Owner-breeder and businessman Gerry Harvey sent a pointed reminder to yearling sale purchasers following the consecutive feature race successes of two of his passed-in horses at Randwick.
Merely 35 minutes following the victory of his homebred mare Chidiac in the Country Championships Final (1400m), colt Campione D’Italia powered to success in the Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m).
Harvey shares ownership of Campione D’Italia with a prominent syndicate featuring Henry Field’s Newgate Bloodstock, and he disclosed that the colt had likewise not reached reserve at the sales.
“I passed it in, and Henry Field and I had a talk. I said, ‘I want six hundred (thousand dollars) mate’, and he said, ‘I’ll give you five hundred’ and I said, ‘get lost’. Then I thought I better do it,” Harvey said.
“It’s a very exciting day because we just had the country winner as well. We passed it in for $25,000. No-one wanted it.
So if you want to buy a horse from my horse studs, always buy the passed-in ones. Never buy in the ring. You’ll do much better buying a passed-in one.”
A Snitzel offspring, Campione D’Italia bolstered his potential as a future sire through the Group 1 success, adding to his impressive fourth placing in the Golden Slipper (1200m) from which he rallied strongly off a slow start.
Trainer Chris Waller noted that the superior gate position and the colt’s ongoing development were key factors.
“Today was his fourth career start and each run has got a little bit better, a little bit better,” Waller said.
“His run in the Golden Slipper was amazing. He just got too far back. It was no-one’s fault, and the horse is just learning all the time.
He got a lovely draw today, and that was the difference between having him in the firing line or going back like he was last start.
It was good to see him knuckle down and get the job done.”
Campione D’Italia may now pursue a well-trodden route, as Waller eyes an entry in the Champagne Stakes (1600m), a contest captured three years prior by stable companion Militarize post his Sires’ win.
“Militarize, he won the Sires’ and then he won the Champagne, so I’ll have a talk to the team and see what they suggest,” Waller said.
“We’ve got to nurse him a little bit, so we’ll see how he comes through it.”
Campione D’Italia ($4.20) edged out Miss Chanel ($15) by three-quarters of a length, while stablemate Fireball ($18) was the same distance back in third.
Fireball is likewise under consideration for the Champagne Stakes depending on his post-race recovery.
Check the latest racing odds on top Australian betting sites for Sires’ Produce Stakes form heading into future majors.
