THE Henry de Bromhead-trained Vina Sena won the Irishinjuredjockeys.com Maiden over a mile at Dundalk last Friday. He put over two lengths and more between himself and a dozen opponents, going away at the finish.

This was a most satisfying racecourse debut for the two-year-old colt, a son of Vadamos (Monsun) and from that sire’s second northern hemisphere crop. Vina Sena’s win came in the same race that last year was annexed by the subsequent Group 3 winner Bear Story. The manner of this more recent win suggests that Vina Sena could graduate in time to a similar, or better, level.

Bloodstock agent Kevin Ross purchased Vina Sena for €20,000 as a newly-turned yearling at the 2020 Goffs February Mixed Sale from Belmont Stud, Pat O’Rourke’s farm in Co Wexford. He becomes the third winner in the past two years from Miss Verdoyante (Montjeu), joining this year’s dual Chelmsford winner Cap D’Antibes (Society Rock) and last year’s UAE winning juvenile Grand Dubai (Dawn Approach).

Miss Verdoyante was trained by Sir Mark Prescott for owner-breeder Jeff Pearce, but she showed little in four starts. Purchased by Pat O’Rourke for just 5,000gns as a three-year-old, at the time she had three winning siblings, the best of which was Oasis Cannes (Oasis Dream). He was a four-time winner and had finished runner-up in listed races in England and France, and been placed in the Qatar Derby.

The number of successful siblings has now doubled to six and also include St Michel (Sea The Stars) who won four times and was placed in a couple of Group 2 races, the Doncaster Cup and the Lonsdale Cup at York. Their dam Miss Provence (Hernando) sold to Qatar some years ago and she had a pair of stakes-winning full-sisters.

Dual-purpose

When I was starting out in the business there were many stallions who were promoted as being dual-purpose sires. That term is not used now, but if it was then Vadamos might well be categorised as such. He now stands under the National Hunt banner for Coolmore, and they must be thrilled that his first juvenile hurdle winner, Calvados, was last weekend runner-up in a listed race at Aintree to Sea Sessions.

The first crop of three-year-olds by Vadamos, conceived when he stood at Tally-Ho Stud, include a pair of stakes performers, one of which, Spycatcher, ran second last year in the Group 3 Acomb Stakes to Gear Up. Meanwhile, his first two southern hemisphere crops contain a stakes winner each.

Breeders certainly have taken to Vadamos at Grange Stud where he stood this year for €6,000. Some 244 breeders sent a mare to him this year, easily placing him among the top 10 busiest stallions in Ireland or Britain.

I am not sure if the equine Vina Sena is named after the Chilean wine of the same name, but it would be no surprise were he to, like the wine, become much better with age.