THE progeny of Vinery’s first season sire Congrats continue to shine in the USA with 75% winners to runners and a new Stakes double on the weekend.
The aptly-named I’m Steppin’ It Up made it back to back stakes wins when he added the Chief Tamanaco Stakes (1600m) to his blossoming record while at the same time Oligarch won Miama’s Tropical Park Derby (1700m) on the turf.
I’m Steppin’ it Up was already a stakeswinner, whereas Oligarch has become Congrats’ sixth individual stakeswinner from his now famous debut crop.
Congrats’ first crop included;
*2 Grade One winners
*4 Grade One performers
*16 stakes performers
*75% first crop winners to runners (66 winner’s from 88 runners out of foal crop of 114 – currently 3yo’s)
*22 individiual 2YO winners
Those epic numbers catapulted him to Champion First Season Sire honours in the he USA in 2010 ahead of fellow A.P Indy shuttler, Bernadini.
Since then, Congrats’ second two-year-old crop has followed in a similar vein, showing all the precocity and speed of their older relations.
Just as importantly, says Vinery’s Adam White, Congrat’s 2YO’s of last season continue to make their presence felt throughout their 3YO season.
”Obviously with Congrats being the Leading First Season Sire over there it was clear that he was able to sire fast and precocious stock,” White began.
”But to be an all round stallion they have to be able to train-on and they are doing that.
”We saw the same with More Than Ready here in Australia. He has twice been our Champion Sire of 2YO’s but the fact that his progeny train on, as witnessed yesterday by More Joyous, and win as older horses and up to and past a mile has been integral to his success.”
Congrats is currently working his way through an outstanding book of mares at Vinery Stud.
”When those resulting foals, weanling and yearlings go the sale ring, they will all have the added advantage of being by a proven sire,” White said, ”and the way he is going, he is bound to be even more so by the time his first Australian foals start arriving.”
