Established on the limestone soils of the South Australian coastline, the Watson family’s Mill Park Stud is well-known for producing quality and sound racehorses.
In the past five years, the Watson family’s consignment has churned out the winners of 18 stakes races at an impressive rate of nine per cent stakes winners to yearlings offered.
From relatively small opportunities, over 57 per cent of the farm’s graduates are winners and over 30 per cent have won at metro level or better. While the stud is well-regarded for its quality output, this season has been particularly special for the family-owned operation having celebrated 10 individual stakes performers including four winners of black-type events.
Proven quality
From Caulfield Cup winners to Oakleigh Plate winners, Mill Park Stud has produced no fewer than 19 individual Group 1 winners. In the past five years, one in seven yearlings sold by Mill Park Stud have either won or placed at stakes level and over five per cent of its graduates are winners of Group races.
In the past five years, one in seven yearlings sold by Mill Park Stud have either won or placed at stakes level
Taking a look at sale-specific data for Mill Park Stud it appears that the farm’s most successful consignment is generally across the border at Melbourne’s Inglis Premier Yearling Sale. Astute buyers shopping at Mill Park Stud’s Premier Sale draft are spoilt for choice with the farm offering a stakes performer for every five yearlings sold in the past five years.
Over 20 per cent of the 43 yearlings offered at the Oaklands Junction-based sale are stakes performers including the $3 million earner Dalasan (Dalakhani {Ire}), dual stakes winner Dawn Passage (Dawn Approach {Ire}) and stakes-winning filly Zoushine (Zoustar). Buyers can expect to purchase a stakes performer for every six yearlings offered at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale which includes Twin Hills Stud stallion Peltzer and multiple stakes winner and subsequent $4 million broodmare prospect Away Game (Snitzel).
Mill Park’s stakes performers to yearlings sold
While quality often attracts big money, the cost of securing a well-performed Mill Park Stud graduate won’t necessarily break the bank. In the past five years, the average cost of a Mill Park Stud stakes-performed graduate was $171,000.
The most expensive black-type performer was the $750,000 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale graduate Cerberus (Dundeel {NZ}) who was a stakes-winning 3-year-old, while the cheapest was the multiple stakes winner Ecumenical (Zebedee {GB}) who set back her connections just $14,000 at the 2019 Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling Sale. Over 80 per cent of Mill Park Stud’s stakes-performed graduates cost $300,000 or less and nearly 30 per cent were secured for bargain prices of $100,000 or less.
This season’s notable performers
The latest of the Mill Park Stud-bred stars is the nine-time winning Foxwedge mare Foxy Frida (below) who secured the biggest win of her career when landing the G3 RA Lee S. at Morphettville last month. The Andrew Noblet-trained mare backed up her maiden stakes victory with a decisive win in the lucrative $500,000 Magic Millions National Classic at Eagle Farm at the weekend. The 5-year-old mare has well and truly recouped her $50,000 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale price-tag having accumulated over $1 million in earnings for her connections.
Adding to Mill Park Stud’s exceptional run of late was the 3-year-old filly Party Princess (So You Think {NZ}) who was victorious in last month’s Listed Adelaide Guineas for her trainers Leon Macdonald and Andrew Gluyas. Prior to her breakthrough win, the staying filly was placed in the Listed Clare Lindop S. before a credible G1 Australiasian Oaks performance when she was beaten just over 3l. Most recently the lightly raced filly was third to fellow Mill Park Stud graduate Foxy Frida when tackling open company for the first time in the G3 RA Lee S. She was a $300,000 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling purchase by her trainers and appears to be well on her way to recouping her yearling price-tag, and more.
Earlier in the season, her half-brother Dalasan bolstered his already impressive record with a first-up victory in the Listed Leon Macdonald S. at Morphettville. It was a special victory being the recently retired entire’s first win in almost three years which happened to be in a race named in his trainer’s honour. The multiple Group winner is one of four stakes performers this season for trainers Leon Macdonald and Andrew Gluyas who this season alone have trained 40 per cent of Mill Park Stud’s stakes performers. The $80,000 that Macdonald parted with at the 2018 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale has proved a worthwhile transaction having netted his connections over $3 million during his 41-start career.
Prior to joining the Ash and Amy Yargi training partnership, Mill Park Stud graduate Rebel Racer (Rebel Raider) was a three-time metropolitan winner. Purchased for just $35,000 through Inglis Digital’s January (Early) Online Sale, the Mornington-based duo have added two victories to the 6-year-old gelding’s resume which included an exceptional front running win in the G2 Adelaide Cup held at Morphettville earlier this year. Originally passed in at the 2018 Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling Sale, Rebel Racer has accumulated over $200,000 in earnings in his four starts with the Yargis and the fun doesn’t appear to be over anytime soon.
| Foxy Frida | G3 RA Lee S., 1600m | 2019 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale | $50,000 – Andrew Noblet Racing |
| Party Princess | Listed Adelaide Guineas, 1600m | 2021 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale | $300,000 – Macdonald Gluyas Racing |
| Rebel Racer | G2 Adelaide Cup, 3200m | 2018 Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling Sale | Passed In |
| Dalasan | Listed Leon Macdonald S., 1400m | 2018 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale | $80,000 – L M and P J Macdonald |
Table: Mill Park Stud’s stakes-winning graduates in the 2022/23 season
Looking to the future
Along with the previously mentioned 3-year-olds mixing it in quality stakes events, Mill Park Stud has plenty to look forward to in regards to its 2019 group of sales graduates. From the 38 yearlings offered at public auction in 2021, Mill Park Stud is represented by five individual stakes performers or 13 per cent stakes performers to yearlings sold.
Talented Churchill (Ire) colt Attrition came ever-close to adding further elite victory to Mill Park Stud’s mantelpiece when finishing a credible second in the G1 Australian Guineas behind New Zealand’s super mare Legarto (NZ) (Proisir). Prior to his near Group 1 miss, the Mitchell Freedman-trained colt was a two-time winner and fifth in the G3 CS Hayes S. Racing in the recognisable Halo Racing silks the 3-year-old colt was a relatively inexpensive purchase for his trainer who forked out $180,000 for the exciting colt at the 2021 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale.
Attrition | Image courtesy of Racing Photos
Fellow Churchill-sired graduate Arugamama added valuable black-type to her record when just beaten into third by fellow Mill Park Stud graduate Party Princess in the Listed Clare Lindop Classic at Morphettville. Just two weeks later the flashy chestnut was just beaten in the G3 Auaria S. at the same track. She is one of the four Mill Park Stud stakes performers trained by Leon Macdonald and Andrew Gluyas who parted with $130,000 at the Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling Sale when partnering with Snippets Racing Syndications.
Fellow 2021 yearling graduate Benedetta (Hellbent) put the writing on the wall with a dominant victory in the $750,000 Inglis Sprint at Flemington when defeating her nearest rival by over 3l in March. A $75,000 purchase for her Eales Racing connections at the 2021 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale, the daughter of Hellbent has amassed almost 10 times her purchase price and now has a valuable stakes-placing to her name having placed third in the Listed Sunlight Classic at Flemington before heading to the paddock for a well-deserved break.
| Arugamama | 2nd G3 Auraria S., 1800m, 3rd Listed Claire Lindop Classic, 1600m | 2021 Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling Sale | $130,000 – Macdonald Gluyas Racing/Snippets Racing Syndications |
| Attrition | 2nd G1 Australian Guineas, 1600m | 2021 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale | $180,000 – Mitch Freedman Racing |
| Benedetta | 1st R. Listed Inglis Sprint, 1200m, 3rd Listed Sunlight Classic, 1100m | 2021 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale | $75,000 – Eales Racing Syndications |
| Written Swoosh | 2nd Blue Diamond Preview, 1000m | 2021 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale | $340,000 – Phillip Stokes Racing |
| Party Princess | 1st Listed Adelaide Guineas, 1600m, 2nd Listed Claire Lindop Classic, 1600m, 3rd G3 RA Lee S., 1600m | 2021 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale | $300,000 – Macdonald Gluyas Racing |
Table: 2019 Mill Park Stud stakes-performed graduates
Producing stakes performers across three different crops this season, Mill Park Stud’s reputation for offering quality racehorses that can train on is well and truly testified. With a host of emerging 3-year-olds on show and 30 unraced 2-year-old graduates yet to grace the turf, the Mill Park Stud yearling consignment is sure to attract attention from astute buyers for many years to come.
Copy: Thoroughbred Daily News Aus NZ,
Cover image courtesy of Joan Faras.
