A tremendous season of stakes race results got even better last Saturday afternoon when Sledmere Stud graduates recorded a race-to-race Group 2 double on the Flemington program in Melbourne. Over the space of approximately forty minutes, the time honoured Kewney Stakes (1600m) and VRC Sires’ Produce (1400m) were added to a remarkable seasonal haul thanks to brilliant wins by Revolutionary Miss and Veight respectively.
The Group 2 Kewney Stakes witnessed an outstanding performance by the Peter & Paul Snowden trained Revolutionary Miss to score despite encountering ‘traffic’ problems early in the Flemington straight. Stuck behind a wall of rivals with the winning post looming rapidly, the bonny first-crop daughter of Russian Revolution managed to get into clear running and ultimately get her nose in front on the line — adding to a formidable record as a leading member of her age and gender.
Saturday’s success established Revolutionary Miss as a Group 2 winning 2-year-old and a Group 2 winning 3-year-old, in addition to finishing runner-up at Group 1 level both seasons. This top-class filly has now amassed $916,475 in earnings for her Triple Crown Syndicate of owners after just 12 starts to date.
Saturday afternoon became even more memorable when Veight ran out a brilliant winner of the Group 2 VRC Sires’ Produce (1400m) at the very same venue. A first-crop son of Grunt (NZ), the hugely exciting colt is now unbeaten after his first two starts — having won both outings by a collective eight lengths.
Veight was a $100,000 2021 Magic Millions Gold Coast National Weanling Sale pinhook subsequently sold to McEvoy Mitchell Racing & Belmont Bloodstock for $220,000 at the 2022 Inglis Sydney Classic Yearling Sale. He took his earnings to $235,500 with his Flemington Sires’ success and earned himself a shot at the $1 million ATC Sires’ Produce (1400m) at Randwick during The Championships in Sydney.
The black-type double of Revolutionary Miss and Veight continued a remarkable sequence for Sledmere Stud graduates. Two weeks earlier, Little Brose and Arkansaw Kid ran first and third in the Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m), and then Communist recorded a clear-cut victory in the Group 1 Randwick Guineas (1600m) seven days later.
Two Group 1 wins and two Group 2 wins over three consecutive weekends have come in a season which has also witnessed Icebath (NZ) post her maiden Group 1 victory and Snapdancer become a dual Group 1 winning racemare.
Even by Sledmere Stud’s historic standards, Season 2022/23 will be remembered for many years to come.