Curraghmore Graduates Reign on the Racetrack

Karaka 2013 saw Gordon Cunningham’s Curraghmore Stud thrust into the spotlight as it toppled Cambridge Stud’s 32 year reign at the top of the vendor tables for the National Yearling Sales Series.

Gordon Cunningham

That draft went on to deliver some exceptional racetrack performances with the likes of First Seal, Kuro and Rockfast all Curraghmore graduates that week.

Curraghmore’s 2013 draft has seen five stakes winners to date. First Seal (Fastnet Rock), winner of the 2014 Group 1 Flight Stakes, was purchased for $700,000 by Bart Cummings.

Kuro (NZ) (Denman) was purchased by Champion Thoroughbreds for $170,000. The three-year-old is a dual stakes winner and ran third in the Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes.

Son of Fastnet Rock, Rockfast (Fastnet Rock) is another successful graduate, running second in the Group 1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas. The colt was purchased by Te Akau’s David Ellis for $410,000.

A notable update for this year’s Lot 324 from Curraghmore, is this week’s trial win by the up-and-coming two-year-old Outreach (Exceed and Excel) a full-brother to the Group 1 Golden Slipper winner Overreach (Exceed and Excel) and half-brother to the dam of Lot 324. Outreach won his second trial impressively on 20 January, and the Peter and Paul Snowden trained two-year-old is now being considered a serious Golden Slipper contender.

“Our focus is selling each horse for the best price possible,” comments Gordon Cunningham.

“Whilst we’re pleased to gain recognition on the vendors table each year, for us it is only secondary to producing horses that perform on the race tracks. The results so far for this season have been very fulfilling.”

Looking at their draft for Karaka 2015, it will be another strong Sale for the Waikato-based nursery with 35 yearlings on offer. An impressive line-up of stallions will be represented with the likes of Fastnet Rock, Redoute’s Choice, High Chaparral, Savabeel, O’Reilly, Darci Brahma, Rip Van Winkle, Mastercraftsman and new season sires So You Think, Jimmy Choux, Pour Moi, Cape Blanco, Uncle Mo and Zoffany to be represented in the Select Sale.

“We have a good line-up of Fastnet Rock yearlings,” commented Cunningham. “We have the full-brother to First Seal (Fastnet Rock) Lot 372, he is a very good colt. We also have a half-brother to Triple Honour (Honours List) at Lot 85 who is also a very nice colt.

“There are four other colts and a couple of fillies in our draft by Fastnet Rock that we consider as big prospects for the racetrack.

“We are also excited to have four colts offered by Savabeel, and like many in our draft their physique show consistency with the number of horses we have sold in the past who have gone on to win.

“We also have two fillies by Cape Blanco, one out of Alagant Satin and one out of Teardrop Island who are high class fillies which I am expecting to both to popular.”

Curraghmore has 27 yearlings catalogued for the Premier Sale and a further eight yearlings catalogued for the Select Sale.

Premier Sale highlights include:

• Lot 85 – A colt by Fastnet Rock out of winning dam, Myrrh (Nassipour). Half-brother to Group 1 winner Doncaster Handicap Triple Honour (Honours List).

• Lot 136 – A filly by Fastnet Rock out of multiple stakes winner, Randaroo (Gold Case), including the Group 2 Aqueduct Top Flight Handicap. The full-brother was sold for $680,000 at Karaka 2014, Curraghmore’s top Lot for the 2014 Sale.

• Lot 197 – A filly by freshman sire Cape Blanco out of Teardrop Island (Fastnet Rock). Out of a half-sister to the dam of stakes winner You Think So (Golan), winner of the Listed Moonee Valley Night Cup.

• Lot 247 – A filly by Cape Blanco out of stakes winning dam, Alagant Satin (Al Akbar), winner of the Group 2 Eight Carat Classic and the Group 3 Eulogy Stakes.

• Lot 311 – A colt by Savabeel out of Cat Schmea (Felix the Cat). Half-brother to Group 1 Goodwood Handicap winner Velocitea (Volksraad).

• Lot 324 – A colt by freshman sire So You Think out of Coralina (Dylan Thomas). Out of a half-sister to Overreach (Exceed and Excel), winner of the Group 1 Golden Slipper Stakes and named Champion 2YO Filly in Australia in 2012-13.

• Lot 355 – A colt by Darci Brahma out of Distinctive Lass (Orientate). Half-brother to stakes winner Kuro (Denman), winner of four listed races who finished third in the Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes this season.

• Lot 372 – A colt by Fastnet Rock out of Episode (Scenic), Group 1 South Australian Oaks and Group 1 Australasian Oaks winner. A full-brother to First Seal, winner of the Group 1 Flight Stakes.

“I think we’ve got as many prospects in this draft as we did two years ago. No one really knows as it is a game of chance but from the physical perspective we are confident we have some Group 1 prospects in our draft,” states Cunningham.