There are some very nice names on the Merson Cooper Stakes honor roll, a Listed two-year-old contest that takes place at Caulfield this Saturday.
A 1000m dash that has been run over that distance since 1974, previously over 1200m since its beginnings in 1946, the race has been won by the likes of Impulsive (dam of Reckless), Proud Miss, Pago Pago, Star Affair, Storm Queen, Biscay, Vain, Dual Choice, Rancher and Anamoe.
Thirteen horses have accepted to tackle the 2025 running and we had a look at their backgrounds…
1 Alibaba
Alabama Express – Rowsthorn (Written Tycoon)
Hailing from the third (and smallest) crop of his C.F Orr Stakes winning sire who won his only juvenile start, Alibaba was bred by Yulong and purchased by Ken Keys Racing for $115,000 at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale.
He is a full brother to the Perth two-year-old winner Strideaway who finished a close up third in the Perth Magic Millions in February.
His dam Rowsthorn raced only three times including an easy debut win at two at Morphettville. Her dam is a half-sister to the stakes winner Diamonds and to the dam of the Gr.3 winner Written Dash from the family of the Gr.1 winning youngster Sizzling.
Alibaba is bred on a 2 X 4 cross of Redoute’s Choice and a 6 X 5 cross of Try My Best – noting that stallions are members of the same prolific Stolen Hour family from which Alabama Express hails. He also boasts a 6 X 5 cross of the wonderful mare Special via her grandson Fairy King and son Nureyev.
2 Eternal Warrior
Extreme Warrior – Devout Hero (No Nay Never)
Bred by the China Horse Club, this $80,000 Adelaide Magic Millions graduate is from the debut crop of Extreme Choice’s Blue Sapphire and Bel Esprit Stakes winner Extreme Warrior who was stakes placed at two of his three starts at two.
He is the first foal for a Geelong maiden winner whose stakes placed dam Perfect Persuasion is a full sister to the multiple Gr.1 (including the Blue Diamond) winner Alinghi. Blue Diamond Prelude winner Beneteau is also from this family as is this year’s Gr.3 winner Spicy Martini.
3 Stretan Ruler
Wild Ruler – Sretan (Bernardini)
From the debut crop of Snitzel’s Moir Stakes winning son Wild Ruler (a Listed winner at his first start at two), Stretan Ruler was bred by Cheval Properties and Kirks Bridge Farm and sold at Easter for $220,000.
He is a half-brother to his Gr.2 and dual Listed winning stablemate Stretan Angel who found stakes winning form quickly at two. And to the promising four-year-old Glorious Moments who looked good recording two smart city wins in Sydney over the winter.
His placed (from just three starts) dam Sretan is out of the Vanity Stakes winner Pure Joy whose Group placed daughter Alegria is dam of last year’s Brisbane Cup winner Alegron.
From the same family as the Gr.1 gallopers The Last Lion, Tarascon, Costa Viva and Felizmaster, Stretan Ruler is line-bred to Seattle Slew and to that influential stallion’s dam My Charmer.
4 Free Flying
Snitzel – Ennis Hill (Fastnet Rock)
A Coolmore bred $750,000 Easter yearling from the third last crop of his late Champion Sire, Free Flying is out of Ennis Hill, a Gr.3 winner at two and dam of Learning To Fly.
That filly won her first three stakes races at two before losing her rider when well fancied in the Golden Slipper.
Ennis Hill is out of another multiple stakes winning youngster in Hips Don’t Lie, also dam of the Listed winners Lake Geneva and Acrobat.
Bred on a 3 X 3 cross of Danehill, Free Flying hails from the same family as the Gr.1 horses Ozzmosis and The Alfonso.
5 Almost An Angel
So You Think – All That Sass (Hinchinbrook)
Bred by Kitchwin Hills and partners, this bargain $30,000 Magic Millions purchase for the Robbie Griffiths stable seeks to become her late sire’s fifth juvenile stakes winner.
She is the first foal for a Goulburn winner who was placed at her only start at two.
The city placed All That Sass is out of the Gr.3 mare Koonoomoo whose grandam is a half-sister to the Gr.3 winner Western Chorus.
Like so many of So You Think’s stakes horses, Almost An Angel is line-bred (4 X 6) to the legendary Nijinsky.
6 Luna Vega
Lucky Vega – Lucid Dreamer (Dansili)
A Yulong home-bred by their resident stallion Lucky Vega, a Gr.1 winner at two, Luna Vega is the first live foal for a two time winning imported half-sister to the dual Gr.1 winner Whitebeam.
Hailing from the prolific Best In Show family with her grandam being a half-sister to the English St Leger winner Logician, Luna Vega can also claim amongst her close relations the Dubai Duty Free winner Cityscape.
Luna Vega is bred on a 4 X 4 cross of Green Desert with further duplications of that stallion’s sire Danzig.
7 Assisi
Shamus Award – Salome (Unencumbered)
By a Snitzel horse best known for breaking his maiden in the W.S Cox Plate but who also raced very well in good company at two, Assisi was bred by Three Bridges Thoroughbreds and G Johnson and purchased by trainer Matt Cumani for $60,000 at the Melbourne Premier.
He is the second foal for Salome who was stakes placed at her two-year-old debut. Her dam is the stakes placed Maybe I, dam of the dual Group winner Ringerdingding.
Assisi’s grandsire Snitzel is bred on a Danehill/Storm Bird cross, as is his third dam Flittery whose dam is the dual Gr.1 winner Flitter.
8 Forbidden Desire
Tassort – Devine Shen (Nicconi)
She is from the third crop of her lightly raced sire who showed up early (Golden Gift at debut, Silver Slipper second at only other outing) and who has sired the Gr.1 juvenile Manaal.
Bred by Bradley Washfountain Co, Forbidden Desire is a $100,000 Magic Millions graduate. She is the second foal for her lightly raced dam whose first Aeternum (also by Tassort) was placed at his recent Newcastle debut.
Devine Shen is a half-sister to the speedy stakes winner Moshki (dam of the handy Nadal) from the family of the dual Gr.1 winner Alcove.
Forbidden Desire is bred on the successful I Am Invincible/Zeditave cross, noting that both of those stallions are descendants of the famed matriarch Chelandry.
9 Ivy
Hanseatic – Independent Woman (Redoute’s Choice)
A Rosemont Stud home-bred by their Street Boss stallion who won his first three starts at two before Blue Diamond Stakes second, Ivy is the second foal (the promising Chicago Blues the first) for an unraced mare whose dam is a half-sister to the Vanity Stakes winner Musidora — dam of the stakes winners Tulip, Sacred Eye and Les Vampires.
Ivy is a descendant of Northern Dancer’s wonderful daughter Fanfreluche — the mare kidnapped whilst in foal only to be found safe and sound in a farmer’s paddock!
That Canadian Racing Hall Of Fame member is ancestress of 118 stakes winners, including 19 Gr.1 horses such as Flying Spur, Encosta de Lago, Home Affairs, Pear Tart, Duais and Russian Revolution.
Bred on a 4 X 3 cross of Danehill, Ivy also carries duplications of the excellent mares Natalma, Almahmoud and Sequence.
10 Morning Whisper
Written Tycoon – Kooweerup (More Than Ready)
Another Yulong homebred by their Champion Sire, Morning Whisper is a half-sister to the recent debut winner Leongatha out of Kooweerup who won both of her two-year-old starts including a Gr.3 in Adelaide.
Kooweerup is one of the nine winners for the Toorak Handicap winner Allez Wonder whose dam Luna Tudor won the Perth Cup and also produced the Gr.3 winner Pretty Pins as well as the dam of All-Aged Stakes winner Tivaci.
A descendant of the 1945 Melbourne Cup winner Rainbird, Morning Whisper is bred on the Written Tycoon/Redoute’s Choice cross which provides duplication of Best In Show.
11 Shinsiena
Maurice – Notre Dame (Exceed And Excel)
By a highly regarded Japanese stallion who broke a track record on debut, Shinsiena was bred by Musk Creek Farm and purchased at the Melbourne Premier for $120,000.
She is the second foal for the unraced Darley mare Notre Dame whose first foal Sparkling Fellow has been racing well in Hong Kong.
Notre Dame’s dam is four-time Gr.1 winner Divine Madonna, also dam of Listed winner Maternal and grandam of the recent Coolmore Stud Stakes winner Tentyris.
This family has been in tremendous form, also producing Gr.1 winners Baraqiel and Autumn Angel.
12 Simply Steffi
Graff – Casquets (Fastnet Rock)
Bred by Kitchwin Hills by their dual Group winner Graff, Simply Steffi is out of Casquets who won the Listed Talindert Stakes at her second start.
Casquets is a half-sister to the stakes winner Ballet Suite and her dam is a half-sister to Gr.2 galloper Flak Jacket from the family of the Champion Sire Century.
Simply Steffi’s sire Graff is bred on the same Danehill/Sir Tristram cross as her dam sire Fastnet Rock.
13 Tears Of Happiness
Pierro – Tears Of Joy (Street Cry)
A Rosemont Stud bred filly purchased by Yulong for $60,000 at the Melbourne Premier, she has a Golden Slipper winner as a sire and a dual city winner as a dam.
Tears Of Joy is a daughter of the Listed winner Lucida whose dam Peruzzi is a dual Group winner out of Diamond Lover — one of the five Gr.1 winners produced by the legendary mare Eight Carat.
Eight Carat’s best son Octagonal is the grandsire of Pierro, giving Tears Of Happiness a 4 X 5 cross of that famed matriarch.
Also 4 X 4 Zabeel, Tears Of Happiness carries further female duplication with crosses of Lalun, Special, Natalma and Almahmoud.