St Gotthard heads busy day for Arrowfield graduates

A dominant Group 3 victory by 2YO colt St Gotthard was the highlight of a busy day for Arrowfield graduates in feature races at the Gold Coast and Morphettville. Beadman & Private Legacy extended their stakes-winning records, while Redford & Icelady posted their first stakes performances.

St Gotthard (Snitzel-Ms Bad Behavior by Blame) made winning the $200,000 GCTC Ken Russell Memorial Classic 1200m G3 at his second start look easy, sprinting sharply to score by 4 lengths in 1:09.70. He is the the third Arrowfield graduate to win the race after Althoff (2024) & Beadman (2024), and the sixth son of Snitzel to win it since Hot Snitzel’s 2011 success.

A full brother to Group 1 winner, now sire Switzerland, St Gotthard was bred by Arrowfield and Cloros Bloodstock, sold for $2.7 million at Inglis Easter to Tom Magnier for Coolmore & partners and is trained by Chris Waller.

Coolmore subsequently joined the James Harron & Tony Fung Colt Partnerships to secure the Snitzel-Ms Bad Behavior colt for $2 million at last month’s Inglis Easter Sale. The mare delivered her 5th Snitzel colt last Spring and is now in foal to The Autumn Sun.

Coolmore’s John Kennedy said after Saturday’s win, “St Gotthard is a serious two-year-old. We knew from the moment we saw him at Riverside at last year’s Easter sale he was a colt we really wanted, obviously Switzerland had already done the job for us and he was just such an amazing looking yearling and has developed into an even better-looking two-year-old.”

Jockey James McDonald said simply, “He cost a lot of money and he’s got a beautiful temperament. He’s got incredible acceleration and he’s all class.” The colt is nominated for both the BRC Sires’ Produce S. G2 on 30 May & the J.J. Atkins G1 two weeks later.

St Gotthard EXPLODES to win the G3 Ken Russell 💥

He’s 2 for 2 and on the up 👀@mcacajamez @cwallerracing pic.twitter.com/iLYSGOczja

— 7HorseRacing 🐎 (@7horseracing) May 9, 2026

Snitzel’s exceptional career statistics now read 174 stakeswinners, 68 of them earning that status at two, and 19 posting stakes wins this season, including 6 at Group 1 level by Baraqiel, Lazzura, Marhoona, Transatlantic and 2YO colts Campione D’Italia & Fireball. The 4-time Champion Sire holds a commanding $5.3 million lead on Australia’s current General Sires’ Premiership and is within striking distance of a 6th 2YO Sires’ title as well.

Last year’s Ken Russell winner Beadman (Snitzel-Iffranesia by Iffaaj) returned to the Gold Coast to take out the $200,000 GCTC Gold Coast Guineas 1200m G3, his second stakes win this season after the Fireball S. LR at Randwick on 7 March.

Flashy chestnut Beadman loves the Gold Coast, and he takes the @GCTurfClub Guineas in style! ✨ @mcacajamez with three winners!@SnowdenRacing1 @NewgateFarm @RaceQLD pic.twitter.com/yjv1XAzP7q

— SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) May 9, 2026

Bred by Arrowfield & Hermitage Thoroughbreds, Beadman was a $900,000 purchase by Newgate, China Horse Club, Go Bloodstock & Trilogy from Arrowfield’s Magic Millions 2024 draft. He races from the stable of Peter Snowden who signalled that both of the Queensland Carnival’s Group 1 sprints are under consideration for the colt.

“It was certainly a quality win…He has built into a strong horse. I think that we can keep going as he has shown he has got a great nature. I had a plan and there will be discussions and decisions made next week about the Doomben 10,000, but it’s on the table. Ultimately the horse is going well enough, and the Stradbroke could be the race.”

Beadman’s full brother was a $1.5 million purchase for Coolmore from Arrowfield at this year’s Magic Millions Sale. Iffranesia has a 2025 colt by Dundeel and is in foal to The Autumn Sun.

The Autumn Sun played his part in Saturday’s stakes racing too, thanks to his 5YO daughter Private Legacy, who won a three-horse battle for her second $120,000 SAJC Centaurea S. 2033m LR. She obviously loves Morphettville: in 2024 she split Vibrant Sun and Coco Sun to give The Autumn Sun a rare Group 1 Classic trifecta in the Australasian Oaks G1.

Private Legacy sticks her nose out and goes back-to-back in the Centaurea Stakes‼️

What an epic finish 🤯@bmelham @hickmanracing pic.twitter.com/LNnKH5KT08

— 7HorseRacing 🐎 (@7horseracing) May 9, 2026

Private Legacy is the third foal and only filly left by Group-placed 8-time winner and million-dollar earner Private Secretary (by Husson), and was a $90,000 purchase by her trainer Greg Hickman from Arrowfield’s 2022 Magic Millions National consignment. She has now earned more than $480,000 and will surely attract lively interest as Lot 435 at the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale later this month.

Check out Arrowfield’s 2026 Magic Millions National yearlings here.

Part-owner Michael Woodlands said, “Greg couldn’t be here today but he’s done an amazing job with this horse and a lot of us owned her mum, Private Secretary, who won up at the Magic Millions. So, just very happy. It’s her last race today before she goes to the sales. So, fairytale finish… the sale is in a few weeks, so we’ll see how we go.”

Also at Morphettville, the 2YO filly Icelady (Maurice-Lady Patricia by Snitzel) posted the fastest last 200 metres to finish 2nd in the SAJC David Coles AM S. 1200m G3. She was a $130,000 buy for Thompson Thoroughbreds & her trainer Ciaron Maher from Glenn Lee Thoroughbreds, as agent for Arrowfield, at the Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale.  Glenn Lee sold her full sister at the same sale this year, and Lady Patricia, whose siblings include dual G1 winner Kenedna, Group winner Spill The Beans & Listed winner Matusalem, has a weanling colt by Pierro.

On the same card, Willow Park’s Inglis Easter graduate 3YO filly Certainly Quiet (Dundeel-Shush by Redoute’s Choice) caught the eye when she sustained a determined run to finish 2nd in the SA Fillies Classic 2550m G3.

5YO Arrowfield graduate Redford (Snitzel-Dream Date by Starcraft) supplied the day’s final flourish, finishing third in the GCTC Australian Turf Club Trophy 1200m LR, his first line of black type after 7 wins for the Stuart Kendrick stable.

He was a $1.05 million buy for TFI from Arrowfield at Magic Millions, and his 2YO full brother Avengers, also a 7-figure yearling, was 4th on debut for Anthony & Sam Freedman in Sydney earlier this year. Dream Date, a half-sister to Not A Single Doubt, has a yearling colt by Dundeel, a weanling filly by Maurice and is in foal to Castelvecchio.