Western Australian training duo Daniel and Ben Pearce will bring Angelic Ruler (Universal Ruler) to Melbourne in search of more stakes success after the filly's win in the Listed Rangeview Stud Classic at Bunbury on Sunday.
Angelic Ruler, bred by their father Colin, holds a special piece of the Karnup-based family's heart, being out of a mare that Colin trained with some success, Tip The Angel (Tip The Pro).
Circumstances conspired to allow the Pearces to breed from Tip The Angel and with five wins from nine starts, her filly Angelic Ruler looks set to repay that faith.
"I used to race the mare when I was training. I leased her from a lady called Joyce Stowe and later on towards the end of her career, she offered her to me to buy," Colin Pearce told TDN AusNZ.
"Once she was retired, I offered her to a stud to purchase and they didn’t want her."
Tip The Angel won eight races over her career and her first two foals were also multiple winners. Trade Tip (Trade Fair {GB}) won five races, while Vital Edition (Vital Equine {Ire}) won 10.
But the breeding caper was getting a bit too much for Colin and he looked to offload his remaining broodmares, including Tip The Angel.
"I'd had enough of breeding and I actually put Tip The Angel through an online auction when she was in foal to Universal Ruler. I put $6000 reserve on her and never got a bid," he said.
"I decided that if I can’t sell for that, I might as well keep her and then not long after we had the foal, which was Angelic Ruler."
It was one of those sliding doors moments which as Angelic Ruler developed, Pearce came to realise was a blessing.
"Her first race start she came from near last at Ascot and didn't get beat far. She didn't have much idea what she was doing at that stage. What I always liked about her is she pins her ears back and has a go," he said.
Angelic Ruler
The competitive spirit came to the fore when she returned for her second preparation, winning two and placing twice from four starts before she was sent back to the paddock.
She then came back and won back-to-back 3-year-old races at Ascot in December, and while she finished third as an odds-on favourite in early January, she bounced back with her most important win in stakes company at Bunbury on Sunday.
"That's the one thing with her. She's really competitive. Even going to the barriers or out the back here with my sons, if something comes alongside her, she lays her ears back," he said.
"That's the one thing with her. She's really competitive. Even going to the barriers or out the back here with my sons, if something comes alongside her, she lays her ears back," - Colin Pearce
"It’s funny, because she is so gentle to handle just around the place but put her on a racetrack and she has that competitive way about her."
Melbourne plans
With no options in fillies stakes company in Perth in the short term, Ben and Daniel Pearce will head to Melbourne with Angelic Ruler.
"The boys have picked some races in Melbourne. There's not much else about in Perth this time of year. You have to wait until April and then you tend to come up against Bob Peters' horses," Colin said,
"Whilst she is up and firing, we've picked up the (G2) Angus Armanasco S. at Caulfield and the (G2) Kewney S. at Flemington."
"This filly is pretty easy to do anything and hopefully she’ll adapt pretty well."
Angelic Ruler's connections celebrate
The family continues
While Tip The Angel died just over 12 months ago, there are still two more of her fillies to follow. Angel Jupiter (Planet Five {USA}) made her debut recently, while there is also a yearling filly by Vital Equine {Ire}).
Angel Jupiter, who is owned by many of the same old friends that are in Angelic Ruler, is back in the paddock after her first preparation, but does show some promise.
"She's had a couple of starts, she went well first-up and was probably at the end of her prep second-up. She's done a good job," he said.
The partnership
Colin gave up the training a couple of years back when it became apparent that his two sons were keen to work in their own partnership.
Ben and Daniel combined for 59 winners in their first season, including stakes success with their filly Agent Pippa (Demerit), while they have 26 winners to their credit for far this season.
Ben and Daniel Pearce
Both boys were keen horsemen from a young age, riding work for Geoff Durrant, father of their good mate, Adam, from the age of 13.
While Ben remained in WA, completing his farrier apprenticeship and working with his father, Daniel moved to the other side of the country following his equestrian dream.
Working with Heath Ryan, at Lochinvar near Newcastle, Daniel got a terrific grounding in horse management according to his father.
"He learned an awful lot there, the art of riding as well as working with young horses. Heath has a warmblood stud and Daniel used to help with the serving of the stallions and the raising of the foals," he said.
"He ended up travelling to Europe with a horse for Heath, which was competing at the World Equestrian Games. He travelled them on flights, so it gave him a good grounding."
Returning to Karnup about eight years ago, Daniel starting doing pre-training for Adam Durrant and Lindsay Smith.
It soon became apparent that with the skills they had acquired and with their father's experience administering and running stables, the brothers could train in partnership.
"They are really great mates. I've never known them to have a blue. I do the invoicing and administration and things, and they can concentrate on training," - Colin Pearce
"They are really great mates. I've never known them to have a blue. I do the invoicing and administration and things, and they can concentrate on training," Colin said.
"They are 100 per cent dedicated. They are here at 4:30am every morning and they never miss. They are a credit to themselves and a credit to us. We are really proud of them."
