National Code wins comfortably at Knyeton (Racing.com)
A four-year-old filly by Written Tycoon out of National Colour’s daughter Sarraqa won in fluent style for owners Mike de Kock, Larry Nestadt, Hollywood Racing (Mgr: D Heffer) and the Barnane Stud of the Kieswetter family at Knyeton Racecourse in Australia on Wednesday.
The horse is trained by Ben, Will and JD Hayes and was having her second career start in a Maiden Plate race over 1103m at Knyeton racecourse in Victoria.
The grey filly was purchased for Aus$160,000 at the Inglis Premier Yearling Sale in 2023 and runs in the Barnane Stud colours.
Sarraqaa was unraced but is a three-quarter sister to the Gr 1 Computaform Sprint winner and highly successful sire Rafeef, as she is out of Rafeef’s dam National Colour and is by Snitzel, who is a son of Rafeef’s sire Redoute’s Choice.
Furthermore, National Code’s value since being purchased has skyrocketed because she is the half-sister to Dundeel colt Celestial Legend, who won both the Gr 1 Doncaster Mile and Gr 1 Randwick Guineas last year.
National Code jumped well under apprentice Daniel Stackhouse on Wednesday and took an early lead in the race around the turn.
However, Stackhouse allowed Tassorting to go ahead.
National Code sat in second place in the running in a one out position.
She quickened superbly in the straight and won by 1,80 lengths with just three smacks required.
National Colour was a Riethuiskraal Stud-bred Sean Tarry-trained grey by National Assembly and was the joint Horse Of The Year together with Ilha da Vitoria in the Equus Awards of 2005-2006, having won the Gr 1 Computaform Sprint, Gr 1 SA Fillies Sprint and Gr 1 Mercury Sprint, among other victories, and she went on to win a race in Dubai and finish a half-a-length second in the Gr 1 Nunthorpe Stakes in England.
She was retired to Arrowfield Stud in Australia and besides Redoute’s Choice stalwart Rafeef she also produced Rafeef’s full-brother Mustaaqeem.
Rafeef was trained by Mike de Kock and won the Gr 1 Computaform Sprint. He has gone on to produce four Gr 1 winners himself and is always prominent on the South African Sires standings.
Mustaaqeem was also trained by De Kock and won the Gr 1 SA Nursery.
National Colour also produced Circle Of Speed, a one-time winner who produced the Gr 2 winner Full Velocity.
It would be a big boost for SA breeding if National Code was imported to South Africa by her owners.
