Wall Street & Coup Align Standouts at Cup Week
12 November 2009
New Zealand Bloodstock graduates Wall Street and Coup Align both won their first Group races yesterday during the second day of the Canterbury Jockey Club's Cup Meeting.
South Island-bred galloper Wall Street (Montjeu x Villa Wanda, Grand Lodge) made it five wins in a row when asserting his dominance over the Group 2 Coupland's Bakeries Mile field.
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| �Wall Street's prolific sire Montjeu |
The Jeff Lynds trained galloper strode easily to the front as early as the top of the Riccarton home straight but he proved no sitting duck in front for his competitors who he kept kicking away from.
Over the 1600m he went about beating his nearest rival, Group 1 2000 Guineas winner Tell A Tale, by a length and a half.
Made in the mould of his sire Montjeu, Wall Street is an ultra progressive galloper with an impressive tally of six wins from his last seven starts.
Wall Street was bred by CW Wong's WH Holdings who breed, nurture, and develop young thoroughbreds for racing at their picturesque ocean view property near Kaikoura on New Zealand's South Island.
Managed for Mr Wong by Kelvin Mahood, WH Holdings has a close association with leading South Island boutique breeder Jo Wilding whose Te Mania Thoroughbreds consigned Wall Street at the 2006 Karaka Premier Sale.
Purchased by the keen eye of Paul Moroney for $100,000, Wall Street hails from the family of Group 1 winner Bezeal Bay with his second dam being the English Listed winning Diesis mare, Gisarne.
Mr Wong has a two-year-old Black Minnaloushe half-sister to Wall Street who has been retained for racing, with Villa Wanda producing a colt by Spartacus this season.
Working on the already successful Montjeu cross, Villa Wanda has this season been covered by Montjeu's leading money earner at stud in Australasia, White Robe Lodge's young sire Gallant Guru (Group 2 Sandown Classic winner, $700,000 in earnings).
WH Holdings will again offer their quality line-up of yearlings at Karaka 2010 National Sale in February with Kelvin Mahood pointing to their Elusive City half-brother to Group 3 winner Millbank as a type who should create interest.
Plans for Wall Street involve a possible tilt at next season's Group 1 MVRC Cox Plate (2040m) with the five year-old expected to relish the step up to 2000m.
Montjeu is represented as a broodmare sire at Karaka's upcoming Ready to Run Sale through Kilgravin Lodge's Lot 41, a gelding by Danzero.
His dam Ornellaia is a daughter of top three-year-old Riverina Charm (Sir Tristram) who won four Group 1 races including the Group 1 Canterbury, Rosehill, and Victorian 1000 Guineas. Click here to see him breeze.
Coup Align
In winning the Group 3 Stewards Handicap (1200m), Coup Align (Align x Diamond Snip, by Snippets) joined Coup Callum (Dagger's Drawn) as winners yesterday for Ray Coupland , the race-day's principal sponsor (Coupland's Bakeries Mile) and a terrific supporter and ambassador of the thoroughbred game.
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| Highview Stud's�Align, the sire of Coup Align |
In the Michael Pitman trained Coup Align, Mr. Coupland and his partner Jill Walls have something very special on their hands judging by the way he pulled himself to the front of the field before producing another effort to quicken and pull away from the front of the field.
Breaking 1.08.00 for the 1200m, Coup Align defeated Faalcon (Faltaat) by a length and a half and claimed the majority share of the $100,000 event.
Coup Align was purchased for Ray Coupland and Jill Walls by English based bloodstock agent Grant Pritchard-Gordon who has a strong presence in the Southern Hemisphere with his purchases including the likes of Champion Australian filly Miss Finland as a yearling.
The winner of $174,000 cost $30,000 from the draft of Brent and Lou Gillovic's Highview Stud, themselves the breeders of Coup Align when mating their stakes producing Snippets mare, Diamond Snip, with their Group 1 producing sire, Align (Night Shift).
Coup Align now looks set to take apart in New Zealand's top sprinting events over the summer including the Group 1 Telegraph Handicap (1200m) at Trentham in January.
Your next opportunity to buy at Karaka comes at New Zealand Bloodstock's one-day Ready to Run Sale which takes place next Tuesday (17 November).