Timeform acknowledges new Redoute’s Star
The Paul Messara trained Redoute’s Choice 2YO colt BENETEAU put in a spectacular performance to brilliantly win the G3 Arrowfield Stud Blue Diamond Prelude at Caulfield on Saturday. In the process Beneteau eclipsed the class record by more than a second, running the 1100m in a slick 1:02.45. Blocked for a run coming to the turn, Beneteau was able to find a gap and peel off the heels of the leaders and sprint away to defeat the hitherto unbeaten G3 winner General Truce by 2 ½ lengths with a further 2 ¼ lengths back to third.
Respected form analysts Timeform rated Beneteau’s performance at a current 2YO season high of 120, with the previous best this season being 116. To put this into perspective, Beneteau’s close relation Alinghi rated the same high mark of 120 in her devastating Blue Diamond victory of 2004 after rating 118 in her Prelude victory.
“He was very impressive and he’s always shown us good ability but he’s always been a bit raw,” said jockey Daniel Ganderton after the race. “Today he was bit hesitant between horses but he’s got such a great nature that even though he is unsure about doing it, when you point him into the gap he’ll do it because you ask him to.”
“It’s exciting to see him do it like he did. It’s very pleasing. I’m happy to go to the Blue Diamond providing he pulls up well enough,” Paul Messara added.
Beneteau was bred by Arrowfield Stud in partnership with Oussama Aboughazale’s Sumaya Stables and was sold at the 2009 Inglis Australian Yearling sale for $1 million – one of five million dollar Redoute’s Choice yearlings at that sale. Purchaser Julian Blaxland’s Blue Sky Thoroughbreds syndicated the colt with both Arrowfield and Sumaya Stables retaining an interest.
Redoute’s Choice is now the sire of 58 Stakeswinners and 16 G1 Winners and has been represented in Australia this season by G1 Toorak Handicap winner ALLEZ WONDER, G2 Shannon Stakes winner DRUMBEATS, G2 Furious Stakes winner (and G1 Thousand Guineas placegetter) MELITO, G3 Naturalism Stakes winner RED LORD and G1 Flight Stakes placegetter SISTER MADLY, etc.
Redoute’s Choice, with nine stakeswinners to date this season is the leading Australian sire for 2009/2010 by individual stakeswinners. Last Thursday, the champion sire added an international star to his seasonal tally with the win in Dubai of the Australian born MUSIR (like Beneteau out of an Encosta de Lago mare) in the UAE 2000 Guineas Trial (1400m) at the impressive Meydan racecourse.
Already a G1 winner, Musir was crowned Champion 2YO Colt in South Africa last season and cruised home by half a length in the Guineas trial after a checkered run, with connections now aiming the colt for the UAE Triple Crown. Champion trainer Mike de Kock said post-race “He was a very good juvenile and we were hopeful of a big run, despite the hefty Group 1 weight penalty. He has a very high natural cruising speed and is a horse with a touch of class. The Guineas will be next on the agenda.” Jockey Christophe Soumillon was very complimentary noting “it was an excellent performance after stumbling at the start and losing three lengths”. Another Redoute’s Choice colt SOLID CHOICE (ex Venetian Pride (USA), by Gone West) finished an excellent 4th in the same race. Both colts were bred and are raced by Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al Maktoum. Notably, Sheikh Khalifa also won the UAE 1000 Guineas Trial in late January with Raihana, an Australian bred filly from the Sunday Silence mare Esubooh, who was bred by Arrowfield Stud.
At last week’s Karaka Premier Sale, Redoute’s Choice ended the sale as the leading sire by average (NZ$454,286) with the sale’s second highest priced yearling – the colt out of Grand Echezeaux (consigned by Pencarrow Stud) being purchased by David Ellis for NZ$1,300,000. This followed the sale topping price of A$925,000 for the Redoute’s Choice colt out of They Say (consigned by Strawberry Hill Stud) at this year’s Magic Millions Sale.
