Via Sistina Scores Back-to-Back Ranvet Stakes Victories

Via Sistina (IRE) has again shown why she's the finest import to have landed in Australia with another comfortable romp in the race that kicked it off for her in this country, the Ranvet Stakes (G1). Bought as a yearling in Britain in 2019 for around AU$9,700 and purchased four years later as a group 1 winner by Yulong for AU$5.2 million, Via Sistina has now earned AU$8.55 million in 10 Australian starts. With eight group 1 victories—seven in 12 months in Australia—the 7-year-old Fastnet Rock mare has eclipsed all other imports to have been brought to this country. On March 22 at Rosehill Gardens, Via Sistina turned back the clock a year to her debut Australian performance when, as AU$2.30 favorite, she led in a Ranvet quinella for Yulong-imported European mares in beating Place du Carrousel (IRE) by 1.2 lengths. This time around, again in a six-horse field but at AU$1.22, the Chris Waller-trained mare gave James McDonald a slightly tougher time in the run after settling just behind the pace, but eventually pulled away to beat her stable companion, Lindermann, by 1.53 lengths. Fawkner Park was third. Yulong-owned and Waller-trained Full Count Felicia, a grade 1 winner in North America, finished fourth. "She is a star," Waller said of Via Sistina. "She's a lovely, big, unassuming horse. But come race day, she really turns it on. We don't dare light her up in the mornings because of what she's capable of. Like, she's a real powerhouse. "She's a gentle giant that graces the turf." The first horse to win back-to-back Ranvets since Theseo in 2009-10, Via Sistina is now a raging favorite for the AU$5 million Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G1) April 12. Broadsiding Digs In for Rosehill Guineas Victory As a triple group 1-winning son of the not-returning shuttle sire sensation Too Darn Hot (GB), Broadsiding (AUS)'s future value to the Godolphin-Darley stallion barn was already enshrined. But Saturday at Rosehill it skyrocketed further, when the colt earned another thoroughly deserved elite victory with a desperate, fighting success in the Rosehill Guineas (G1). Jumping from gate 9 of 11 as an easing favorite, he was caught three-wide rounding the first bend before McDonald made a brave move to push up, fortune eventually favoring him with the one-one seat. McDonald pushed his charge to the front at the 280-meter mark and Broadsiding dashed for home. Team Hawkes's Swiftfalcon threatened to make a race of it, but was firmly beaten off, but just as Broadsiding was being hailed the winner Aeliana emerged from behind the ruck. Waller's filly made a flashing charge out wide under Jason Collett, but the Godolphin colt had just enough in reserve for a 0.03-length win, with Swiftfalcon hanging on for third. With Too Darn Hot—champion Australian first-season sire and on target for second-season honors—benched from shuttling duties by owners Darley and Andrew Lloyd Webber, it's often been said that anyone possessing a well-performed colt by the stallion in this country could be sitting on a gold mine. "He's a really important horse for our business," said Godolphin's head Australian trainer James Cummings. "There's a lot to be said for having a colt as classy as Broadsiding ready to take his place on the roster one day." After his meritorious third in his only prior attempt over roughly Saturday's trip in the 2024 Cox Plate (G1), he now has a 2,000-meter (about 1 1/4-mile) group 1 success to confirm his versatility. Cummings said Saturday had been something of an "audition" for Broadsiding to show he still had the hunger to compete, no doubt clouded by having his colors lowered last start when second in the Randwick Guineas (G1). "I'd say there's plenty of desire there to still be on the track fighting out these finishes," Cummings said. "He was good in the Randwick Guineas last time. He's showed he's been brought on by that run, to do so much work and hold on today. "He's a class colt, and class carries you a long way." Gringotts Breaks Through in George Ryder Ciaron Maher was delighted to see Gringotts (NZ) land Saturday's George Ryder Stakes (G1), the 5-year-old gelding's breakthrough win at the elite level in what was just his first crack at group 1 company. "This is fantastic," Maher said. "He trains up at Newcastle on the beach, so I've got to thank James Harding and his team. "Ozzie (Kheir, part-owner) and heaps of the owners are here today. They just continually find these horses. "Him and Jimmysstar, they come into the stable about the same time, by the same stallion (Per Incanto), and they've both won a group 1 at about a similar time. Yeah, rapt for the team, they've done a great job." Winning rider Tommy Berry was also pleased with the victory, and revealed that Maher had been confident of a big run prerace. "He fought hard for this win today," Berry said. "Ciaron said to me in the mounting yard, 'I know the Doncaster is our main aim, but I couldn't have him any better for today.' He turned up and he's just a warhorse. He knows where the line is." Saturday's win was the 10th of Gringotts' career from 20 starts, with the gelding finishing outside the top three placings just twice in his career. He has earned AU$3,670,700 in prize money. Private Harry remains Perfect in Galaxy Darley's dual-hemisphere stallion Harry Angel (IRE) sired his second group 1 winner Saturday when his son Private Harry (IRE) confirmed his status as a top-tier sprinter, extending his perfect record to five in the Galaxy (G1) at Rosehill. Despite not having a stakes victory to his name, the colt had already established himself as a standout 3-year-old when he took out his first city win at Rosehill in December just as stylishly as his first two minor victories at provincial tracks the month previous. His rapid rise was underlined in January with a scintillating success in the Sunshine Coast's inaugural AU$3 million slot race, the non-black-type Sunlight Stakes, defeating last year's Golden Slipper (G1) winner Lady Of Camelot in the process. In the hands of regular rider Ashley Morgan, Private Harry was sent off the favorite Saturday and once again he delivered, issuing his challenge early in the home straight and asserting to beat last year's third Front Page by three-quarters of a length in the 1,100-meter (about 5 1/2-furlong) contest, with a neck back to Uncommon James in third. The Galaxy win marked a group 1 first not only for Private Harry, but also for Morgan, his trainer Nathan Doyle, and his Kurrinda Bloodstock syndicate of owners. Doyle now has major plans for the colt, with a crack at the T.J. Smith Stakes (G1) April 5 his immediate focus. As for the valuable colt's future plans, the prospect of running in the world's richest race on turf—the Everest (G1)—later in the year is now firmly on his agenda. "Ka Ying who?" Doyle joked in reference to Hong Kong's star sprinter Ka Ying Rising (NZ), the current Everest favorite. "No, this is where you want to be, taking on the big boys and I think he deserves his opportunity. So he'll go to the T.J. in a couple of weeks and I'd say he'll be back in the paddock and hopefully go to an Everest." Schwarz Rewards Owners with William Reid Win Rosemont Stud's prolonged investment in colts received a golden dividend when lightly raced million-dollar buy Schwarz (AUS) sealed his place at stud with a storming victory in Moonee Valley's William Reid Stakes (G1). Sent out a second-favorite under Jamie Mott, the John O'Shea and Tom Charlton-trained 4-year-old raced on the pace, saw off the pressure from She's Bulletproof to his outside, and kicked clear in the straight to win by a length. Last-start group 1 winner Jimmysstar rallied home for third as the favorite. Schwarz is one of a host of colts bought in recent years by the Rosemont-led Victorian Alliance. Along with bloodstock agents Suman Hedge and David Redvers, they paid AU$1.25 million for him at Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale in 2022, from the draft of his co-breeders Widden Stud. Named routinely after famous Australian Football League players, the Rosemont colts have had mixed success, though they do include Doull, a AU$1.2 million yearling who became a group 2 winner who's now standing at Rosemont. No title seems better bestowed than Schwarz. Named in honor of former Melbourne hardman David Schwarz, the muscular stallion exudes power, as he showed in Saturday's top-tier breakthrough, which followed two group 2 wins, a group 3 and a listed success amid six wins from 12 starts. And Rosemont and associates were overjoyed Saturday their substantial top-shelf investment was rewarded with a group 1 success which will be a highlight of Schwarz's résumé when he eventually stands at the Geelong stud. "That's an unbelievable performance from a horse that has got an unbelievable pedigree," Rosemont principal Anthony Mithen said. "He's the best-performed colt son of Zoustar there's been. To win a weight-for-age group 1 he's become the winning-most son of Zoustar that's still a colt. He'll go to stud a very attractive prospect. "The fact we paid yearling sale price, not the silly money these stallion syndicates put together, means everyone can enjoy that. That's what this Victorian Alliance was about—giving back to breeders and the breeding scene. It's emotional for a lot of reasons and God bless him."