Pluck has burst from the blocks with a top-notch colt and filly from his second-crop, which were both born and raised at Vinery Stud.
His 2yo enforcer Aspect had the size and the skill to win the Group 3 Maribyrnong Plate (1000m) at Flemington on Saturday. The Tony McEvoy trained colt is the first stakes winner by Pluck and he let down like a horse heading to better races in the autumn.
Pluck filly Lucky Louie (2f Pluck – La Bella Luisa by Clang) was retained to race by owners and is another candidate for The Championships in Sydney after a flashing-light second in the G3 Ottawa Stakes at Flemington on Tuesday. It was her second stakes placing in two starts following a Listed placing at Randwick in the Gimcrack Stakes.
Aspect will go straight for a spell after joining Maribyrnong Plate luminaries Bel Esprit, Testa Rossa, Canny Lad, Rancher and Vain. “He raced like a professional today and went straight as a gun when he got to the front,” McEvoy said. “He will have a break now – the big dances are in the autumn.
“He’s got a beautiful extension of stride and we will set him for the Blue Diamond and Golden Slipper.”
Aspect (2c Pluck – Innishbeg by Lonhro) is a homebred for Peter Robinson and Jean & Jack Stott and they raced her dam to 5 wins in and around Newcastle. She’s a half-sister to Doomben stakes winner Tina Melina and her latest foal is a yearling colt by Vinery sire Testa Rossa.
Winning jockey Kerrin McEvoy was just as expansive as his uncle after weighing in at headquarters. “Aspect gave me a nice feel in a trial here and was even better under race conditions. There’s plenty of upside to him.”
Pluck (More Than Ready) has been on fire in recent weeks. There have been 15 individual winners to date from his first crop making him a value sire for $9,900 (inc GST) at Vinery.
