Rosemont Stud subtracted $109,350 from its $1,800,000 outlay for Minhaaj when the daughter of Exceed and Excel stormed home along the rail in Saturday’s Group III The Nivison (1200m) at Randwick.
A Group III winner of the Thoroughbred Breeders Stakes at Flemington at two when trained by David and Ben Hayes and Tom Dabernig, Minhaaj made her first start for John O’Shea.
Ridden by James McDonald, Minhaaj defeated Tricky Gal (Magic Albert) by a length with Belluci Babe (Per Incanto) a short-neck back in third.
“Congratulations to Nigel Austin and Anthony Mithen at Rosemont Stud. They paid a bunch of money for her,” O’Shea said
“I’d say that their judgment was vindicated there because that was very impressive in a very good field.
“She has been a very unassuming mare. We’ve just been about getting her happy and healthy and just bringing her along steady.
“Her trials have been very good. We don’t do a lot with her at home. So we just trusted her form and trusted the fact she was happy and healthy.
“I think when you go through her form she loves to be a little fresh. She has a very good first-up record.
“I’d say she is too brilliant to go beyond six (furlongs), so we’ll poke along quietly and space her runs. Give her a relatively light time in the spring and fire at something in the autumn.”
Minhaaj advances her record to four wins and two thirds from 10 starts, with earnings of $334,650.
In M
ay, she sold at the Shadwell Stud Dispersal at the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale for $1.8 million, the seventh most expensive mare of the sale and the second most expensive of the Shadwell mares.
Her dam Telaawa made $1.7 million to the bid of Go Bloodstock/Coolmore Stud at the same sale. She foaled a full-sister to Minhaaj on September 4.
Purchased by Shadwell Australia for $180,000 out of the Yarraman Park draft at the 2013 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale, Telaawa never threatened to earn her purchase price back on the track.
It took the daughter of Lonhro five starts to break her maiden at Ballarat and three starts later, after finishing third to the subsequent Group 1 Queensland Derby winner, Magicool at Caulfield, Telaawa was off to the breeding shed.
Telaawa’s dam, the stakes-placed Danehill Dancer mare Magic Harmony left the talented Charmed Harmony (Hussonet), whose 13 wins included the Group III MRC Sandown Stakes and the South African Group III winner Suyoof (Magic Albert).
Magic Harmony is a half-sister to Group III winner Life’s A Bounty (Bahamian Bounty) and the multiple Listed winner Miss Prospect (Rory’s Jester).
Here we get the first hint that Exceed And Excel works well with this family as Miss Prospect is the dam of Exceed And Excel’s Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes winner Reward For Effort.
Miss Prospect is also the dam of the millionaire Consular (Royal Academy), and the unbeaten Snippets filly Bahia.
Consular was a multiple Listed winner who was runner-up in the Group 1 QTC Stradbroke Hcp.
When mated with Exceed And Excel, Bahia left the Group 1 ATC Golden Slipper winner Overreach and the Group II ATC Expressway Stakes winner Standout and the talented Outreach who at his one start finished second to Vancouver in the Group III Canonbury Stakes before taking up residence at Widden Stud.
