Savabeel has produced some terrific horses in his time as a sire since he ran his last race in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick back in 2005.
The Chris Waller trained Mo’unga could be the next of them.
Named after New Zealand Rugby Union player Richie Mo’unga, much like Richie being well known in New Zealand Rugby, Mo’unga the horse, is becoming very well known in Australian racing as a potential star in the making.
Whenever Aquis is involved in the ownership, the horse is more than likely to have above average ability. However, this three-year-old colt looks to have way more than that.
The son of Savabeel went into the Listed Dulcify at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday as a very solid favourite coming off a Benchmark 64 win at Newcastle.
He came around the bend at Rosehill in a pocket under jockey James McDonald where he managed to shoulder the horse clear at the 200-metre mark, it was his time to back up the hype surrounding his name.
He got into his work and had his stablemate Global Quest (also owned by Aquis and trained by Chris Waller) in his sights. He levelled up to Global Quest, a horse who ran 2nd in the Silver Slipper to Farnan back in February, and went straight past him to put the Dulcify field away with relative ease over the last 50 metres.
He got better the further he went and being by Savabeel and out of New Zealand mare Chandelier, who stretched out to the mile and 2100 metres in her short career, he should appreciate the extra ground over time.
Emily Bosson, Presenter for Trackside New Zealand and Channel 7 Horse Racing, believes Mo’unga could be a serious star when she spoke on SEN Track’s The Early Crow.
“He looks like a horse that is on the way to some big things, he’s a typical New Zealand bred three-year-old and is only going to improve when he steps up in distance,” she said glowingly.
While he’s nominated for the Group 1 Golden Rose next Saturday over 1400m, he looks set to bypass that field and head towards the Group 3 Gloaming Stakes over 1800m. Beyond that, the Spring Champion Stakes over 2000m at Randwick on October 10 is on the agenda.
It is a pathway that Bosson is all too familiar with. A horse she has had a lot to do with in the past, It’s A Dundeel, took a similar pathway to Mo’unga.
“We’ve seen a number of Kiwi-breds, including a horse I know pretty well (in) It’s A Dundeel, doing that and doing it successfully,” she added.
Mo’unga will next step out in the Gloaming Stakes, in which he is sure to be a short-priced favourite, next weekend at Rosehill Gardens.
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