Courtesy of Racenet

Shock retirement - Real Saga off to stud

Thursday, 9 July 2009

Outstanding two-year-old Real Saga has been retired to stand his first season at stud at Queensland’s Glenlogan Park.

Glenlogan manager Steve Morley confirmed a deal had been completed to secure the colt after Real Saga’s spring race plans were cut-short because of a minor suspensory injury.

“Real Saga will be retired immediately,” Morley told Racenet.

Glenlogan Park has beaten high-profile studs in the Hunter Valley, Victoria and New Zealand to stand the son of Tale Of The Cat.

“There wasn’t anybody that wasn’t interested in him,” Morley said.

Real Saga ended goes to stud as the winner of four races from just six starts under the care of the Hawkes family training partnership.

He made an instant impression winning the Breeders’ Plate at Randwick on debut before returning in the autumn to finish second in the Blue Diamond Stakes at Caulfield.

After returning to Sydney to claim the Todman Stakes, Real Saga was favourite to win the Golden Slipper before finishing fourth behind Phelan Ready.

Real Saga, who will stand at a $12,500 + GST introductory fee for 2009, will join Falvelon, Show Of Heart, Jet Spur and Bradbury’s Luck on the Glenlogan Park roster.

“Real Saga will fit ideally in to our stallion line-up for 2009 as he represents everything we have been targeting, and having so much success with, in recent years,” Glenlogan principal John Haseler said.

“A locally-bred sprinter who possessed true Group I ability, he was the standout colt of his generation and had plenty of that all important ingredient - precocious speed.”

Real Saga was Timeform's highest rated two-year-old in Australia for 2008-2009 with a 123 rating.