Tendon-plagued II Comandante for stud

Press, 1 December 1988, Page 36

Tendon-plagued II Comandante for stud

PA Dunedin Il Comandante, which bowed a tendon racing at the Southland meeting last week, has been put up for sale or lease as a stud stallion.

The decision not to try the well-performed entire again as a racing proposition was confirmed after discussion between the horse’s Wingatui trainer, Leslie Didham, and Sydney owner, Albert Meo. Il Comandante is only a six-year old, with 31 New Zealand starts and a handful in Australia on his record, but he has had a tendon problem in a front leg for two years.

Last February, Il Comandante won the Group Three Dunedin Gold Cup (2400 m and finished second to Noble Khan in the UDC Finance Hep (2200 m at Trentham next time out. He had won first up over 1600 m at the Timaru meeting in December after a break of 13 months from racing. Il Comandante injured a tendon when campaigned in Australia the previous year. He made his mark as a three-year-old when successful in the $16,000 San Bernadino Mile at Wingatui and the Southland Guineas. The

San Bernadino was the final of the South Island Three-year-old Championship series. He also won first up over a metric mile at the Southland meeting in October. He had three further starts this season. All told he won six races and $69,506 in stakes. Il Comandante cost $25,000 after being passed in at $20,000 at the National Yearling Sale. He is a son of champion sire, Zamazaan, and Exalt, a half sister by leading sire, Summertime, to Subtrist, the dam- of New Zealand Cup winner, Middy.