The smashing 3yo Zapatillas (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)
Varsfontein Stud’s perpetual efforts to upgrade the quality of its broodmare band paid off in spectacular fashion, judging by racecourse results over the past week.
Master Of My Fate colt Zapatillas became a classic winner with a thrilling, last gasp victory in the Gr2 World Sports Betting Guineas at Hollywoodbets Greyville, exactly a week after his Gimmethegreenlight juvenile half-brother Shoemaker stretched his record to two from two with an impressive, come-from-behind victory over a mile at Turffontein.
The siblings are out of the stud’s Mogok mare Moggytwoshoes, whose R80 000 purchase price is starting to look exceedingly cheap.
Zapatillas’ Mom Moggytwoshoes in action
As Varsfontein’s Susan Rowett recalls: “We purchased her off the fillies for stud session held straight after the 2YO Sale back in 2015. A tough race filly, she was trained by Louis Goosen and although quite hard-raced, was in really good condition.”
Not only was Moggytwoshoes a high quality individual, “one I liked from the beginning,” according to the stud’s manager Carl de Vos, she was also a five-time winner and had earned small black type when third behind stable companion Negev and SA Oaks winner Ilha Bela in the Listed Syringa Handicap over a mile.
Her attraction further lay in the fact that Varsfontein already owned her close relative, the dual Graded stakes winner Townsend, whose half-brother, the Gr1 Champions Challenge winner Regal Ransom, was sired by former Varsfontein stalwart Caesour.
Townsend’s dam was Dominion Royale mare Palace Gossip, an eight-time winning sprinter with a string of Graded and Listed stakes places to her name. She was bred by Avontuur Stud from the winning Tilden mare Island Aloah, as is Dame Of Damascus, the dam of Moggytwoshoes.
Avontuur Stud founder, the late Tony Taberer, bred Island Aloah in Zimbabwe from the excellent racemare Island Farewell. By Jamaico, this nine-time winner burned up the Zimbabwean racetracks, claiming the Zimbabwe Oaks and a pair of Guineas.
While Townsend was first to add to the family fortunes – she produced Gr1 Gold Medallion winner Eden Roc – it hasn’t taken long for Varsfontein’s purchase of Moggytwoshoes to be vindicated.
The Gr2 Odessa Fillies Championship winner Townsend
Zapatillas is her second foal and it speaks volumes that at the recent National Sale, his yearling full brother was snapped up by Mike de Kock, the trainer of Shoemaker.
Zapatillas joins the admirable Twist Of Fate as his sire’s second winner of this Gr2 Classic and likewise, will be in the hunt for Gr1 glory. The latter went on to finish third in the July, which is also a target for the Crawford-trained colt. From what we have seen of Shoemaker, he too, shapes like a potential black type winner.
Varsfontein meanwhile will be hoping lightning strikes again, as Moggytwoshoes has become a regular consort to Master Of My Fate. She produced a filly to him last spring and is once again in foal to the son of Jet Master.
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