Patrons at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Sunday were treated to a fine display of frontrunning power from newly-turned four-year-old Addabar, who has kicked off the new season with a quick back-to-back double.
The upwardly mobile gelding is a first-crop son of former Summerhill stallion Rabada and is also a half-brother to the Sean Tarry-trained duo of Under Your Spell and Witchcraft.
The former won the Gr1 Allan Robertson Championship at two, the Gr2 WSB Fillies at three and the Gr2 Hawaii Stakes at four, whilst Witchcraft twice captured the Gr3 Track And Ball Oaks.
Power galloper Addabar streaks home under Calvin Habib on Sunday
To no one’s surprise, trainer MJ Odendaal made no secret of his regard for Addabar, who defeated a field of seasoned rivals to score for the third time from just seven starts.
“Thanks to Uncle Braam. He picked him. He named him. I thought he had improved four to five lengths from his last start – just shows these old hands are still working! Look, I have always held this fellow in high regard – he is a horse that will be worth ‘Benjamins’ and that’s the language we will talk,” added the veteran former champion jockey, who wished the Tretheweys well with Rabada.
“I shouldn’t say it, I should go out and buy them all – he’s clearly an underrated stallion. Mr Puller had a nice winner the other day. The Azzies have a nice one. I have one. That’s from few mares. Be with them!”
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As for his sire, the demise of Summerhill dramatically sadly changed the fortunes of Rabada, a lack of support being a prime hurdle.
Bred at the famed stud, Rabada entered stud at his birthplace in 2018 as a dual Gr1 winner of the Premiers Champion Stakes at two and the Daily News 2000 at three.
Notwithstanding these credentials, the handsome son of Brave Tin Soldier covered less than 30 mares in his first season, the majority of which were Summerhill mares.
The magnificent Rabada
By the time the stud changed hands, Rabada’s first foals were on the ground and he had covered a slightly increased second book of 33 mares. With no runners yet to show his powers and his racing career a fading memory, the fourth season at stud is a dreaded one for any stallion and so it proved for Rabada. Support had dwindled to just a dozen mares in 2022, when he had moved to Bloomhill Stud near Wartburg.
However, Rabada is living up to the adage “quality over quantity”, for in addition to Addabar, he also counts the stakes-placed Zatara Magic and Ermelo amongst his runners.
The former, a Gavin Smith-trained half-brother to multiple stakes winner Jaeger Moon, ran third in the Listed Ibhayi Stakes and just the other day notched up a facile third win.
Ermelo, a homebred for small-time KZN breeder Tommy Crowe, is trained by trainer Doug Campbell.
Rabada son Ermelo – one for the notebook (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)
A strapping individual who has to be loaded with a hood, built on back-to-back wins last season to run third in the Listed Gatecrasher Stakes at Hollywoodbets Greyville.
Since plagued by bad luck, he missed the Gr2 Durban Golden Horseshoe due to a bruised foot and was withdrawn from the Gr1 Premiers Champion Stakes after breaking through the pens.
Although Doug was hugely disappointed with the turn of events, he remains philisophical: “Maybe it was a blessing. He’s a big strong horse and is only now growing into his frame. Besides, as Mick Goss said to me, he will come into his own at three.”
That said, the gelding can be a bit of a handful. “He’s highly strung and I have to work him first,” before adding. “He does things so easy and likes to get on with business. He knows he’s special.”
There’s no doubt that Doug rates the three-year-old highly and will be chasing more black type with his talented three-year-old.
Another to keep an eye on is
Summerhill-bred Soldier’s Eye, who like Ermelo, hails from Rabada’s second crop. This Marwing-trained filly reeled off two successive wins as a juvenile and was not disgraced when fifth in the Gr1 Douglas Whyte Stakes on HKJC World Pools Gold Cup day. She recently started her three-year-old campaign on a promising note when second, beaten a longhead, at Hollywoodbets Scottsville
More to the point, Addabar’s fine effort last weekend was met with delight by Bloomhill owner Sandra Trethewey, who has just welcomed the first foal of the breeding season, a colt by Rabada out of dual winner Deep River Woman.
Asked how support for Rabada is going, she replied: “We have 10 mares booked to him right now, which is disappointing, considering he’s punching above his weight from limited numbers.
“Also, to my horror I discovered that he was inadvertently left out of the 2023 Stallions Book, so I said to my husband, in that case, we need to bring him to the people. I have spoken to Gold Circle and we may just take him down to Summerveld for a stallion day during the weekend of 16 September. The idea is to parade both him, and some of his progeny in training, including Addabar.”
Bloomhill’s Sandra Trethewey – excited about Rabada’s prospects
For now, Sandra is looking forward to the birth of another Rabada foal, this one out of her Gr3-placed mare Me Too. By Gimmethegreenlight, she hails from the family of champion Rock Opera and the Gr1 winners Van Halen and Gulf Storm.
For those interested in sending a mare to Rabada, his covering fee this season is R10,000, payable on the birth of a live foal.
His only representative at the recent August 2YO Sale, bred by Blue Sky Thoroughbreds and a first foal for dam Just Chaos, who won four races including a Listed, sold for R140 000.
Standing at Sandra Trethewey’s Wartburg stud farm, Rabada will be presented to the public on 16 September. A venue will be announced. Be sure to save the date.
