It was worth the wait, Archanna, a $1.3 million three-quarter sister to The Autumn Sun, defied an alarming betting drift to canter home at her career debut over 1300m at Warwick Farm on Monday.
The daughter of Snitzel settled well back in the run before James McDonald bought her five wide on the home turn.
Sporting the Arrowfield silks, Archanna looked to relish the ground in the straight, striding clear to defeat the dead-heaters the Sepoy filly Duennaby and So You Think filly Stolen Jade by three and three-quarter lengths.
“She’s been beautifully handled up until this point. She’s been taken along slowly and she’s needed that time because I rode her in the first trial she ever had and she was quite hot,” McDonald told Sky Racing.
“I think Chris (Waller) realised that and took it step by step and she was perfect today.
“She’s done a really good job today. Obviously, things didn’t work out in the run, she was pretty green, but I loved her last 100 metres, it was excellent.
“I think she’ll be a filly that will progress over a bit further.
Archanna as a yearling
“She has got a really good action, you can see it just by her walking around, she stretches and extends.”
Bred in partnership by Arrowfield Stud and the Aga Khan Studs, Archanna was knocked down to Waller Racing / G Mulcaster for $1.3 million at the 2018 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale.
She is the second winner from as many to race out of the unraced Galileo mare Azmiyna (IRE) following the champion Redoute’s Choice colt The Autumn Sun who won 8 of his 9 starts including five Group 1s BRC JJ Atkins Stakes, ATC Golden Rose Stakes, MRC Caulfield Guineas, ATC Royal Randwick Guineas and ATC Rosehill Guineas.
Aquis Farm went to $900,000 to secure a Not a Single Doubt colt out of Azmiyna (IRE) at the 2019 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale.
A full-brother to Archanna was catalogued for this year’s Easter Yearling Sale but like all of Arrowfield’s yearlings he was withdrawn.
Azmiyna is now back in the Northern Hemisphere and had a Deep Impact filly earlier this year and is now in foal to Siyouni.
