Underthemoonlight (NZ) (El Hermano) was a high-class mare during her racing days and she’s continuing to star during the second phase of her career.
The daughter of El Hermano was a multiple black-type winner and placed at the highest level and subsequently made an immediate impact as a broodmare.
Underthemoonlight was trained by Karyn McQuade, who bred the mare with husband Hamish and raced by them with Clive Solomon and was successful on six occasions.
She claimed top honours in the Gr.2 Foxbridge Plate (1200m) and Gr.3 Taranaki Breeders’ Classic (1400m) and finished third in the Gr.1 Tarzino Trophy (1400m).
The Matamata couple are now breeding from Underthemoonlight, whose first foal, Romancing The Moon (NZ) (El Roca), sold through Westbury Stud’s draft to Te Akau’s David Ellis for $50,000.
She realised a breeders’ dream when the Mark Walker-trained daughter of El Roca won at the elite level in the Gr.1 Levin Classic (1600m).
“That’s what we tried to plan when we organised the mating and it worked,” Karyn McQuade said.
Underthemoonlight maintained her 100 percent record on Sunday when her second foal Sir Fergus (NZ) (Ardrossan) made a winning debut for trainer Barbara Kennedy at Ellerslie.
The son of Ardrossan who was bought out of Kilgravin Lodge’s draft for $90,000 by former trainers Peter and Dawn Williams, and is raced by prominent owners Daniel Nakhle and Ger Beemsterboer.
“The mare’s two for two now and he was a lovely colt, they’ve all got a bit of Mum’s strength,” McQuade said.
At Karaka in 2024, Kilgravin also sold Underthemoonlight’s son of Ocean Park who was knocked down to John O’Shea and James Bester Bloodstock for $160,000.
The same combination signed the ticket at $140,000 earlier this year to secure the half-sister by Noverre, who was offered by Pegasus Lodge.
“She will be trained by John O’Shea as well and he’s really rapt with the Ocean Park (named Ocean Mariner) and that’s why I think he went ahead and got the filly,” McQuade said.
“The mare’s got a Noverre weanling colt, but she’s not in foal this year. She was getting later and later so we left her.
“We’re looking at sending her to Sword Of State this year.”
The future hope is to get a filly out of Underthemoonlight to retain.
“If it had been different times we would have kept the Noverre filly, but bills have to paid so we had to put her through the sale,” McQuade said.
They are also breeding from Underthemoonlight’s half-sister Midnite Rendezvous, by Cecconi, and her winning Battle Paint daughter Midnite Invasion.
“We sold Midnite Rendezvous’ Burgundy colt (Easy Life), who we won a trial with, to Hong Kong and she had an El Roca filly (Ilovethemoonlight) who showed enough in her first couple of starts and sold to Australia,” McQuade said.
Ardrossan filly Prominere was sold for $95,000 at Karaka by Kilgravin and is with Simon and Katrina Alexander while last year Allan Sharrock bought the Circus Maximus filly for $25,000. Midnite Invasion’s first foal by Sword Of State was offered by Pegasus Lodge at Karaka earlier this year and sold to Crawford Brothers, of Taranaki, for $30,000.