Sandown Success for Gibraltar Campion

17th November 2007

Talented filly Gibraltar Campion (3f Rock of Gibraltar - What Can I Say, by Khozaam) turned in her best effort this spring when defeating the older horses in the Listed MRC Kevin Heffernan Stakes over 1200 metres at Sandown on Saturday.

Given a lovely ride by Craig Newitt, the chunky chestnut sat off the pace and then swept to the lead with a furlong to run and dashed well clear, with Cargo Cult finishing hard late for second.

A stakes-winner last season at two, the Lee Freedman trained Gibraltar Campion has now won three of six starts earning $160,240 in prizemoney and will head to the paddock for a short break.

“I had this race in the back of my mind as good three year-old fillies can be well suited at this time of year with a light weight under the weight-for-age scale as we saw with Royal Asscher,” explained Freedman.

“We’ll pull up stumps with her now and come back in the autumn, she’s a very valuable filly.”

Purchased for $500,000 by Katsumi Yoshida from the draft of Rich Hill Stud at the 2006 NZB Premier Yearling Sale, Gibraltar Campion is a half-sister to multiple Group Two winner Only Words being from the very good performer What Can I Say, winner of the Group Two AJC Warwick Stakes in 1998.

Gibraltar Campion becomes the fourth Australian stakes-winner this season for Rock of Gibraltar, joining Pillar of Hercules, Gamble Me and Sliding Cube.