SEAHENGE (USA) - 2015 bay colt
Late Ashford Stud stallion Scat Daddy (by Johannesburg) has been all the rage with European buyers these past few years and the Coolmore team have bought several of his high-priced yearlings.
These include Seahenge, an Aidan O'Brien-trained juvenile currently rated 112 and who could develop into a classic prospect in 2018. The bay was bred by K & G Stables in Kentucky and he is a $750,000 graduate of the Keeneland September Yearling Sale. He made a narrow winning debut over six furlongs at Naas in early July and was then pitched straight into pattern company. His first attempt was disappointing – he was beaten by a total of eight lengths when finishing fifth behind the exciting Expert Eye in the Group 2 Qatar Vintage Stakes over seven at Goodwood – but then put up two better performances. He came from last to first to wear down Hey Gaman in the Group 2 Howcroft Industrial Supplies Champagne Stakes over the same trip at Doncaster, getting to the front near the line to score by a neck. Then he finished a five-length third to his stable companions U S Navy Flag and Mendelssohn in yesterday afternoon's Group 1 Darley Dewhurst Stakes at Newmarket.
The best-known of Scat Daddy's offspring in this part of the world include the sprint stars Acapulco, Caravaggio, Lady Aurelia and No Nay Never, and his current two-year-old crop features Group 1 Keeneland Phoenix Stakes scorer Sioux Nation and the aforementioned Mendelssohn.
Their records may lead some to presume that Seahenge might also be a sprinter in the making, but across the Atlantic the late stallion is most usually associated with those who excel in the seven to 10-furlong range in the USA and with classic horses in South America. We already know that the colt stays seven furlongs and, given that his dam Fools In Love (by Not For Love) – who was a listed scorer over that trip – won at up to eight and a half furlongs, suggests that he will stay the Guineas distance. Whether or not he will be good enough to make the frame in a Group 1 classic, of course, is another matter, but it would be no surprise to see him make the necessary improvement. His dam has made a promising start to her stud career as each of her first three foals is a blacktype horse, with the elder pair – Urban Bourbon (by City Zip) and Frank's Folly (by Mineshaft) – both placed at that level. Her fourth foal is an Exchange Rate (by Danzig) colt who made $150,000 in Keeneland last month. The mare is among six winners out of triple scorer Parlez (by French Deputy), which makes her a full-sister to a high-earning listed race winner and half-sister to Grade 2 Louisiana Derby and Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes winner International Star (by Fusaichi Pegasus), and she is out of Speak Halory (by Verbatim), a stakes-placed half-sister to several horses of note. Halory Hunter (by Jade Hunter) won the Grade 2 Blue Grass Stakes, finished third in the Grade 1 Florida Derby and fourth in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby, while $6.4 million yearling and former Ballydoyle trainee Van Nistelrooy (by Storm Cat) took the Group 2 Futurity Stakes, was runner-up in the Group 1 National Stakes and third in the Group 2 Royal Lodge Stakes. Their siblings Brushed Halory, Key Lory and Prory all won at Grade 3 level, and their one-time successful half-sister Miss Halory did her part for the family by coming up with the ill-fated eight and a half-furlong Grade 3 scorer Stormalory (by Storm Cat). As a Group 1-placed Group 2 winner from his first four starts, Seahenge has shown ability and potential. He is inbred 5x3x3 to Mr Prospector (by Raise a Native) and bred to be a high-class miler so it will be interesting to see how he gets on next year. Comments are closed.
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