The Gr.1 march of the Mike & Paul Moroney-trained Monaco Consul (NZ) continued in the manner it began on Saturday, with an all too slick performance being dished out by the High Chaparral colt in Australia's time honoured classic, the Gr.1 AAMI Victoria Derby (2500m) at Flemington.
Photo by Racing and Sports
Sent to Australia with one win to his name from 4 outings, Monaco Consul (NZ) was quick to repay the sizeable faith of his trainers, authoritatively winning the Gr.1 Spring Champion Stakes (2000m) on debut.
Remarkably the win would come after a relatively light preparation curtailed by a hock injury incurred at his previous start at Ruakaka when second.
Despite this, confidence was high in the Moroney camp upon Victorian transfer 3 weeks later.
“We galloped him with the two time Gr.1 WFA winner Sarrera on the Monday before leaving and he put him away easily,” said Paul Moroney.
“I told Mike about this, so we were very confident about how he'd go against his own age group”
“When he did win the Spring Champion Stakes that Saturday, we learnt just how clean winded he must be and this was a big piece of knowledge"
In keeping with the European training techniques learned by Paul in his many trips to the Northern hemisphere, Monaco Consul (NZ) was unseen on the racetrack in the four weeks that followed.
“We knew after the Spring Champion Stakes that he didn't need the extra starts leading up to the Derby,” said Moroney.
Although an initial concern to jockey Corey Brown, Monaco Consul (NZ) endorsed the break with utter conviction in his classic attempt, settling well near the rear before launching a brilliant home straight attack.
Igniting a superior turn of foot, Monaco Consul (NZ) swept down the middle of the track and after reeling in Extra Zero, pulled away for a comfortable one length win.
The win would serve as the second Moroney-trained galloper in the race for co-owner and long time stable supporter, Gerard Peterson, who tasted his first win in the event with Second Coming (NZ) in 1997.
Interestingly, haven bought into the horse at age five, Second Coming (NZ) was also among the racehorses to have been owned by Monaco Consul's fellow owner, Owen Glenn – a prominent NZ business entrepreneur who has recently showed his support for the NZ thoroughbred industry with a shareholding investment in Matamata's Blandford Lodge.
All told, Monaco Consul (NZ) has won 3 of his six starts and looks to have the world at his feet given his Australian Gr.1 triumphs on both heavy and good track conditions.
Rated as the best horse since New Zealand's two-time 'Horse of the Year' Xcellent (NZ) stepped through their stable, Monaco Consul has to date enumerated his talent with NZ$9,800 and A$1,080,000 in earnings.
A shining example of Paul Moroney's 23 individual Gr.1 winners purchased at auction, Monaco Consul (NZ) was acquired fromWindsor Park Stud's 2008 NZB Select Yearling Sale draft for $100,000.
“He was an absolute stunning athlete. A real aristocratic looking thoroughbred with scope and presence,” Moroney recalled.
“He and the Cox Plate winner So You Think were what we thought were the two best High Chaparrals at Karaka that year, but with So You Think having a slight question mark over the interpretation of his x-rays -which the Vet thought would be fine, we were pretty happy with the one we got ”
“He's one out of the box alright,”
Looking ahead, plans are unfixed for the dual Gr.1 winner.
“If this hadn't been the first year they'd removed the clause of the Derby winner gaining automatic entry into the Melbourne Cup, I would have encouraged his owners to pay up for Tuesday” said Moroney.
“As things stand, nothing has been decided on, but it would be a safe guess to say he'll come back to New Zealand shortly and be spelled for 2-3 weeks.
“After numerous trips to Europe in my mid-20 and 30's, I've learned the best way to train a colt is to keep them in-hand, so after this short break he'll return to Ballymore Stable, where we'll start thinking about a mid-summer-autumn campaign probably involving the NZ Derby and Sydney later on”
A Windsor Park Stud-bred product through and through, Monaco Consul (NZ) heralds from the first crop of the Sadler's Well's sire High Chaparral, who currently leads the Australian General Sires premiership, and is out of Star Way mare Argante.
To date, High Chaparral has produced 104 winners for 16 stakes winners, with the leading lights here also including the Gr.1 Cox Plate hero So You Think (Gr.1), Shoot Out (Gr.2) and The Miniver Rose (Gr.2).
Alternatively, Argante (NZ) is the bearer of three winners from six to race and is well distinguished on the pedigree page with the presence of a dual Gr.1 winning half-sibling Military Plume (NZ) (Sir Tristram) and with a brother Con Air (Star Way), who raced with black-type distinction in Singapore.
