Widely-travelled trainer Matt Dunn is a modern-day Highwayman courtesy of country raiders like Saturday’s Randwick winner and Vinery raised Belvedere Boys.
Dunn is based at Murwillumbah and is getting close to 40 wins in Highway Hcps. His combination with jockey Nash Rawiller is just as potent – they claimed a 10th Highway together when Belvedere Boys (Maurice) bolted in by four lengths from Dirty Merchant (Merchant Navy). He relished a deteriorating surface that led to the last two races on the Group 1 All-Aged Stakes card being abandoned.
Unraced until he was a winter 3yo, Belvedere Boys won a Doomben maiden second time out last August and returned with a first-up victory on a Soft 7 at Doomben in January. Sent to Sydney, he landed a Rosehill Highway in February and doubled up at Randwick to improve his overall winning strike-rate to 50%.
“The big track suited him today,” Dunn said. “We were hoping he would qualify for the ($1million) Country Championships Final (1400m) here a fortnight ago but he’s still lightly raced and I felt he needed a bit more time.”
Vinery Stud (as agent) offered Belvedere Boys for sale at the 2021 Gold Coast Magic Millions National Yearling Sale but he failed to make a $100,000 reserve set by breeders Marc and Cherilyn Lowe. They took him back home and haven’t regretted organising a syndicate among family and friends with prizemoney of $184,150 already in the bank after just 8 starts.
The Queensland couple had sold his older half-sister Frolic (Husson) through Vinery for $100,000 at the 2016 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale and she won the 2017 Inglis Classic (RL, 1200m) and Reisling Stakes (Gr.2, 1200m) at Randwick before finishing second to She Will Reign (Manhattan Rain) in that year’s Group 1 Golden Slipper.
Their dam Leveller (Redoute’s Choice) won a TBV Stakes (Gr.3, 1200m) at Flemington in 2005 when Graham Rogerson was training for Lloyd Williams. Her final foal is a yearling colt by All Too Hard.
Vinery stallion Star Turn has also won Highways with the Dunn-trained stablemates Tribeca Star and Derry Grove while Scone trainer Brett Cavanough prepared Star Turn mare Once Again My Girl to a record-breaking Randwick Highway victory last month.
