But for a horse who became only the fifth in history to win the Blue Diamond-Golden Slipper Group One double (and none have achieved the feat since), the chestnut son of Elusive Quality does come across as being criminally underrated. Both juvenile Group Ones were secured in commanding fashion too, destroying his Caulfield opposition by just over four lengths, and comfortably accounting for quality duo Mosheen and Elite Falls in the Slipper.
Prior to contesting the 2012 Oakleigh Plate, Sepoy had won no less than ten of his eleven starts (including a Manikato and a Coolmore), the only blemish when bloused by Smart Missile as a raging $1.18 Todman Stakes favourite.
He finished fifth in the Oakleigh Plate but with an on-pace run as the 58kg topweight in a handicap set up for the swoopers (Woorim and Elite Falls motored over the top from the rear), to be beaten a length was a highly meritorious effort. He only ran once more after that, failing on the Meydan tapeta in the Golden Shaheen, but he was a terrific sprinter deserving of more credit than he gets.
2nd Emergency – ORTENSIA
Speaking of terrific sprinters, what a fantastic mare Ortensia was. Starting out life with Tony Noonan, Ortensia showed bags of ability as a two-year-old, winning her first two starts by a combined nine lengths. As her career progressed she won stakes races in three states, before signalling her immense potential when running a huge close third in the 2009 Stradbroke Handicap, in her first attempt at Group One level.
Her breakthrough victory came in the Winterbottom Stakes of that year (then a Group Two race). She certainly did it the hard-way, backing up from a sixth in the 1600m Railway to drop back to the 1200m just a week later – the Railway hadn’t blunted her sprint whatsoever.
Ortensia returned the following autumn to brain them first-up in the Galaxy. That wasn’t the only thing she returned however, with a positive swab seeing her subsequently stripped of the win.
Switching over to Paul Messara for her latter campaigns, Ortensia’s talent was on show both in Australia and around the world, with Group One wins in the upgraded Winterbottom, the Al Quoz Sprint in Dubai and the Nunthorpe Stakes at York (defeating a field of 19, three weeks after dispatching 16 rivals in the Group Two King George at Goodwood). Her overseas exploits in particular often get overlooked in favour of other Australian globetrotters.