Hermitage Thoroughbreds lands Victoria Derby – Empire Rose double with Waller and McDonald
Eugene Chuang’s significant investment in Australia via Hermitage Thoroughbreds was rewarded with a Flemington Group 1 double in combination with Chris Waller and James McDonald through Stormy Marco in the Victoria Derby and Lady Shenandoah in the Empire Rose Stakes.
A Derby-winning colt and a five-time Group 1-winning mare delivered a Flemington double for Hermitage Thoroughbreds, Chris Waller and James McDonald as Stormy Marco and Lady Shenandoah added to the Hong Kong-owned operation’s major mark on Australian racing.
McDonald was in full control with both winners, with Stormy Marco taking the $3 million Victoria Derby and Lady Shenandoah the $1 million Empire Rose Stakes.
Both were bought at the Inglis Easter sale through Waller and bloodstock agent Guy Mulcaster for Eugene Chuang’s racing and breeding operation, which is managed in Australia by Shannon Clarke.
The colours have been carried to victory on this day before with September Run’s victory in the Coolmore Stud Stakes, while The Autumn Sun, Tron Bolt, Autumn Glow and Egg Tart are other elite winners to race in Hermitage’s partial or full ownership.
Stormy Marco was emphatic in defeating Cold Shower in the Derby, with Quick Finish third, while Lady Shenandoah claimed her fifth Group 1, the Snitzel mare defeating Concord Connie by a length and a half in the 1600-metre Empire Rose Stakes, with Idle Flyer third.
Charlie Duckworth, Waller’s stable representative at Flemington, said the Derby had been Stormy Marco’s target almost from his first run, partly because Hermitage also owns Tron Bolt, the $900,000 Ready2Race colt who won the JJ Atkins in June with Stormy Marco third.
“Tron Bolt was always Guineas bound. So we had to try and split the two colts for Hermitage,” Duckworth said. “It has been a long term plan.”
“Awesome, awesome for the Hermitage, awesome for Shannon who does an amazing job managing all their horses. She cops a lot of pressure all the time because she’s lucky enough to have some incredible horses and he’s just another one to add to the string.”
Lady Shenandoah’s run of wins follows a spell of Group 1 placings, several of them behind Autumn Glow, the mare Hermitage bought with Arrowfield Stud for $1.8 million and races in partnership with it.
“You could have easily written her off prior to last start. She had been running well but just wasn’t winning. She was running in the hardest of hard races, from Everests to running against Autumn Glow,” Duckworth said.
McDonald said: “Obviously it’s hard with Autumn Glow around the same sort of trip and Autumn Glow’s got her measure, but she’s just so honest, always races to a high level. Now she’s won a Toorak with 58 (kilograms), that’s incredible and then she’s gone back to mares’ grade and won really well.”
Stormy Marco was bred by Rathmore Bloodstock and sold for $70,000 at the 2024 Inglis Australian Weanling Sale. Coolmore Stud then offered him as Lot 128 at the 2025 Easter Yearling Sale, where he made $300,000 to a buying entry recorded as Chris Waller Racing / Mulcaster Bloodstock / Hermitage Thoroughbreds.
Lady Shenandoah cost $525,000 at the 2023 Easter sale, offered by Arrowfield, which bred her with Planette Thoroughbreds.
Hermitage’s partnership with Arrowfield dates back to The Autumn Sun, the first order Mulcaster filled for Chuang.
The $700,000 Easter yearling won five Group 1s for Waller and now stands at Arrowfield under the Hermitage/Arrowfield Syndicate. Waller has also trained Group 1 winners Egg Tart, a $40,000 purchase, and September Run for Hermitage.
Chuang has also kept buying at the two-year-old sales. Hermitage was the leading buyer at this month’s Ready2Race Sale, spending a combined $2.175 million on five two-year-olds. They include an equal sale-topping $600,000 Toronado colt, the first foal of Group 2 winner Showoroses, who will be trained by Waller.
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