Each year I offer a couple of Weanling Syndications to the market. These have been highly successful with 11 of the last 12 purchased from the Magic Millions National Weanling Sale being winners including the three time Listed placed filly Flattered, Metropolitan winning gelding Power Of The Brave and Sydney Metropolitan winner Emmadella.

These syndications allow owners to get into a horse for about 50% of what they would have cost as yearlings.

I have closely watched Yulong Stud’s progress in Australia and it is hard not to be impressed with the results their stud and racing operation are producing. Yulong’s owner has left no stone unturned putting together an outstanding management team with one of Australia’s most highly regarded thoroughbred authorities, Vin Cox heading up the operation.

The stud has also put together an impressive sire list and purchased some of the very best mares from here and overseas. Earlier this year I purchased a Lucky Vega (Ire) filly from Yulong. She has been broken in and got a big tick in the box from Lewis Page who broke her in.

I expect Yulong to be a dominant force in the Australian breeding market for years to come. Their involvement has only just begun.

Grunt

Grunt has done a very good job here. He is by Champion sire O’Reilly who is by Last Tycoon who has had such a big influence here. Last Tycoon’s daughters being outstanding broodmares and his son Written Tycoon being amongst the best sires to stand in Australia in the past decade. His son Winning Rupert is the sire of our very good mare Seonee.

Grunt was a very good racehorse winning twice at the top level and winning five races in total and $1,328,500 in prizemoney.

Grunt has done an excellent job at stud with three stakes horses in his 22 winners including the Group 1 winner Veight amongst his progeny. He finished in 6th position on the Australian Third Season Sire’s List in the 2024/25 Season.

O’Reilly had a very good pedigree Being out of Courtza which won both the Group 1 Golden Slipper and group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes.

O’Reilly sits in 4th position on the Australian Broodmare Sires Premiership with Pride Of Jenni the best to race out of one of his daughters.

Caffeine

Caffeine is by the Champion broodmare sire Medaglia d’Oro out of one of the nicest fillies I have ever inspected in Pure Energy by Mossman who is by Success Express. Pure Energy was a terrific 2yo winning Group 2 Reisling Slipper Trial and was placed 2nd in the Group 1 Golden Slipper.

When you look closely at this pedigree you see when O’Reilly was mated with Success Express mares, Ric O’Shea was produced who was a good horse.

Caffeine’s first foal died, her second by Alabama Express was retained by Yulong and is in work with Matt Laurie. The third by Alabama Express was sold for $250,000 at the 2022 Inglis Premier Sale and hasn’t been named.

I love this family and expect it to throw up a very good horse. The 3rd dam is by Bletchingly, one of our very best sires with the 4th by Champion Sire Sir Tristram. It doesn’t get much better.

The Trainer

Patrick Payne has been a remarkable success for Prime Thoroughbreds. Here is a summary of the yearlings purchased from 2013 to 2021 for Patrick by Prime Thoroughbreds to have raced.

In total 45 of the 42 yearlings to have raced are winners having won 143 races and returned $8,752,505 to date in stakes money (In addition to this the retired mares were sold for $$2,271,600 at Public Auctions on completion of their careers with Prime Thoroughbreds. This takes the gross returns to $11,024,10). The 45 winners collectively were purchased for just $3,387,500 ($75,277 average purchase price).

Seven of the horses I syndicated with Patrick failed to make the grade and win a race. I have been thrilled with Patrick’s handling of our horses and we have been building up a nice team with him.

An impressive part of our story has been 42% (19 of 45) of the winners with Patrick are Stakes, Magic Millions, Inglis Race Series or Metropolitan winners.

He has guided horses like Rubisaki Rubick’s best filly or mare, Quang Tri Shalaa’s 2nd highest earning filly or mare in Australia and Seonee Winning Rupert’s best horse.

Patrick is an outstanding conditioner of horses and probably the best jumps trainer in Australia.

Patrick has done a remarkable job with the colts I have syndicated with him. He does a great job educating them and bringing them through. 13 of the 13 colts I have syndicated with him to race have gone on to win.

Patrick has a big advantage over many of his rivals with outstanding riders educating his team. These include Steve Arnold and Bill Egan.