2YO Classic. That decision has already been vindicated and bigger prizes now beckon as Bott confirmed that “all roads will be leading towards the Golden Slipper.”

The stable needs no advice about preparing either Golden Slipper contenders or the progeny of Snitzel for big races, with 7 Slipper trophies and 14 Snitzel stakeswinners (including Group 1 winners Sweet Idea, In The Congo & Wandjina) on the board.

Bred by Gerry Harvey and sold by Baramul Stud at Magic Millions for $650,000, Prost (ex Samarmeteors by Northern Meteor) has particularly solid Golden Slipper credentials as a three-quarter brother of last year’s winner Shinzo & 2019 Magic Millions 2YO winner Exhilarates, both out of Blue Diamond G1 winner and Golden Slipper placegetter Samaready.

Snitzel also had a say in New Zealand’s feature 2YO race on Saturday. His Arrowfield graduate daughter Love Poem was an eye-catching debut second in the Taranaki 2YO Classic 1200m G3, only a half-length from the unbeaten Group 2 winner Captured By Love (one of 27 SW out of Snitzel mares), with almost 6 lengths back to the third horse. 

Love Poem (ex Madrigals, a full sister of Champion 2YO & leading sire Pierro) was a $280,000 Bruce Perry purchase for JML Bloodstock from Arrowfield’s Inglis Easter draft.  Madrigals, also dam of current smart 3YO Estriella (2nd, Silver Shadow S. G2), has a 2023 colt by The Autumn Sun and is in foal to Maurice. 

Snitzel has 40 lots catalogued for Inglis Easter 2024, among them 8 fillies & 6 colts offered by Arrowfield.