With its 7-strong roster of the tried and true, the proven and the promising, Victoria’s Cornwall Park is gearing up for a busy breeding season.
Cornwall Park principals, Peter Boyle and Lisa Gordon, were keen to show off the lineup to broodmare owners in two stallion parades on Sunday 20 August, with onlookers also getting their first glimpse of exciting newcomer Wyndspelle.
Indeed, agent, owner and breeder, Jen Campin, had ventured across the Tasman to talk specifically about her beloved Wyndspelle who won a Group 1 Captain Cook and “sire-making” Waikato Guineas, interspersed with a couple of trips across the pond which included a third in the Group 1 Cantala Stakes at Flemington.
“He (Wyndspelle) was a tremendous racehorse for us and not only is he a tremendous type by a stallion (Ifraaj) that works so well in Australasia, he’s producing fantastic types,” Jen Campin enthused.
“He firstly stood in New Zealand where he’s got some absolutely cracking types, including a 2YO with Mick Price called Wyndsong, but we decided he’d be a walk up start for Australian breeders and have put the stallion in the more than capable hands of Cornwall Park.”
Peter Boyle is realistic that not every stallion will reach heady heights but firmly believes Cornwall Park has something to offer every breed-to-race broodmare owner. While Wyndspelle stands his introductory season at Cornwall Park at a fee of $11,000, the remaining six can be accessed at fees of $3,300 to $6,600.
“Danerich is a bloody marvel: one of the last Danehills at stud, he has produced winners from 900m to 3200m and he weighs in at a near 65% winners to runners strike rate,” Boyle points out.
“Boom Time is by Danehill’s son Flying Spur and won eight races including a Caulfield Cup AND he’s bred on the same cross and family as Magnus … Cliff’s Edge was one tough performer who raced against some very good horses throughout his career and he’ll have his first runners from this spring … Inference was a Group 1 Randwick Guineas winner and winner at 2 and just have a look at his head – So You Think through and through … Soul Patch is another who has his first runners in 23/24 and Ken Keys, who trained Soul Patch to win his Group 2, has a couple tucked away that he’s got very high hopes for … and, last but not least, is the Galileo horse Johannes Vermeer.
“Gee he was a good racehorse and a lovely type to boot. Winner at 2, Group 1 winner in France and second in the Melbourne Cup … there’s no guarantees in this game but this horse definitely has all the right attributes.”
With ‘show’ day all wrapped up, it’s now down to the business at hand and the well oiled machine at Cornwall Park is eagerly counting down the days to 1 September.
“I’ve been in the industry for a long time and worked for some of the major farms, but Lisa and I couldn’t be happier with the 2023 lineup … bring it on!”