On the 21st of September in 2002, a nuggety foal by Encosta De Lago emerged from within the Kenny’s Best Pal mare Surrealist in a paddock in the Southern Highlands of NSW.

The little fellow would one-day race as Racing To Win and this is his story.

Racing To Win was born at Boscobel Stud and then transferred and raised at Manx Park before the property’s then owner, Richard Turnley sold the colt under the banner of his other property, Boscobel Stud at the William Inglis Easter sale of 2004.

When Racing To Win went into the sales ring, top Randwick trainer John O’Shea sat down with owners Trevor Stuckey and Penny Yan to try and buy him.

After the colt was knocked down to O’Shea for just $40,000 he turned to his advisors and said “We've missed something here, boys" as he expected he’d need to, and was prepared to, pay a lot more than that for the colt.

Racing To Win was first seen at the races on June 15 in a two-year-old C3 Handicap at Canterbury.

He was sent at 9/2 and made light work of his rivals charging down the outside to win by one and a half lengths.

He then strung another two wins together at Randwick and Rosehill before he took on some of the best three-year-olds around in the $1 million Listed Golden Rose at Rosehill on August 25.

The Golden Rose was to see Racing To Win’s colours lowered for the first time when he finished a gallant second behind Paratroopers but he came away losing no admirers beating home the likes of the future Caulfield Guineas winner God’s Own and Pendragon.

O’Shea decided to spell Racing To Win and he came back in the autumn a bigger and better racehorse.

He resumed with a second to Flying Pegasus in the G2 Royal Sovereign before turning the tables on that galloper winning the G2 Hobartville and also defeating De Beers the G1 Rosehill Guineas winner and Hotel Grand a dual Group One winner.

He was then defeated again, this time by the G1 Australian Guineas winner, Apache Cat in the G2 Phar Lap Stakes at Rosehill but then he was to show what he was really made of.

O’Shea elected to test Racing To Win against some of Australia’s top sprinter milers in the G1 George Ryder Stakes at Rosehill and he came through with flying colours defeating his Golden Rose nemesis Paratroopers and Victorian weight-for-age star Lad Of The Manor.

On the back of his George Ryder win, Racing To Win was sent out a 7/2 favourite in Australia’s premier mile event, the G1 Doncaster Handicap over the famous Randwick 1600m.

When the grey gelding burst out of the pack the race was as good as over. In a matter of strides Racing To Win put paid to opponents cruising home to a half length victory. The record stood at nine starts for six wins and three seconds.

Again it was off to the paddock for Australian racing’s newest superstar while O’Shea plotted a spring campaign for his stable star.

On August 26,2006, Racing To Win resumed in the G2 Warwick Stakes where he ran into a white hot Court’s In Session who defied a spirited late burst by the grey flyer to beat him by a short neck with Desert War a further two lengths away back in third.

Racing To Win then again stepped out in the G2 Theo Marks Stakes where he belted a classy line up by one and a half lengths.

It was now time to head back to Group One company and he again proved he was Australia’s best miler when he cruised to a one length victory over Red Dazzler, who was to win the G1 Toorak at Caulfield at his next start, and Desert War in the George Main Stakes at Randwick.

Racing To Win then stepped out the following week in Randwick’s other big mile, the G1 Epsom Handicap and he became only the only the fourth horse [Super Impose 1990 and 1991, Blue Legend 1946 and Hyman 1909] in history to pull off the Doncaster and Epsom double in the one calendar year.

Racing To Win beat the dual Epsom Handicap winner Desert War by a half neck.

Racing To Win then ventured south for a tilt at Australia’s championship race, the G1 Cox Plate but after being trapped three wide down the tight Moonee Valley straight the first time, things didn’t pan out for the 11/4 favourite and he pulled up lame in 11th place.

Racing To Win will not be seen during the autumn of 2007 but one thing is for sure, when this top-notch grey gelding returns to the racetrack, he is sure to make his presence felt.

Below is a story written by Sydney Morning Herald - Racing Editor, Craig Young, leading into the Cox Plate about Racing To Win growing up on Manx Park titled - Hidden past of a yearling with a yearning to win.

EVENTUALLY, the grey colt was found standing under a string of pine trees on a property in the Southern Highlands. The finder, Peta Tilden, looked across at husband Allen and pondered aloud: "He can't be much bloody good, can he?"

The grey, which is now a gelding and was once eyed off by Gai Waterhouse, is vying for favouritism in today's Cox Plate at Moonee Valley. This is no ordinary event, this is Australasian's racing version of Wimbeldon. The four-year-old's name is Racing To Win.

"He did frighten me," Tilden recalled yesterday. "I couldn't find the best colt in the paddock, he had disappeared on me. I'd driven past him twice, he was sort of blending in these bushy trees. I couldn't imagine where he could be."

Tilden has been a player in the breeding side of racing for around 20 years. At the time the grey shot through, she was into her sixth year running the boutique farm known as Boscobel Stud and its offshoot, Manx Park.

"It took us a good half-hour to find him," Tilden said. "I thought, I can't imagine where he could be, but he was hiding. He was very pleased to see us but not as much as I was to see him."

The young buck with attitude had somehow managed to escape from a paddock where he spent a couple of hours each day roaming around with 13 other frisky colts.

"He never hurt himself, he only had a few scratches … ," Tilden said. "Pretty well eight of 10 would hurt themselves in a similar situation. Most hurt themselves trying to get back in, they don't hurt themselves on the way out, it's done trying to get back in with the others."

Racing lore has it only the good horses get hurt. It is for that reason Tilden thought the youngster would turn out to be a duffer. Thoughts she couldn't come to terms with, for this horse had that something. "He was a very nice horse right from the word go," she said.

Tilden later added that hindsight was wonderful, for, "It is easy to say after the fact when they turn out good, but he was such a nice horse.

"He stood out from the other 13 colts in that paddock. He had a lot of presence about him, he was always fairly cheeky as a yearling, he'd try and take off on you if he could."

And so it was that Tilden readied the grey colt for the 2004 Easter Yearling Sale in Sydney, a sale where loads of money is spent on buying the dream horse.

"I was fairly devastated when he only brought $40,000 at that sale," Tilden said. "I thought he would have brought a bit more than that but he had a very small floating chip in a fetlock, which cancelled him out for Hong Kong buyers. They put a pen straight through him."

Tilden pointed out Boscobel owner Richard Turnley, who has since sold Manx Park to emerging race player Peter O'Shea, did not put a reserve on the colt. "Richard was selling the property [Manx Park] and wanted to get rid of all the horses. I knew Gai was going to bid on him," said Tilden, who now runs Manx Park for O'Shea. "I've seen Steve Brem [Waterhouse's former racing manager] a few times and he has said Gai was talking and he couldn't get her attention when the colt went through the ring."

Racing To Win was bought by trainer John O'Shea (no relation to the Manx Park owner) for owner Trevor Stuckey and his partner Penny Yan. O'Shea admits he had as much as $250,000 to spend on the yearling.

He remembers turning to his team of advisers when the horse was bought and saying: "We've missed something here, boys."

As it has turned out, Racing To Win was a bargain. The "unassuming assassin" has been to the races 13 times for nine wins, four at group 1 level, four seconds and $2,832,585 in prizemoney with $3 million to be carved up in today's Cox Plate.

"I've followed his career," Tilden said. "It is very satisfying knowing that you've had something to do with him … it is nice to know somewhere along the way you may have helped him."

Just finding him was thanks enough.