Former $1.7 million yearling Strategy has had a name change and a rather pointed one at that.
The now five-year-old gelding will do his future racing as Onepointsevengone after being sold via Inglis Digital recently for a modest $4,750.
Heading up the new ownership group is Steve Cunningham who along with a group of mates decided to “have a throw at the stumps” with the modest performer which has failed to live up to his lofty price tag as a yearling.
“The name change has created a bit of talk I’ve heard but it’s just a bit of fun,” Cunningham said.
“But how anyone ever paid $1.7 million for him I’ll never know. He’d be lucky to be 15 hands high and I doubt he’s grown an inch since he was a yearling.
“You see all the time these yearlings going for crazy prices when they don’t warrant it. Changing the name has a little to do with that as well you could say.”
Set to do his future racing for Ballarat trainer Melody Cunningham, the recent bargain basement sale isn’t the first time the regally bred type has been knocked down for rather modest figures.
In February last year, Logan McGill picked him up for just $32,500, world’s away from the eye-watering $1.7m his first group of owner’s shelled out to secure him at the 2019 Magic Millions Sales.
This is an ABSOLUTELY SAVAGE name change… ????
Trainer Melody Cunningham recently bought Strategy for $4,750 through Inglis Digital.
He had originally been a $1.7 million yearling, being by I Am Invincible out of top filly Oakleigh Girl.
His new name? ONEPOINTSEVENGONE… pic.twitter.com/cUqofiNwcK
— Andrew Hawkins (@AndrewNJHawkins) May 13, 2023
“I actually looked at him then when Logan bought him but even thought $32,000 was a bit steep,” Cunningham said.
“Our go is to buy a few tried horses and find their grade and hopefully get a result. I’m not saying we do things better than the bigger stables but for some horses the smaller stable works.
“He’s a 58 mark horse that handles the synthetic and the wet going. We’ll see what happens but I’ve got a lot less to worry about at his price now!”
From 26 starts, Strategy, now Onepointsevengone, has won on three occasions with a further five seconds for prizemoney of $89,000.
Racing is littered with rags to riches stories of bargain basement buys being sold for eye-watering sums.
But in the case of Strategy, now Onepointsevengone, it’s at the opposite end of the spectrum.
By champion sire I Am Invincible out of Oakleigh Girl (Snitzel x Miss Kournikova), the fashionably bred yearling was purchased amid plenty of fanfare.
But while on breeding he promised the world he has so far delivered an atlas.