Sons of the great German stallion Monsun (by Konigsstuhl) have become very popular in National Hunt circles and so when Ocovango did not become a Group 1 star, retiring instead as a Group 1-placed Group 2 scorer, it was almost inevitable that his new home would be as a sire of future hurdlers and chasers.

The Beeches Stud resident covered 310 mares in his first season, and although it is possible that a handful of his early offspring will run on the flat, it is likely that we will not start seeing many of them in action at least until the juvenile hurdles, bumpers and point-to-points of 2019/20.

His first foals made up to €23,000.

He is out of Crystal Maze (by Gone West), who is a half-sister to two blacktype horses and out of the Group 1 Fillies' Mile scorer Crystal Music (by Nureyev). She was fourth (no blacktype) in the 1000 Guineas, chased home Imagine in the Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas and was also runner-up to Banks Hill in the Group 1 Coronation Stakes.

Her blacktype siblings include Group 1 Irish Derby third Tchaikovsky (by Sadler's Wells) and the Group 2-placed pattern scorer Dubai Success (by Sadler's Wells).

​Their dam, Crystal Spray (by Beldale Flutter) was a half-sister to the Group 2 winner Crystal Hearted (by Broken Hearted), and if you go back farther then you will find the brilliant Royal Palace (by Ballymoss), among others of note.

OCOVANGO (GB) – br.2010 – Monsun – Crystal Maze, 3 wins inc Prix Greffulhe (Gr2), Prix Francois Mathet (L), 3rd Grand Prix de Paris (Gr1), Prix Niel (Gr2), La Coupe (Gr3). Sire in Ireland. First foals in 2016.

YEARLINGS CATALOGUED:
bg - A Long Way (by Gamut)     Tattersalls IRE     Nov     ​not sold
bg - Ballybrowney Hall (by Saddlers' Hall)     Tattersalls IRE     Nov     not sold
​bf - Basic Light (by Rudimentary)     Goffs     Feb     not sold
chc - Cregg So (by Moscow Society)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €5,800
bc - Dakota Fire (by Beneficial)     Goffs     Feb     €9,500
bc - Five Trix (by Minster Son)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     not sold
bf - Foxyfirth (by Flemensfirth)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     not sold
bc - Girl From De North (by Flemensfirth)     Goffs     Feb     €11,000
bf - Gudnis Gracious Me (by Mull Of Kintyre)     Goffs     Feb     €1,000
bg - Iruna Iris (by Golden Tornado)     Tattersalls IRE     Nov     €8,500
bc - Keith's Delight (by Saffron Walden)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €6,000
bc - Kilbarry Flame (by Flemensfirth)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €4,000
bc - Killashee Lady (by Flemensfirth)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     not sold
bf - Lady Petit (by Beneficial)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €10,000
chg - Majella (by Fourstars Allstar)     Tattersalls IRE     Nov     €4,600
bc - Miss Your Top (by Luso)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €4,500
chc - Moylisha Red (by Oscar)     Goffs     Feb     €7,500 (p/s)
brc - Nouveau Moulin (by Millenary)     Goffs     Feb     not sold
chc - Outlaw Princess (by Beneficial)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €12,000
bc - Poppyvillaexpress (by Old Vic)     Goffs     Feb     not sold
bc - Poshly Presented (by Presenting)     Goffs     Feb     withdrawn
brf - Roaming (by Be My Native)     Goffs UK     Jan     not sold
bc - Send To War (by Sendawar)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €5,000
bc - Tabita (by Alzao)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €1,500
brc - The Last Bank (by Phardante)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     not sold
bc - The Millers Tale (by Rashar)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €6,500
bg - Tonaphuca Girl (by Saddlers' Hall)     Tattersalls IRE     Nov     €10,000
bf - Trendy Attire (by Luso)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €3,000
bg - Tropical Moment (by Cape Cross)     Tattersalls IRE     Nov     €6,000
bc - Venusorserena (by Presenting)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €12,000
bc - Westerner Brook (by Westerner)     Goffs     Feb     withdrawn
bc - Youngvicky (by Old Vic)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     withdrawn
bc - Youngvicky (by Old Vic)     Goffs     Dec     €4,000
​chc - Zebs Little Sister (by Oscar)     Tattersalls IRE     Jan     €10,500

A dual Group 1 star by the sire of successful stallions Manduro, Samum and Shirocco, Gestut Fahrhof-based Maxios is a half-brother to the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe star Bago (by Nashwan), a five-times Group 1 scorer who was a champion at two and three years of age.

Their half-sister Beta (by Selkirk), in contrast, was a pattern-placed stakes-winning sprinter, and as you examine the first few generations of the pedigree it is speed and talent at around a mile that appears most frequently.

His dam, Moonlight's Box (by Nureyev), did not race, but as a daughter of 1993's French juvenile filly champion Coup De Genie by Mr Prospector) it was always likely that she would be a success at stud.

Her siblings include the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac and juvenile filly champion Denebola (by Storm Cat), multiple Grade 3 scorer Snake Mountain (by A.P. Indy), Group 1-placed Group 3 Prix de Cabourg winner Loving Kindness (by Seattle Slew), and also Glia (by A.P. Indy), a Grade 2-placed dual stakes winner whose grand-daughter Emollient (by Empire Maker) is a four-times Grade 1 star in the USA.

Coup De Genie was out of the Group 1-placed Group 3 Prix d'Aumale winner Coup De Folie (by Halo), one of those remarkable mares that have produced at least three winners at the highest level, and that made her a full-sister to Machiavellian, half-sister to Exit To Nowhere (by Irish River) and also the siblings of several others of note.

Exit To Nowhere won the Group 1 Prix Jacques le Marois and enjoyed some success at stud, classic-placed Hydro Calido (by Nureyev) won the Group 2 Prix d'Astarte, Group 1-placed Ocean Of Wisdom (by Mr Prospector) won the Group 3 Prix la Rochette, and, of course, classic-placed Group 1 star and juvenile champion Machiavellian became a hugely influential stallion.

Group 1 winner and French juvenile champion Way Of Light (by Woodman), and the Group/Grade 2 scorers Admiralofthefleet (by Danehill), Calgary Cat (by Cowtown Cat) and Waltzing Matilda (by Danehill Dancer) are others of note who descend from Coup De Folie.

There is more than enough in just three first three generation of the pedigree to show why Maxios has a pedigree befitting both a top-class racehorse and a successful stallion, and yet there are many more major players to be found if you go back a bit farther.

His fourth dam is Raise The Standard (by Hoist The Flag), which makes Coup De Folie a half-sister to the dam of Group 1 scorer and prolific Group/Grade 1 sire Orpen (by Lure), and the fifth dam is Natalma (by Native Dancer), half-sister to the dams of Arctic Tern (by Sea Bird II) and Halo (by Hail To Reason), and dam of the dynasty-making Grade 1 Kentucky Derby hero Northern Dancer (by Nearctic).

Natalma's descendants also include another Group 1 star and dynasty-maker: Danehill (by Danzig) – and both she and her talented dam Almahmoud (by Mahmoud) appear in the direct lineage of many top horses around the world. And as Coup De Folie was by Halo, she was inbred 3x3 to Almahmoud.

As a dual Group 1 winner from this most famous of families, it will be fascinating to see how Maxios does as a stallion and it would be no surprise to see him become a leading sire in Germany.

MAXIOS (GB) – b.2008 – Monsun – Moonlight's Box, 8 wins inc Prix du Moulin de Longchamp (Gr1), Prix d'Ispahan (Gr1), Prix d'Harcourt (Gr2), La Coupe de Maisons-Laffitte (Gr3), Prix Thomas Bryon (Gr3), 2nd Prix Ganay (Gr1), Grand Prix de Chantilly (Gr2). Sire in Germany. First foals in 2015.

YEARLINGS CATALOGUED (updated)
bc – Adela (by Tannenkonig)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €34,000
bc – Another Name (by Giant's Causeway)     Goffs UK     Aug     (p/s) £42,000
bc - Antique Rose (by Desert King)     Arqana     Oct     €12,000
brc – Artica (by Pentire)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €50,000
bc – Bernsteinkuste (by Bernstein)     Tattersalls     Oct    not sold
bc - Blue Fern (by Woodman)     Arqana     Oct     (p/s) €14,000
bf - Castilla (by Spectrum)     Baden-Baden     Oct    €30,000
bf – Champaka (by Caerleon)     Tattersalls     Oct     125,000gns
bf - Danila (by Silvano)     Baden-Baden     Oct    €22,000
bf - Deinum (by Sholokhov)     Arqana     Nov     €20,000
bc – Enjoy The Life (by Medicean)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €49,000
bc – Fair Breeze (by Silvano)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €70,000
brc – Firedance (by Lomitas)     Tattersalls     Oct     45,000gns
bf - Hecate (by Act One)     Arqana     Nov     €8,500
bc – I'm Sensational (by Selkirk)     Goffs     Feb     (p/s) €10,000
bc – I'm Sensational (by Selkirk)     Tattersalls IRE     Sept     €30,000
bf - Indikova (by Bushranger)     Baden-Baden     Oct    not sold
rof – Josephine Blanche (by Tannenkonig)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €30,000
bc - Juvena (by Platini)     Baden-Baden     Oct    not sold
bc – Kastila (by Sternkoenig)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €70,000
bc – La Reine Noir (by Rainbow Quest)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €80,000
bf – La Violetta (by Big Shuffle)     Baden-Baden     Sept     not sold
bf - La Violetta (by Big Shuffle)     Baden-Baden     Oct    €4,000
bf – Lady Lips (by Zinaad)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €10,000
bf – Legal Lyric (by Lawman)     Goffs     Oct     €25,000
bf - Limeira (by Bertolini)     Baden-Baden     Oct    €12,000
bc – Linara (by Windwurf)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €40,000
bc - Linara (by Windwurf)     Baden-Baden     Oct    €30,000
bc – Luna Rosa (by Marju)     Tattersalls     Oct     80,000gns
bf – Ma Coeur (by Sholokhov)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €130,000
bc – Macuna (by Acatenango)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €28,000
brc – Madonna (by Lando)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €22,000
bc – Magma (by Dubai Destination)     Tattersalls     Oct     (p/s) 60,000gns
grc – Making Hay (by Dr Fong)     Baden-Baden     Sept     withdrawn
grc - Making Hay (by Dr Fong)     Baden-Baden     Oct    not sold
bc – Margarita (by Lomitas)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €20,000
bc – Mimalia (by Silver Hawk)     Tattersalls     Oct     withdrawn
bc – Moonavvara (by Sadler's Wells)     Tattersalls     Oct     20,000gns
bf – Novita (by American Post)     Goffs     Feb     €4,200
bc - Olive Danon (by Dylan Thomas)     Arqana     Oct     not sold
bf – Paragua (by Nayef)     Baden-Baden     Sept     not sold
bf - Paramita (by Galileo)     Tattersalls     Nov     withdrawn
brf – Polish Belle (by Polish Precedent)     Tattersalls     Oct    32,000gns
bc - Relight's Best (by Grand Lodge)     Arqana     Oct     €70,000
bf – Sabi Sabi (by Orpen)     Arqana     Aug     (p/s) €30,000
bf – Salontasche (by Dashing Blade)     Baden-Baden     Sept     withdrawn
bf - Sarabia (by One Cool Cat)     Baden-Baden     Oct    €13,000
bc – Secrets (by Anabaa)     Goffs     Oct     €45,000
bf – Shiramiyna (by Invincible Spirit)     Baden-Baden     Sept     withdrawn
bf - Shiramiyna (by Invincible Spirit)     Baden-Baden     Oct    not sold
bc – Solar Midnight (by Lemon Drop Kid)     Goffs     Oct     €60,000
bc – Souvenance (by Hernando)     Goffs     Oct     €25,000
bf – Tosca (by Amadeus Wolf)     Arqana     Aug     (p/s) €45,000
bf - Tosca (by Amadeus Wolf)     Baden-Baden     Oct    €40,000
brc – Waldtraut (by Oasis Dream)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €240,000
brc – Wildfahrte (by Mark Of Esteem)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €220,000
bc – Zavaala (by Rock of Gibraltar)     Baden-Baden     Sept    ​€38,000

Winner of a mile newcomers' race on soft ground at Saint-Cloud on his only start as a juvenile, Masterstroke went on to become an Arc-placed Group 2 scorer. He is by the sire of the Group 1-winning successful sires Manduro, Samum and Shirocco, he stands for just €3,000 at Haras du Logis, in France, and with the distaff line he represents, there would be no surprise at all if can come up with one or more Group 1 performers.

His siblings include the Group 3 scorer Moonlight Magic (by Cape Cross), his dam is the dual Oaks-placed stakes winner Melikah (by Lammtarra), and she is among the string of notable winners out of the Group 1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe heroine Urban Sea (by Miswaki), one of the greatest broodmares of all time.

Her brilliant sons Galileo (by Sadler's Wells) and Sea The Stars (by Cape Cross) are outstanding stallions, her dual Group 1 scorer Black Sam Bellamy (by Sadler's Wells) has sired pattern winners, and her top daughter, My Typhoon (by Giant's Causeway), was a Grade 1 winner in the USA.

Group 3 scorer Urban Ocean (by Bering) has sired winners from limited opportunities, classic-placed stakes winner Born To Sea (by Invincible Spirit) is a successful freshman sire in 2016, her classic-placed pattern-winning daughter All Too Beautiful (by Sadler's Wells) is the dam of dual Oaks-placed stakes winner Wonder Of Wonders (by Kingmambo), and her pattern-placed filly Cherry Hinton (by Green Desert) is responsible for Group 1 Irish Oaks heroine Bracelet (by Montjeu).

And, as those late-night infomercials say, that's not all!

Urban Sea's classic-winning half-brother King's Best (by Kingmambo) is the sire of Derby and Arc hero Workforce, among many other notable performers, and those who are out of or descend from her half-sisters include the Group 1-sires Tertullian (by Miswaki), Anabaa Blue (by Anabaa) and Tamayuz (by Nayef), the latter pair having been Group 1 winners on the track too.

There are many other talented horses to be found in just these first few generations of the pedigree, including classic-placed Group 2 Greenlands Stakes winner Mustajeeb (by Nayef), who has completed his first season at Overbury Stud.

Masterstroke's pedigree and race record will also attract the attention of those in the National Hunt sector, but there is every reason to hope that he can get good flat horses too, including one or more who can perform with credit at the highest level.

MASTERSTROKE (USA) – b.2009 – Monsun – Melikah, 4 wins inc Grand Prix de Deauville (Gr2), Prix Frederic de Lagrange (L), 2nd Prix Hocquart (Gr2), Prix du Lys (Gr3), 3rd Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (Gr1). Sire in France. First foals in 2015.

YEARLINGS CATALOGUED (updated)
bf - Aline (by Tiger Hill)     Arqana     Oct     ​€11,000
bf – Alkeste (by Nebos)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €26,000
bf - Be In Motion (by Motivator)     Arqana     Nov     withdrawn
chf - Bealli (by Bering)     Arqana     Nov     withdrawn
bc - Best Tune (by King's Best)     Baden-Baden     Oct    €15,000
bf - Bird Of Honour (by Mark Of Esteem)     Osarus     Nov     not sold
chf - Chi Chi De Boitron (by Chichicastenango)     Arqana     Nov     not sold
bf – Denissa (by Second Set)     Baden-Baden     Sept     €15,000
bf – Fleur Enchantee (by Marchand De Sable)     Osarus     Sept     not sold
bc – Intschu Tschuna (by Lando)     Baden-Baden     Sept     not sold
bc - Jookhasi (by Kahyasi)     Arqana     Nov     (p/s) €14,000
bc – Lilac Moon (by Dr Fong)     Baden-Baden     Sept     ​€17,000
bf - Makarie (by Redback)     Arqana     Nov     €3,000
bc - My Fair Lady (by Poliglote)     Arqana     Nov     €7,500
bc - Shawnee's Best (by King's Best)     Osarus     Nov     €5,000
bf - Tekoa (by Zieten)     Arqana     Nov     withdrawn
bf - Wonderful Life (by Tiger Hill)     Arqana     Oct     not sold