A broodmare saved from an early demise has provided an emotional backdrop to Heartlings’ win at Rosehill.
As Heartlings returned to scale on Monday assured of a staying future after winning the Significant Prelude, owner Deirdre Illes revealed how her latest city winner almost didn’t happen.
Illes and her husband Alex raced the Chris Waller-trained Telesmon and when a half-sister to the stayer turned up in an auction with a foal at foot by Mutawaajid she took particular interest in the sale without wanting to bid.
When Hayaat was knocked down for $500, alarm bells rang because such a modest sum is invariably associated with buyers who trade horses for reasons other than breeding and racing.
“I looked at the results late in the afternoon and saw she was sold for five hundred dollars so I rang the guy in Melbourne who bought her,” Illes said.
“He said ‘it’s two thousand (dollars) in ten minutes or she goes in the truck (to the knackery)’.
“That’s why winning this race is very, very special.”
Telesmon won eight races for the Illes family, including three in the city when trained by Waller.
There are plans for more breeding ventures with the family after the Illes clan bought the Danehill broodmare Davilora Dane, the granddam of Heartlings.
The Mutawaajid foal was unraced but a mating with Pendragon has added a staying influence to produce Monday’s winner.
Trained by Kerry Parker, Heartlings was sent forward from a wide barrier by Tim Clark and she had the 1500m race in her keeping at the 200m.
But Parker said it was unlikely Heartlings would race on as a two-year-old.
“I think she will turn into a nice filly over a bit of ground,” he said.
