MORE Than Ready has an opportunity to join former Newhaven Park Stud legend Wilkes as the third most successful Golden Slipper sire in the race’s rich history behind icons Star Kingdom and Danehill.

Currently, More Than Ready is tied with a handful of greats credited with two Golden Slipper winners; in his case, Sebring in 2008 followed 12 months later by Queenslander Phelan Ready.

Following those, the Vinery resident sired placegetters Samaready, Elite Falls and More Strawberries in consecutive years.

“We saw Star Kingdom dominate the first part of the Golden Slipper era and then Danehill the second part and now we are starting to see new ones coming through like More Than Ready and Elusive Quality and others so its quite interesting,” Vinery Stud general manager Peter Orton said.

“We were always hopeful that More Than Ready would have a presence here because he had the perfect pedigree and the perfect physique that was going to work well with our bloodlines so to see him do so well and so broadly and to get Golden Slipper winners is fantastic.

“More Than Ready is one of the few horses that is successful in both hemispsheres. He is profficent on turf and on dirt and on heavy tracks and artificial tracks, he’s just such a great all-round horse and a lot to offer.

“He has sons at stud that are doing well (including Sebring), his daughters are producing Group 1 horses (Miracles of Life, Rebel Dane, Atlante) so he has done what we’d hoped he would but the level that he has gone to is very exciting,” says Orton.

More Than Ready’s chances of a third Golden Slipper rest with Shadwell Stud owned/bred filly Haybah and the Mick Price trained Ready For Victory to whom Orton has a leaning.

“Ready For Victory is a nice horse,” Orton says,” I think he’s still a little bit green and would have to be regarded as an immature horse coming into the Slipper but he’s obviously got serious potential.

“Mick has had great success with the More Than Ready’s – Samaready, Perfectly Ready – they are two Group 1 winners by the stallion and he’s good at getting two-year-olds to run up to their best.”