Photo: Grant Peters (Trackside Photography)
Cambridge Stud’s winter success in Queensland has continued with the durable War Eternal (NZ) (Pierro) adding to his black-type record.
The homebred son of Pierro claimed Saturday’s Listed Spear Chief Handicap (1500m) at Eagle Farm for expatriate New Zealand trainer Bjorn Baker off the back of a previous Doomben win in the Listed Bernborough Handicap (1600m).
The Cambridge farm’s colours have also been carried to victory in recent times in Brisbane by the Ciaron Maher-prepared Zoustar mare Silver Wedding and Tony and Calvin McEvoy’s Exceed And Excel filly Excenia.
Seven-time winner War Eternal is a son of the well-related Fastnet Rock mare Aleria, who was purchased on the stud’s behalf by bloodstock agent John Foote for A$200,000 at the Inglis Sydney Easter Yearling Sale.
She is out of the Rubiton mare Impressive Eagle, a dual stakes winner and top-flight performer whose half-brother Eagle Way won the Gr.1 Queensland Derby (2400m).
“She is a classic example of what Brendan and Jo (Lindsay) have been doing for the last 10 plus years, buying well-bred fillies to later come into the broodmare band,” Cambridge Stud sales and nominations manager Scott Calder said.
It has also continued a long and successful association the Lindsays have enjoyed with the Queensland-based Foote.
“Prior to Cambridge Stud, John represented them at the sales and bought a lot of fillies and War Eternal was born in 2018 and the first group of foals born here under Brendan and Jo’s ownership,” Calder said.
The seven-year-old War Eternal is Aleria’s first foal and had previously placed three times at stakes level and finished fourth in the Gr.1 Randwick Guineas (1600m).
“It’s a credit to Bjorn Baker and his team, he was a winner as a two-year-old and was competitive in some nice races as a three-year-old,” Calder said.
“His longevity is quite exceptional, and a lot of credit also has to go to (agent) Jim Clarke, who purchased the horse from us at Karaka for $160,000 and he’s gone on to earn $1 million, so it’s been a great investment.
“Aleria’s got a really nice Almanzor filly on the ground and, at this stage, she would be one of the stand-out fillies that we’ve got on the farm.
“We’re lucky that we have retained another daughter and we sold a Per Incanto colt (Stoneflight) for $300,000 and he made $750,000 at last year’s Ready to Run Sale.
“It’s a really active family and the mare is currently in foal to Chaldean.”
Aleria’s daughter Neednoman (NZ), a four-year-old by Reliable Man, was a recent winner and is raced on lease from the farm by clients of Sally McKay’s stable.
Cambridge Stud is also putting the finishing touches on its draft to this month’s New Zealand Bloodstock National Weanling Sale.
“We’ve got a daughter of Bivouac (Lot 99) and the stakes performed mare Dottie Dee (NZ) (Brazen Beau), so it was good to see Bivouac’s filly (Fireball Miss) win the Queensland Oaks (Gr.1, 2200m),” Calder said.
“He’s had had two Group One winners now so I think our filly will be one that jumps off the page.
“We had a couple of years when we didn’t have a weanling draft and this is our second time back.
“There were quite a number of successful pinhooks among last year’s draft and there are some really nice horses this time there for people looking for resale or to carry on racing.”
The consignment also features youngsters by Almanzor, Hello Youmzain and Savabeel.
