The 2019 Ontrack Hunter Valley Horse and Wine Tour will see first-hand the influence the ill-fated USA stallion Scat Daddy continues to have on world thoroughbred breeding.

Ontrack’s annual Hunter Valley tour runs from October 14-18 and as usual the powerhouse Coolmore Stud is one of six of the best studs on the programme.

This year Coolmore will parade two sons of its champion stallion Scat Daddy who died tragically in 2015 but continues to leave stakes winners around the world.

Scat Daddy shuttled to Coolmore’s Australian operation in 2008 and this year his sons No Nay Never and Caravaggio will stand there.

Ontrack Tours Grant Morgan said the influence Scat Daddy has had around the world is amazing.

“Scat Daddy made a solid start to his stud career and was the leading freshman sire of 2011 and third on the general two-year-old list, but it’s fair to say his career has gone to unbelievable levels following his death.

“Scat Daddy broke the North American record for the number of juvenile stakes winners in a season with nine. The previous record of eight had been set by his great-grandsire Storm Cat in 2002.

“At Royal Ascot in 2016, Scat Daddy had two winners from two runners, Caravaggio in the Coventry Stakes and Lady Aurelia in the Queen Mary Stakes and in 2017 at Royal Ascot he had Lady Aurelia win the King’s Stand, Caravaggio the Commonwealth Cup and Sioux Nation the Norfolk Stakes.

“Of course, this year his son Justify won the Triple Crown and it will be great to get to Coolmore and see his sons No Nay Never and Caravaggio.

“No Nay Never has made a great start to his Northern Hemisphere career with 16 first crop winners and is the leading European first season sire by winners and earnings.

“Caravaggio was an unbeaten Group One winner at two and followed that up with a dominant performance in Europe’s premier sprint for three-year-olds, the Group One Commonwealth Cup over 1200m at Royal Ascot.

“With No Nay Never and Caravaggio and Crown Winner American Pharoah returning, it’s clear Coolmore is giving Australian breeders access to three world-class shuttle stallions.
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“It’s always a great time to get a first-hand look at such amazing stallions and the Coolmore operation,” said Grant Morgan”

December’s Hong Kong International Race Day may have its strongest Australian representation for several years.
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Changed quarantine regulations following the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s new training centre in China has meant the Hong Kong fixture was not as popular for Australian horses as they now have to spend 180 days in a third country before returning to Australia.

However, that hasn’t stopped connections of two of Australia’s best sprinters pencilling in December’s $20 million HK Group One Longines Sprint over 1200 metres.

Newcastle trainer Ben Smith today announced that his classy mare In Her Time has been inoculated in readiness for travelling to Hong Kong for the big sprint.

Smith said In Her Time would run in The Everest at Randwick on October 13 and after that would have a light spring campaign in order to run in Hong Kong on December 9.

And Gerald Ryan trainer of another Everest runner Trapeze Artist has indicated that the horse’s owner and Ontrack Racing client Bert Vieira is keen to take on the Hong Kong race.

Vieira said the $13 million The Everest would be the first target before potentially taking on the world with trips to Hong Kong and the United Kingdom.

“His main aim in the spring is The Everest and, depending on quarantine issues, maybe he’ll go to Hong Kong in December," Vieira said.

“The aim would then be to take him to Royal Ascot next year, but it’s entirely up to the horse."
Ontrack Racing will be heading to the Hong Kong International carnival again in 2018 with our tour departing on December 4.