DUE under the hammer at Tattersalls on Friday is Shine Honey Shine, and she has a most significant update to her race record since the publication of the catalogue.

The daughter of Havana Grey (Havana Gold), trained by Karl Burke, had made a promising debut at Southwell in the first week of January, running fourth over six furlongs against experienced opposition. As a first run, it certainly gave hope for better to come, and it came to pass.

Two and a half weeks later, and still showing signs of inexperience, Shine Honey Shine was a comfortable winner, again at Southwell, and many noted that she still has more improvement in her. She is an interesting racing prospect, and ultimately will be a breeding one too. This win also pushed her sire Havana Grey’s total of individual winners from his first crop closer to 50, and that is also not far away from being half of that group of three-year-olds.

Little wonder that Havana Grey is standing at £18,500 (about €21,000) this year at Whitsbury Manor Stud, and the farm also races Shine Honey Shine in partnership, having bred her. They failed to sell her at the Tattersalls Somerville Sale in 2021 for only 12,000gns. She is the first foal of her dam, Military Madame (Epaulette), and following on is a two-year-old son of Due Diligence (War Front).

Interestingly, the two-year-old also failed to find a buyer in the ring at £19,000 when offered at the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale last August, though trainer Rod Millman beat Ed Harper down to £15,000, and signed for him privately. Harper must have hoped for better when he offered Military Madame’s filly foal last year by Showcasing (Oasis Dream) at the Tattersalls December Sale, but it was not to be.

Instead, he took her back to Whitsbury Manor when bidding only reached a miserly 12,000gns, and he could well reap the rewards of this when she comes back up for sale in the autumn. Could she be a half-sister to a stakes horse by then? Last spring Military Madame was covered once again by Showcasing, so there is much to look forward to in the family.

Unbroken line

Military Madame is one of five winners from an unbroken line of winning dams going back at least six generations (and that’s to 1960), and there are plenty of well-known winners embedded on the pedigree page. Group 1 winner and classic-placed Tiggy Wiggy (Kodiac) flew the flag for the family for a number of years and she sold in 2015 to MV Magnier for 2,100,000gns.

More recently, the 2021 Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks winner Going Global (Mehmas), bred on similar lines, has emerged to boost the family’s fortunes, and she also proved a hit last November in the sale ring, purchased by BBA Ireland for $2,500,000 at Fasig-Tipton.

Perhaps it’s time to turn down the page on Lot 272 at the upcoming sale. This is a family that could hit the jackpot again.