Triple Crown celebrates winning combination
Six runners, six winners, including two Group winners, is an enviable strike rate and it’s one that Triple Crown Syndications were happy to celebrate with this tweet after El Sasso’s maiden win at Kembla Grange last Saturday:
It’s a winning combination: Triple Crown+G. Ryan+Arrowfield Stallion+Arrowfield/Bellerive draft! Uncanny results.
El Sasso, a 3YO son of Snitzel and Sassy Peg bred by Paul Favretto with Tony & Judy Hodgson, joins Group 2 winners Hot Snitzel (also Group 1-placed) and Flying Snitzel, city winner Swerte Bella, and winners Spirit of Speed and Brilliant Snitzel – all purchased by Triple Crown from Arrowfield and Bellerive yearling drafts since 2010, and all but one trained by Gerald Ryan.
Four of them are by leading young sire Snitzel whose progeny have achieved consistent success in the stable of the man who prepared their sire to win the MRC Oakleigh Plate G1 and six other races. El Sasso is the 21st winner by Snitzel to come out of the Gerald Ryan yard.
Triple Crown director Chris Ward says, “It was great to see El Sasso get a nice win on Saturday. He is a horse who has plenty of natural ability, in fact Gerald said not long ago that he has similar ability to Charlie Boy and Dothraki, but he has a few quirks that we need to iron out first before you will see him really kick on.
Last year’s spectacular VRC Kewney S. G2 winner Flying Snitzel made a pleasing season debut, finishing fifth in Saturday’s ATC Sheraco S. G3 over 1200 metres.
Chris says, “She ran a terrific race on Saturday. The tempo of the race and the way they quickened a long way out, took her sprint away a bit but she still hit the line very well. It was a stepping stone for her main goals this Spring which are in Melbourne and may culminate in the Group 1 Myer Classic, if we feel she will make the mile.
“We have very fond memories of Flying Snitzel’s outstanding Kewney win down there last time and can’t wait to see her going the Melbourne way again.”
Chris and his brother Michael take a cool-headed, analytical approach to the business of yearling selection.
“We are big believers that in this game you need to do things as professionally as possible and while there will always be a fair degree of chance in this industry, it is important to increase the percentages of success at every step of the process.
“Obviously a big part of that is ensuring you buy high quality horses from farms where you know their rearing has been first class. Arrowfield and Bellerive certainly fit that criteria for us.
“Then you know the Arrowfield stallions are going to put you ahead of the game, as John Messara and his team do such an outstanding job with their strict selection criteria.”
Triple Crown’s regular visits to the winner’s circle haven’t gone unnoticed by prospective owners. They sold out of horses early last year and have done it again in 2013. Completed 2YO syndications include another six Bellerive and Arrowfield graduates, three of them by first crop sire Manhattan Rain, and one each by All American, Snitzel and Not A Single Doubt.
Says Chris, “We are very pleased with how our two-year-olds are coming along. Our breaker Toby Pracey has been very happy with them and I know the trainers are too.
“We have a Snitzel colt out of Last Blaze that is looking a real natural and should go early, and our Not A Single Doubt colt out of Miss Dodwell is also impressing Gerald Ryan.
Both colts were purchased, for $92,000 and $85,000 respectively from Arrowfield’s consignment at the Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale. That Sale has been a particularly fruitful source of Triple Crown stars: Flying Snitzel and Hot Snitzel were bought there for a total of $85,000. They have now won nine races and almost $1.1 million between them.
