Swettenham Stud

THE already outstanding merit of the family that produced Kaphero, one of the young sires at Adam Sangster’s Swettenham stud in Victoria, was added to when his three-quarter Redoute’s Choice brother Columbus won on debut at Flemington on Saturday.

2009 MM Yearling      Columbus

He is the sixth winner for the first class Centaine sprinter-miler Kapchat, herself a winner of six races, including the Group 1 STC Winfield Classic and Group 2 MVRC Laurent Perrier, and runner up in the MRC Thousand Guineas, VRC Edward Manifold Stakes and AJC Surround Stakes.

In earning $800,000, the eye catching bay Kaphero won ten metropolitan sprint races. He took out three of his first four starts at two, including the MRC Blue Diamond Preview and the Adelaide Magic Millions (by four lengths), and later succeeded in five successive races as favourite in Melbourne, including the MVRC Ian McEwen Stakes. The fifth of the sequence, the McEwen, was followed at his next outing by a half length third as favourite in the Group1 Manikato at Moonee Valley.

Kaphero, Columbus and the other foals out of Kapchat have maintained the tradition of the immediate family for continually throwing up good horses. Kapchat is one of two stakes winners from Kapelle Lady, a good class New Zealand performer who was a half-sister to Hunza, a Pakistan VRC Bloodhorse Breeders’ Plate winner and wonderful matriarch.

Hunza produced eight winners including champion Courtza (by Pompeii Court; won both the Golden Slipper and Blue Diamond, also the Ascot Vale Stakes), her brothers Our Pompeii (seven wins including the Adelaide Cup twice, South Australian Derby, Sandown Cup) and Hunza Court (five wins, VRC Chester Manifold Stakes, second MVRC  C.S. Hayes Stakes) and half-brothers Lost Valley (16 wins, STC Canterbury Cup), Fixed Flush (15 wins, BATC Doomben Stakes, Townsville Cup) and Hunza’s Ace (13 wins, third VRC Australian Guineas).

Courtza has added a new dimension to the family in producing to Last Tycoon the dual Group 1 winner and VRC Australian Guineas second O’Reilly. He is now one of New Zealand’s best sires.

It is family which has made a big contribution to both Australia and New Zealand, tracing back to Kriemhild (Kaphero’s sixth dam), a sister to Wotan (won Melbourne Cup), Peter Jackson (two New Zealand St Legers, Moonee Valley Cup) and Gaine Carrington (Caulfield Cup, dead heat third Melbourne Cup).Their grandam Lovelorn is ancestress of Danzero.

Available for use in 2010 at a fee of $11,000 or in Swettenham’s early booking reward, $7,000, Kaphero started his stud career last year with a book of 75, only three of which have been returned as missing.

June 8, 2010  … Posted by Brian Russell