With a new, exciting bunch of babies’ set to launch their careers in North America in the next fortnight and the opening leg of the Grand Circuit less than a month away, the focus will be well and truly on the stallions being represented by their first crops.

John Bagshaw, a former chairman of Harness Racing Australia and one of driving forces behind global breeding giant Alabar Bloodstock, passed away at his Sydney home on Saturday aged 87.

El Gelato, a New Zealand bred mare gifted to Broomfield hobby horseman David Davidson a few years ago, has produced four winners and a placegetter from five foals since she became a gift.

A total of 2,122 services to Victorian sires were recorded in the 2024/25 stud season.

The North American trotting import Dancinginthedark M USA, who stood the last three seasons at Aldebaran Park in Victoria’s Goulburn Valley, will be returning to the northern hemisphere this season to stand at the prestige Menhammar Stud AB in Sweden.

Unclad, the very impressive winner of the Haras Des Trotteurs 2YO Trot at Melton on Saturday when having only his second start, is exploding the well-worn theory of a decline in the racing quality of foals born late in a broodmare’s career.

Benstud Standardbreds is well versed in breeding and raising Group winning pacers and trotters.

Buyers will be spoilt for choice at Sunday’s Nutrien Equine Melbourne Yearling Sale at the renowned Inglis Complex, Oaklands Junction with a quality lineup of prospective racetrack stars catalogued.

Since its foundation in 1992 by Dr Charles Roberts and his veterinary partner Dr Andrew Grierson, Woodlands Stud has established itself as one of the leading semen bases in the southern hemisphere.

As a measure of their dominance in the breeding industry, three of Woodlands stallions in Bettor’s Delight, Sweet Lou and American Ideal finished first, third and fifth respectively on last season’s Australian all aged sires’ list.

The Narcissist, the convincing winner of the $30,000 City of Melton Plate and one of the stars of the autumn racing at Melton, is the last foal of his dam Smooth Sista, a Modern Art mare who given away by her breeders as a riding hack three years ago.

Smooth Sista, who failed to win a race in 24 starts, had rather a chequered career as a broodmare.

The champion French racehorse and sire Love You and Ballarat breeder Pat Driscoll stole the show from a breeding standpoint at the all trotting meeting at Melton last Saturday.

Love You, who had nine runners on Team Teal Night, sired the winners of three of the four feature events in Keayang Chucky (Australasian Trotting Championship), Queen Elida (Lyn McPherson Memorial Breed For Speed Gold) and Our Marvella (Lyn McPherson Memorial Breed For Speed Silver Series Final).

Victorian breeder-owners Duncan McPherson and Pat Driscoll, two of the biggest players in the Australasian squaregaiting ranks, experienced success on the racetrack and the sale ring last weekend.

Victorian stallions made their mark both on and off the racetrack in no uncertain manner on both sides of the Tasman last weekend.

A big consignment of standardbred stallions and racehorses was shipped from Sydney to Chicago on Monday night. The stallions will be dispersed to major stud farms in USA and Canada.

The charter was organised by International Racehorse Transport, the global market leader in horse transport for 45 years with its Australian headquarters at Melbourne Airport.

Few areas of the standardbred breeding scene come under as much scrutiny as each year’s new first crop two-year-old sires. A breakout first season for a stallion can in many cases set up a long and successful stud career.

The American horse Bettor’s Delight is Australia’s top sire for a record 13^th consecutive season. During the 2024 season the Woodlands Stud flagship sired 315 individual winners for $11,353,620 in stakes, over $400,000 ahead of the second placed Art Major.

Well known Kyabram journalist, sportsman and hobby breeder Gus Underwood experienced the highs and lows of harness racing in the space of 24 hours last weekend.

A colt foal by Propulsion out of Underwood’s former outstanding racemare and triple Vicbred champion Claudy’s Princess died as the result of a snakebite at a Brisbane property last Friday morning.

The Alabar Bloodstock flagship stallion Art Major achieved yet another historic milestone in a brilliant siring career when Don Hugo emerged successful in the Inter Dominion Grand Final at Menangle recently.