First-crop sire Bernardini recorded his first winner on July 15, when Zayat Stables’ homebred A Z Warrior put up an impressive debut performance to land the 1100m maiden special weight at Hollywood Park.
Breaking smartly from the gate, the Bob Baffert-trained filly was soon in front and flew down the home straight to win by a length and three quarters from Indian Gracey, with the pair some distance clear of the rest of the field.
A Z Warrior is out of the Stakes-placed Carson City mare Carson Jen, now the dam of five winners from five foals to race including G1 King’s Bishop third and G3 winner E Z Warrior and fellow Stakes winner J Z Warrior.
Bernardini, the best three-year-old in the world in 2006 and the first horse since Damascus to win the Preakness, Travers and Jockey Club Gold Cup in the same year, was rewarded with an outstanding calibre of mare in his first two southern hemisphere books which included G1 winners Dizelle, Polar Success, Merlene, Bulla Borghese, Danni Martine and Wild Iris, plus the dams of Eremein, Barely A Moment, Divine Madonna, He’s No Pie Eater, Star Witness and Roman Emperor.
With his first-crop of weanlings having recently gone through the sales ring, he sits just behind fellow first-crop Darley stallion Street Sense on the overall averages, and also achieved a top price of $110,000.
Bernardini will cover his third book of mares this season at Kelvinside at a fee of $38,500 including GST.
