Sizzling start to new season for Too Darn Hot

The hottest young Darley stallion Too Darn Hot (GB) started the 2025-26 Southern Hemisphere racing season where he left off last year courtesy of a Stakes-winning double at Caulfield on Saturday, 30 August.

Tropicus, out of the Exceed And Excel mare Extensible, brilliantly won the G3 Heath 1,100 two races after Too Darn Discreet (Maybe Discreet) surged through the centre to capture the Listed Heatherlie Stakes over 1,700m.

Too Darn Hot was a three-time G1 winner in the UK and was the top second-season sire in Australia last season with 58 winners of 86 races, including 15 Stakes victories.

Since commencing stud duties in 2020, the young shuttle stallion has sired 214 winners of 366 races worldwide, including 27 Stakes winners of 47 Stakes races.

Owned and bred by Kia Ora Stud, Tropicus notched his second Stakes victory following his win in the G3 Sedative Stakes at Caulfield in February.

The four-year-old entire, jumped quickly for jockey Mark Zahra and raced clear to beat Arkansaw Kid to win by 2.25 lengths, with See You In Heaven finishing fast to grab third place three-quarters of a length away.

Tropicus has now won three races and recorded two placings from nine starts for co-trainers Anthony and Sam Freedman at Mornington, collecting prize-money and bonuses totalling $462,800.

Too Darn Discreet recorded her third Stakes victory, after successes in the G2 Edward Manifold Stakes at Flemington and the G3 Ethereal Stakes at Caulfield last October.

Well ridden by Declan Bates, the four-year-old mare ran down the free-running El Rocko to win by three-quarters of a length with Statuario another three-quarters of a length away in third place.

The winner, bred and part-owned by David Peacock, now has five wins and two placings from 12 starts for prize-money and bonus earnings of $625,875 under Ballarat trainer Dan O’Sullivan.

The winning double ended a great month for Too Darn Hot, after Fallen Angel (Agnes Stewart) collected the G1 Prix Rothschild over 1,600m at Deauville in France on 3 August.

After remaining in England last season, Too Darn Hot has returned to Australia and now stands at Darley’s Kelvinside farm in the NSW Hunter Valley for a service fee of $275,000, GST inclusive.