Spring awaits for December foal Omolong after June debut

A December foaling date may have necessitated a patient approach with promising colt Omolong, but Yulong and the two-year-old’s breeder Gerry Harvey could be vindicated in their belief in the son of Extreme Choice after making an impressive debut at Warwick Farm on Wednesday.

Trained by Chris Waller, who prepared the first three across the line in the two-year-old colts and geldings 1100m race, Omolong settled back in the field before launching down the centre of the track to score by a length and a quarter.

He defeated stablemates, Stay Inside colt Sanctum and Wootton Bassett colt Letters Patent.

In 2022, with Extreme Choice restricted to covering one mare a day, Newgate Farm extended the super sire’s breeding season through until March.

Baramul Stud’s Harvey was one of the breeders who took advantage of Extreme Choice, sending Samarmeteors in January to be served, a mating which produced colt Omolong.

Despite his December 19 birth date, and held back until the Magic Millions National Yearling Sale in June of last year, Omolong was highly sought after, selling to Yulong for a sale-topping $850,000.

“Obviously, Omolong made it hard for himself, stepping a little bit slow away, but he was too good and the other two acquitted themselves nicely,” Waller’s assistant Charlie Duckworth told Sky Racing.

“We’ll get today out of the way. He’s now no longer a maiden, so he’ll have to step up in grade and things become much harder from that point on, but it was a brilliant first day at school.

“He’s a little bit small, but that’s Extreme Choice. He can throw them in any shape and size, and they’ve all seemingly got engines.

“Gerry Harvey kept a little share in him as well. He did the same with (ATC Sires’ Produce winner) Campione D’Italia, so hopefully he’s just as lucky with this colt.”

Extreme Choice has sired seven individual two-year-old winners this season from just 10 runners headed by Group 2 winners Paradoxium, Berzelius and Hidrix.