Avontuur Thoroughbred Farm’s European champion Oratorio had an impressive double on the Turffontein inside track on Thursday, when his only two runners on the day both won their respective races.
The triple G1 winning son of Danehill got into the action in Thursday’s very first race, when his four-year-old son Oravar (a member of Oratorio’s first South African born crop) made a winning debut over 1200 metres.
Trained by Michael and Adam Azzie, the gelded Oravar made much of the running under jockey Weichong Marwing to register a 0.8 of a length win first time out.
Oravar was the top lot sold from the 2016 March Yearling Sale where he made R650 000.
Thursday’s debut winner is out of the Var mare Miravar, who won four times up to 1450 metres.
Van Halen, who is one of eight G1 winners sired by Oratorio, made an impressive winning comeback when landing an assessment plate over 1200m, when romping home to post a three length score for trainer Tobie Spies and jockey Craig Zackey.
A trip to Cape Town is now on the cards for Van Halen, whose trainer spoke to Turf Talk after the race. Spies said, ”
“There is not a lot of horses who will go with Van Halen over 1000m and on what he’s showing is in work I think 1600m is well within his reach. When we sent him to the front in the past he ran out of steam late, he prefers racing from slightly off them, this win was very encouraging. He’s really good. We’ll be aiming him at the Cape Merchants over 1200m in November and then we’ll pick our races, there is the Gr1 Cape Guineas to consider and the two Million Dollar races on SunMet day, the sprint or the mile”
Bred by Limpo Retail, the 3yo gelded Van Halen was one of South Africa’s leading 2yos last season, when his performances included a win in the G1 Tsogo Sun Gold Medallion (where he accounted for subsequent dual G3 winner Chimichuri Run among others) and runner up finish in the G3 Godolphin Barb Stakes.
Thursday’s win took Van Halen’s tally to three, from eight outings, and his earnings to R665 813.
A dual champion sire in Italy, Oratorio’s 90 plus black type horses the world over include champions Military Attack, Banchee, Beethoven, Biz The Nurse and Cherry Collect.
The former G1 Eclipse/Irish Champion Stakes winner has a strong draft of eight on offer at November’s CTS Ready To Run Sale, including a colt out of G2 Sceptre Stakes winner Reflective Image (Lot 5), a half-sister to G1 winner King Of Pain (Lot 34) and a half-sister to G3 Umkhomazi Stakes runner up Desolate Road (Lot 64).