Emirates Park homebred filly Manaal won the Group III ATC Gimcrack Stakes on debut last spring and has gone from strength to strength as her juvenile season has unfolded putting the icing on the cake at Randwick on Saturday when beating the colts to win the $1million Group I ATC Sires Produce Stakes (1400m).
She was the first winner and stakes-winner for her young Newgate sire Tassort and is now his first Group I winner after bouncing out of her fifth placed run in the Golden Slipper to soar to even greater heights.
Trained by Michael Freedman and ridden by Jason Collett, Manaal settled back in the field as is her pattern of racing. She unleashed a big finish to charge home from last on the turn and snatch a last stride win over Godolphin’s quality Street Boss (USA) colt Traffic Warden with Golden Slipper runner up Coleman in third place.
Race favourite Storm Boy travelled deep throughout and could do no better than fourth on the heavy track.
Michael Freedman was glowing in his praise for Manaal, who has the overall record of three wins and a second from five starts with prizemoney topping $1.2million.
“She’s outstanding! She won the Gimcrack back in the spring and I thought her run in the Widden in January giving Lady of Camelot 3kg on a leaderish track was terrific. She won the Sweet Embrace and was a bit stiff in the Slipper and she’s won the Sires, so I’m full of praise for her,” Freedman said.
“It’s great to have such a really good filly for Emirates and Hussain Lootah, they own half the stallion (Tassort) and he’s an exciting stallion, so hopefully we can get a few more of them through.”
“Her ability to relax in races and finish them off like she does is such a big attribute. I think she can run a mile and whether that is in two weeks for the Champagne Stakes or we wait until the spring, we’ll let the dust settle before we make any of those decisions.”
Bred and retained to race by Emirates Park, Manaal is the best of three winners from Midshipman mare Red Lodge (USA), a stakes-winning half-sister to stakes-winner Good Like Magic and a granddaughter of the exceptional dual Group I winner Memories Of Silver.
Red Lodge has produced fillies by I Am Invincible and Zoustar in her past two seasons and is now in foal to Storm Boy’s sire Justify (USA).
Jointly owned by Emirates Park and Newgate, Tassort has made a flying start to his stud career with five winners from 14 starters plus another two stakes horse in Ameena and Ad Astra.
A half-brother to Group I winners Astern and Alizee by Brazen Beau, Tassort was super popular last spring covering 232 mares at a fee of $11,000.
