2021 has seen a changing of the guard at Corumbene Stud. Long standing Farm Manager Toby Frazer’s retirement at the end of last year has created an opportunity for respected horseman Trent Hewitt to steer Corumbene for the years to come. And after successful sales on the Gold Coast and Inglis Classic, now it is time to promote the farm’s wares on the biggest stage of the year, the Australian Easter Yearling Sale.
Trent was well known around Dunedoo before settling in at Corumbene. “I’ve been a breaker all my life which is how I got to become affiliated with Corumbene as I started breaking in their yearlings six years ago. I also managed Kanangra Park for Fred and Mary Moses for six years and they had a connection with Mr Altomonte.” Trent is confident his first Easter in charge will be a good one saying, “We have a nice crop of horses and I can’t see us having anything other than a really good sale.”
The stud’s draft will be led off by Lot 60, a son of everybody’s favourite sire of the moment in Capitalist, and is the first foal out of the Corumbene raced Samantha by Snitzel. Amongst her four career wins Samantha was impressive in taking the Listed Fireball Stakes at Randwick while her dam Icedginger (Tale Of The Cat) has produced four winners from as many to race. Samantha’s grandam Broccacia was a Brocco half-sister to the Corumbene bred Gr.1 Blue Diamond Stakes winner True Jewels (Brief Truce) and to Wager (Flying Spur) who carried the farm’s orange, brown and white silks to victory in the Gr.2 Stan Fox Stakes. To show how tough Wager was, she made a bold bid for victory in her renewal of the Blue Diamond only to be run down late by the outstanding Alinghi (Encosta De Lago), then beat all but stablemate Dance Hero (Danzero) in both the Gr.1 AJC Sires’ Produce and Champagne Stakes’ where breed shapers Fastnet Rock and Savabeel filled the third placings.
This is the family of the Lunchtime mare Occasional Gain whose descendants continue to make an impact at Stakes level. Also amongst the stud’s excellent draft is Lot 399, a filly by Champion Sire Exceed And Excel out of Loveday, a Danzero half-sister to True Jewels and Wager. The filly is a half-sister to four winners including two Sydney metropolitan winners.
Earlier Corumbene will offer another Exceed And Excel filly, Lot 201 being out of Apple Martini by Encosta De Lago. Twice a winner in Victoria to 1850 metres Apple Martini comes from a strong American family that includes the Grade 1 winner Lovlier Linda and her son, the multiple Grade 2 winner and sire Old Trieste (A.P. Indy). In Trent’s opinion “She is a lovely filly, built like a bullet, and a great legged horse that is ready to run.”
Trent mentioned earlier the connection between the Altomonte and Moses families and Corumbene will offer Lot 335 on behalf of Kanangra Park. And what a lot, a must-see half-brother by Impending to the brilliant sprinting mare In Her Time. Tough as nails and the winner of both the Lightning Stakes at Flemington and The Galaxy at Randwick at Gr.1 level, In Her Time won nine races in all and was Gr.1 placed a further five times. This family has been churning out Gr.1 winners for over five decades now with the colt out of Zeditave’s twice-winning daughter Hell It’s Hot, a half-sister to the dam of The Everest winner Yes Yes Yes (Rubick). This colt certainly won’t be found wanting for speed and as Trent said, “He’s an eyecatcher, big, strong and whoever buys him will have themselves a very nice horse.”
The stud will also showcase two fillies by the Golden Slipper winner Vancouver. The first sells as Lot 238 and is out of the three-time winner, Casadee, a daughter of the incomparable Redoute’s Choice. This is a family that has a record of producing top class females like Riverina Charm (Sir Tristram), her Gr.2 winning daughters Paolino (Housebuster) and Sarwatch (Jetball), and also the Gr.1 Queen Of The Turf Stakes winner Neroli (Viscount). There is no reason to suggest this filly won’t continue the trend.
The other daughter of Vancouver gives buyers an opportunity to tap into one of the most potent modern-day lines in the Australian Stud Book being the first foal of the twice successful Marishka. Marishka is by Exceed And Excel out of the Snippets mare Bahia making her a full sister to Corumbene’s 2013 Golden Slipper winner Overreach and her Gr.2 Expressway Stakes winning full brother Standout who could well have snared an elusive Gr.1 success by the time the sale starts, should lady luck finally smile on him.
Marishka is also a full sibling to Outreach who was Gr.3 placed at his only start and is making his mark as a sire, and a three-quarter sister to the Gr.1 Blue Diamond Stakes winner Reward For Effort. “No pun intended but this filly is a standout. The page says it all for her and she has a physique to match.” The filly sells late on day two as Lot 414.
Besides having bred and raced Overreach, Corumbene also bred another Slipper winner in Sebring. It is somewhat fitting then that the farm will offer the very last foal born by Sebring when Lot 252 enters the ring. Trent is clearly taken with her, saying “An absolutely stunning filly and a real eye catcher. As a later foal she has a little bit of filling out to do but if she is across the way from you she will turn your head.” This lass is out of the three-time winning Lonhro mare Cloak Of Night, dam of the handy New Zealand galloper Intelligent Patch (Hinchinbrook), and a half sister to the Stakes placed Beatitude (Quest For Fame).
Lot 277, Epaulette’s strapping colt out of the Carnegie mare Donna’s Appeal has the looks to match his pedigree, and given he is a half-brother the Gr.1 Hong Kong Champions Mile winner Southern Legend (Not A Single Doubt), he will be popular. A stalwart on the Hong Kong scene for several years now, Southern Legend has won twelve times across Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney. It is a family with a history of getting early runners as both his grandam Donna Natalia (Anabaa) and third dam Marskin (Marscay) were able to win the season opening Gimcrack Stakes. This is also the family of the Gr.1 The Galaxy winner and sire Charge Forward (Red Ransom).
Headwater has a reputation for producing strong types that can gallop and his colt out of Damedge, Lot 261, is no exception. “This horse will sell himself I have no doubts whatsoever,” explained Trent. “He sets the bar, how he looks now is how you would want every yearling to look.”
Damedge saluted four times up to a mile and is a half-sister to the Gr.2 Matriarch Stakes winner Vintedge (Flying Spur) and the Listed winner Youths Edge (Jeune). The pedigree received a further boost recently with the win of Every Rose (Choisir) in the Gr.2 Light Fingers Stakes, that speedy filly being out of another half-sister to Damedge in Couredge (Show A Heart). This is the family of Gr.1 C F Orr Stakes winner and sire Racer’s Edge (Rory’s Jester).
The first crop of the dual hemisphere Gr.1 winner Merchant Navy have proven popular at the sales so far and Corumbene will offer a smashing filly from a fast American family. Lot 395 is the first foal of Look Out Baby, twice a winner in the States, but importantly a daughter of More Than Ready who has done so well in Australian conditions. Look Out Baby’s dam American Slew (Quiet American) pushed her speed out to a mile before foaling the classy City Attraction (Vicar), a Grade 3 winner over seven furlongs. “A compact type, she’s another horse I think can get going quite early. She has a really big, beautiful hindquarter, a great shoulder and a nice walk on her,” Trent offered.
The way the catalogue numbers fell this year, Corumbene’s best may have been left until last. Lot 460 is a daughter of Zoustar out of the unraced Street Sense mare Ocean Storm. Of course Zoustar has produced fillies of the quality of Sunlight, Madam Rouge, Mizzy, Haut Brion Her and Zou Dancer to name but a few and this filly comes with the added attraction of being out of a half-sister to the Gr.1 BTC Cup winner and ever-reliable stallion Your Song. The family also lays claim to the tremendous middle-distance performer and handy sire Fantastic Light (Rahy). Of this lass Trent said, “She’s a lovely, scopey type of filly and you can’t get much more athletic than her.”
So once again Corumbene will offer buyers the progeny of a broad cross section of stallions, all with excellent pedigrees and physiques befitting an Australian Easter Sale. Trent and the staff will be delighted to show them to you out of Barn E at Riverside.
2021 Draft
