Showing all the speed of his Golden Slipper-winning half-sister She Will Reign, the Garry Portelli-trained Time To Reign dominated Saturday's Kirkham Plate (1000m) at Randwick from the front to earn his ill-fated sire Time For War the honour of becoming the first first-season sire to have a winner.
Shortly after Time To Reign's victory, another first season sire, Better Than Ready, sired his first winner with the Kelly Schweida-trained The Odyssey at Doomben, the Grandview Stud's Whittington opened his account when Button Pusher romped home by three and three-quarter lengths at the Gold Coast
Given a confident ride by Rachel King, Time To Reign fought off the weakening favourite Evening Slippers coming into the straight before holding the challenge of Bivouac (Exceed And Excel) by two and a quarter lengths with Evening Slippers with Sweet Idea and Showtime's sister Evening Slippers a length back in third. (photo Steve Hart)
"It is good to see him do that because he is a potential stallion," Portelli told AAP.
"He is very green. He has never been away from Warwick Farm before so the day was all new to him.
"I know he is talented. It was just a question of how he handled things.
"We will look at the Maribyrnong Plate at Flemington now."
Purchased by Darby Racing/De Burgh Equine/Portelli Racing for $325,000 out of the Yarraman Park draft at the 2018 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, Time To Reign is the third foal of the Charge Forward mare Courgette who was a $25,000 Inglis Premier Yearling.
A winner in Sydney, Courgette is a daughter of the unraced Marscay mare Our Farm Girl a sister to Listed Gimcrack Stakes winner Millie and a half-sister to Listed Winter Cup winner Touch Of Sun (Snippets) out of the Group II Reisling Slipper winner and Group 1 AJC Oaks runner-up Sunshine Sally (Cheraw).
Courgette has a yearling filly from the second and final crop of the ill-fated Time For War and was covered by I Am Invincible last spring.
The Group II Pago Pago Stakes and Group II BRC Sires' Produce Stakes winner Time For War died from a suspected colic attack at Kitchwin Hills Stud in December 2016.
The son of Snitzel had 53 live foals in his first crop and 68 in his second that are now yearlings.
