By Peter Wharton
Exciting, young Captaintreacherous stallion Catch The Fire and the Rocknroll Hanover horse A Rocknroll Dance, who both stand at the Somerset Farm near Brisbane of Peter and Chantal McMullen, created headlines in two different countries on Saturday.
Catch The Fire, who is embarking on his first season ‘down under’, provided the top priced yearling at the Ohio Selected Jug Sale in Catch The Cowboy (ex Western Hanover mare), who sold for a whopping $225,000. This represents the highest price ever paid for a yearling in the state of Ohio.
Catch The Fire was the leading first crop sire at the sale and second overall with his 22 yearlings selling at an average of $35,909, well above the sale average.
A Rocknroll Dance figured as the sire of the winner of the Group 1 $150,000 Vicbred Super Series Final for four-year-old males at Melton in Solesseo Matuca.
The gelding sprinted brilliantly along the passing lane to rate a career-best 1:55.2 for 2240 metres. It was his ninth success and lifted his stake tally to $221,130.
A Rocknroll Dance, who is in eighth position on the sires premiership with $3.1 million, has enjoyed a brilliant month so far.
Other metropolitan winners sired by him include the Menangle winners Kanena Provlima (1:50.6) and Vulunteer NZ (1:57.3), Master Publisher NZ (Gloucester Park), Rocknroll Max NZ 1:55.6 (Albion Park) and the Addington three-year-old victor Double Time.
A Rocknroll Dance has sired 142 individual winners in Australia this season and is seventh on the winner’s list.