Rosemont Stud's I Am Invincible stallion Strasbourg is off the mark with just his second runner when the John Moloney-trained debutant Stormbourg made a winning debut over 1000m at Ballarat on Wednesday.
Given a ground-saving ride by Carleen Hefel, Stormbourg finished flush against the rail to defeat the Ilovethiscity colt Albertville by a half-length with a half-head back to the Brazen Beau colt Invincible Beauin third.
The win gave John Moloney the first two winners after the All Too Hard 3-year-old gelding Nation State opened his winning account over the same distance.
Moloney had further reason to celebrate as Stormbourg is out of his former talented mare, Graceful Storm.
"It’s very special,” Moloney said.
&ldq
“He has been lovely to deal with from day one. We could have sold him, but they decided to breed from the mare; it’s a tricky game and this is her first foal.
“It’s very exciting for the team.
“I thought the first one (Nation State), would go close, but you don’t really know with 2-year-olds.
“He did his jump out well, but predicting what he might do is hard.
‘He is like a little kid at home and acts like nothing happened. So he does not give a feeling that he goes out and goes boom.
“I told the owners he will likely go out until the autumn, and that is most likely what will happen, but we will wait, let him recover and settle down at home.
“His mother did win two races as a December 2-year-old and was able to win in town.”
Stormbourg is the first foal of Graceful Storm, a daughter of Hinchinbrook, which Moloney bought for $110,000 from the Woodside Park Stud draft at the 2017 Magic Millions. She won at Caufield, Sandown and Bendigo in a 23-start career, banking $279,680.
Graceful Storm foaled a Blue Point (IRE) filly on August 23.
Stormbourg is one of 84 live foals from the first crop of Strasbourg who won the Group II BRC Sires' Produce Stakes and Max Lees 2YO Classic in a career restricted to 12 starts.
A $750k Inglis Easter Yearling, the son of I Am Invincible, stands at Rosemont Stud for $8,800.
