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Prominent owner Richard Pegum, a big investor in imported talent over many years, was rewarded with more black type success from one of his best overseas finds at the Gold Coast on Saturday.
Pegum, who part-owned the 1990 Melbourne Cup winner Brew and raced the ill-fated 2YO sensation Amelia’s Dream, has focused on imported stayers – mostly trained by Chris Waller - for more than a decade with much success.
My Kingdom Of Fife, December Draw, Illo, Dare To Dream, Junoob and Trade Commissioner are among the notable imports raced by Pegum, along with his current stars Life Less Ordinary and Abdon.The latter pair provided Pegum with a memorable 24 hours when they won Listed and Group races at Wagga and the Gold Coast on May 3 and 4.
Abdon won Friday’s Listed Wagga Gold Cup, joining stablemates Trade Commissioner (2016) and Life Less Ordinary (2018) as the third Waller-trained winner of the race raced by Pegum in the last four years.
On Saturday Life Less Ordinary won his fourth race in Australia when he annexed the $500,000 Hollindale Stakes at the Gold Coast, his victory in the G2 race taking his earnings in Australia to more than $750,000.Life Less Ordinary, an Irish-bred 7YO, was imported to Australia after agents Sackville Donald purchased him for Pegum at the 2016 Tattersalls Autumn Horses in Training Sale in the UK for 100,000 guineas.
At the time he had won four races up to two miles and has since taken his career record to eight wins and 15 placings in 39 starts for earnings of $819,000.Life Less Ordinary (Thewayyouare x Don’t Cross Tina by Cape Cross) led home a stable quinella and gave Waller his third Hollindale Stakes win when he beat Mister Sea Wolf – another Irish-bred import by Amadeus Wolf.
Pegum’s earlier import My Kingdom Of Fife (Kingmambo) also won the Hollindale Stakes in 2011.Waller said Life Less Ordinary will get his chance to win his first G1 race in the Doomben Cup on May 18 after five previous starts at the top level without a placing.
“He isn't the best horse in the stable and he is below the best Group 1 horses but he is what Australian racing need - he is one of those horses who can keep the Group 1 horses honest,” Waller said.“Australian racing really needs horses like him to keep our depth solid."
Life Less Ordinary is one of 10 stakes winners by Thewayyouare, a son of Kingmambo who shuttled to Windsor Park Stud in New Zealand from 2010 to 2014. He died in France last year at the age of 13.Life Less Ordinary is one of two winners out of the Irish winner Don’t Cross Tina, a granddaughter of the Kentucky Oaks winner Lucky Lucky Lucky.
Life Less Ordinary was the second stakes winner in 24 hours in Pegum’s familiar white and green colours after Abdon’s success at Wagga.He was stakes placed in England before his purchase by Pegum for 90,000 guineas at the Tattersalls Horse in Training Sale in the UK.
He is out of the French G1 winner Kinnaird and is a half-brother to five winners, including the G2 winner Berkshire and to the dam of the dual G2 winner Ivawood. Kinnaird is a half-sister to the G3 winner Mickdaam (Dubawi).• Reliable Man, a French Derby winner who was trained by Chris Waller to win the G1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick in 2013, sired a Randwick trifecta for the trainer on Saturday.
The Waller stablemates Nobu, Duchess Of Lennox and Ombudsman filled the placings in the 1800m race.Reliable Man stands at Westbury Stud in New Zealand.
The winner Nobu (Reliable Man x Royal Prize by Prized) was purchased out of Trelawney Stud’s draft at the 2017 NZB Premier Yearling Sale at karaka for $NZ250,000 by bloodstock agent Guy Mulcaster.