Michael Rist
Heptagon’s win at Sandown on Wednesday sparked a celebration at Matamata’s Bradbury Park.
The Mick Price-trained four-year-old son of Jimmy Choux was having his fifth start and took his record to two wins and two seconds.
“He had soundness issues early on after winning his first start and has had a couple of long breaks,” said Bradbury Park’s Casey Dando. “It’s great for his patient bunch of owners.”
Heptagon was raised and sold at Karaka in 2015 by Bradbury on behalf of Nearco Stud to Price for $150,000.
He is from Seven Schillings, the top filly on the 2008-09 New Zealand 2YO Free Handicap as the winner of the Gr.3 Taranaki Classic (1200m) and runner-up in the Gr.1 Diamond Stakes at Ellerslie (1200m).
It is the family of the former top galloper Avedon, the multiple Group One winner of the Waikato Draught Sprint (1400m), the New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) and the Bayer Classic (1600m).
Meanwhile, stablemate Seabrook, another Bradbury graduate, was an unlucky third behind Enbihaar in last Saturday’s Gr.2 Blue Diamond Prelude (1100m) at Caulfield.
“She was a filly we had a lot to do with before sending her to Melbourne to be sold under the Maluka banner for one of our loyal clients, Warwick Jeffries,” said Dando.
“We sold the half-brother to Seabrook by Priosir for $100,000 to a client of Henry Plumptre at Karaka last month. We also sold a colt by Makfi from Warwick’s mare Attalla for $110,000 this year.”