Victoria’s position as the hub of Australia's breeding industry was amplified when the field for Saturday night's $1 million Garrard’s Miracle Mile at Menangle was released.

No less than four of the eight runners in Australia’s premier speed test first saw the light of day south of the border, those being Honolua Bay, Hurricane Harley, Catch A Wave and Mach Dan.

Should any of these four lift the trophy they will join a select list of Victorian-bred horses to have won the Miracle Mile - Lennytheshark (2017), Popular Alm (1983) and Adaptor (1969).

Honolua Bay and Hurricane Harley were both bred by Bill and Anne Anderson’s Lauriston Bloodstock, Catch A Wave by the Judd family’s Benstud Standardbreds and Sydneysiders Peter and Zilla O’Shea, and Mach Dan by Bacchus Marsh couple Shannon and Megan Nixon.

Furthermore, five of the Miracle Mile runners were sired by horses who either stood or whose semen is available from Victorian stud farms.

Catch A Wave and Captain Ravishing are both sons of Captaintreacherous (Empire Stallions), Expensive Ego was sired by Rock N Roll Heaven (Alabar Bloodstock), Honolua Bay is a product of Somebeachsomewhere (Empire Stallions) and Mach Dan was gotten by Mach Three (Alabar Bloodstock).

The Victorian influence on this year’s NSW Grand Circuit event extends to the fact the dams of five of the finalists – Honolua Bay, Hurricane Harley, Expensive Ego, Catch A Wave and Mach Dan – are owned by locally based breeders.

Intending purchasers at Nutrien Equine’s Melbourne Yearling Sale on April 1, 2 and 3 have an opportunity to secure a close relative of Honolua Bay in Lot 407, an Always B Miki filly from Rosie Oreilly whose dam, Limerick Star, is a half-sister to the dam of the Del-Re National A. G. Hunter Cup hero.

The filly is being offered by Lauriston Bloodstock and prepared by Kath McIntosh’s Llowalong Farms.

The breeders of Miracle Mile contestants in Benstud Standardbreds (14 lots), Lauriston Bloodstock (seven) and Nixon Bloodstock (three) are all strongly represented at the auction.

So too are the sires of Miracle Mile finalists in Bettor’s Delight (nine colts, four fillies), Rock N Roll Heaven (seven colts, three fillies), Sweet Lou (four colts, three fillies and one gelding), Captaintreacherous (three colts, three fillies) and Somebeachsomewhere (two colts, one filly).

Past Miracle Mile winners with relatives in the sale include Spankem (Lot 413), Lennytheshark (Lots 416 and 664), Baby Bling (Lot 421), Our Sir Vancelot (Lot 479) and Christian Cullen (Lot 486).

A Sweet Lou colt out of the 2013 Miracle Mile winner Baby Bling is among the offering at the Nutrien Equine Sydney Yearling Sale to be held at Warwick Farm next weekend. It is Lot 13 in the catalogue.

Twenty-six lots are being presented by Victorian vendors and 95 are Vicbred eligible. Alabar Bloodstock has 10 lots, Llowalong Farms (four), Regal Farm (three), Oakbank Estate (two), Lyndon Turner (two) and Fusinato Bloodstock, Graeme Gourley, Harvey Kaplan, Nixon Bloodstock and Mark Panton one each.

The Sydney sale will be livestreamed at www.nutrienequine.com.au

The opinions expressed in The Forum are those of the author and may not be attributed to or represent policies of Harness Racing Victoria, which is the state authority and owner of thetrots.com.au.