Luberon makes a perfect debut for her sire Embellish with a flawless performance at Ruakaka.Cambridge Stud personnel weren’t alone in cheering home Luberon when she won on debut at Ruakaka last Saturday to credit her sire Embellish with the prefect start to his stud career.
One of four starters by the New Zealand 2000 Guineas winner in the first northern juvenile race of the season, Luberon lived up to pre-race expectations with a professional performance that saw her home by four lengths in the 800-metre dash.
Others to celebrate the big win included the many breeders connected to the more than 400 mares covered by the son of Savabeel in his first three seasons. That included a peak book of 158 mares last year that bucked the trend of a dip in numbers common to a stallion’s third breeding season.
“As far as a debut result goes, you could describe it as a bit of an all-rounder,” Cambridge Stud CEO Henry Plumptre said when reflecting on Luberon’s Ruakaka win. “This filly was a standout foal and yearling, and would have had a lot of appeal if we had decided to put her through the sales.
“But I said to Brendan (Lindsay), if you’re going to race one from Embellish’s first crop, this filly is it. Everything about her was special, even watching her in the paddock she ruled the roost.”
Put in work with Cambridge Stud’s Karaka-based trainer Lance Noble, Luberon proved to be a quick learner, improving markedly from a green debut trial placing to an easy trial win at her next appearance, and then a near flawless display last weekend.
“She’s having 10 days off now and Lance is keen to get her to the two-year-old stakes race at Counties in November,” Plumptre said. “Being a home-bred we don’t have to push her to get to the Karaka Million, so we can pick and choose exactly what races we set her for through summer.”
While Plumptre concedes the benefits of having Fastnet Rock as her damsire as well as strong European two-year-old form in her pedigree, he also points out that Luberon is an excellent example of what Embellish is capable of siring.
On the same page is another of the Cambridge Stud entourage, sales and nominations rep Cameron Ring, whose exposure to Embellish dates back to day one.
“I was at Waikato Stud when Bling foaled down Embellish eight years ago and I remember him well from prepping him as a yearling.
“Being involved so closely in his bookings has been a very rewarding experience. At a fee of $4,000 and like all our stallions, no payment due until a viable foal is born, he had a lot of appeal with broodmare owners.
“Last year I was tasked with canvassing the country and to end up with more than 150 mares in what was his third year was a great result. And now with this result with Luberon, you could say I’ve done the full 360 degrees with Embellish.
“The feedback has been massive. On Saturday I received more than 50 calls and messages and on our first day back in the office Scott (Calder) and I have been flat out taking phone calls.
“He was already sitting on around 100 mares for this season and with what’s happened it’s fair to say he’ll get plenty more.”
