Saturday’s A$150,000 Sportsbet Jockey Watch Handicap (1000m) at Sandown was Hello Romeo’s (NZ) (Hello Youmzain) first appearance since the Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m) in January, and the talented two-year-old resumed in style.
Hello Romeo comes from the first New Zealand crop by Cambridge Stud shuttle stallion Hello Youmzain, and he brought up a first southern hemisphere win for the sire with his victory at Bendigo in November. His performances in that initial preparation prompted trainers Ben, Will, and JD Hayes to take a shot at the Karaka Millions in Ellerslie, where he finished a creditable eighth behind La Dorada (NZ) (Super Seth).
Gelded in between times, Hello Romeo showed promising signs with a trial win at Flemington on May 30. He returned to race day in Saturday’s two-year-old sprint and set a promising tone for the campaign ahead.
“He’s an absolute professional mentally,” Will Hayes said. “He coped extremely well with the New Zealand trip as a colt. He’s obviously had the ultimate gear change between that prep and this prep, and it was a great display from him today.
“There’s plenty of upside with him. He’s up, he’s sound and he’s firing, so we’ll look to make hay while the sun shines. Hopefully he’s in for a long, successful prep.”
Hello Romeo drew the outside gate of 13 on Saturday, but jumped well and slid forward to sit outside the leader for jockey Daniel Stackhouse. Hello Romeo kicked well in the straight and took command, going on to win by a neck from the late-closing Street Legal (Exceedance). The third placegetter finished another two lengths away.
“I’ve always liked this horse,” Stackhouse said. “I rode him quite a bit in his early days leading into that win at Bendigo. He went to New Zealand after that and was competitive in strong company.
“He’s obviously been gelded ahead of this preparation. He trialled up well and seems to have come back better and stronger.
“It was tricky from the outside gate today. I had Plan A or Plan B, either to go forward or back depending on how he stepped. He broke quite nicely. Big credit to him, because I had to put a bit of work into him early. But we controlled the race from there, and I liked how he got down the hill and then put his best foot forward when I asked him to go.”
From five starts, Hello Romeo has now recorded two wins and a placing, earning A$127,418 in stakes.
Hello Romeo was bred by Jomara Bloodstock and purchased by Lindsay Park for $150,000 out of Halmark Stud’s draft at New Zealand Bloodstock’s National Yearling Sale.
He is the first foal of the Shooting To Win mare Julieta (NZ), who is a half-sister to Humidor (NZ), the three-time Group One winner of the Australian Cup (2000m), Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m), and the Memsie Stakes (1400m).