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Twin Hills Stud-based stallion Denman (Lonhro) was provided with his 16th stakes winner yesterday courtesy of Deprive’s (4 g ex Defrock by Canny Lad) victory in the June Stakes (Listed, 1100m) at Randwick. The progressive gelding secured his fourth victory on the bounce with a half-length success over Bon Amis (Bon Hoffa), with the same margin back to Brook Magic (Hinchinbrook) in third. Denman relocated to Twin Hills Stud for the upcoming southern hemisphere breeding season having previously stood at Darley’s Kelvinside base in New South Wales. He will stand for a fee of $8,800 (inc GST).

Story courtesy of ANZ

It’s rare that James Cummings lets his guard down when talking about the future of one of his horses, but the word Deprive achieved a different outcome.

Cummings spoke to Racenet on Wednesday about Saturday’s runners and when it came to Deprive, which runs in the Listed June Stakes at Randwick, his poker face gave way to a cheeky smirk.

Lipari (Redoute’s Choice), the dam of Group 1 winner Levendi (Pierro), was one of two seven-figure lots sold on day three of the Magic Millions Gold Coast National Broodmare Sale with her $1.6 million price tag also confirming the arrival of Olly Tait’s Twin Hills Stud as a major player.

It was Tait’s biggest success since acquiring the Cootamundra-based property in 2017 from Godolphin, not long before he purchased Lipari in foal to More Than Ready (Southern Halo) for $170,000 from Widden Stud at the same Gold Coast auction two years ago. Lipari, whose second foal Levendi won the 2018 Australian Derby (Gr 1, 2400m) and her third foal Marcel Of Madrid (Sepoy) won a Group 3 as a juvenile, was offered in foal to I Am Invincible (Invincible Spirit) and was secured by Baramul Stud and Magic Millions owner Gerry Harvey.

Two years ago Olly Tait returned back to Australia to purchase a farm very familiar to him, in the Cootamundra region where he grew up. TDN AusNZ’s Jo McKinnon headed to southern NSW to spend a morning at Twin Hills Stud.

Hurriedly zipping up his jacket to block the Autumn chill, hair windswept and a well-worn pair of mud splattered Blundstone boots on his feet, Olly Tait strides towards the office building to meet us.

Twin Hills Stud has enjoyed a fruitful past 12 months as a new vendor at the major Australian sales and will present a select trio of mares at the 2019 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale including the dams of Group I ATC Australian Derby winner Levendi and brilliant, but ill-fated Group II winner Smart Melody.

Twin Hills enjoyed a strong clearance rate at the Inglis Australian Broodmare and Weanling Sale and sold eight yearlings for up to $185,000 at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale, but their real sales highlight of the year came at the Magic Millions in January.

A rush of three new stakes winners in the space of two days for Smart Missile couldn’t have come at a better time for Twin Hills Stud, who are planning the stallion’s second season at its Cootamundra-based farm.

Smart Missile enjoyed a fantastic weekend with front-running 5-year-old Special Missile winning Friday’s Listed Scone Cup before 3-year-old filly Ready To Prophet claimed the Listed Denise’s Joy S. at the same venue 24 hours later. Promising 2-year-old Missile Mantra then made it two wins from as many starts with a barnstorming victory in the Listed Redoute’s Choice S. at Caulfield.

Since relocating to Twin Hills Stud last year the stakes-winners have flowed for Fastnet Rock stallion Smart Missile, who added a double of new stakes-winners to his ever growing tally on Saturday with victories for Ready to Prophet in the Listed Denises’s Joy Stakes at Scone and for Missile Mantra in the Listed MRC Redoute’s Choice Stakes at Caulfield.

Trained by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, three year-old filly Ready to Prophet showed serious stakes potential last spring when finishing fourth to Fiesta in the Group II ATC Silver Shadow Stakes, but failed to flatter in two subsequent starts.

Out of the winner’s circle since August 2017, Special Missile led at every call in Friday’s $180,000 Listed Scone Cup (1600m) to credit the newly formed training partnership of Michael and Richard Freedman with its first stakes-winner.

Given a positive ride by Sam Clipperton, Special Missile clung to a desperate nose victory over the favourite Fierce Impact (JPN) (Deep Impact) with Goldstream (ITY) one and a quarter back in third.

As is the nature of things, the progeny of two stallions relocating to new homes in 2019 fought out of the finish of Saturday’s Group III Hong Kong Jockey Club J H B Carr Stakes at Randwick.

It was won by Godolphin’s Denman filly Laburnum who given a positive ride by Kathy O’Hara to nose out the favoured Foxwedge filly Into The Abyss with the Street Boss (USA) filly So Taken a long-head back in third.

Denman (Lonhro – Peach (Vain)) will stand at Twin Hills Stud, Cootamundra for the 2019 season. His fee has been set at $8,800 (inc GST).

With 79 winners already this season, Denman ranks in the top 20 stallions in Australia. His percentage of winners to runners is superior to that of fellow proven sires, Fastnet Rock, Not A Single Doubt, Nicconi and Star Witness. Denman is also in the top 20 active stallions on the Australian General Sires list.