Each year I offer a couple of Weanling Syndications to the market. These have been highly successful with 8 of the last 10 purchased from the Magic Millions National Weanling Sale being winners including the three time Listed placed filly Flattered (2yo), Metropolitan winning gelding Power Of The Brave (3yo) and two time winner Emmadella (3yo).

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 sits in 5th position on the Australian Second Season Sire’s List.

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 37 of the 48 yearlings to have raced are winners having won 121 races and returned $7,733,110 to date in stakes money (In addition to this the retired mares were sold for $1,864,500 in Public Auctions on completion of their careers with Prime Thoroughbreds. This takes the gross returns to $9,597,610). The 36 winners collectively were purchased for just $2,537,500 ($68,581 average purchase price).

6 of the 36 winners are still racing in our team. I expect Flattered, Xaphan, Oh So Thrilling and Hell Of A Trip which have raced but not won to win races. This would see us having 41 winners from the first 48 horses to race with Patrick (85%).

The current value of the six still in our team is probably greater than the combined purchase price of all the winners to have raced with Seonee Birdies Galore and The Devil In Her and Flattered valuable breeding propositions.

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 48.6% (18 of 37) 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.