Snitzel 2YO colt wins South African stakes

Arrowfield’s famous black and yellow silks were carried to a stunning stakes victory overnight when Snitzel’s 2YO son Traces landed the R150,000 Kenilworth Summer Juvenile S. 1000m LR at his second start.

Sent to South Africa last July after an injury left him blind in his near-side eye, and so unable to race in Australia, Traces is raced by Arrowfield in partnership with Ridgemont Racing and trained by Brett Crawford. The connection was made by Paul Messara with Ridgemont’s Craig & Ross Kieswetter who have enjoyed Group 1 success with Arrowfield’s Inglis Easter graduate Whisky Baron. 

Traces obviously benefited from his first-up run, when all of his opponents were on his blind side, and was produced with perfect timing by jockey Greg Cheyne at the 200-metre mark. He finished off strongly to score by 2.25 lengths from the favourite Carlita and Royal Italian.

Bred by Arrowfield with long-time breeding partner John Leaver, Traces is the first foal of Traceability, an unraced daughter of Charge Forward and Urge To Merge, and so a half-sister to Group 1 winners Master Of Design and Suntagonal. This is, of course, the wonderful Princess Tracy family, also responsible for Australian Horse of the Year Typhoon Tracy and her South African champion dam Tracy’s Element.

Traceability’s second foal, a colt by Redoute’s Choice, was bought for $750,000 by Hawkes Racing at the Magic Millions Sale earlier this month. The mating with Redoute’s Choice has been repeated twice, resulting in a 2017 colt and a foal-to-come by the three-time Champion Sire. 

Traces is the 21st worldwide stakeswinner for Snitzel this season, and the sixth stakeswinner for former Arrowfield resident Charge Forward as a damsire, a group headed by Golden Slipper winner She Will Reign and Magic Millions winner Sunlight. 

The colt is Snitzel’s second South African stakeswinner, after Arrowfield Inglis Easter graduate Heavenly Blue, winner of the Turffontein SA Classic G1 last April.

Snitzel has two fillies and a colt on offer at next month’s Inglis Classic Sale, and buyers looking for yearlings out of Charge Forward mares will find eight at Classic, including Lots 54 and 506 in Arrowfield’s draft.