The great Galileo is now just one Group 1 winner behind Danehill after Coolmore's royally-bred Cape Of Good Hope (IRE) made a winning Australian debut when edging out a rejuvenated Black Heart Bart in Saturday's $1,000,000 Group 1 Ladbrokes (Caulfield Stakes (2000m) at Caulfield.
The brother to Swettenham Stud's 6-time Group 1 winner Highland Reel made his previous start in America when third in the Saratoga Derby back on August 4.
Trained by David and Ben Hayes and Tom Dabernig and ridden by Mark Zahra, Cape Of Good Hope defeated Black Heart Bart by a short-half-head with Harlem one and a half lengths back in third with the short-priced favourite Avilius back in fourth. (images Grant Courtney)
A 3yo in the northern hemisphere, Cape Of Good Hope had some useful form in Europe including a win in the Listed Blue Riband Trial at Epsom, placings in the Group II Superlative Stakes at Newmarket and Group II Royal Lodge Stakes on the same track and a fourth in the Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club at Chantilly won by Sottsass.
David Hayes said he needed some convincing to purchase an interest in Cape Of Good Hope.
"A real thank you to (Coolmore advisor) Paul Shanahan because he actually pushed me into the horse, made me buy it," David Hayes said.
"We've never been more happy with a horse coming through, he looks a true WFA horse, and a special thank you to Gary Fennessy who has been living with the horse for the past six or seven weeks, living the high life at Newmarket.
"We copied the Criterium programme and it has paid off again.
"We kept him really lightly trained at Werribee because last season there were a few horses went wrong there and he is a big investment and I thought if he didn't run well he could improve by stepping the work up but I think we will be keeping the work the same going in to the Cox Plate.
"He's got probably one of the better pedigrees in the world so we thought the Cox Plate and the Mackinnon were his two main aims and this was a nice
"Now he's a Group 1 winner by the best sire in the world with the best female family, it's a one dam page with Highland Reel in the first dam so we've got something to work with."
Cape Of Good Hope (IRE) is one of five winners from as many to race out of Danehill's Group 1 SAJC South Australian Oaks runner-up Hveger who is a sister to Elvstroem and a half-sister to Haradasun out of the grand broodmare Circles of Gold.
