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Three-year-old filly lands Eulogy Stakes at Awapuni
Waikato Stud’s star stallion Savabeel (Zabeel) added a 106th stakes winner to his CV as his daughter Whimsical (3 f ex Chanel's Choice by Redoute's Choice) took out the Eulogy Stakes (Gr 3, 1600m) at Awapuni on Saturday.
Having accounted for her maiden on her most recent start, the Stephen Marsh-trained filly pulled clear of her rivals to beat Love For All (Love Conquers All) by three-quarters of a length, while Signora Nera (Sweynesse) was a further length and a half further afield in third.
“She’s a filly with a lot of potential who has just got better and better,” Marsh stable representative Todd Pollard said.
“She showed plenty when she had her first trial at Ellerslie back in July and has just kept going up a level at each outing.
“She is probably the biggest three-year-old filly we have in the stable and just looks like a stayer in the making so we did think the 1600 metres today would be right up her alley.
“She has New Zealand Oaks candidate written all over her so I would think she will be on a path to that now, especially as her win today was in a leg of the New Zealand Bloodstock Filly of the Year series.”
The Eight Carat Classic (Gr 2, 1600m) at Ellerslie on Boxing Day and the Valachi Downs Royal Stakes (Gr 2, 2000m) on New Year’s Day look likely options for the filly.
Purchased by Bruce Perry for NZ$240,000 at last year’s New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka National Yearling Sale from the Little Avondale Stud draft, the filly is out of unraced Redoute’s Choice (Danehill) mare Chanel’s Choice.
Chanel’s Choice is herself a daughter of Group 2 winner Rare Insight (O’Reilly), who in turn also produced 2014 Coolmore Classic (Gr 1, 1500m) winner Steps In Time (Danehill Dancer).
The filly’s third dam is four-time winner Escada (Centaine) - the dam of dual Group 1 winners Vision And Power (Carnegie) and Glamour Puss (Tale Of The Cat).
Further afield this is the same family as Group 2 scorer Acting (Savabeel) and stakes winners Escadaire (O’Reilly), Bonny O’Reilly (O’Reilly) and Pretty To Sea (Ocean Park).
Five-time champion sire Savabeel - who stood at Waikato Stud for NZ$100,000 (plus GST) this year - has 43 lots catalogued for next year’s New Zealand Bloodstock National Karaka Yearling Sale.
