Capitalist Leads 2016 ATC Inglis’ Sires Produce Nominations

Peter & Paul Snowden’s Golden Slipper favourite Capitalist headlines the bumper 229 ATC Inglis’ Sires Produce nominations taken by Racing NSW this week ahead of the April 2 classic at Royal Randwick Racecourse.

Capitalist

Early favourite Capitalist leads the 2016 ATC Inglis’ Sires Produce Stakes nominations for the Randwick classic on April 2 this autumn. Photo: Daniel Costello.

One of four elite level races on Day 1 of The Championships this Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival, the $1 million Group 1 Inglis’ Sires (1400m) for two-year-olds is a race Peter Snowden has won three times in the past five years.

Former head trainer for Darley, now Godolphin, he won in 2011 with Helmet, 2013 with classy filly Guelph and then last year in partnership with his son Paul with the season’s Blue Diamond Stakes winner Pride Of Dubai.

Team Snowden are back this season with 16 nominees led by pre-post favourite, the undefeated Written Tycoon colt Capitalist.

Short-priced favourite to take out the world’s richest race for juveniles earlier in the autumn, the $3.5 million Group 1 Golden Slipper Stakes (1200m) at Rosehill, Capitalist is also leading early Inglis Sires betting at bookmakers around the country.

He has won all three of his career starts to date, most recently the Gold Coast’s $2 million Magic Millions 2YO Classic (1200m) at the start of January.

The other most notable Snowden entries include Stratum colt Attention who ran second on debut to Rafha’s Choice in November, Breeders Plate runner-up to Capitalist in the spring Detective, Sepoy colt War Hero who ran fourth in the Group 3 Maribyrnong Plate (1000m) during the Melbourne Cup Carnival and Defcon.

Set to contest Caulfield’s Group 1 Ladbrokes Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) on February 27, Choisir colt Defcon runs in the Blue Diamond Prelude this Saturday in his first run since a second on debut in the Group 3 Canonbury Stakes (1100m) at Rosehill on January 30.

Very well represented in this season’s Inglis Sires nominations is John O’Shea for global racing powerhouse Godolphin.

The stable has 16 nominees led by Medaglia D’Oro colt Astern who won his maiden race at Randwick over 1000m in early December by two and a half lengths before a winning Warwick Farm trial this month.

Another winner on debut in the mix for Godolphin is Exceed And Excel filly Calliope who took out the Listed Gimcrack Stakes (1000m).

She is also on the 2016 Blue Diamond Stakes path via a Prelude run this weekend and is out to join Yosei (2010), Guelph (2013) and Peggy Jean (2014) as the Inglis Sires winning fillies in the past 30 years.

Tessera is the other headliner for O’Shea, the dual winning colt last seen taking out the Canonbury on a Heavy (8) Rosehill track late last month.

The other best fancied filly in the mix meanwhile is the David Vandyke-trained daughter of All American, Yankee Rose, who has won her two runs so far including the Golden Gift (1100m) at Rosehill last season.

Approaching odds-on favouritism for the Blue Diamond Stakes this autumn and nominated for the Inglis Sires is the Mick Price-trained Not A Single Doubt colt Extreme Choice.

He won the Inglis Nursery at Randwick in December before returning with a devastating four and a half-length success at Caulfield in last Saturday’s Group 3 Chairman’s Stakes (1000m).

Price has a dozen nominees with his other standout being Flying Artie, runner-up in the Maribyrnong Plate, who Price has a big wrap on.

2016 Inglis Sires’ Produce Stakes first acceptances close at 12 noon (AEDT) on Tuesday March 8 followed by final acceptances on Tuesday March 29, 2016.

About The Author

Lucy Henderson

Lucy is an experienced horse racing journalist that has been a crucial member of the horseracing.com.au team for the better part of a decade. She has taken great delight in covering champion mares Black Caviar and Winx throughout their careers and always has a soft spot for a winning filly.