ERUPT OFF THE MARK!

Maine Chance Farms’ beautifully bred, and well performed, resident sire Erupt came up with his first winner when the latter’s two-year-old son Set To Go broke his maiden at the Vaal on Tuesday afternoon.

Trained by Paul Peter, the Avontuur Thoroughbred Farm bred colt had finished second on debut and made amends for that defeat with a courageous win in a maiden juvenile plate on Tuesday.

Under Mark Khan, Set To Go fought out a thrilling finish to Tuesday’s contest with the well-backed Emirate Gina, and stayed on to well to account for that filly by a neck, with Twin Strike another three-parts of a length away in third spot.

The well-named Set To Go is out of the well-performed Jet Master mare Jet Set Go, whose three wins included a score in the G3 Champion Juvenile Cup.

He hails from the first crop of his talented, globetrotting sire Erupt -whose five wins included triumphs in both the G1 Juddmonte Grand Prix de Paris (a race won previously by subsequent champion South African sire Fort Wood) and G1 Pattinson Canadian International, with Erupt also placed second in the 2016 G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud.

One of 48 G1 winners sired by outstanding stallion Dubawi (also responsible for successful and promising sires Night Of Thunder, New Bay, Makfi, Time Test and Zarak as well as promising young South African sire Willow Magic), Erupt hails from one of the best families in the studbook.

Erupt is out of G3 Prix Vanteaux winner Mare Nostrum (herself a daughter of champion sire Caerleon), a half-sister to G1 Yellow Ribbon Stakes queen Aube Indienne.

This is also the family of leading sires Encosta De Lago, Flying Spur, and Holy Roman Emperor, as well as current boom Australian galloper Home Affairs. The latter showed his class when romping home to a brilliant win in the 2021 G1 Coolmore Stud Stakes, and was also victorious in the 2021 G2 Iron Jack Silver Slipper Stakes.

Erupt’s five-strong draft at the upcoming Cape Premier Yearling Sale include a filly (Lot 51) out of Silvano’s top-class daughter Frequent Flyer, a colt (Lot 70) from the same family as top-miler and champion sire Cape Cross, and a half-brother (Lot 118) to the very useful Queen Of Shadows.

The bay also has a strong consignment on offer at the 2022 Cape Yearling Sale – with Erupt’s lots on offer including a half-brother (Lot 18) to speedy dual G3 winner True To Life, a half-sister (Lot 20) to Bloodstock South Africa Cape Yearling Sale Cup heroine Mounia, a filly (Lot 74) out of a G1 placed daughter of Silvano, and a colt (Lot 109) whose G3 placed dam is a full-sister to champion Mother Russia.

Images: JC Photos