This Colt Could Get You To The Guineas-He Could Get You To The Derby...

When the yet to be named PROFONDO walked into the Magic Millions Sales Ring as a yearling, the crowd drew a collective intake of breath as he topped the sale at $1.9 million dollars.  One of the few stallion prospects to actually live up their sale price, he went on to win the Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes as a 3yo, and was gallant in defeat when running third behind the Champion Anamoe in the Winx Stakes as a four year old.

Now as a stallion at stud in New Zealand, his first progeny have been eagerly sought by buyers at the 2026 New Zealand Bloodstock (Karaka) yearling sale where they sold to over $400,000.

This colt, from a winning O’Reilly mare, is a good sized yearling, with plenty to like about him. Good overall conformation with a strong neck and shoulder, and importantly with good feet and heel (something that’s not easy to find in thoroughbreds nowadays), he’s a horse with a fair bit of scope, indicating to us that he’s going to be suited to distances over 1600m and more. In fact, backed up by a pedigree where plenty of his relations have won to 2000m and beyond, we’ve bought him as a Guineas/Derby prospect.

Looking at his pedigree, his first dam, O’Lovely is by the champion broodmare sire, O’Reilly, and it’s in the breeding barn where O’Reilly mares come into their own. To date they’ve produced 130 black type winners, amongst them, Feroce, Orchestral, Major Beel, and the champion Pride of Jenni. Her two foals to race are showing plenty of promise, each running recent placings, and look like they’ll be winning their maidens soon. They include the progressive Gold Chariot who’s run second at both his career starts to date and is touted as an Autumn Derby candidate.

We’ve bought this horse to be nurtured and developed to be a three year old classic style of horse. The pedigree cross is a 20/20 match on G1 Goldmine, and it’s a cross very akin to two high class Japanese performed horses in Mikki Isle and Danon Chaser. We think he’ll be at his best at 1600m, and then hopefully stretch out to be a Derby horse (2400m) later in his 3yo season.

He’ll be trained in Victoria by Gavin Bedggood, who was obviously also taken by the stock of the stallion as he bought two other Profondos at the same sale! Gavin is one of the rising stars in Victorian racing. Now a multiple Group 1 winning trainer, it’s remarkable that he’s achieved such success inside just ten years since he commenced training. He landed the Group1 Zabeel Classic this season with Kingswood, cementing his reputation for training stayers.