The Golden Slipper: a breed shaper

No race has so positively and emphatically shaped and developed the modern Australian thoroughbred like the G1 Golden Slipper Stakes

A 1200m (six furlong) flutter for two-year-olds that offers A$3.5 million in prizemoney, “The Slipper” is also an event that can annoy the purists and one which might seem incompatible with a country whose most celebrated race is the 3200m (two mile) Melbourne Cup.

But it is a classic example of a race that works. Almost every colt that wins the Golden Slipper becomes a sought-after stallion.

Colts like the Darley-bred Pierro, Vancouver, Sebring, Stratum, Catbird, Canny Lad, Luskin Star, Rory’s Jester, Marscay and Vain are among the more recent Slipper winners who have been outstandingly successful at stud.

They also carry on a tradition that began with the very first running of the race in 1957.

The inception of the Golden Slipper coincided with the arrival in Australia of a stallion who revolutionised the country’s thoroughbred breeding industry.

Star Kingdom, an Irish-bred grandson of Hyperion, sired the first five Golden Slipper winners – Todman, Skyline, Fine And Dandy, Sky High and Magic Night.

Todman duly sired two Sipper winners and other of Star Kingdom’s sons, Biscay, Bletchingly and Kaoru Star have also produced notable Golden Slipper champions.

The Star Kingdom influence continued until Danehill arrived on the scene and began exerting his remarkable influence.

Danehill also sired five Golden Slipper winners, including Danzero and Flying Spur, who have in turn sired winners of the race that is now the world’s richest for two-year-olds.

In recent years His Highness Sheikh Mohammed al Maktoum has taken his place in Golden Slipper folklore.

The 2011 winner Sepoy was bred by Darley and raced in Sheikh Mohammed’s maroon and white colours, the  2012 winner Pierro, a son of Lonhro, was bred by Darley and 2015 winner Vancouver is by the Darley stallion Medaglia D’Oro.

Godolphin assistant trainer in Australia Darren Beadman, who rode two Slipper winners, Inspired in 1984 and Guineas in 1997, offered another aspect to the race’s charm.

“To me, what makes the race so great is that there’s so much mystery about it,” Beadman said.

“In the lead-up, people don’t know much about the two-year-olds, they come and go, no-one knows how they’ll stand up to the pressure or if they’re just speedy youngsters. It’s a race that keeps you on your toes, keeps you guessing right until they hit the line.

“But it’s become an institution in Australian racing because the winners almost always turn out to be real good horses.’’

With the Australian market for young stallions the hottest in the world, the Golden Slipper is also a race that can provide a major windfall to the winning owners.

The recent winners, Sebring, Vancouver and Pierro, for example, each sold for at least $30 million after their brief racing careers ended.

In the 2017 edition it appears the fillies might have the edge over the colts.

Catchy, a daughter of Fastnet Rock and winner of the country’s second biggest two-year-old race, the Blue Diamond Stakes, looks one of the stronger chances, along with Pierro’s daughter, Tulip.

For Godolphin, it will be Veranillo (Brenton Avdulla) who leads the stable’s challenge on the strength of two wins and two placings from his only four starts, with Trekking (William Buick) having to contend with an outside draw.

Trekking’s appearance will have a sentimental aspect, for Godolphin and Darley, whatever the result.

The colt is from the last crop of the champion dual-hemisphere stallion Street Cry who died in 2014 having established himself as the linchpin of Darley’s worldwide breeding operation.