Extreme Choice—Newgate Farm's subfertile sensation—has done it again, with his son Devil Night's stirring victory in the Feb. 22 Blue Diamond Stakes (G1) once again showcasing the stallion's ballistic siring prowess.
Three months after the ostensibly bloodline-defying Melbourne Cup (G1) triumph of his son Knight's Choice, Extreme Choice raised a fifth top-tier winner when Devil Night gripped on to take Caulfield Racecourse's feature in a thrilling finish.
For the sake of more versatility from his sire, it came in the 1,200-meter (about six-furlong) dash that's the first juvenile group 1 of the season, as Devil Night joined 2022 VRC Oaks (G1) winner She's Extreme, 2023 Coolmore Classic (G1) heroine Espiona, and 2021 Golden Slipper (G1) victor Stay Inside on Extreme Choice's elite honor roll.
Headlining a brilliant day for Yulong, the colt also emulated his sire, who won the Blue Diamond in 2016, with the pair becoming the first stallion-offspring duo to achieve that feat since 2006, when Nadeem (Redoute's Choice) replicated his famed father's, 1999 success in the race.
Bred by Stay Inside's breeders Kingstar Farm out of stakes-winning producer Mischief Night, Devil Night not only won the Blue Diamond as a maiden but became just the fourth horse to win it in his second start—again emulating Redoute's Choice.
His was also a victory validating the sales ring. An AU$1.4 million purchase for Yulong at the 2024 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, he was by far the most expensive runner in the 15-horse field, costing almost three times as much as the next highest.
Yulong's eye for quality has been molded into group 1 success by his trainers Team Hawkes—and a colt who will no doubt become a stallion at Zheng Yuesheng's Victorian farm.
Devil Night debuted only two weeks ago with a fighting half-length second in the Blue Diamond Prelude (G3) behind Field of Play, who started favorite in Saturday's main event.
But aside from a tight finish, the victory that meant so much in one of the country's great stallion-makers came in fairly straightforward fashion.
Devil Night jumped brilliantly and parked off the rump of the anticipated leader, Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott's The Playwright.
With a two-length gap to third, Dee sent Devil Night to the front at the 300 meters, he led by a length at the 100 meters, and under hard riding had just enough in reserve to hold out the flying Godolphin homebred Tentyris and score by a head.
In an all-colts trifecta, the Team Hayes-trained Tycoon Star gave Yulong first and third, while fillies The Playwright and Eden Rose took fourth and fifth, respectively.
Co-trainer Wayne Hawkes paid tribute to Yulong—and the vast fortune Zhang has invested in racing and breeding in recent years—as he reflected on the significance of such a win in the modern racing landscape.
"They (Yulong) certainly pay a lot of money for their horses. They paid a lot of money for this horse at the Magic Millions and to come out and win a Blue Diamond—wow," he told Channel 7.
"I've got to thank Yulong. They've only got five horses with us. It's a great effort and you know what, I just love doing that with the big colts. That's what this game has become now—the big colts division."
Asked about the tense finish, Hawkes said: "I'm not bagging Mick Dee, but he probably could have waited 50 more yards. At the 100 meters I was screaming, 'Where is that winning post!'"
Dee said the race had evolved "a little bit differently than I anticipated".
"I thought there would be a little more pressure than that," he said. "I ended up outside the leader, basically by default. He was a little bit keen, travelled a little bit strong and he fought on well. Luckily he did."
Oakleigh Plate
New Zealand-based stallion Per Incanto brought up his eighth elite winner when Jimmysstar stormed home to take out Saturday's Oakleigh Plate (G1) at Caulfield.
Ridden by Ethan Brown, the Ciaron Maher-trained 5-year-old gelding settled at the rear from barrier 14 of 16, and as the leaders tired near the end of a typically frenetic edition of the time-honored sprint, flew to the line to win by 1 1/4 lengths.
Charlotte Littlefield's favorite She's Bulletproof performed gallantly to take second after providing Jimmysstar's cart into the race in the home straight, three-quarters of a length ahead of Robbie Griffith's Rey Magnerio.
Bred in New Zealand by Pete and Chrissy Algie in partnership with Per Incanto's Little Avondale Stud, Jimmysstar won five of his first six starts before falling foul of punters when twice beaten as a short odds-on favorite in two successive starts, at Flemington and Newcastle, last autumn.
He redeemed himself in the spring with two wins including Caulfield's Weekend Hussler Stakes, and a second in Flemington's Linlithgow Stakes (G2), before showing his versatility first-up Saturday with his eighth victory in 15 starts.
Jimmysstar is one of 12 Australian stakes winners from 183 runners for Per Incanto, a Kentucky-bred son of Street Cry who has 32 from 642 worldwide, and who currently sits at a career-high 13th on the Australian general sires' table, mostly due to the efforts of his son Gringotts.
Per Incanto's lofty position comes from just 80 Australian runners. Of the 12 sires above him coming into Saturday, only the subfertile Extreme Choice had fewer, with 66.
Maher said he was delighted to achieve another group 1 success for his heavyweight owner Ozzie Kheir.
"He is a very special horse. Ozzie Kheir and the team of owners, they're great people," Maher said. "He's got such a following, does Jimmy. I've been patient, he has always shown that sort of ability and Brownie did say to me, 'It's about time', before the race."
Brown said he was stunned by Jimmysstar's finishing burst.
"I haven't had a horse probably go as quick, ever. I'd love to see his sectionals late, he flew late," he said. "What a training performance to have a 1,400-meter horse fresh up in an Oakleigh Plate and run like that, it's quite amazing."
Futurity Stakes
Mr Brightside needed all his guts and determination as he held off a wall of horses to successfully defend his title in Saturday's Futurity Stakes (G1) at Caulfield.
Sent out as the favorite, the 7-year-old kicked clear in the straight under Craig Williams after sitting outside the leader but had to ward off the challengers, first from I Wish I Win who loomed on the outside, and then Tom Kitten. Crossing the line, the official margin was a short head to Tom Kitten with I Wish I Win just a head behind the winner in third.
Ben Hayes, who trains the now nine-time group 1 scorer in partnership with brothers JD and Will, said the stable was lucky to have a horse like Mr Brightside.
"To see him win like that and just get in, it's not good for the heart, but so proud of him," Hayes said.
Craig Williams, who has been aboard Mr Brightside in 38 of his 42 starts, said his confidence never wavered in the horse despite being beaten first up by Another Wil in the Feb. 8 CF Orr Stakes (G1).
"Credit to him, he does all the running," Williams said. "The Hayes boys, Will, JD and Ben, and all the team behind, they present him to me on race days. I can have all these plans and ideas, but I have the confidence in the horse knowing (him) from all the way back to his third-ever race start."
The stable confirmed the All-Star Mile (G1), a race Mr Brightside won in 2023, would be the next target before he heads to Hong Kong for the Champions Mile (G1) April 27.
