Following two seconds at Toowoomba, the Brett Cavanough-trained filly Ursula broke her maiden in Sunday’s 2yo Thunderbolt (1100m) at Armidale to credit her sire Panzer Division with his first winner.
After beginning well, Les Tilley positioned Ursula on the outside of the speedy Outreach filly Outreach Belle before easing past that filly in the straight to win by one and a quarter lengths with a further half-neck back to the fast-finishing Starspangledbanner filly Lucky Banner in third.
Purchased by her trainer for $80,000 out of the Arrowfield Stud draft at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale, Ursula was the most expensive yearling from the first crop of the Group III Ming Dynasty Handicap winner Panzer Division.
She is the third winner out of the 2004 CJC New Zealand 2000 Guineas winner Clean Sweep (End Sweep) who has a yearling filly by Scissor Kick and a filly foal by Mikki Isle (JPN). She was covered by the dual Group 1 winning son of Deep Impact again last spring.
A son of the breed-shaping Redoute’s Choice, Panzer Division is out of dual Group 1 winner Desert Fight, a daughter of Hussonet (USA) who was the Champion 2YO Filly in Chile.
After beginning his stud career at Arrowfield, Panzer Division now stands at Brianna Vandyke's Pepper Tree Farm, Cowra where his 2019 fee was set at $5,500.
