Zoufame poised to boost sire Zoustar's standing

Bjorn Baker's emerging sprinter Zoufame could be instrumental in propelling super sire Zoustar to another stallion premiership if he can claim victory in the Cactus Imaging Handicap (1100m) at Royal Randwick on Saturday.

Zoustar, a flagship stallion at Widden Stud, holds the title of the nation's reigning Champion Sire and has once again delivered a sensational season.

While Zoustar is projected to finish second to Snitzel in the 2025/26 Champion Sire standings, he remains a strong contender for the title of the nation's leading sire by number of winners.

With 161 winners to his name this season, Zoustar is engaged in a close three-way contest for the premiership against Capitalist (165 wins) and Toronado (163 wins).

"Zoustar's had another great season,'' Widden Stud supremo Antony Thompson told Racing And Sports.

"He's second in terms of prizemoney and also individual stakeswinners to Snitzel, and he's right in the mix for leading sire of winners.

"With nearly $21 million prizemoney overall, he's had another cracking season.

"It would have been fantastic to seal a great year for Zoustar with a win by Joliestar at Royal Ascot but she went very close, unfortunately it wasn't meant to be.''

Joliestar, who secured a close third in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot, capped off an exceptional season as Zoustar's premier performer. Her wins included the Group 1 Canterbury Stakes and TJ Smith Stakes, earning her nearly $5 million in prizemoney.

Zoufame, while not in Joliestar's elite category, is the current $3.70 favourite to secure back-to-back wins at Randwick, showing significant promise as a three-year-old sprinter.

Following a placing in his initial two starts, Baker's Zoufame made a successful return at Warwick Farm last month, winning convincingly over 1100m in swift fashion.

Zoustar is further represented at the Randwick meeting by four other contenders, including Thunderlips ($9) and Astero ($23) in the Toyota Forklifts Handicap (1400m).

Thunderlips, a stablemate of Zoufame, is competing on a short turnaround after finishing ninth in General Salute's Winter Stakes last week and is expected to perform better in this lower grade, while Asterio is more race-fit after two starts following a spell.

Zouripper ($7.50), another son of Zoustar, is entered for the Kieran Moore Handicap (1000m).

Having had two runs back from a spell, Joe Price's Zouripper has shown improvement and signalled his readiness to win with a close second to Ready To Shine at Rosehill two weeks ago.

Betting markets for the race are already buzzing, with many online bookmakers offering competitive odds.