Argonaut. A handsome specimen celebrates his first winner
Handsome good looks, lightning speed and a first class pedigree to complete the package. The definitive trademarks of exciting first season sire, Argonaut. The young stallion registered his first impressive winner recently and the son of Western Winter looks set for a very bright future at stud.
The Argonaut progeny have inherited their chestnut Dad’s striking good looks and have proven irresistible to buyers at the various sales. He has consequently maintained rock solid averages.
From a first crop of 65, Argonaut celebrated the winner from his first 18 runners, when Alastair Gordon’s gelding Copybook ran right away from his field in the Maiden Juvenile Plate run over the 1200m straight at Scottsville on 5 June.
Copybook won for longstanding owner Dr Nic Labuschagne, and is a promising and typically scopy R140 000 National Yearling Sale purchase.
He was bred by C H Gregson and is out of the three time winning London News mare, Stella’s Journal.
Copybook had run second on a 100 to 1 debut over the course and distance on 8 May, and showed dramatic improvement with the experience under the belt to win easily.
Argonaut was Equus Champion 2yo of 2007 (and runner up for Horse Of The Year!), and the highest rated 2yo in the history of racing in SA.
After winning his maiden, he won the Gr1 Golden Horseshoe by 2,50 lengths and the Gr1 Premier’s Champion Stakes by 5 lengths.
He ran second in his only other Gr1 start at 2.
He raced only four times, before being exported to Australia, where he was injured and never raced.
His sire Western Winter has been crowned Champion Sire in SA three times and his dam Aquasarto was runner-up broodmare of the year. With 10 winners from her 11 foals to race she produced 6 stakes horses – 5 of them stakes winners.
Argonaut stands at Cheveley Stud for a fee of R12 000
