Harry and Bridget Oppenheimer’s daughter Mary Slack leads Mocha Blend in on behalf of her daughter and son-in-law Jessica and Steven Jell (Candiese Lenferna Photography)
Sporting Post
Fate seems to work in mysterious ways. Victory by Mauritzfontein homebred Mocha Blend in the Betway Gr1 Summer Cup last Saturday brought to full circle a tale which started many years ago when the late Harry and Bridget Oppenheimer acquired the American import Michabo.
A two-time winner in her birth country, the daughter of Super Concorde boasted a fine pedigree nurtured at the famous Tartan Farms in Florida, the home of champion miler Dr Fager, who in fact is Michabo’s broodmare sire.
Like so many Mauritzfontein broodmares, Michabo traced to an influential taproot mare, this being the Princequillo mare Cequillo, ancestress of the successful Fappiano and Quiet American, as well as Gr1 winners Honour And Glory and Ogygian.
For Mauritzfontein, Michabo bred five winners from seven foals, the most notable of which Patache, won the Gr3 Breeders Challenge Stakes and was runner-up in the Gr1 Premiers Champion Stakes.
Her first foal, the Royal Chalice filly Stirrup Cup, put the family on the map so to speak with her Fort Wood son Hunting Tower. Successful in the Gr1 SA Classic, he became the fifth Oppenheimer homebred to win the Gr1 Durban July with victory in the 2007 renewal.
Hunting Tower’s full sister Mabola Plum managed just two places on the track, yet despite her pedigree credentials, was deemed superfluous to the stud’s needs and after being covered by Goldkeeper, was sold privately to then Maine Chance stud manager John Slade.
For him, Mabola Plum became the gift that keeps on giving, as all but two of her 14 foals toured the sales ring and sold for an aggregate of R8,385,000, the most expensive of which stakes winner Macchiato for R2.9-million. As John quipped: “Mabola put my kids through private school!”
By the time her Silvano filly Mocha Special came up for sale at the 2007 National Sale, Mabola Plum had produced her first stakes winner, the National Assembly filly Mocha Java. Successful in the Gr3 Tommy Hotspur Handicap, she also had the distinction of chasing home champion sprinters Mythical Flight and National Colours in the Gr1 Graham Beck Wines Cape Flying Championship and Mercury Sprint respectively.
In addition, Mochachino, a then juvenile full sister to Mocha Special, was also showing promise and would go on to win the Gr2 Camellia Stakes.
At the time, there was no longer a family member amongst the Mauritzfontein broodmare band, hence it came as no surprise that it was Mrs Bridget Oppenheimer who bid R1.2-million to acquire Mocha Special.
By the time Mocha Special retired to the Mauritzfontein paddocks a one-time winner, Mabola Plum had produced her third stakes winner, the Jet Master colt Macchiato, as well as Gr3-placed Americano.
Mocha Special too, became a stakes producer. Her Gimmethegreenlight colt Barahin, who was sold to Shadwell as a yearling for R2.6-million, came into his own as a late two-year-old by claiming the Listed Gatecrasher Stakes before outdueling stable companion Soqrat in the Gr2 Durban Golden Horseshoe. Trained by Mike de Kock, he added the Gr3 Jubilee Handicap at three, having chased Hawwaam home in the Gr1 SA Classic .
As the dam of a Gr1 winner in Mocha Blend, Mocha Special went one better than Mabola Plum. In hindsight, the decision to retain the filly was a wise move, as she followed in the footsteps of another illustrious Mauritzfontein homebred, who landed the Cup in 2020.
Like so many of Ideal World’s progeny, Mocha Blend has come into her own as a four-year-old and joins Met queen Smart Call as his second Gr1 winning filly.
A proud-as- punch John Slade added: “I am so pleased how the family has rewarded Mauritzfontein. Mrs O bought Mocha Special and now Jessica has bred Mocha Blend.”
Although Mabola Plum is no more, he kept her Count Dubois daughter Mochalette, who was born prematurely.
Be that as it may, as a broodmare Mochalette contributed to the family fortunes as the dam of Zimbabwe Derby and Oaks winner Coffeeberry and stakes-placed six-time winner Kazaar. The former, a daughter of Master Of My Fate, has returned to join John’s small but select broodmare band and is carrying her first foal to Querari, the sire of Kazaar.
And while the Oppenheimers’ grandaughter Jessica continues to keep the Mauritzfontein flame alive, the next Slade generation has also joined the breeding fraternity. John’s daughter Catherine, together with husband Brett, are the proud owners of Mocha Blend’s own sister Expresso Martini, one of three foundation mares for their fledgling breeding operation, Hole River Farm. A seven-time winner, she has a Got The Greenlight yearling and a Thunderstruck foal at foot.
