A full brother to Saturday’s Listed Fairview Wines Sophomore Sprint winner Lord Balmoral (Star Witness) fetched AUS $240 000 at the 2017 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale recently.

The colt, who was knocked down to McEvoy Mitchell Racing, was consigned to the sale by vendors Kenmore Lodge.

The unnamed yearling and Lord Balmoral were produced by the Zabeel mare Balmoral Belle, who made just one racetrack appearance. Since retiring to stud, Balmoral Belle has produced four winners, with Lord Balmoral her first stakes winner to date.

Balmoral Belle, in turn, is a full sister to stakes winner Scouting Wide (Zabeel), who won up to 2400m and who finished second in the 2010 Gr2 Brisbane Cup over 2400m.

Lord Balmoral’s third dam is former Irish Champion 2YO Filly Welsh Garden (Welsh Saint) –dam of Gr1 Prix Du Cadran winner Molesnes (Alleged), and ancestress of Gr1 winners Cherokee Rose (Dancing Brave), Mastery (Sulamani) and former Cape Guineas winner Noordhoek Flyer (Pivotal). Multiple champion sire Volksraad (Green Desert) is another notable descendant of Welsh Garden.

Lord Balmoral, who has now won three of just seven starts, stamped himself as a potential future sprint star when making all the running in the Listed Sophomore Sprint. While that race lost a potential star following the late scratching of Equus Champion Cloth Of Cloud, there was a lot to like about how the Ken and Jane Truter owned Lord Balmoral put daylight between himself and runner up Bishop’s Bounty –even if the latter was conceding the winner 2kgs.

Lord Balmoral is one of two South African stakes winners sired by former Gr1 Blue Diamond Stakes winner Star Witness, whose other notable local winner is Gr2 Joburg Spring F&M Challenge winner Mella Maria. Remarkably, from just four SA runners Star Witness has been represented by three major winners, with another son, Lineker, having triumphed in the 2015 Bloodstock SA Ready To Run Cup.