The Matt Hoysted-trained BREAK FREE broke the class record in a promising debut win at the Sunshine Coast on Sunday.
The daughter of Golden Slipper-winning sire CAPITALIST had a rough start to life. Her mother, FRACTURE, accidentally trod on her as a foal, ironically fracturing the filly’s skull. Extensive surgery and a lengthy recovery followed but she eventually made it to the auction ring at the 2023 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale where Proven Thoroughbreds saw past an unsightly scar across her face and purchased her for $110,000 from Highgrove Stud’s draft.
An impressive trial last month prompted a glowing appraisal from jockey Nikita Beriman which in turn ramped up the anticipation for BREAK FREE‘s first race start in the 1000m provincial maiden.
The 3yo filly began well for Berriman, who elected to take a sit in behind a genuine tempo where they clocked 23.43 for their first 400m.
Around the home turn, BREAK FREE had horses either side of her but that resilience we saw at the start of her life began to shine through as she fended off the challengers and drew clear for an emphatic win.
On the line BREAK FREE ($1.55) had 2L to spare over OOHLALOUVRE ($8) with a further 2.8L to CLICK CLICK BOOM ($17) in third.
Break Free breaks free late to take out the 3YO maiden at Sunshine Coast for @matt_hoysted! 💥 pic.twitter.com/r0Mj5pDvad
— SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) November 10, 2024
“Boy, they’ve run some time here,” times analyst Nic Ashman said.
“She’s clocked 57.2 seconds for the 1000m, which is very slick. To give you some context, there were two other 1000m races on the day.
“She’s beaten them and her last 200m was substantially quicker than the BM65. She looks city class at least off this.”
Trainer Matt Hoysted was relieved to see the filly bring her trial form to raceday, a transition that is never a given.
“Obviously it was a much anticipated debut and thankfully she didn’t let us down,” Hoysted said.
“Although still pretty raw, she was able to get the job done and get it done in very good fashion.
“She handled the whole experience extremely well and the clock backed up the performance.”
Since Proven acquired BREAK FREE as a yearling, her half-sister SNAPPED has become a stakes winner, enhancing her residual value as a broodmare for the future.
Another appealing factor about her is she is out of a FASTNET ROCK mare with SNIPPETS as the sire of her grand-dam. Notable horses with this in their pedigree include recent Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes winner EL CASTELLO, Group 1 Thousand Guineas winner JOLIESTAR, Group 2 Premiere Stakes winner AIRMAN, as well as the FLYING ARTIE x ORDOS HONOR 2yo colt Proven purchased earlier this year. A small number of shares remain in this colt. CLICK HERE for more details.
BREAK FREE is Proven’s 52 winner for the year and 11th for the season.
