Karaka graduate Surprise Baby is on his way to emulating his sire Shocking after he booked a spot in next month's $8 million Melbourne Cup with his powerful win at Flemington on Saturday.
The lightly raced five-year-old son of the 2009 Melbourne Cup winner recorded the fifth win of his 10-start career with a storming finish in the G3 Bart Cummings over 2560m.
Already an Adelaide Cup winner, Surprise Baby is a fairytale in progress as he was passed in at both the 2016 NZB Select Sale at Karaka on a $20,000 reserve and the NZB Ready to Run Sale as a 2YO with a $35,000 reserve before he was eventually bought as an unraced 3YO by current owners John Fiteni and Kathy Stewart for $5500 off the Gavelhouse website.
Bred and sold by New Zealand's Rich Hill Stud, the gelding has now earned $723,735 prize-money for Victorian country stable of Paul Preusker with Saturday's win giving him ballot-free exemption for the Melbourne Cup.
As the Surprise Baby story evolves it's hard not to spare a thought for John Thompson, the principal of Rich Hill Stud who bred the exciting stayer from the mating of his resident sire Shocking with the Kaapstad mare Bula Baby.
"I prefer to think how wonderful it would be for Shocking and the entire New Zealand breeding industry if this horse could go on and win the Cup," Thompson said.
"Realistically we always looked to sell the horse but circumstances dictated that we couldn't on several occasions.
"We would have ended up racing him ourselves but it was John Fiteni who stepped in and bought him and that decision has turned up trumps for the punt he took.
"He was passed in at the Select Sale and then didn't breeze-up very well for the Ready To Run sale so there wasn't much interest in him there either.
"We then tried to sell him out of the jump-outs but we hadn't had anyone step up.
"Once they get passed in at three the market tends to dry up for unproven horses so we put him up on gavelhouse.com and sold him for $5500.
"It is probably is a good lesson for those people who are interested in buying a staying type in that maturity counts as this horse didn't really hit his straps until he was four.
Thompson has taken a double hit as he also sold Surprise Baby's dam Bula Baby before the stayer raced.
"We took a commercial decision with the mare as her first few foals hadn't done anything," he said.
"Ät the time it was the right thing to do. Her new owner has brought her back to be served by Shocking this year so it is nice to see her back here.
"We still have Shocking here at the stud and if Surprise Baby could go on win the Cup then that will be a massive reward for us."
Rich Hill Stud stallion Shocking Photo by Press Photo
Shocking, who also won the G1 Australian Cup, has sired 106 winners from 209 runners including seven stakes winners that are led by his G1 New Zealand Oaks winner Fanatic.
Surprise Baby's dam Bula Baby, sold online by Thompson for just $400, won two races and is a half-sister to the Listed placegetter Mi Casa Su Casa (Zabeel) from the G2 winner Miss Tessla (Crested Wave).
Kiltannon Stables will present a Super Easy half-brother to Surprise Baby at next month's NZB Ready To Run Sale of 2YOs at Karaka.
It was a good 24 hours for Shocking as his daughter Vegas Jewel, a filly from the family of the champion mare Winx, continued the perfect start to her career with her second win in as man y starts at Moonee Valley on Friday night.
She was sold as a yearling by Rich Hill Stud for $NZ130,000 at the NZB National Yearling Sale where she was purchased by Shocking's owner Laurence Eales.
Vegas Jewel is out of a half-sister to Vegas Showgirl, the Al Akbar mare who produced Winx.
