Yulong's winning formula

Mr Yueshang Zhang’s love for horses began in his childhood in Inner Mongolia, where he first handled them. Initially working as a taxi driver before finding his way into coal mining, he later started his own successful business in the industry, which allowed him to branch
into the thoroughbred world he holds dear.

In 2013, Mr Zhang attended the Melbourne Cup, and Fiorente’s victory in front of 104,000 spectators ignited his passion for Australian racing.

The following year, he purchased a Victorian stud farm, marking the start of his expanding investments in the state. Since then, he has acquired five additional farms in Victoria and stands several stallions at Yulong Stud, including Written Tycoon, supported by potential top sires such as Lucky Vega, Grunt, Alabama Express, Pierata, Panthalassa, Diatonic, and Tagaloa.

Mr Zhang’s operation has grown into a global enterprise, with a stud farm in China and horses racing in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan.

“The vision for what he wants to achieve is incredible. Hopefully we will get bigger and better. It’s a good start and he’s put down a good foundation with his building blocks. We’re starting to see it bear fruit,” said Yulong’s Chief Operating Officer, Sam Fairgray.

Last year, Zhang appointed Godolphin’s Vin Cox as Yulong’s General Manager in Australia, and Fairgray said this was another key chapter in the farm’s evolution. “Vin has been a great asset for the farm. With the way it’s grown and its size now, it was the appointment we needed to help it along. We have horses in Japan, America, England, Ireland, and Hong Kong, so we are branching out.”

A key part of their business strategy is to acquire well-performed race mares, improve their records, and then add them to their broodmare band. Kimochi was one such example, and they have recently purchased Magic Time, who will remain with Grahame Begg.

“Our plan is to continue building our stallion roster and ensure our broodmare band remains of the highest quality,” Fairgray said.

Penfolds Victoria Derby Day set the stage for Yulong’s remarkable Carnival, beginning with a resounding success as their homebred three-year-old filly, Treasurethe Moment, who claimed victory in the Group 2 HKJC World Pool Wakeful Stakes (2000m). Adding to their impressive day, their potential stallion prospect, Growing Empire, delivered a strong performance to finish third in the Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes (1200m).

On Lexus Melbourne Cup Day, the Group 3 Darley Maribyrnong Plate (1000m) was claimed by Tycoon Star, a standout by Yulong’s legendary stallion Written Tycoon. Initially purchased as a weanling, then sold as a yearling, Yulong retained a share in him, reaping the rewards of their foresight. The Schweppervescence Plate (1000m for 3YOs) also went their way, with Manolo Bling, sired by their stallion Grunt and bred on the Nagambie farm, taking the honours.

Crown Oaks Day brought further glory as Treasurethe Moment joined an elite group, becoming the 39th three-year-old filly to complete the Wakeful-Oaks double with an emphatic victory in the feature event.

TAB Champions Stakes Day added another chapter to their success story. Within The Law, a Yulong-bred and sold filly by their stallion Lucky Vega, secured the Inglis Banner (1000m) with a commanding
performance.

The crowning moment came when their superstar seven-year-old mare, Via Sistina, cemented her place as Australia’s best horse by winning the Group 1 TAB Champions Stakes (2000m), the perfect finale to a stellar Carnival for Yulong.

In total, Yulong secured six Group 1 victories in Melbourne over the spring. Their star mare Via Sistina claimed two of these before her TAB Champions Stakes triumph, including the TAB Turnbull Stakes (2000m) and the Cox Plate (2040m). They also celebrated success at the elite level with Deny Knowledge in the Might And Power Stakes (2000m) and later added the Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield to their tally with Kimochi.

Reflecting on their remarkable achievements, Fairgray described Cup Week at Flemington as “a magic one”.

“You couldn’t have scripted it any better. Everything kept falling into place with a result every day for us. We just kept on enjoying the moments and appreciating the results.” 

“It was just an incredible week. For us to be there and witness it play out so successfully knowing how racing can play out it was magical. We sat back and enjoyed it.”

Fairgray remarked that the success Yulong experienced at Flemington was a fitting reward for their meticulous planning and a testament to Mr Zhang’s visionary leadership. He added that while they would continually strive for such results, achievements of this magnitude could not be expected every year.

“We’re all working hard. With the homebreds, we’ve reared them and given them the best opportunity to perform on the track,” Fairgray said. “Then there’s Via Sistina, who we bought, brought her out here, and gave to Chris Waller, who has improved her. He’s figured out how to get the best out of her, and now she’s one of the best horses in the world.”

Via Sistina is ranked the second best horse in the world and the world’s best mare, with a rating of 127 in the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities’ world rankings.

Her success highlights Yulong’s global reach and financial strength, as they purchased the Group 1-winning mare for $5.4 million from the United Kingdom in late 2023.

Fairgray attributed these impressive results to Mr Zhang’s vision and his patience in carefully developing his strategies.

“Mr Zhang has been building the blocks for us to be successful. You make sure you’re continually building and placing a strong foundation for the future, and that’s what we’ve done. I started working for him seven years ago, and I knew straight away he was in it for the long term. He just loves the horses and being on the farm, and he has an outstanding knowledge of horses and the industry worldwide. He knows everything that’s going on around the world. We’ve got a good foundation, and now we just want to keep improving. We’ve started to see the benefits of this approach. What transpired at Flemington was a great achievement and reward for the effort everyone puts in year-round here. In some ways, the perfect result was Treasurethe Moment’s Oaks win, as she is from the first crop of our stallion, Alabama Express. That’s the result of Mr Zhang’s program at the farm, as we’ve bred her and reared her. We own the stallion and the dam, so it was a special result.”

Another step in Yulong’s evolution, Fairgray explained, is racing and developing their own stallion in Australia, with faith placed in Zoustar’s son, the three-year-old colt Growing Empire.

Growing Empire, who was placed twice at Group 1 level during the spring, was set by Ciaron Maher for the Group 1 Black Caviar Lightning (1000m) and the Group 1 Yulong Newmarket Handicap (1200m).

“If we could get Growing Empire to win the Yulong Newmarket Handicap, that would be a special achievement and set him up as a stallion for us.”

Fairgray also mentioned that Via Sistina had returned to work and had bounced back well from her spring campaign.

Reflecting on Yulong’s success at Flemington, Fairgray said it was a dream come true.

“It was a magic week, but we’re remaining very level-headed. It would be great if it happened again. We enjoyed it, but we will keep our heads down and keep working hard so we can achieve results like that in the future. It makes us hungrier for more success.”