Ignition and lift-off at Belmont

Mungrup Stud sire Oratorio (Aus) opened the Belmont season with long-shot winner Ignition in the Westspeed Nursery Hcp (1000m) on Saturday.

Ignition (2g Oratorio – Sheleenus by Helenus) is raced by Lark Hill trainer Sharon Taylor and gave bookmakers a dream start at $41.  He had been soundly beaten in barrier trial last month but refused to buckle on debut.

“He’s got plenty of speed and always leads by four and five lengths in his trials,” Taylor said.  “He just couldn’t corner properly so we took the blinkers off and changed bits.  I told Joe (Azzopardi) to nurse him in front and he would keep fighting.”

Ignition is the latest two year-old to salute for Oratorio following on from his brilliant Ascot winners Moet Me and Princess Hallowell.

His dam is an unraced daughter of Mungrup Stud bred Paris Moon (Metal Storm).  She was untapped having won the LR Ngawyni Stakes when racing for just the fourth and final time at Belmont in May 2002.

Oratorio will head the 2013 Mungrup Stud roster at $13,750 (inc gst) and he also heads the WA 2YO premiership with earnings over $240,000 this season.  It will be a third title in that division following awards in 2009 and 2010.

Mungrup owners Gray and Jan Williamson completed a long-priced double with My Lovely Lovely in the Amelia Park Beef Hcp (1200m) at Belmont.

My Lovely Lovely (4m Flying Pegasus – She’s So Halo by Don’t Say Halo) scored a $31 victory in the stud’s familiar brown and white hoops.  She had won a Northam maiden at the start of the season but didn’t fire when resuming at Ascot.

“She doesn’t like to be crowded in,” winning jockey Jason Brown said.  “We found room in the straight but she shied at the winning post and almost threw it away.”

My Lovely Lovely was retained by the Williamsons to keep a link with one of their oldest families.  Her dam is an unraced half-sister to LR Raconteur Stakes winner Surrender To Me (Poliuto).  Other stakes winners in the family include Moccasin Bend (G2 WA Guineas) and World Of Fun (LR N J Way Stakes).

– Karl Patterson