In a sign of the times, Darling View Thoroughbreds drew first blood this season when Sunny Honey (Patronize) fought off late closers The Calabrese (Per Incanto) and Want A Winner (Yes Yes Yes) in the Mrs Mac’s Hcp (1200m) on Saturday.
Sunny Honey (Photo / Western Racepix) went forward for Paul Harvey in Race 1 at Belmont for a partnership comprising trainer David Harrison, Lex Piper, Graham & Megan Donovan and Grant Burns. Now a seasoned 7yo gelding, he had won an Ascot nursery on debut in January 2022 and has since banked $560,000 including Westspeed Bonuses of $130,000.
Darling View director Clive Atwell bred him using the stud’s foundation sire Patronize (Redoute’s Choice) who was pensioned in 2023. His dam Sunsilkin (Oratorio) was also retired in 2023 after foaling five winners from five to the races.
“He’s a gem and it’s great to be the leading trainer in Perth,” Harrison said with a cheeky grin after landing the season-opener. “He’s easy to do anything with at home and has been a great horse for connections winning over a half-million dollars.
“He was fresh and happy to lead off a break today so we will keep his runs spaced in future.”
True Fiction (Gingerbread Man) doubled up later in the day for Darling View and Harrison in the Westspeed Platinum Hcp (1200m) at Belmont. He was also bred by Clive Atwell and sold through the Western Breeders Alliance consignment for $50,000 at the 2024 Perth Magic Millions.
Champion Darling View stallion Playing God put the finishing touches on a fourth WA Sires’ Premiership when his Atwell-family homebred Let’s Take A Chance won the David Williams Maiden (1675m) at Bunbury on Thursday.
Let’s Take A Chance was the first-leg of another Darling View double on the penultimate day of the 2025-26 season. The Durrant Racing galloper started an odds-on favourite and the second-leg winner Extronize returned a fixed-odds pay-day of $151.
The latter is one of just three foals from the second-last crop by Patronize at Darling View. She is prepared locally by Brendon Fitz-Gerald and he was confident before her debut a fortnight earlier at Bunbury.
“Extronize was slow out of the gates and took charge of Jefferson (Tsang),” Fitz-Gerald recalled. “She had been working well with some nice horses and we added winkers today.”
