Owners in the Vic Husslers are living the dream and have every right to be excited with Lethal Thoughts contesting the JJ Atkins Stakes at Eagle Farm on June 11.
Sure, it’s worth a cool $1 million and Yes it’s a Group 1, the highest-category of any race in the world.
But it’s more than that, in my opinion it’s the most important race over the entire Winter Carnival.
I hear you, what about the Stradbroke Handicap, the Doomben 10,000, the Derby and the Oaks?
Yes, they are all important races but the JJ Atkins sits above all those major events because the Atkins (formerly the TJ Smith) can turn a colt into a multi-million dollar sire.
The amazing thing is you can still own your share of Lethal Thoughts
The proof is all in the list of previous winners. The Autumn Sun sat three wide and still won in 2018. He now stands at Arrowfield Stud for $66,000 a service.
Press Statement was victorious in 2015 and now enjoys a successful stud career.
Even if Lethal Thoughts finished second in the JJ Atkins it may lead to an even bigger result.
Zoustar was the runner-up to Romantic Touch in the 2013 JJ Atkins but now stands at Widden Stud for a service fee of $198,000.
Brazen Beau was second to Almadlad in 2014 and still demands a $44,000 fee.
We aren’t saying Lethal Thoughts is a sure thing, but you have to be in it to win it. That’s why they call it “The Four-Legged Lottery”.
It doesn’t end with the JJ Atkins, the form from this race has been very strong into the Sydney and Melbourne Spring carnivals.
Many JJ Atkins graduates going on to win significant races like the Golden Rose, the Caulfield Guineas, Coolmore Stud Stakes and even the Newmarket Hcp.
We aren’t saying Lethal Thoughts is a sure thing, but TRL is delivering on the promise of “Premium horses at an affordable price”.
Past winners of the JJ Atkins include Romantic Dream (1976), Luskin Star (1977), Zephyr Zip (1979), Flotilla (1987), Zeditave (1988), Prince Salieri (1989), Slight Chance (1992), Mahogany (1993), Ravarda (1995),Freemason (1999), Show A Heart (2000), Press Statement (2015), The Autumn Sun (2018), Rothfire (2020) and Converge (2021)