Maine Chance Farms’ evergreen champion stallion Silvano produced his 96th stakes winner, and his first in Hong Kong, when his son Chefano won the Gr3 Memorial Cup Handicap earlier this month.
The gelding goes for his biggest payday at Sha Tin today when he contests the HK$10 million Gr1 Standard Chartered & Chater Cup.
A champion sire in South Africa on four occasions, Silvano turned 24 on Friday and has produced stakes winners in all of Britain, Europe, Dubai, the US, Singapore and Hong Kong.
The 2001 German Horse Of The Year, a Champion Freshman Sire in the land of his birth in 2005, was crowned Champion sire here in 2013, 2017, 2018, 2019.
Having produced six Equus Champions, he boasts a 70% winner strike rate for stakes of over R310 million in a distinguished career at stud.
His 5yo son Chefano, was bred in partnership by Michael Roberts and Maine Chance, and fell to a bid of R300 000 by Colin Bird at the 2016 Emperors Palace Select Yearling Sale. Roberts also trained his dam, Valdovino, a daughter of Al Mufti.
Chefano raced here in the care of Robbie Sage, when named Vacquero.
He is trained by John Moore and faces six rivals under Matthew Chadwick on Sunday in the high-class set weights contest.
The race is off at 10h05.
Silvano has 36 yearlings on offer at the 2020 Emperors Palace National Yearling Sale.
