Redoute’s Choice improved his strike-rate across the Tasman with a feature double at Te Rapa on Saturday.
Burgundy captured his third stakes win in the G3 Windsor Park Stud Breeders’ Stakes (1200m) and his sister-in-blood Dolmabache claimed a black-type first in the G2 Travis Stakes (2000m).
Burgundy (3c Redoute’s Choice – Grand Echezeaux by Zabeel) is a three-quarter-brother to Darci Brahma and was a $1.30 million purchase from Pencarrow Stud at the 2010 NZ Bloodstock yearling sale.
“He went to sleep as soon as we got alongside the leader,” winning jockey Mathew Cameron said. “I knew then that they wouldn’t beat him. He had things under control a long way out.”
Burgundy is raced by David Ellis and the Te Akau 2010 Breeding Syndicate and he began racing with a winning hat-trick at Taupo (2) Riccarton. He was a beaten favourite behind stablemate Rock ’n’ Pop (Fastnet Rock) in the G1 NZ 2000 Guineas (1600m) last November but post-race tests indicated he was compromised by an attack of the thumps.
Back in training for the North Island 1600m features, he was placed in the Great Northern Guineas and Wellington Stakes leaving little doubt that a mile was just a bridge too far. He confirmed as much when blitzing a strong field in the LR Mr Tiz Trophy (1200m) at Ellerslie in March before the Te Rapa runaway on Saturday.
“He’s just so brilliant and naturally fast, you don’t want to fight that sort of talent,” trainer Jason Bridgman said. “At this stage of his development, sprint racing brings out his natural ability. He can go out for a spell now and that gives us plenty of time to get him ready for the spring.”
Dolmabache was an impressive winner of the Travis Stakes although she did it tougher winning in a photo finish from O’Fille and Postmans Daughter.
Dolmabache (4m Redoute’s Choice – Our Echezeaux by Zabeel) is a homebred for Pencarrow owners Peter and Philip Vela. She won a Paeroa maiden in January 2011 and added another at Ballarat on a trip to Australia earlier this season.
The Travis Stakes result lifted the number of Redoute’s Choice stakes winners to 88. His total so far this season is up to 16.
Burgundy and Dolmabache are the sixth stakes winners bred on the Redoute’s Choice – Zabeel cross. Among the others is the Vela homebred Papilio who was a Listed winner at Riccarton last month.
Leading the Redoute’s Choice connection out of New Zealand is outstanding mare King’s Rose. She won the G1 NZ 1000 Guineas in 2010 and was a G2 winner of the MVRC Stocks Stakes and MRC Memsie Stakes in Melbourne last year.
King’s Rose missed the Sydney autumn carnival to be reserved for the G1 HKJC Champions Mile at Sha Tin next Sunday, May 6.