There were four heats for juveniles at Randwick on Monday morning with winners that included a colt by Wootton Bassett (GB) and the half-brother to Golden Slipper winner Lady of Camelot and we also had a look at one of last year’s top juvenile colts that contested the Golden Slipper and is now a gelding.
Shangri La Express was one of the horses that got the ball rolling for his sire Alabama Express when he won the $1million ATC Golden Gift and then followed with a placing behind Switzerland in the Group II ATC Todman Stakes to earn a crack at the Golden Slipper. He finished unplaced and then was indifferent in two runs at the start of spring and is now looking to get back on track as a gelding.
He worked through to lead and won by a long neck for Rachel King and given he is a Magic Millions eligible horse we can probably expect to see him back in action with the Gold Coast in January an immediate goal.
The Waterhouse Bott stable also produced two of the juvenile heat winners in Exceed and Excel filly Ferradura and the super interesting colt Lancelot du Lac, who scored a narrow win over $1.6million Extreme Choice colt Guardsman. Lancelot du Lac was having his second trial and was ridden along up the straight to find the line and win, while Guardsman was having his first trial and will take good improvement warming to the task over the last 100m.
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A homebred for Go Bloodstock, Lancelot du Lac is the half-brother by Flying Artie to Golden Slipper winner Lady of Camelot and Group winning fillies Queen of the Ball and Platinum Jubilee. This guy is the fourth foal of blue hen Miss Debutante and is her first colt…. No pressure!
Guardsman was the most expensive yearling by Extreme Choice sold in 2024 at $1.6million and was bought by James Harron Bloodstock. From Wanted Lady, who comes from the family of Group I winner Mizzy and recent stakes-winner She’s Got Pizzazz, he is a full brother to two metropolitan winners Abseiler and Lady Extreme, but is going to need to outperform them by a big margin to hit the target as a sire prospect.
The Michael Freedman trained Wootton Bassett (GB) colt Pallaton was second in his first trial last month to Albany Road with Lancelot du Lac third and he also improved for the experience to come out and win this heat with a very professional effort. He led easily under a hold and kept going to win by a neck over late closing Capitalist colt Quietly Arrogant.
Pallaton is a homebred for Anthony Gow Gates and is a half-brother to four winners from juvenile stakes-winner Anevay, a half-sister by Exceed and Excel to Group II winner Krupt.
John Thompson already has the Group III ATC Gimcrack Stakes winner Bel Merci in his stable and has another nice filly in Deep Affection, who made full use of gate one to lead all the way for Zac Lloyd at her second trial and won by half a length in the quickest time of the four heats.
By Street Boss (USA), Deep Affection was a bargain $20,000 Inglis Classic purchase for her trainer from Silverdale Farm and is the first named foal from Smitten, a winning half-sister by Lonhro to Group III winner Astoria with her third dam Antwerp, a stakes-winning grand-daughter of legendary matriarch Eight Carat (GB).
She’s got plenty of pedigree for an inexpensive filly.
Click here to see all the trial results at Breednet with Sale Mail and at Racing NSW with video.