Wandjina can emulate his sire in Breeders’ Plate

Edmund & Belinda Bateman’s $1 million colt Wandjina will seek to emulate his sire Snitzel in Saturday’s NSW Thoroughbred Breeders’ Plate LR at Randwick.

Snitzel, from the second crop of champion sire Redoute’s Choice, won the 2004 Breeders’ Plate in commanding fashion, by three lengths from Banished and Al Samer. That performance marked the start of a brilliant career topped by his Oakleigh Plate G1 victory 17 months later. At stud Snitzel has already left 15 stakeswinners, including eight 2YO Group winners, notably Sizzling, Snitzerland & Sweet Idea.

Wandjina goes into this year’s Breeders’ Plate with a strong Randwick trial win under his belt and jockey Tommy Berry’s judgement that Wandjina was the best colt he rode at the trials.

Trainer Gai Waterhouse knows exactly how to prepare colts to win the Breeders’ Plate: she trained the last two winners, Whittington in 2012 and Pierro in 2011. The Waterhouse stable has three runners in this year’s race, and three fillies in the Gimcrack Stakes.

Wandjina was bred by Arrowfield from the wonderful broodmare La Bamba (by Last Tycoon), whose earlier matings with Flying Spur and Redoute’s Choice produced Inspiration (Hong Kong Sprint G1), and stakeswinners Lucky Unicorn & Provence. La Bamba foaled a colt by Manhattan Rain last Sunday morning.

Purchased for the Batemans by agent James Harron, Wandjina was Snitzel’s first $1 million yearling, and the sixth highest-priced colt at this year’s Easter Sale.

Snitzel will also be represented in the Breeders’ Plate by a second Randwick trial winner, Scratch Me Lucky from the Paul Perry stable.