Blue Swede stakes his Derby claim

A highly-successful WS family added two further winning strikes to its honours board last weekend with a trans-Tasman double. Lopov was successful at the Sale meeting in Melbourne while Double O Seven furthered his record with a victory in trying conditions at Hastings.

A three-year-old son of red-hot stallion Savabeel, Lopov was a clear-cut winner over 1700 metres to take his career stats to two wins and five placings from his 12 appearances. He is prepared by Danny O’Brien who has enjoyed a long and successful association with WS and he purchased his latest winner from their 2009 Select Sale draft at Karaka for $25,000. The gelding hails from one of the Matamata farm’s most productive families.

Lopov is out out of the winning Pins mare Prickle, who was also Gr 2 placed in the Wakefield Challenge Stakes. She is a sister to the multiple Sydney winner Legsman with their dam Centaine’s daughter Snobbish and the feature name in this pedigree is the multiple Gr 1 winner Slight Chance. She is also the dam of the promising young Australian stallion Dane Shadow and Gr 3 winner Salgado.

On the home front, the genuine Double O Seven gave the country’s leading amateur rider Scott Wenn a comfortable time to score by a wide margin. Bred by Garry Chittick and sold as a weanling for $22,000, he is by No Excuse Needed out of Impassive Lady, a half-sister by Defensive Play to the dam of Prickle.