For Maine Chance Farms, Saturday’s Derby meeting at Kenilworth was one of those days a breeder dreams of, the revered stud farm celebrating a fine Graded stakes treble highlighted by Pomp And Power’s victory in the Gr1 Cape Derby.
Significantly, the chestnut is also a son of resident stallion Vercingetorix, who has seamlessly taken on the mantle of his deceased sire Silvano at the famed Robertson farm.
In fact, as we enter the second half of the racing season, he is leading his own sire at the top of the stallions log.
As for the Derby winner’s female line, it is an Argentinian one and can claim its origin in South Africa to the arrival in 2000 of the filly Paraca.
Pomp And Power wins the Gr1 Jonsson Workwear Cape Derby (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
By Nureyev’s Gr1 winning son Kitwood, she was purchased from successful Argentine stud farm Vacacion by the late maestro Terrance Millard on one of his many buying sorties to that South American country. Her appeal was obvious.
By a French Gr1 winner, her dam Paraguaya was also a half-sister to the exceptional racemare Paseana, a Gr1 winner in her birth country who blossomed into a veritable running machine when sent to the States.
A tough-as-teak galloper she won a further ten Gr1 races, prime amongst which the Gr1 Breeders Cup Distaff.
Voted America’s Champion older mare in both 1992 and 1993, Paseana was by Argentinian Horse of the Year and champion miler Ahmad, who incidentally, had also sired the Millard-selected Ahmatir, a winner of the Gr2 JB McIntosh Fillies Classic and trained by son Tony.
Paraca joined the stable of Millard’s son-in-law Geoff Woodruff and quickly showed her prowess by rattling off two wins in her first two starts, both by handsome margins.
The only blip on her otherwise flawless juvenile campaign was a fourth place in the Gr2 SA Fillies Nursery, after which she captured both the Gr1 Allan Robertson Fillies Championship and Gr2 Thekwini Fillies Stakes, good enough to earn her the title of Champion juvenile filly of 2001.
As a three-year-old, Paraca defeated the likes of Duchess Daba and Crimson Palace in the Gr1 Majorca Stakes and after landing the Gr1 Triple Tiara (now the Gr2 Gauteng Fillies Guineas), she was sold to Australia, where she scored twice at Gr3 level.
Paraca’s success and that of Paseana had not gone unnoticed and by the time Paraca was on her way to Australia, her dam Paraguaya arrived at Maine Chance Farms. A big, plain mare, she was in foal to the Blushing Groom horse Candy Stripes and duly dropped a small filly. That was Peru, who would become the dam of Pomp And Power.
Whilst at Maine Chance, none of Paraguaya’s subsequent foals matched Paraca in ability, although her Western Winter filly Paramo ran second in the Gr3 Magnolia Handicap and when mated to Silvano, produced the Port Elizabeth Gold Cup winner Plano.
As for Peru, she never raced due to stifle problems, but my goodness, hasn’t she made up for that as a broodmare!
Her first foal, one of seven sired by Silvano, got her off to a fine start. A triple Gr3 winner, he was the proverbial meat in the sandwich of his sire’s historical 2015 Durban July trifecta won by Power King, with Tellina completing the all Maine Chance-bred finish.
Punta Arenas
Punta Arenas went on to run third in the Gr1 J&B Met and was still winning at age seven! Full brother Palo Alto proved just as durable, racking up eight wins from ages three to six.
While Pomp And Power is Peru’s second stakes winner, there may well be a third one in the pipeline, this his juvenile full sister Pucallpa, who put up a scintillating debut when she flew up for third in the Gr3 Kenilworth Fillies Nursery on Saturday.
Pucallpa proved to be her dam’s final foal and wisely, was retained by the stud. She looks assured of a place as a future Maine Chance broodmare and based on her fine debut run, will not be lingering in the maiden ranks for long!
