Mapperley Stud’s Simms Davison has enjoyed a memorable season with results to savour on and off the track.
Davison has celebrated top-flight success with homebred mare Campionessa, whose sire Contributer resides at his Matamata nursery while well-received young stallions Armory and Profondo stand in a joint venture with Windsor Park Stud.
“Contributer had small books when he had his injury, but his stats are freakish when you look at the number he’s had to the races,” he said.
The dual Group One-winning son of High Chaparral has sired 100 winners from 149 runners with nine individual stakes winners, including Group One-winning first-crop representatives Campionessa (Zabeel Classic, 2000m) and Lion’s Roar (Randwick Guineas, 1600m).
“He’s done a pretty impressive job from small numbers, and he’s got the bigger numbers coming through now and we’ll see a lot more action from him in the next 12 months, I think he’ll go to the next level.
“We couldn’t be any happier either with the responses to Armory and Profondo.”
Contributer’s latest winner Baronet romped home at Tauranga on Sunday for trainers Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson and was a $135,000 purchase for Te Akau out of Mapperley’s Karaka draft in 2021.
He is a son of the O’Reilly mare Alpha Dame, who is from the family of multiple Group One winner Volkstok’n’barrell, and she is back in foal to Contributer.
Davison also bred Baronet’s stablemate Campionessa and retains an ownership interest in the six-year-old who claimed a deserved triumph in the Zabeel Classic.
She had previously won at Group Two level in the Auckland Thoroughbred Breeders’ Stakes (1400m) and Cal Isuzu Stakes (1600m) and finished runner-up in the Gr.1 Herbie Dyke Stakes (2000m).
During her following Melbourne campaign, she claimed the Peter Young Stakes (1800m) and ran third in the Gr.3 Sunline Stakes (1600m).
“She’s back in work and coming along well, we’re looking at the Triple Crown at Hawke’s Bay with her and she’ll probably be trialling in the next three or four weeks,” Davison said.
“She’s getting better and better and there was thought about retiring her and taking her to the Magic Millions Sale, but she wants to carry on being a racehorse so it’s exciting.”
Armory, a multiple Group Two winner and Group One performer by Galileo, stands at Mapperley while Deep Impact’s elite level wining son Profondo is based at Windsor Park.
“Armory’s got weanlings now so he’ll have his first yearlings at Karaka next year,” Davison said.
“He’s been great and in his first year he served the highest number of mares of any first season sire when there was good competition with Noverre and Sword Of State.
“He has served about 250 mares in his first two seasons, so he’s had great support and the rest is up to him. I think his two-year-olds will get up and go a bit early and he’s really put a lot of strength into his stock.
“Profondo will have foals shortly, which is very exciting and he’s full again this year as he was last season.”
