Why Hitotsu?
Hitotsu surges towards victory, and a rare place in history, in the 2022 Australian Derby G1 at Randwick. (PHOTO: Lisa Grimm)
Because he fits the 21st century mould of the class stallion in Australasia.
That is, the well-bred Classic 3YO with elite speed.
Look at Dundeel, So You Think and Savabeel – all Group 1 winners beyond 2000 metres, all with undoubted class and all among Australia’s current top 10 sires on both the Earnings Premiership and the Black Type Leaderboard.
Now Dundeel is among the leading 2YO sires as well as being the current leading Australasian sire at 1600m-2000m. In a stellar season of a stellar career, Savabeel has sired the TJ Smith winner I Wish I Win, while the globe-trotting Champion So You Think claims the Stradbroke winner, the exciting Think About It.
Likewise, our own Maurice was a Champion miler but his exhilarating wins in the Tenno Sho and Hong Kong Cup, both over 2000 metres at his final two starts, confirmed not only his stamina, but also his versatility and class. Now, he has already sired two Group 1 winners at 1200m, and three, including Hitotsu, at 2000m-plus. On top of that, his latest stakeswinners are 2YOs Azula & Namesake, successful at 1300m and 1500m.
The bottom line is that Dundeel, So You Think, Maurice and Savabeel were all proper, proper racehorses, and probably superior at almost every distance.
We think the same about Hitotsu. Ciaron Maher says his tracking data indicates his top speed was elite, amongst the best he’s ever had and maybe even superior to Group 1-winning sprinters Coolangatta and Bella Nipotina.
His lung capacity was certainly elite: he won an Australian Derby off one start – the Group 1 Australian Guineas, no less. The data in Japan said the same of Maurice.
A fast horse that can’t stay is just a sprinter. A fast horse that can stay is the definition of class and it’s spelt Hitotsu.
