No Nay Never Colt Gains Deserved Stakes Success

The lightly-raced Vitalogy (3c No Nay Never – Sylvestris, by Arch) gained his first Stakes success when justifying favoritism in Saturday’s Grade 3 Palm Beach Stakes at Gulfstream Park.

The son of No Nay Never began his career with Joseph O’Brien, for whom he won on debut before finishing fourth in the Group 3 Acomb Stakes. Since switching to Brendan Walsh for owners Qatar Racing, Marc Detampel and Bottle Rocket Stable, the bay has finished third at Grade 1 level and second in a Grade 3, from all his starts.

Saturday’s deserved black-type win came by a length under Javier Castellano. Speaking after the race, Walsh commented, “The horse looked so good before the race. He was so calm and it’s exactly what you want to see from a horse like that. I think they all had their shot, if anybody was good enough to get by him, but he’s great and hats off to him.”

Bred by WA Tinkler, Vitalogy was a €120,000 purchase by Hunter Valley Farm at the Arqana Breeze-Up Sale. He is the best performer out of the Stakes-placed mare Sylvestris, herself a half-sister to black-type sprinter Roof Fiddle, who was in fact bred by Hunter Valley Farm.