Saturday’s Gr3 SplashOut Victress Stakes winner Saartjie has established herself as a very attractive future broodmare prospect.
Winner of the Listed Schweppes Cape Oaks earlier in the year, Saartjie added further gloss to her resume when landing the first graded win of her career at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Saturday.
Saartjie has established herself as a very attractive future broodmare prospect (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
She is one of more than 80 stakes winners sired by former Horse Of The Year Dynasty (also sire of Saturday’s Victress runner up Happy Chance), whose broodmare daughters have already produced the 2022 Gr1 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas winner (Charles Dickens) and 2023 Gr1 World Sports Betting Cape Fillies Guineas winner (Beach Bomb) among others.
Dynasty’s champion daughter Beach Beauty has proved singularly successful at stud, having produced recent Cape Fillies Guineas winner Beach Bomb and fellow graded stakes winners Amanzimtoti and Wild Coast.
The well-bred Saartjie is out of a classy performer in the shape of Shaama (Redoute’s Choice). The latter showed considerable promise at two when winning on debut, before finishing second, beaten just a length, in the Gr1 SA Nursery.
Shaama was one of two daughters of the late Redoute’s Choice to produce a graded stakes winner at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Saturday, with Redoute’s Choice mare Lady Redoute responsible for surprise Gr3 Ridgemont Peninsula Handicap winner Master Redoute (Querari).
To date, daughters of Redoute’s Choice have produced more than 150 stakes winners, including the hugely successful sire Zoustar (Northern Meteor) and dual South African Gr1 winner Linebacker (Captain Of All).
Shaama, a three-parts sister to Australian Gr3 winner Jazz Song (also sired by a son of Danehill), is out of Gr1 Winter Stakes winner Absolut Glam (Snowland), with the latter hailing from an exceptional female line.
Absolut Glam, and thus Saartjie and Shaama, is directly descended in female line from US champion Nellie Morse (Luke McLuke). The latter was one of four fillies to win the Gr1 Preakness Stakes, second leg of the US Triple Crown.
Nellie Morse, unlike some of her Preakness Stakes winning counterparts, founded a dynasty at stud.
Her daughter Nellie Flag (American Flag), ancestress of Absolut Glam, was an American champion who, remarkably, emulated her dam in producing a champion in the form of Mar-Kell (Blenheim II).
The latter, Champion Older Female in 1943, produced Santa Anita Handicap/ American Derby winner Mark-Ye-Well.
Among the numerous stars descended in female line from the aforementioned Mar-Kell are Japanese Gr1 winners Admire Don, Harp Star, and Vega, as well as Florida Derby winner Eastern Fleet.
Saartjie (Corne Orffer) gets the better of Richard Fourie and the determined Happy Chance (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
Mar-Kell also ranks as the ancestress of former South African champion sire Trippi, whose progeny include the likes of Jet Dark, Charles Dickens, Inara, Winchester Mansion, Trip Of Fortune and Saturday’s Gr1 Cape Guineas third place getter Hluhluwe.
Trippi’s fifth dam is Mar-Kell’s daughter Amoret (Bull Lea).
Saartjie’s ancestress Nellie Flag also ranks as ancestress of three times US Horse Of The Year Forego (Forli), one of the greatest horses to grace the American turf, while other notable US stars descended in female line from Nellie Flag are Kentucky Derby/Belmont Stakes winner Bold Forbes, and Belmont Stakes hero Bet Twice.
