FIRST CLASS BECOMES LATEST GROUP BROMAC LODGE WINNER

Promising juvenile pacer First Class became the latest Bromac Lodge-bred Group winner at Wyndham on Saturday, March 14, with a professional victory in the Group Three $26,400 Southland Harness Awards NZ Kindergarten Stakes.

The aptly-named pacer rolled to the front after the opening 300m for driver Tim Williams and controlled the race to a nicety thereafter.

First Class, a colt by champion sire Bettor's Delight from the former Bromac Lodge mare Amaretto Bromac (Falcon Seelster-Arma Class), held by three-quarters of a length in 1:56.6 (1609m).

From the same family as last year's Allstars-trained NZ Horse of the Year, Spankem (1:47.7), First Class was a $50,000 NZ Bloodstock Yearling Sales buy for much of the same ownership, Phil and Glenys Kennard, Gary and Kerry Woodham, and Jim and Anne Gibbs.

First Class also joined the Allstars Rolleston stables of Mark Purdon and Natalie Rasmussen, and preceded his Wyndham win with placings at Auckland on December 13 behind stablemate It's All About Faith, and a half-length second to Krug in the Group Three NZ Sapling Stakes at Ashburton on February 22.

Williams commented post the Kindergarten First Class is a great little horse.

"He's a great doer, great-gaited and doesn’t wear a lot of gear. He tries hard and is a lovely wee two-year-old,” said Williams.

Williams, who also won the 2013 Kindergarten with a former Allstars winner in Messini, advanced to 484 career wins on Saturday.

Senior co-trainer Mark Purdon has now either trained, or co-trained 11 Kindergarten Stakes winners.

First Class is now likely to continue to try and close the gap on dominant early season juvenile, Krug, in the Welcome Stakes at Addington next month.

His dam Amaretto Bromac, is a grand-daughter of Ar Miss, the former top 1970s filly and most notably the dam of champion 1980s NZ filly/mare, Armalight (1:55.4, mile rate, 2000m).

Amaretto Bromac, placed twice from only five starts, now owned in NSW by Helen Heads, is also the dam of former smart WA filly Angel Bromac (p2, 1:56.9, 4 2 & 3YO wins, $56,500), the runner-up in the 2016 WA Diamond Classic 2YO Final, and Phil Bromac a 1:54.8 Menangle winner last September.

The family was also to the fore internationally last year through the deeds in North America of the Australian-bred None Bettor A (from NZ-bred grand-dam), who took a 1:48.8 mark and won 12 of 18 races for $375,970, including the Battle of Lake Erie on the half-mile track at Northfield Park in a world-record equaling 1:49 (1609m).

He also won the Great Northeast Open Series final, and was the runner-up in another aged feature, the Bobby Quillen Memorial.

The family also captured headlines last year in Australia with the Shane and Lauren Tritton-trained Muscle Factory, who set the Australasian 3YO mile record at 1:49.6 (since bettered), before winning the Victorian Derby and being sidelined with injury after the NSW Derby.