FAMILY CREDITS CONTINUE FOR YEARLING BUY
Bettor’s Fire, the uncle of this year’s $100,000 yearling filly Overport Lodge buy La Rosa, has surpassed the equivalent of $NZ1 million in earning.
Formerly a winner of 11 of 30 NZ starts for $79,192, for Mark Joneses former boss, Cran Dalgety, Bettor’s Fire went on to be a big winner of over $A815,000 in Perth under the direction of Kyle Harper.
Exported to North America last year, the evergreen Bettor’s Delight-Sparks A Flyin gelding won four on end.
Now 11, he’s lowered his lifetime best to 1:50.1 (fifth) on a five-furlong (1000m) track and won $US144,470 from eight wins (including a $44,000 open pace at Yonkers) and five placing in 23 starts.
Bettor’s Fire latest win was at Plainridge Park, Maine, on Monday (NZ time), winning by 2 and 1/4 lengths in 1:51.4.
He’s now raced 129 times for 52 wins in three countries for the equivalent of of $NZ1,038,537.
Mark Jones, himself, had a catch-drive behind Bettor’s Fire at Methven back in 2011.
He teamed up with Bettor’s Fire at his fourth career start, finishing second to Falcon Crown in 1-win pace.
Mark had a rewarding association with the dam of Bettor’s Fire in Sparks A Flyin, who he reined for owners Jim and Susan Wakefield, and trainer Cran Dalgety, to win the 2001 Australasian Breeders Crown 3YO Fillies Final at Moonee Valley, Melbourne.
The former world driving champ also reined her to win the New South Wales Oaks and Nevele R Fillies Final in a stellar season.
Sparks A Flyin (1:52, 21 win & $627,218), who died in 2015, stamped class on her foals, with her first six to race, all quality winners.
Besides Bettor’s Fire, she’s left 1:49.5 Menangle winner (My) Alpha Rock (17 wins & $A240,614), Diomedes (1:57.5, 12 wins & $87,994), Empyrean (1:56.2, 10 wins & $121,302), Safedra (1:56.3, 10 wins & $135,577) and former Victoria Derby Heat winner, Art Union (1:55.6, 17 wins & $210,120).
La Rosa, purchased at the NZ Bloodstock’s National Standardbred Yearling Sale at Karaka in February, is a grand-daughter of Sparks A Flyin and will race in the ownership of Sir Loins Limited, 3 Peg Investments Pty Ltd, Starmark Limited, Aaron Goadsby and WDC (Mark Jones company).
She’s the third foal from Safedra, the Mach Three daughter of Sparks A Flyin, who won the Group Two 2013 Southland Oaks and also chased home champion filly Adore Me in the 2013 New Zealand Oaks at Addington during her race career for Cran Dalgety.
La Rosa, by the same sire as Bettor’s Fire in champion stallion Bettor’s Delight, is a sister to Group One-placed 3YO filly Buzinga (p3, 1:56.8, four wins), and last season’s two-year-old Young Guns Heat place-getter Dr Susan (1:57.2), who placed in four of six starts last term.
Dr Susan resumed with a win at the Rangiora workouts on Wednesday for this season’s new Cran Dalgety-Nathan Purdon stable.