Miracle Mile 2023 Field

Miracle Mile breeding highlights

By Peter Wharton

Champion sires Bettor’s Delight and Captaintreacherous are the only stallions dually represented in the $1million Garrard’s Miracle Mile to be run at Menangle on Saturday night.

Bettor’s Delight ranks as the sire of Hurricane Harley and Braeview Kelly and the damsire of Mach Dan, while Captaintreacherous has two runners in Catch A Wave and Captain Ravishing.

Sweet Lou (Spirit Of St Louis), Somebeachsomewhere (Honolua Bay), Mach Three (Mach Dan) and Rock N Roll Heaven (Expensive Ego) each are singly represented.

Bettor’s Delight is the only sire to have left a Miracle Mile winner. The Woodlands Stud flagship has sired three previous winners in Spankem (2019), Have Faith In Me (2016) and Beautide (2013).

Christian Cullen, the 1998 Miracle Mile champion, figures as the damsire of Hurricane Harley and Catch A Wave.

Four of the runners were foaled in Victoria in Hurricane Harley, Honolua Bay, Catch A Wave and Mach Dan, two were born in New Zealand in Spirit Of St Louis and Braeview Kelly, while Captain Ravishing and Expensive Ego were foaled in NSW and Queensland respectively.

Hurricane Harley and Honolua Bay were both bred by Anne and Bill Anderson’s Lauriston Bloodstock.

Half of the eight-horse field in Spirit Of St Louis, Braeview Kelly, Mach Dan and Captain Ravishing are the second foals of their dams, Hurricane Harley and Catch A Wave are third foals, Honolua Bay (fourth) and Expensive Ego (fifth).

Braeview Kelly and Mach Dan both belong to the Jessie Pepper family which includes earlier Miracle Mile winners in King Of Swing (2020, 2021 and 2022) and Master Mood (1986).

Lady Antrim, who founded the family to which Honolua Bay belongs, was responsible for the 2019 winner Spankem, and The Brat, the ancestress of Expensive Ego, numbers the 1975 Miracle Mile winner Young Quinn among her members.

Four of the starters are geldings in Spirit Of St Louis, Honolua Bay, Catch A Wave and Mach Dan, three are entires in Hurricane Harley, Captain Ravishing and Expensive Ego, while Braeview Kelly is the lone female.

Interestingly, all eight finalists boast at least one strain of Artsplace blood with Spirit Of St Louis, Captain Ravishing and Expensive Ego each carrying a double dose.