Professional Man (4g Royal Academy – Mi Signora by Mi Preferido) – the product of a Cloughmore recommended mating – scored an easy win in yesterday’s Yang di Pertua Negeri Gold Cup.
According to the report posted on www.turfonline.com , the Kevin Coetzee trained runner failed to settle early in the 2200m event but after running midfield was too strong for his opposition in the straight. This latest success was his fifth from only six starts and was his first attempt at a distance in excess of 1700m.
Professional Man was bred by Terry Archer and his success represents a welcome change of fortune for Mi Signora. A very useful SP sprinter, her earlier fillies by Zabeel and Stravinsky both failed to win and a Stravinsky gelding, Stravar, won one race in the South Island. The Royal Academy mating was something of a last resort as the mare was clearly not passing on her own speed even when mated to one of the best sprinters of his generation. The attraction of Royal Academy was his consistency and his ability to sire runners at a variety of distances, my theory being that if the mare couldn’t leave sprinters she just might be able to produce a decent horse which could run over ground. I was aware that Royal Academy had done well with some mares strong in Bold Ruler, but in this case I wasn’t at all sure what Mi Signora was throwing to.
This black type victory has rounded off a pleasing year, being the 40th win and the third stakes success for Cloughmore. Promising performers for the future include Align to Infinity, Leica Scotch, Cadonna and the South Island based fillies Kay’s Dream and Brown Eyed Grace so let’s hope luck goes our way.
