Dash For Cash Runner Onerous Blitzed Rivals In First Start at Bendigo

Dash For Cash unearthed another potential stakes winner when first-starter Onerous blitzed his rivals at Bendigo on Sunday.

Onerous is a member of Team Hawkes and he was heavily backed into a $2 favourite for the Zonta International Plate (1100m).   He travelled without cover behind the leaders before cruising to the front at the furlong.

The grey colt accelerated under Dwayne Dunn to score by nearly two lengths from Godolphin filly Miniver (Bernardini) who also appeals as a promising type for the future.

Onerous (3c Dash For Cash – Amoroso by Revoque) is a younger brother to Arinosa and she has won up to Group 2 level at Randwick in the Sapphire Stakes and Premiere Stakes.

Part-owner and breeder Steve Lester manages the syndicate that races Onerous.  “I watched the Bendigo win with John Hawkes at the Coolmore Stud stallion parade,” Lester said.  “We’ve always liked him but he’s doing it all on raw ability at present.

“John said he’s still soft and is twelve months away.  Arinosa was the same – she didn’t really mature until four and then took off.  John will either give him one more run or tip him out straight away.”

Lester owns Amoroso and the mare is ready to foal to Dash For Cash again any day now.  Her yearling is a Bel Esprit filly that will be catalogued for the 2015 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale.

Scenic Lodge stands Dash For Cash for his first season in Western Australia this year alongside champion Sunspeed stallions Blackfriars and Universal Ruler.  His introductory WA service fee has been set at $7,700 (inc gst).

Dash For Cash was a Group 1 Australian Guineas and Futurity Stakes winner and he has established a second-to-none record at stud with 308 individual winners at a 65% strike-rate.

“He sired 71 individual winners last season and that was better than Blackfriars who topped the WA table with 61,” Scenic Lodge general manager Jeremy Smith said.  “He’s a winning machine and there are plenty of other promising gallopers like Onerous ready to come through the ranks.

“We will be supporting Dash For Cash with some of our best mares and so are the State’s leading breeders like last season’s WA Breeder of the Year Neville Duncan from Oakland Park.”

Ram Jam in the zone at Belmont

Trainer Darren McAuliffe rated Ram Jam a stayer with future after a Pinjarra maiden in July 2013 and that prediction is playing out in full this year.

Ram Jam (4g Blackfriars – Nurse Betty by Johannesburg) put up a picket-fence with another determined victory in the Westspeed Stayers Hcp (2000m) at Belmont on Saturday.  He is unbeaten in five starts since returning from a 20 week spell with wins at Kalgoorlie (2), Northam and Belmont Park (2).

“He’s a different Blackfriars being a bit finer than most of them,” McAuliffe said this time last year.  “But there’s plenty of staying ability in him.”

Fast-forward twelve months and McAuliffe repeated those sentiments at Belmont.  “He’s happy and while he’s in the zone we will keep going.  He’s not a big horse but can carry weight and has a nice turn of foot.”

Ram Jam is a homebred for Impressive Racing manager Kevin Berry and he will return to the Goldfields for the Boulder Cup – Kalgoorlie Cup double in September.

By Scenic Lodge champion Blackfriars, he is the first of just two foals from Nurse Betty whose nearest black-type relative goes way back to 1982 Italian St Leger winner Crusader Castle (The Minstrel).

Her last foal is an unraced 3yo filly named Mambokadzi.  She is by Scenic Lodge sire Universal Ruler and is also on the books with McAuliffe at Ascot.

Karl Patterson

Swag of Titles for Scenic Lodge

Scenic Lodge champion Blackfriars has claimed the West Australian sires’ premiership for the fourth year in a row.

Blackfriars (Danehill) was represented by 61 individual winners for prizemoney of $3,705,215. His chief earner was G2 Perth Cup winner Black Tycoon with $482,100.

Among his other black-type winners were Kerrific (G3 R J Peters Stakes), Prentice (G3 WA Sires’ Produce Stakes), Playing God (LR Northerly Stakes) and Pop Culture (LR Detonator Stakes).

“It’s an outstanding achievement,” Scenic Lodge general manager Jeremy Smith said. “His progeny have dominated in WA and, with some quality books in recent years, we are very confident the best of Blackfriars as a sire is still ahead.”

Blackfriars has career earnings of $22.71 million and will overhaul Bletchley Park ($23.34 million) at the top of the all-time WA money list during 2014-15.

Mungrup Stud stallion Oratorio won the WA 2YO title with 7 winners of 10 races netting $727,880. His Magic Millions 2YO Classic winner Cadenza contributed $230,900 to the overall total.

Scenic Lodge resident Universal Ruler chimed in for the WA first-season award with 4 winners of 8 races and $454,470. He finished fourth on the Australian premiership behind Hunter Valley sires I Am Invincible, Denman and Duporth.

In the broodmare sires’ championship, former Scenic Lodge champion Scenic ($3.73 million) defeated Mungrup Stud luminary Metal Storm ($3.48 million) after they were locked together for the majority of the season. Karl Patterson photos Sharyn Walker.