Rowe On Monday, Gandharvi's filly focus, Mo memories, foal crop plans and tributes for Don Goodwin

In this week's Rowe on Monday, Gandharvi Racing founder Kuldeep Singh Rajput speaks on his plans for 2025, Uncle Mo's legacy lives on after his death in Kentucky, the American plans to re-invigorate the foal crop, and Don Goodwin, the breeder of champion mare Verry Elleegant, is remembered.

Busy Gandharvi founder to focus on fillies in 2025

Gandharvi Racing’s Kuldeep Singh Rajput has certainly been busy this year, spending much of 2024 launching healthcare technology start-up OutcomesAI.

The Indian-born Rajput, who studied in the US prior to establishing the Singapore-based digital therapeutics company Biofourmis in 2015, has had his attention split between his various business interests and his racing operation, Gandharvi.

Principally, that attention has been directed at OutcomesAI, which aims to address growing capacity issues within healthcare globally, with data suggesting there could be a shortage of 13 million nurses worldwide by 2030.

OutcomesAI has already linked with SingHealth, Singapore’s largest healthcare provider.

Although his new business venture is taking up much of his time, Rajput has plenty to look forward to in 2025, with the Golden Gift-placed Spirit Of Boom colt Extractor being set for the Golden Slipper in the autumn by his trainer Michael Freedman.

“It’s been a very busy 2024 with the development and recent launch of my new company OutcomesAI,” Rajput told The Straight. 

“We have a really nice group of two-year-olds. Extractor was great on debut and he’s a live Slipper colt.

“We will look selectively at some fillies over the sales period, while the focus remains on the new company.”

Rajput’s US-based Kiwi bloodstock agent Michael Wallace will be back Down Under in the New Year where he will attend the Magic Millions, New Zealand Bloodstock and Inglis Classic sales.

He will also return in April for the Inglis Easter sale where he will be acting for Gandharvi as well as other clients where fillies will be the major focus, a switch compared to 2024 where they bought eight colts at the Magic Millions including Extractor for $300,000 and the Snitzel colt Offenbach, who has had two starts.

The evolution of Gandharvi Racing will also see the business sell yearlings for the first time in 2025.

“It’s a new and exciting experience to be on the other side of the fence at the sales,” said Rajput, who also holds a Hong Kong Jockey Club owners’ permit.

Gandharvi’s New Zealand Group 1-winning filly Ulanova, who sold for $1.2 million at the Magic Millions mares’ sale in May when Rajput bought out the filly’s co-owners, is in foal to Zoustar while Rajput’s Pretty, the unraced Pierro half-sister to the Group 2-winning filly Learning To Fly, is in foal to Wootton Bassett.

Eureka Stud, meanwhile, will offer Extractor’s brother on day one of the Magic Millions sale, which starts on January 7.

Poignant win for Modown with untimely death of Uncle Mo

Uncle Mo’s impact in Australia may have been less than what Coolmore and company would have initially hoped, but there was perhaps a moment of serendipity at Pakenham on Saturday when Modown returned to winning form.

Modown, who won the $175,000 VOBIS Gold Bullion for breeder Julian Hay and his wife and trainer Charlotte Littlefield, is out of an Uncle Mo mare and he was victorious for the third time in his career and his first since March.

The Toronado gelding’s breakthrough win came just two days after Uncle Mo’s death. The 16-year-old stallion unfortunately had to be euthanised in the United States after he suffered a foreleg injury which was unable to be rectified by surgery.

Uncle Mo shuttled to Coolmore Australia for four seasons from 2012 to 2015, siring 350 foals, two of them being stakes winners: Hobartville Stakes winner Man From Uncle and the Listed-winning filly Moqueen.

Uncle Mo is also the broodmare sire of Modown, the winner of the VOBIS Gold Bullion at Pakenham on Saturday for trainer Charlotte Littlefield and her husband and co-breeder Julian Hay.

The sire of 109 stakes globally, Uncle Mo was raced by Mike Repole and trained by Todd Pletcher who prepared him to win the Grade 1 Champagne Stakes at Belmont and the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile in just eight starts.

He retired to Ashford Stud after finishing unplaced in the 2011 Breeders’ Cup Classic.

"We’re all still in shock,” Coolmore America’s Dermot Ryan said “He will be greatly missed by everyone here, in particular by his personal groom Rene Macias. He was an exceptional sire both on the racetrack and in the sales ring,” Coolmore America’s Dermot Ryan said.

"I would like to thank Mike Repole for giving us the opportunity to stand him in the first instance and for being a truly fantastic partner, Todd Pletcher for training him to perfection, the Coolmore partners for placing such faith in him and our loyal clients for their unwavering support over the years.

"I would also like to thank Dr Barry David, Dr Bob Hunt and Dr Cole Sandow of Hagyards for their efforts to save him, along with all the team here at Ashford for the excellent care they afforded him throughout his time here."

Jockey Club aims to boost American foal crop

Still in the US, there’s been an interesting development whereby the Jockey Club is attempting to arrest North America’s declining foal crop.

The Club estimates that there are up to 23,000 mares in America which could be introduced or returned to the country’s breeding population and to encourage breeders to consider sending them to stud, they will waive registration fees for those 2026-born foals.

It is not, however, a free-for-all, with the Jockey Club announcing a criteria for mares to be eligible for the scheme. It includes mares that have not raced for the past two years or had a foal for the past two seasons and be aged under nine, or if they are aged 10 to 19, they must have produced a foal in 2021 or 2022.

"We are delighted to learn of The Jockey Club's initiative to waive the registration fees for foals from those mares that are not currently in the system,” Coolmore’s MV Magnier said of the initiative. 

“Anything we can do to bring these mares back into production is a positive for American breeding and racing. You never know from where the next champion will come.”

America’s foal crop declined from 32,984 in 2002 to 19,106 in 2019, a drop of 42 per cent in that time, and it was estimated that it would fall below 18,000 in 2024, the fewest foals born since 1964.

Vale Don Goodwin

Don Goodwin, the breeder and co-owner of 11-time Group 1-winning mare Verry Elleegant, is being remembered as a loyal and generous person.

New Zealand’s small breeder of the year in 2021 and 2022 courtesy of Verry Elleegant, the 2021 Melbourne Cup winner, Goodwin died on Saturday.

“Don, whose racing colours became famous through the deeds of his champion mare Verry Elleegant, was a special person to us at Grangewilliam,” studmasters Mark and Jane Corcoran wrote on social media.  

“Don was a particularly loyal and generous person and a real character who we shared a lot of great moments with in racing. 

“We will miss Don’s visits to the farm and enjoying his fantastic company. We look forward to seeing those famous colours continue crossing the winning post in front. 

“Rest in peace Don.”

Goodwin bred Verry Elleegant out of the two-time winner Opulence, a Danroad mare who he paid just $14,000 for at the 2011 NZB mixed sale.

Not only did Opulence produce Verry Elleegant, who was initially trained by Nick Bishara before being part-sold to Australian interests which saw her transferred her to Darren Weir and later to Chris Waller, she is also the dam of 14-time winner and Listed scorer Verry Flash and Western Australian owner Bob Peters’ Grand National Hurdle winner Affluential.