Princess Of Savoy continuing on a fine legacy

By winning her third race from just 12 starts, the Hughes-trained four-year-old mare Princess Of Savoy (Captain Crunch – Tosti Girl) has continued what has been a highly productive family line for her connections over a long period of time.

Recording a winning mile rate of 1:58.4 when just getting the better of Double Parked over the concluding stages, the bonnie mare looks to have excellent residual value and would be a welcome addition to any broodmare band, even if that prospect still lies some way down the track.

Princess Of Savoy is the sixth winner produced by her high-quality dam Tosti Girl, who won seven races and placed on six occasions from just 19 starts, banking nearly $200,000 in stakes. A multiple Group 1 winner, Tosti Girl claimed both the Great Northern Oaks and the NSW Oaks, and is a half-sister to NZ Cup winner The Fixer (12 wins, 1:50.7, $1.06 million) and top Australian mare The Honey Queen (13 wins, 1:50.3).

Three of Tosti Girl’s fillies who at best only qualified have gone on to make a real mark at stud. Weownthenight (by Art Major) has left full relations Kiss (11 wins, $277,000 to date) and Midnight Miki (four wins, $125,000), both by Always B Miki, as her first two foals.

Cullen’s Princess (by Mach Three), although unraced, has produced six winners from eight foalings, with Miki Montana (six wins, $138,000) and Gooddealehemily (nine wins, 1:52.9) doing a particularly good job. She is also the dam of promising three-year-old Prince Lincoln, currently in the Green and Delaney barn.

Girls Are Bettor (by Bettor’s Delight) enjoyed immediate success in the broodmare paddock, leaving Girls Are Best (five wins, 1:52.1) as her first foal before being exported across the Tasman.

Tosti Girl was by Christian Cullen from the unraced Jaguar Spur mare Delightful Paula, who produced Runrunjimmydunn (50 wins across three countries, more than $700,000, 1:50.6), Whambam (18 wins, $420,000) and Delightful Christian (16 wins, $300,000) among her six winners.

Delightful Paula was from Aristocratic (Smooth Fella – Patrician) and was therefore a half-sister to one of the standout fillies of the 1990s in Paula Michele (eight wins, $206,000), trained by a much younger Brian Hughes. Another half-sister, Paula’s Way (by Falcon Seelster), produced the smart Sheng Li (five wins, seven placings from 20 starts), who was also trained by Hughes.

Patrician (three wins), a Mid-Canterbury bred mare who quickly made her way north, did an excellent job in the broodmare paddock. Class Act (one win), a full sister to Aristocratic, left top three-year-old filly Classical, who earned $294,000. Tact Philly, by In The Pocket and qualified only, produced six winners including The Oyster Bay (15 wins, $142,000), Our Max Phactor (42 wins, $622,000, 1:49.6) and My Sweetchillyphilly (nine wins, $122,000).

Other very handy performers from Patrician included The Patriot (nine wins) and Lavros Cameleon (six wins from 12 starts). Patrician was a half-sister to Deeside (10 wins) and Faye Hanover (two wins), the latter leaving the useful Faye’s Image (eight wins and 19 placings).

Patrician was from Ulight (Light Brigade – Undaunted), herself a six-win mare. Undaunted was a U Scott daughter of the grand Cup-class mare of the 1940s, Loyal Nurse, who won 15 races.

Notable throughout this pedigree is the repeated use of proven and influential sire lines. From the early success of the U Scott and Light Brigade cross, through later game-changers such as Smooth Fella and In The Pocket, and into the modern era with Christian Cullen, Mach Three, American Ideal and Always B Miki, this family has consistently benefitted from astute breeding decisions.

Whether top-class performers or unraced mares, the investment has been made wisely, resulting in a legacy of quality performers stretching back more than 80 years. And now, Princess Of Savoy finds herself perfectly placed to carry that legacy forward.