Much has been made of the toughness and iron constitution of Away Game, this season’s highest stake earning two year-old, but there is another who could well give her a run for her money in the toughness stakes.
He’s Fastnet Rock colt Glenfiddich, who made $1.4million glamour colt King’s Legacy fight like a tiger for his second Group I win on Saturday.
Punters may have thought King’s Legacy would steam straight past Glenfiddich, but the Robbie Griffiths trained colt would not lie down after leading all the way.
He was coming again on the line for Tommy Berry and failed by only half a neck to claim a Group I win.
It’s been a long and busy season for Glenfiddich, who made his debut with a fifth placing in the Group III VRC Maribyrnong Plate on November 7.
He’s been in work constantly since then racking up nine starts on six different tracks in Victoria, South Australia and New South Wales with numerous good efforts in some tough races as well as a win in the $125,000 Quayclean Sires at Mornington.
A $200,000 Magic Millions purchase from the Edinburgh Park draft for Griffiths Racing/Peter Ford T'bred, he runs for a big syndicate headed by his breeder Ian Smith and has conveniently won back his purchase price earning $217,000 and change.
Glenfiddich is the second winner from Nothin But a Dream (USA), a grand-daughter of US stakes-winner Adarling, who has achieved a lot of success in Australia through another grand-daughter in Mica’s Pride, the dam of Group I stars Criterion and Comin’ Through.
The class Glenfiddich showed on Saturday when stepped up to a mile on a good track bodes well for next season and a further insight into his future might be gained from revisiting the racing career of his sire Fastnet Rock.
The now legendary sire started seven times at two and famously never won a race although was competitive with the best and blossomed at three to become the best three year-old sprinting colt in the land.
It’s fairly safe to say the best is still ahead for Glenfiddich, whose record of nine starts is one more than any other two year-old in Australia so far this season.
