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Provides Rich Hill Stud-based sire Proisir with his fourth stakes winner
Rich Hill Stud-based stallion Proisir (Choisir) was handed his fourth stakes winner on Saturday as his daughter Levante (4 m ex Island Doy by Doyoun) landed the Counties Bowl (Listed, 1100m) at Pukekohe.
Having won her first four starts last season, the Ken and Bev Kelso-trained four-year-old mare surrendered her unbeaten record in the Wellington Guineas (Gr 2, 1400m) in March and she made a winning return to the track when beating Summer Passage (Snitzel) by a length and a half, while Its Destinys Child (Castledale) was another length and a quarter back in third.
“Deep down I was hoping for a performance like that but you just never know when they are coming back off such a long break,” Kelso said.
“Early on nothing was making ground from the back so I started to get a little worried that she might just have too big a task in front of her.
“We had told Sam that she wasn’t to give her a gut-buster, just let her find her feet and have one run at them in the straight.
“It was a Group 1 quality field, the best she had ever faced so I kept telling myself don’t be too silly with your expectations.
“In the end she has done the job very very well and has had the audacity to prick her ears at the finish.”
Kelso was reluctant to make any plans for the mare on race day, but said she would now be aimed at the Railway Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) at Ellerslie on New Year’s day.
“She is a much stronger mare now but we will still be spacing her races,” he said.
“Missing the Hawkes Bay races in the spring was probably a blessing as it is hard for those three-year-olds to step out against the older horses as an early four-year-old.
“We will let her get over this one but the natural target is the Railway Stakes.
“We would probably go straight there as she was qualified before today, which is a relief, as we didn’t want to have to run her again in a fortnight to try and make the field.
“We can take her home and just potter around and get her ready for that day.”
The mare is one of five winners out of winning Doyoun (Mill Reef) mare Island Doy and she is herself a half-sister to Cryptavia (Gold Brose).
Further back this is the same family Group 3 winner Bulington (Sicyos) and Listed-winning duo Batman (Sir Gaylord) Beaune (Lyphard) - the dam of Group 1 winner Bering (Arctic Tern).
Levante joins Aimee’s Jewel, Riodini and Vitesse Bo as Proisir’s other stakes winners and he is standing at Rich Hill Stud for a fee of NZ$9,000 (plus GST).
