Over the past 30 plus years the distinctive silks have become synonymous with many of the best and most popular gallopers to have graced the city’s racecourses.

High among anyone’s memories of Golden Slippers past must be the joyous scenes after Star Thoroughbreds’ Sebring (More Than Ready {USA}) took the race under Glen Boss in 2008.

The winner the following Saturday of the Group 1 AJC Inglis Sires’ Produce Stakes. and subsequently sold for $28 million to join Widden’s stallion roster, Sebring was the perfect syndicate horse, giving his share-holders a massive return on their investment and, even more importantly, thrills that money just can’t buy.

Denise Martin was working in the hospitality business in a senior role at The Regent Melbourne Hotel (now The Sofitel) in the early ‘90s when she developed a rapport with Gai Waterhouse, who stayed there on her visits to Victoria. It was still early days in Waterhouse’s training career at that stage, and the pair instantly realised the potential of their shared passion, acumen, flair and charisma. Martin consequently set up Star Thoroughbreds in 1994, syndicating horses to be trained by Waterhouse, and the rest pretty soon became history. Good horses started coming along at a remarkable rate.

Danglissa (Danzero) was Star Thoroughbreds’ first true top-liner, enjoying a winning spree in Sydney’s top fillies’ races in the spring of 1999 by taking the Group 3 Furious Stakes, Group 2 Tea Rose Stakes and Group 1 Flight Stakes before heading down to Melbourne to finish second in the Group 1 Thousand Guineas at Caulfield. The multiple stakes winners Stoway (Geiger Counter {USA}) and Kingsgate (Danzero) came to prominence shortly afterwards and kept the Star flag flying as the old century gave way to the new.

Sebring was the horse who took Star Thoroughbreds to the very top, but he was merely one of several superstars who made 2008 a real annus mirabilis for the operation. While he had cemented Star Thoroughbreds’ reputation for unearthing a top juvenile, later that year two of its older stars reminded us of its ability to produce the type of tough, high-class older horse on whom the game thrives.

Sebring cemented Star Thoroughbreds' reputation for unearthing top juveniles

That year’s Group 1 Epsom Handicap at Royal Randwick produced a wonderful result for Star Thoroughbreds as the five-year-old Theseo (Danewin) and the four-year-old Bank Robber (Dash For Cash) filled the quinella. Theseo headed down to Melbourne later in the spring and landed the Group 1 Mackinnon Stakes at Flemington before subsequently landing three more weight-for-age Group 1s in later years. He ended the 2008/’09 season as Australia’s Champion Middle Distance Horse of the Year (and NSW Champion Racehorse of the Year) thus giving Star Thoroughbreds HOTY honours for the second season running following Sebring’s award of Champion Two-Year-Old Colt of Australia for 2007/’08.

Hot on the heels of Sebring came another juvenile money-spinner, Driefontein (Fastnet Rock) who landed the Magic Millions 2-Year-Old Classic in 2012. The popular filly then developed into a proper trooper over the subsequent three seasons, ultimately winning five Group races including the Group 1 Sportingbet Classic Robert Sangster Stakes in Adelaide as a four-year-old. She even posted some fine efforts as a five-year-old in the 2014/’15 season including finishing second to Deep Field (Northern Meteor) in the Group 2 Tab.com.au S. at Flemington on VRC Derby Day.

In January 2014 all new recruits changed to Chris Waller’s burgeoning stable, for which nowadays Star Thoroughbreds is a major racing partner.

One of Chris Waller’s many strengths as a trainer is that he can juggle things with a huge string of horses and massive bank of clients so that every horse and every client has joint-top priority.

Fiesta has been a wonderful filly for Star

Star Thoroughbreds fits perfectly into this well-run operation and has become an integral part of the stable, and ironically it was a Star Thoroughbreds horse who has come closest to derailing the winning run of Waller’s stable star Winx (Street Cry {Ire}).

Foxplay (Foxwedge) was a wonderful filly for Star Thoroughbreds. In the spring of 2016 she emulated the feat of Danglissa seventeen years previously by emerging as the winner of the ATC Princess Series, and she then went on to take both the Group 2 Phar Lap Stakes and the Group 1 Coolmore Legacy Stakes in the autumn. Arguably her finest hour, though, came the following spring in the Group 2 Bob Ingham Warwick Stakes (now the Group 1 Winx Stakes) at Randwick when she had the nation holding its breath for a few agonising seconds, only losing the lead in the shadows of the post when Winx’s barn-storming finish allowed her to snatch a thrilling head victory from the jaws of defeat.

The ultra tough Invincibella (I Am Invincible) made history winning three consecutive Magic Millions Fillies and Mares races on the Gold Coast. The mare also recorded a Group 1 win in the Tatt’s Tiara and her CV was further boosted by a number of Stakes wins and placings. She went on to be sold at the 2020 Magic Millions National Broodmare sale for $1.3 million to global powerhouse Coolmore and so began the reputation Star Thoroughbreds now holds of producing seven figure broodmares alongside Chris Waller Racing and Brett Howard of Randwick Bloodstock Agency.

Fiesta (I Am Invincible), winner of the Group 2 Silver Shadow and the Group 3 Widden Stakes, was sold to Rosemont Stud for $1.35 million. She was an $150,000 yearling purchase and earned just short of $1.6 million on the track so was an outstanding result for her syndicate of owners. Kiku (Zoustar) recorded Stakes victories in the Group 2 Theo Marks and the Group 3 Carbine Club Stakes, as well as racetrack earnings of $1.2 million. She was ultimately sold to Japan for breeding for $1.46 million. Another Zoustar mare to light up the sale ring at the conclusion of her racing career was Olentia, winner of the Group 2 Emancipation Stakes, the Group 3 Nivison Stakes and the Group 3 James HB Carr Stakes. She went on to sell for $2.6 million as a breeding prospect.

Star’s most notable sale result to date has been the outstanding sprinting mare Espiona (Extreme Choice). She was purchased as a yearling for $190,000 and earned $3.3 million on the track, highlighted by her Group 1 Coolmore Classic win. The mare was offered for sale in 2024 by Magic Millions at a special Standalone Virtual Sale and sold for $4.15 million.

During the Chris Waller Racing partnership era, the colts and geldings have also put their names in lights with a number of million dollars plus earners including Group 1 Rosehill Guineas winner D’Argento (So You Think {NZ}) now standing at Bowness Stud, Group 2 Callander-Presnell winner Chrysaor (Better Than Ready), Bondi Stakes winner Kubrick (Shooting To Win), as well as Stakes winners Cellarman (Mossman) and Kalino (Pierro).

D'Argento winning the Group 1 Rosehill guineas

The Star Thoroughbreds story is still being written and it could be the deeds of Aeliana (Castelvecchio) which will outshine all who have carried the purple and white stars before her. As a 3 year old, she resumed in the spring with back to back wins in the Group 3 Reginald Allen and the Group 3 Carbine Club before being narrowly beaten in the Group 1 Thousand Guineas. In the autumn, she was once again narrowly beaten in a Group 1, this time against the boys in the Rosehill Guineas before turning the tables in the Group 1 ATC Derby a fortnight later with a dominant 5.16 lengths win. Now a 4 year old, she resumed in the Group 1 Winx Stakes and ran 2nd by the shortest of margins to Champion mare and Australian Horse of the Year Via Sistina.

[Partly taken from TDN’s “A star-studded record”]