Cover image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Tony Pike had regarded his O’Reilly (NZ) filly Sancerre (NZ) as a genuine Queensland Oaks prospect in the autumn of 2014.
He shipped her to Queensland and she was impressive enough winning restricted races at the Sunshine Coast and Ipswich to be sent out an $8 chance in that year’s Queensland Oaks.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to replicate the feats of her own mum Vouvray (NZ) (Zabeel {NZ}), who had won the race 10 years earlier, and after winding up 17th of 18, Sancerre was sent for a lengthy spell.
Oddly enough she returned as a 4-year-old and took more to sprinting, winning over 1200 metres before returning to Brisbane, but after failing in the G3 Glenlogan Park Stud S., she was retired.
Sancerre (NZ) | Image courtesy of Trish Dunell
Both Vouvray and Sancerre were raced by Cherry and Brent Taylor’s Trelawney Stud.
The couple have naturally celebrated Sancerre’s daughter Pride Of Jenni’s (Pride Of Dubai) success over the last six months wholeheartedly.
It reached a crescendo on Saturday when Declan Bates guided the Ciaron Maher-trained mare to a 6.5l romp in the G1 Queen Elizabeth S., a race Vouvray ran fourth in behind Grand Armee (Hennessy {USA}) in 2005.
Cherry and Brent Taylor | Image courtesy of Race Images
“I was in tears the other day. I was so proud of her,” Cherry Taylor admits.
“All of our staff who work with these horses all the time, it’s all about them and what they put in and they are all so incredibly proud of her as well.
“We’ve had 34 individual Group 1 winners off the farm since we’ve been there and they’ve won 59 Group 1 races between them. We are very, very lucky.
“We’ve (Trelawny Stud) had 34 individual Group 1 winners off the farm since we’ve been there and they’ve won 59 Group 1 races between them. We are very, very lucky.” - Cherry Taylor
“I would have to say that even though (Trelawney-bred) Ocean Park won five Group 1 races and won a Cox Plate, that race (Queen Elizabeth) was better than any of them.
“It’s so good for the whole industry everywhere to see a horse like that. People notice it and talk about it and that’s great for everybody.”
The Segenhoe link
Pride Of Jenni was born at Segenhoe Stud in the Hunter Valley in 2017 after the Taylors picked out Coolmore stallion Pride Of Dubai as a suitable match for Sancerre a year earlier after making their annual stallion inspections.
“Brent and I always go to Australia and look at the stallions around the end of August and do our matings. We never make our minds up until we see the horses and we just really liked him,” Taylor said.
“We thought he would be a perfect fit for Sancerre. It worked physically for us. She is a beautiful type of horse, so physically it was a good mating. Somehow now it’s a good mating on paper too!”
Pride Of Dubai | Image courtesy of Coolmore
The Taylors have been close friends with Segenhoe Stud’s Peter O’Brien for many years and that’s where their mares stay when in Australia.
“It’s just worked for us. We get them in foal, we leave them there, they have a foal there, then we get them back in foal,” Taylor said.
“Once they are about 30 days in foal, we put them on the plane with the foal at foot and bring them home and rear them. We like to rear our foals at home ourselves.
“That’s what we did with her and she was in foal to I Am Invincible when she travelled home, with Pride Of Jenni at foot.”
Peter O' Brien | Image courtesy of Inglis
O’ Brien watched Saturday’s Queen Elizabeth S. while enjoying being a spectator at a local rugby match in Terrigal, NSW.
“I watched it with a lot of people who wouldn’t know racing. I may have interrupted the match!” O’ Brien said.
“I can tell you the whole of Terrigal Rugby Club were talking about it after the race. And the mad man who was screaming at the screen.
“I can tell you the whole of Terrigal Rugby Club were talking about it after the race (Queen Elizabeth S.). And the mad man who was screaming at the screen.” - Peter O' Brien
“I was around for Vo Rogue (Ivor Prince {USA}) and the hair stands up on the back of your head. Those front runners, particularly Saturday the way she did it, was incredible.
“That’s the most exciting race I’ve ever seen. It was just fantastic to see.
“It was incredibly special. Brent and Cherry are close friends. They are terrific breeders, pound for pound they are nearly the best breeders in Australasia.”
As a yearling, Pride Of Jenni returned to Australia to be sold through Segenhoe’s draft at the 2019 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale. She made $100,000 to Tony Ottobre, a figure the Taylors were disappointed with at the time.
“But when we take our horses to any sale, we sell them. That’s our view,” Taylor said. “We just put $100,000 on her, we thought she’d make more than that, but John McArdle bought her on behalf of Tony Ottobre for $100,000.”
Pride Of Jenni as a yearling | Image courtesy of Inglis
O’Brien described Pride Of Jenni as a beautiful foal when she was born and then as a yearling, she still possessed a great temperament.
“As a foal she looked like a good horse, as a yearling she looked like she needed time, which is what she was given by Tony,” O’ Brien said.
“She just means everything to Tony and Lynn. And also for Brent and Cherry. They’ve bred a potential Horse of the Year, which is not easy to do.”
Horse of the Year contender and Cox Plate dreaming
The Queen Elizabeth gave Pride Of Jenni a third Group 1 win for the season, in addition to The All Star Mile and put her firmly in Horse of the Year calculations, a conversation that also includes the New Zealand-trained speedster Imperatriz (I Am Invincible).
“I absolutely love Imperatriz, I love her as a racehorse, I think she’s beautiful, I’ve always loved her, I think she’s a superstar, but of course I’d love my horse to win Horse of the Year. That wouldn’t worry me at all!” Taylor said.
“I don’t know what will happen, it’s obviously voted on and will be whatever it is, but they are both great mares and it would be fair for either one of them to win.”
Imperatriz | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Trelawney Stud has proudly produced two Cox Plate winners already - the aforementioned Ocean Park (NZ) and also a little neddy named Tulloch (NZ) (Khorassan {Ire}) - and it’s the race Ciaron Maher has highlighted as the obvious spring target for Pride Of Jenni, who turns seven in August.
Now the Taylors are daring to believe Pride Of Jenni might become the third – and if she’s there making a tilt on the race in October, there is no way Cherry won’t be there to cheer her on.
“I absolutely love Imperatriz, I love her as a racehorse, I think she’s beautiful, I’ve always loved her, I think she’s a superstar, but of course I’d love my horse to win Horse of the Year. That wouldn’t worry me at all!” - Cherry Taylor
“We’ve actually only seen (Pride Of Jenni win) one on track and that was the Empire Rose because we happened to be there that day,” Taylor said.
“Unfortunately we haven’t been able to see any of the others.
“But if she runs in the Cox Plate, I’m definitely going!
“I remember saying to my husband when Ocean Park was running in the Cox Plate, I said ‘I’m going whether you do or not!’
“The farm bred Tulloch. That’s two Cox Plate winners. It would be nice to get a third.”
“The farm (Trelawney Stud) bred Tulloch. That’s two Cox Plate winners. It would be nice to get a third.” - Cherry Taylor
Late bloomer
Pride Of Jenni is now the veteran of 29 starts.
The last six runs have all produced superior ratings to anything she did in her first 23 starts, according to ratings specialist Daniel O’Sullivan, of The Ratings Bureau and BetSmart.
While he conceded it’s highly unusual for a top-class horse not to show up a big number earlier than Pride Of Jenni did, it’s not a lone occurrence when he delves into the recent history of his Weight-for-age Performance Ratings (WPRs).
Pride Of Jenni | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“At her 22nd start, she ran 99.8. Prior to that 98.2 was her best. At starts 24 to 29 she has gone to a new level, including a 107.2 peak (in the All Star Mile),” O’Sullivan said.
“There have been a few recent examples of horses that run a peak deep into their career. Nature Strip’s (Nicconi) 111.6 Australian peak came at his 30th start and his Royal Ascot 112 came at start 38, but he had already proven himself at an elite-level well before that. I had him 108 inside 10 starts and 111 at start 20.
“In terms of horses that have ‘gone to a new level’ later in their careers, two examples I can site are Bella Nipotina (who also happens to be by Pride Of Dubai) and Think It Over.
"Bella was a 97.4 horse after 22 starts, then ran 101.3 when second in the 2021 Manikato S. and she’s run 100-plus 13 times since then.
Daniel O’ Sullivan
“Think It Over was a 98.2 horse, also after 22 starts. He then ran 101.8 when he won the 2021 George Ryder S. and ran 100-plus 12 more times up to a peak of 104.2.
“Eduardo was 101.8 peak after 17 starts, which included one preparation for Joe Pride, but then he returned with a 105.5 and went on to prove himself multiples times from 104 up to 110.
“There may be others depending on how you want to define qualification, but in terms of going to a new Group 1-level from a more moderate base and maintaining that form with some consistency, it’s very rare."
“At her (Pride Of Jenni's) 22nd start, she ran 99.8. Prior to that 98.2 was her best. At starts 24 to 29 she has gone to a new level, including a 107.2 peak (in the All Star Mile).” - Daniel O’Sullivan
Cherry Taylor feels it’s a matter of maturity, combined with Maher’s wizardry in working out the best way to train the mare.
“We had a lovely dinner with Tony Ottobre and Lynn at Karaka in New Zealand this year and we’ve spoken on the phone a few times about it,” she said. “I also spoke to Ciaron at the sales at Easter – obviously Ciaron has done an amazing job with her. Whatever he does as far as his training regime, obviously really suits her.
“I think for her a lot of it though is her maturity. To look at her physically, she’s just grown into a beast of a mare.”
The Future
Sancerre is obviously a jewel in the Trelawney broodmare band these days and despite not producing a foal in 2021 or last year, there’s still a lot to look forward to.
Trelawney has retained Sancerre’s Per Incanto (USA) yearling filly and she will be trained by Stephen Marsh.
The mare is back in foal, this time to Hello Youmzain (Fr).
She also has a Per Incanto 3-year-old in training in New Zealand.
“Sancerre is obviously a jewel in the Trelawney broodmare band these days and despite not producing a foal in 2021 or last year, there’s still a lot to look forward to.”
“He's called Awatere (NZ) and Tony Pike bought him because he trained the mother,” Taylor said.
“He’s already won, but unfortunately he chipped a bone in his knee. He has had the bone removed, it was just a chip and he’s 100 per cent, he’s just doing his recovery.
“As I said to Pikey, you don’t want to push it too early, he will make a beautiful 6-year-old!”
