Klawervlei Stud’s red-hot young stallion Pomodoro was represented by a hugely impressive winner when his talented, but unlucky, son Cirillo bolted up at Turffontein on Thursday.
The Riverton Stud bred colt outclassed his field to shed his maiden by three lengths over 1160 metres.
Jockey S’Manga Khumalo never had to get serious with Cirillo, with the latter striding home to win with disdain.
Cirillo, handled like Pomodoro by Sean Tarry, is a fifth first crop winner for Pomodoro, whose son My Boi Caloi romped home to win by six lengths on Tuesday. Pomodoro’s last two runners have both won, and he remains clear on the Leading First Crop Sires List.
Thursday’s winner has been more than a little unlucky not to win a feature race this season, with his previous efforts including a head second in the G2 SA Nursery.
Cirillo is well and truly a feather in the cap of his promising sire, with his Lake Coniston sired dam Miss Wordsworth having never won a race and, prior to Cirillo, never bred a winner!
Other promising first crop winners sired by Pomodoro include Storm Bird Stakes second Royal Italian and Return Flight –a winner of two of her first three races by more than 19 lengths!
Winner of the 2012 G1 Vodacom Durban July, Pomodoro has some exciting prospects on offer at tomorrow’s Klawervlei Farm Sale.
His draft includes a half-brother to Jacaranda Handicap winner Al Danza (Lot 4), a filly out of an Elusive Quality half-sister to 2 German classic winners (Lot 7), a filly out of four time stakes winner Pacific Breeze (Lot 30) and a colt from the same family as sire legends Danehill, Machiavellian and Northern Dancer (Lot 34).
His sole lot on the 2018 KZN Yearling Sale is a filly (Lot 91) from the same family as Pomodoro himself.
Pomodoro, South Africa’s Champion First Crop Sire elect, will stand, once again, for a fee of R12 000 in 2018.