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Think It Over lands shock victory in George Ryder

Coolmore Stud-based sire So You Think (High Chaparral) chalked up his seventh Group 1 winner on Saturday as his son Think It Over (5 g ex Personal Service by Zabeel) landed a surprise victory in the George Ryder Stakes (Gr 1, 1500m) at Rosehill. 

Trained by Kerry Parker, who was running the gelding in the hope he would gain a place in the Doncaster Mile (Gr 1, 1600m) and he ran above expectations emerging out of the pack to beat Dreamforce (Fastnet Rock) by a head, while multiple Group 1 winner Avilius (Pivotal) was another head away in third.    

"Coming into today I just thought, I need him to run well and if he's a couple of lengths from them I'll be thrilled, taking seven kilos off him into the Doncaster," Parker said. 

"To win it, sensational." 

While this was the first win at Group 1 level for the gelding, having taken out the Liverpool City Cup (Gr 3, 1300m) on February 27 and he won the Craven Plate (Gr 3, 2000m) back in October and Parker said he had been slow to mature. 

"He's just been a great ride, this bloke. To watch him mature and turn into the racehorse he has has been pleasurable for the whole team," Parker said. 

Bred by Bylong Park, the five-year-old gelding is one of four winners and first stakes winner out of the unraced Zabeel (Sir Tristram) mare Personal Service. 

Personal Service herself is a half-sister to multiple Group 1-winning champion Universal Ruler (Scenic) and fellow Group1 winner Universal Queen (Scenic). 

The gelding also comes from the same family as Group 2 scorer Lucy Mae (Stratum), Listed winners Averau (Stratum) and Krone (Eurozone), who landed the Coolmore Classic (Gr 1, 1500m) on March 13. 

Personal Service’s 2017 unraced colt by Deep Field (Northern Meteor) - now named Space Traveller - was purchased by Kurt Goldman for $50,000 at the Magic Millions National Yearling Sale in 2019, while her 2018 colt by Your Song (Fastnet Rock) was snapped up for $19,000 at the Inglis Digital August (Late) Sale, also in 2019, and he is now called Shaggy Boy and is unraced. In 2019 she foaled a colt by Darley Stud-based stallion Exosphere (Lonhro). 

So You Think is the sire of 32 stakes winners in total and he moved to fourth position on the leading sires by earnings with Think It Over’s victory. He has 17 catalogued at the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale, which gets underway on April 6. 

The victory also handed Zabeel (Sir Tristram) with his 44th Group 1 winner as a broodmare sire.