Drakenstein Stud’s exciting young stallion, and leading first crop sire of last season, What A Winter got off to the perfect start with his second crop on Sunday.

What A Winter’s very first two-year-old runner, the first starter from his second crop of runners, won over 800m at Scottsville to capture KZN’s first 2yo race of 2017-2018.

Vertical Descent, bred by the Waterford Stud and trained by Mike Miller, was sent out even money favourite for the 800m dash, and defied greenness to run out a deceptively easy half-length winner on debut.
The colt was a R375 000 purchase from the 2017 Emperors Palace Select Yearling Sale.

Vertical Descent’s sire What A Winter’s first crop got their sire off to a flying start when they included three stakes winners as well as G1 performer Warrior’s Rest.

His G3 Cape Of Good Hope Nursery winning son Dutch Philip confirmed himself as a very smart sprinter with a cracking second, behind four-year-old rival Silicone Valley, in Saturday’s G2 World Sports Betting Cape Merchants. In the process, Dutch Philip (a winner of four of his first five starts) accounted for a high-class field including Equus Champion Always In Charge, dual Merchants winner Tevez, July winner and champion Marinaresco and graded stakes winners Al Mariachi, Search Party and Sergeant Hardy.

What A Winter’s ever increasing number of first crop winners thus far also include Cape champion Magical Wonderland, unbeaten in three starts at two and winner of both the Listed Kenilworth Fillies Nursery and Listed Perfect Promise Sprint.

A four time G1 winner, and triple Equus Champion, What A Winter was once again booked full for the 2017 breeding season.