Vain (horse)
| Vain | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Court Martial, the grand-sire of Vain | |
| Sire | Wilkes (FR) |
| Grandsire | Court Martial |
| Dam | Elated |
| Damsire | Orgoglio (GB) |
| Sex | Stallion |
| Foaled | 5 September 1966 |
| Country | Australia |
| Colour | Chestnut |
| Breeder | Walter, Fred and George Johnson |
| Owner | Walter, Fred and George Johnson |
| Trainer | Jim Moloney |
| Record | 14: 12–2–0 |
| Earnings | A$148,485 [1] |
| Major wins | |
|
Maribyrnong Plate (1968) VRC Sires Produce Stakes (1969) Golden Slipper Stakes (1969) Champagne Stakes (1969) Freeway Stakes (1969) Ascot Vale Stakes (1969) Caulfield Guineas (1969) Craven 'A' Stakes (1969) Linlithgow Stakes (1969) George Adams Handicap (1969) | |
| Awards | |
|
Australian Champion Racehorse of the Year (1969–70) Leading sire in Australia (1983–84) | |
| Honours | |
| Australian Racing Hall of Fame (2003) | |
| Last updated on 20 July 2011 | |
Vain (1966–1991) was a champion Thoroughbred racehorse that dominated Australian sprint racing in the period 1968–70, when he won 12 of the 14 races he contested and ran second in the other two. He then went on to become a Leading sire in Australia.
The chestnut colt was sired by the leading sire, Wilkes (FR) and his dam Elated was by the good sire Orgoglio (GB) who sired 21 stakes winners that had 37 stakes-wins. Elated was a good racemare that won 10 races, including 8 in Melbourne. Although Elated produced several foals, Vain was her only stakes winner.
Racing career
Vain was bred and raced by Melbourne brothers Walter, Fred and George Johnson, and was trained by Jim Moloney in the Melbourne suburb of Mordialloc. His normal jockey was Pat Hyland, who rode him to all his wins.
At two years
As a two year old he was undefeated in Melbourne in the spring of 1968 and autumn of 1969, winning races such as the VRC Sires Produce. Moving to Sydney he won the STC Golden Slipper Stakes by 4 lengths, and the AJC Champagne Stakes by 10 lengths, the later in the fastest time ever recorded for a two year old over 6 furlongs.
At three years
As a three year old he won the VATC Caulfield Guineas by three lengths, then campaigned in the VRC Spring Carnival, winning over eight days the Craven 'A' Stakes by 12 lengths, the VRC Linlithgow Stakes by 6 lengths, and in his final race carried a record 10 lb over weight-for-age in winning the 1969 George Adams Handicap. Vain set Australian prizemoney records as a two year old and three year old.
Stud record
He was retired to stud at the end of his three-year-old season, in 1970, when he was injured in a track gallop. He was placed at Widden Stud in the Hunter Region where he sired 370 winners, between them winning almost 1,800 races. Vain sired two Golden Slipper winners and was a leading sire in Australia. Vain is also the great, great grand-sire of Black Caviar on the dam side (as the sire of Song of Norway-1982, the great, grand-sire of Black Caviar) and the great grand-sire of Black Caviar on the sire side (as the sire of Bespoken-1990, the grand-sire of Black Caviar).
Vain sired 44 stakes-winners which had 96 stakes-wins and these included:
- Inspired (won Golden Slipper Stakes etc.)
- Kenmark (won Caulfield Guineas etc.)
- Mistress Anne (G1 VATC Oakleigh Plate and AJC The Galaxy)
- Rainbeam (STC Silver Slipper Stakes)
- Sir Dapper (Golden Slipper Stakes)[2]
Vain died on 25 December 1991.
Vain was Australian Champion Racehorse of the Year in 1969–70, and was inducted into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame.
References
- ↑ Pring, Peter (1977). Analysis of Champion Racehorses. The Thoroughbred Press. ISBN 0-908133-00-6.
- ↑ "Vain (AUS)". Australian Stud Book. Australian Turf Club Limited and Victoria Racing Club Limited. Retrieved 20 July 2011.