Steve Wolfe’s star sprinter Red Can Man is enjoying a well-earned break ahead of the $350,000 The Bluff Knoll (1099m) in Albany on March 10.
The seasoned son of Yarradale Stud sire Gingerbread Man ran a brave fifth in the G3 Damien Oliver Gold Rush (1400m) last weekend to sign off a superb summer campaign that started with a Listed victory in the Crawford Stakes (1100m) in October.
Red Can Man followed up with a third in the G3 Prince Of Wales Stakes (1000m), a sixth in the G3 Colonel Reeves Stakes (1100m) and fourth in the G1 Winterbottom Stakes (1200m) prior to The Gold Rush.
He earned a total of $192,000 in those five outings at Ascot to boost his overall bank to $1.5 million including $277,000 in Westspeed bonuses. Wolfe and bloodstock agent Noel Carter had purchased the chestnut for $50,000 out of the Western Breeders Alliance draft at the 2018 Perth Magic Millions.
“The Winterbottom was among his main goals and he was pretty unlucky,” Wolfe claimed. “He’s always right there and always earns money. When you get to this level you take what you can get.”
Red Can Man (7g Gingerbread Man – Brocky’s Ace by Surtee) flew home from the back-half of the field in the Winterbottom with a sizzling 33.63s for the final 600m. He was bred by Ellie Giles who was also happy to get $1 million for his older half-sister Quilista (Scandal Keeper) at the 2021 Magic Millions National Sale on the Gold Coast.
Their dam Brocky’s Ace has been a phenomenal producer. The 20yo mare foaled a first-crop filly by Splintex (Snitzel) on November 1 and she’s also the second-dam of G2 WA Guineas (1600m) winner Zipaway (Playing God).
Gingerbread Man’s strike-rate won’t suffer with Red Can Man off the scene – Hit The Jackpot hit that home with a never-say-die victory in the Capel Vale Maiden (1111m) at Bunbury on Thursday. He was headed first by Miss Esprit (NZ) and then by On A Winning Day but fought them both off for Vicki Corver.
Hit The Jackpot digs deep to deny On A Winning Day and Miss Esprit (centre) / Photo; Western Racepix
Hit The Jackpot was racing first-up since August for trainer Ryan Hill who part-owns the Gingerbread Man 3yo with Vern Brockman and Michael Wilson. His dam Wings Of Hope (War Chant) won twice at Bunbury for Brockman and her latest foal is a colt by Sessions.
On Friday, Gingerbread Man’s G2 Karrakatta Plate (1200m) winner Ima Single Man won a Sha Tin 1200m trial after missing an intended start in the Lukfook Jewellery Cup (1200m). The hard-knocking 6yo has averaged over a dozen starts in each of his three seasons for trainer Tony Cruz for earnings over AUD855,000
The Yarradale sire then weighed in for a Xmas Eve weekend double with Fluro Neuro (Ascot) on Saturday and Allaboutthecraic (Belmont) on Sunday to keep him third on the WA sires’ table with earnings over $1.34 million.
Gingerbread Man (Shamardal) has 11 yearlings entered for the 2024 Perth Magic Millions starting with the colt from Beyond The Mist (Surtee) who is bred on the same cross as Red Can Man. He has been catalogued as Lot 18 in the draft from Willow Dale Farm (as agent) for Ellie Giles.
