Drakenstein Stud’s Cartier Champion Duke Of Marmalade has made a great start to his stud career in South Africa, and the five time G1 winner dominated the finish to Friday night’s G2 KRA Fillies Guineas, where Duke Of Marmalade fillies Santa Clara and Temple Grafin (recently the second and first finishers respectively in the G3 Umzimkhulu Stakes) ran first and third.
Trained by Candice Bass-Robinson, the Maine Chance Farms bred Santa Clara picked up her first graded victory when romping home to a decisive 2.75 length win at the expense of G1 WSB Cape Fillies Guineas winner Front And Centre.
A R1 000 000 buy from the 2017 Cape Premier Yearling Sale, the filly had previously been placed in four feature races with Santa Clara finishing runner up in both the Kenilworth Fillies Nursery and Irridescence Stakes as a two-year-old.
Friday’s win took Santa Clara’s earnings to R646 250.
Her paternal half-sister, and former Cape champion, Temple Grafin stayed on nicely for third, with that multiple graded stakes winner taking her earnings to R558 375.
Duke Of Marmalade had no fewer than three runners in Friday night’s R500 000 feature, with Listed Ardmore Jamaica Handicap winner Princess Irene being the sire’s other representative.
A Danehill half-brother to hugely promising Investec Derby winning sire Ruler Of The World (whose daughter Iridessa runs in Sunday’s G1 Qipco 1000 Guineas), Duke Of Marmalade also had success in both France and Australia on Friday, with his son Pandemonium winning at Maisons-Laffitte and another son, Iron Duke, scoring at the Sunshine Coast.
Duke Of Marmalade could be online for more international success with his multiple group winning son Marmelo a likely contender for the upcoming G1 Investec Coronation Cup.
Original article written by: Cape Breeders Club