Multiple Group 1 star Rip Van Winkle (by Galileo) has had an eye-catching year and the Coolmore Stud stallion's career tally of stakes winners is now in double figures. The juvenile Group 1 scorer Dick Whittington, now aged four and reviewed here after his Group 3 Ballycorus Stakes victory earlier in the year, heads his roll of honour and the colt represents his first crop.
Capella, Magic Dancer, and First Impressions are New Zealand-bred pattern winners, the latter a 12-furlong Group 3 scorer in Australia, while the dual Group 2-placed two-year-old Arcada, talented sprinter The Happy Prince, and popular pattern-placed stakes-winning filly Creggs Pipes have done well for him in Ireland in 2016. That latter pair also come from his first crop. The Happy Prince has been very busy and was running for the 14th time this season when unplaced in the Group 3 Coolmore Stud Home of Champions Concorde Stakes over a few yards short of seven and a half furlongs at Tipperary today, eased down when his chance was gone. For the Andy Slattery-trained Creggs Pipes, who finished fifth, that race was her ninth run of the season. The wide-margin winner was the Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas heroine Jet Setting. Fifth of 22 in a seven-furlong Curragh maiden on his only start at two, The Happy Prince was an odds-on winner over six and a half furlongs at Limerick on his three-year-old debut. He added a six-furlong premier handicap at Naas and picked up a trio of blacktype placings, rising to a mark of 108, but had a disappointing start to his latest campaign. He did not make the frame until his ninth start of the year, but after that second place finish to Moviesta in a six-furlong Dundalk handicap, he chased home Spirit Quartz in a listed contest over five at Tipperary, beat In Salutem by one and three-quarter lengths in a conditions race over six at Naas, and then came within a short-head of beating Breton Rock in the Group 2 Saint Gobain Weber Park Stakes over seven furlongs at Doncaster. That performance saw his rating jump to a career-best of 112, he followed it with a three-quarter-length defeat of Flight Risk in the Group 3 Renaissance Stakes on heavy ground at the Curragh seven days ago. The Happy Prince was bred by Floors Farming, he made £90,000 in Doncaster as a yearling, he is trained by Aidan O'Brien, and he is the first foal out of Maid To Dream (by Oasis Dream), who was placed over seven furlongs at Lingfield (turf) and Wolverhampton (all-weather) from four starts at three. She has twice changed hands at Tattersalls since then, making 80,000gns each time, she had a Nathaniel (by Galileo) filly in 2015 and first-crop daughter of ace miler Toronado (by High Chaparral) in March. Eight of her siblings have won at least once, including her speedy stakes-placed full-brother Run For The Hills and middle-distance stakes-placed half-sister Maid To Perfection (by Sadler's Wells), and both that filly and two of their siblings have produced stakes winners at stud. Maid To Treasure (by Rainbow Quest) was only placed a few times but is the dam of the Listed Esher Stakes winner and Group 2 Lonsdale Cup third King Of Wands (by Galileo), one-time scorer Green Tambourine (by Green Desert) is the dam of Californian listed scorer Maid For Music (by Dubai Destination), and Maid To Perfection is responsible for Caucus and Queen Of Pentacles. The former, a son of Cape Cross (by Green Desert), is a triple stakes winner over two miles in England and chased home Estimate in the Group 3 Sagaro Stakes at Ascot. Queen Of Pentacles (by Selkirk) ran six times, all but one of those over 10 furlongs, she won a listed contest at Doncaster on her final start, and her three-year-old, Queen Of The Stars (by Sea The Stars), won a Pontefract maiden by seven lengths over that trip two weeks ago. The grandam of The Happy Prince is Maid For The Hills (by Indian Ridge), who won a six-furlong listed contest at Newmarket as a two-year-old, the third dam, Stinging Nettle (by Sharpen Up), was a six-furlong listed scorer at Ascot on her only start at two, and those who descend from the latter include a string of stakes and pattern winners over a wide variety of distances. The Group 2 Sun Chariot Stakes winner and Group 1 Nassau Stakes runner-up Lady In Waiting (by Kylian) is among them, as are the Grade 1 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic Stakes scorer Stroll (by Pulpit), the Group 3 Prix de Lutece winner Savannah Bay (by In The Wings), Group 2-winning miler Lovelace (by Royal Applause), and the Group 1-placed pattern-winning South African sprinters Welwitschia (by Oasis Dream) and Headstrong (by Pivotal). The Happy Prince is a capable performer without being good enough to trouble the best, he is entered in Friday's Group 2 Dubai 100 Challenge Stakes over seven furlongs at Newmarket, and regardless of whether or not he makes that journey, there should be more good prizes to be earned with him.
There is nothing unusual in talented flat horses going on to become high-class hurdlers or chasers. After all, a large number of all leading National Hunt horses began their careers as flat ones, or were bred for that job, as were almost all of the stallions who sire the top jumpers.
Those who show talent as National Hunt horses before becoming notable flat ones are rare, and when it happens they tend to be ones who were bred for the flat anyway. They also tend to be stayers on the level, a division that is often weak compared to those for the speedier types. Many forget that the Group 1 Melbourne Cup and dual Group 1 Irish St Leger hero Vintage Crop won a maiden hurdle and novice hurdle after a flat maiden success and before getting his first good win on the level – the Cesarewitch Handicap at Newmarket. And, on what was his only other start under National Hunt rules, he was sixth to Granville Again in the Grade 1 Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham just over three months before his first stakes race success. He was a flat-bred son of the ace miler Rousillon (by Riverman), and the most recent winner of the Group 1 Palmerstown House Estate Irish St Leger is another flat-bred gelding who got his start under National Hunt rules. Some will call him a classic winner, but a classic is for three-year-olds only, geldings are excluded from those in Ireland, England and France, and the Irish St Leger gave up its classic status when opened up to older horses in 1983, won that year by the four-year-old filly Mountain Lodge, a handicapper. The race is really Ireland's equivalent of the Gold Cup at Ascot, albeit over a much shorter distance, than a match for the world's oldest classic, the St Leger at Doncaster. There are few blacktype races in the country for stayers and there is a case to be made for raising the distance of the Irish St Leger to two miles, to make it fit better as a 'Cup' race and to attract more of the top European stayers for whom, in many cases, 14 furlongs is a bit short. It is, after all, one of the feature races during Irish Champions Weekend. But back to Wicklow Brave, another fine advertisement for the Ballylinch Stud sire Beat Hollow (by Sadler's Wells) and a third flat Group 1 star for him, among a total of 21 individual stakes winners. The regally-related stallion is also building up a growing reputation with his National Hunt runners, making him one of the top dual-purpose sires around, and his other pair of top-level flat winners are Beaten Up and Proportional.
The Willie Mulllins-trained Wicklow Brave won a trio of bumpers, got his first blacktype success over hurdles at the age of five, and he won the Grade 3 Vincent O'Brien County Handicap Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in 2015.
It was almost two months after that impressive success that he made his flat debut, scoring over two miles in heavy ground at Gowran Park. He followed-up with an odds-on success over 14 furlongs at Listowel and then took fourth in the Queen Alexandra Stakes at Royal Ascot before finishing down the field in the Grade A Galway Hurdle at that track's big summer festival. A few weeks after that performance he was runner-up in the prestigious Ebor Handicap over 14 furlongs at York. He then finished a distant third behind runaway winner Order Of St George in the Group 1 Irish St Leger, was a two-length third in the Group 2 Qipco British Champions Long Distance Cup over two miles at Ascot, and then resumed jumping. He was third to Nichols Canyon in the Grade 1 Morgiana Hurdle at Punchestown and third to Identity Thief in the Grade 1 Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle – both in November – and then off the track until finishing a neck second to Dartmouth in the Group 3 Ormonde Stakes at Chester in May. His surprise half-length defeat of Order Of St George in the recent Group 1 Palmerstown House Estate Irish St Leger, in which the pair finished 16 clear of the remaining two runners, was his fifth start of the current flat season, and followed a fourth-place finish (no blacktype) to Big Orange in the Group 2 Goodwood Cup and third in the Group 2 Lonsdale Cup at York. Wicklow Brave was bred by Millsec Ltd, he is out of Moraine (by Rainbow Quest) and that makes him a half-brother to Brass Ring (by Rail Link), a three-time 12-furlong scorer in England who finished third to Quest For More in the Queen Alexandra Stakes and fourth in the Cesarewitch Handicap. That gelding's full-sister Glacial Drift was a short-head winner of a two-mile Down Royal bumper on her debut but has been unplaced in all four of her starts on the flat, most recently in a 14-furlong Navan handicap last month. They have a two-year-old half-sister named Dreamtide (by Champs Elysees) and Moraine had a Bated Breath (by Dansili) filly in 2015. Moraine, who won over 12 furlongs, is a daughter of the Group 3 Prix de Royaumont scorer Cantilever (by Sanglamore) and, in addition to flat blacktype earners, that mare's siblings include two jumpers of note. Battle Group (by Beat Hollow), who is very closely related to Wicklow Brave, is a talented but quirky gelding who won two editions of a Grade 3 handicap hurdle over an extended three miles at Aintree, with the latter success coming just two days before he won the Listed John Smith's Handicap Chase over three miles, one furlong at the same venue. The other one was Upgrade (by Be My Guest). He was bred by Juddmonte Farms, was by a champion sire, but bypassed the flat, won the Grade 1 Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival as a four-year-old, won the Grade 1 Scilly Isles Novice Chase at Sandown two years later, and he also won Grade 2 chases at Cheltenham and Ascot among a career tally of 10 wins from 49 starts. Cantanta (by Top Ville), the third dam of Wicklow Brave, won once on the flat, she was out of the Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas and Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks heroine Sarah Siddons (by Le Levanstell) and that made her a sibling to two racehorses of particular note. Her full-sister Princess Pati won the Group 1 Irish Oaks and Group 2 Pretty Polly Stakes in 1984, was third to Sadler's Wells in the Group 1 Phoenix Champion Stakes, and was the dam of the Group 2 Yorkshire Cup runner-up Parthian Springs (by Sadler's Wells) and Cambridgeshire Handicap scorer Pasternak (by Soviet Star). Her half-brother Seymour Hicks (by Ballymore) won the Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes and later became a successful National Hunt sire whose brightest star was the Grade 1 Cheltenham Gold Cup and dual Grade 1 King George VI Chase hero See More Business. Sarah Siddons has three other progeny who deserve a mention, even though one was unplaced and the other two unraced. Miss Kemble (by Warning), who ran once, is the grandam of the multiple mile Group 1 star Excelebration (by Exceed And Excel), a young Coolmore Stud stallion whose first juveniles are winning in 2016, and also of his multiple Group 3-winning half-brother Mull Of Killough (by Mull Of Kintyre). Gertrude Lawrence (by Ballymore), an unraced full-sister to Seymour Hicks, was the dam of the stakes-winning sprinter Lady Ambassador (by General Assembly) and that filly, in turn, became the dam of the Group 1 Prix Vermeille heroine and Group 1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe runner-up Leggera (by Sadler's Wells). Then there's Dansara (by Dancing Brave), unraced dam of the multiple pattern-placed stakes-winning middle-distance horse Self Defense (by Warning), who was also a blacktype scorer over hurdles. The mare is also the grandam of a string of blacktype earners who include the Group 2 Prix de Royallieu winner Sea of Heartbreak (by Rock of Gibraltar), Group 3 Ballysax Stakes scorer Puncher Clynch (by Azamour) and Group 1 St Leger runner-up The Last Drop (by Galileo). Wicklow Brave, an €11,000 graduate of the Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale – the 2016 edition of that prestigious sale starts at 10am tomorrow – made a second appearance in the Fairyhouse auction ring when, as a three-year-old, he was sold for €43,000 at the Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale. His 155 handicap mark over hurdles, down from a peak of 166, is that of a solid Grade 2 horse. His flat mark was raised recently to 118, that of a solid pattern-level runner but still some way short of being a proper Group 1 horse. Such a mark can, however, enable Group 1 success in a weak division or contest, especially if good fortune strikes, as it did for him at the Curragh. Admirable though he is as a flat stayer, Wicklow Brave was lucky to catch the 124-rated Order Of St George on an off-day and in what pretty much turned out to be a two-horse race. He was also the beneficiary of a great ride by Frankie Dettori. He is only seven so there are likely to be plenty of other group and graded events for him to contest, some of which he can win, and Wicklow Brave is a fine advertisement for his connections, for his sire and for the Group 1-producing distaff line that he represents. A pattern winning juvenile whose only defeat was his third-place finish to New Approach and Fast Company in the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes, Raven's Pass (by Elusive Quality) endured a frustrating first half to his three-year-old campaign.
He was short-headed by Twice Over in the Group 3 Craven Stakes, finished fourth to Henrythenavigator in the Group 1 2000 Guineas, chased home that same colt in the Group 1 St James's Palace Stakes at Ascot and lost to him by a head in the Group 1 Sussex Stakes, and he was also runner-up to Tamayuz in the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat at Chantilly. But then his fortunes changed, he reeled off a hat-trick and retired to stud with a championship title to his name: three-year-old miler. He took the Group 2 Celebration Mile at Goodwood and followed that by finally getting his revenge on Henrythenavigator with a one-length score in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot. The pair met one last time in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Classic on the Pro-Ride surface at Santa Anita in late October, they again finished first and second, and this time the chestnut beat the bay by one and three-quarter lengths. As stallions they are closely matched in terms of the number of individual stakes winners sired, with 15 for Raven's Pass and 14 for Henrythenavigator (by Kingmambo). The Kildangan Stud team member also leads his Coolmore rival by the number of pattern winners - six to four - but the latter leads by three to nil when it comes to Group 1 winners, two of whom are George Vancouver and Pedro The Great, now stallions who have their first yearlings on offer. There is no reason why Raven's Pass should not get at least one Group 1 winner by the time his final progeny have finished their careers, and as he is only 11 years old now, there should, hopefully, be plenty of time available for him to achieve that goal. Could Richard Pankhurst be the one to make the breakthrough for him? The John Gosden-trained four-year-old looked full of promise when easily winning the Listed Chesham Stakes at Royal Ascot in 2014, but he missed most of last year and has run just three times in 2016. He put up the best performance of his career to date when beating Home Of The Brave by a length in the Group 2 Betfred Hungerford Stakes last month, earning a 115 handicap mark that is still some what short of what is required at the highest level, and he is due to run in tomorrow's Group 2 Saint Gobain Weber Park Stakes at Doncaster, also over seven furlongs. The Godolphin-owned chestnut was bred by Rachel Hood, he is the first foal out of the mile winner Mainstay (by Elmaamul) and she is a full-sister to the nine-furlong Group 3 scorer Lateen Sails. Her second foal is the seven-furlong Group 3 winner Crazy Horse (by Sleeping Indian), whose only defeat is his sixth-place finish to The Gurkha in the Group 1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains at Deauville in May, her two-year-old filly is named Lydia Becker (by Sleeping Indian), and her 2015 Nathaniel (by Galileo) colt was followed by a Kingman (by Invincible Spirit) filly born in March. Felucca (by Green Desert), the winning grandam of Richard Pankhurst, is a half-sister to the Group 2 Prix Eugene Adam scorer Radevore (by Generous) and out of Bloudan (by Damascus), an unraced half-sister to the Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas and Group 2 Coronation Stakes heroine Al Bahathri (by Blushing Groom). That classic ace is, of course, the dam of the Group 1 2000 Guineas and Group 1 Champion Stakes winner Haafhd (by Alhaarth) and of Group 2 Challenge Stakes scorer Munir (by Indian Ridge), both of whom have enjoyed some success at stud, and her descendants include the Group/Grade 1 stars Military Attack (by Oratorio), Gladiatorus (by Silic) and Red Cadeaux (by Cadeaux Genereux). A half-sister to the Grade 2 scorer and prolific winner Geraldine's Store (by Exclusive Native), Al Bahathri was also a full-sister to Chain Fern, the mare from whom the Group/Grade 1 winners Spanish Fern (by El Gran Senor), Heatseeker (by Giant's Causeway) and Lord Shanakill (by Speightstown) descend. The latter, who is a remote relation to Richard Pankhurst, is the sire of this year's surprise Group 1 Prince of Wales's Stakes scorer My Dream Boat. Richard Pankhurst has plenty of ability and, although he still has some way to go if he is to be up to winning at the highest level, it should be noted that his only defeats, so far, have been when racing over a trip other than seven furlongs. Will he extend that unbeaten record to four tomorrow? He also hold entries in the Group 2 Shadwell Joel Stakes over a mile at Newmarket in two weeks' time and in next month's Group 2 Dubai 100 Challenge Stakes over seven at the same venue. It will be interesting to see how highly he can climb in the rankings and to find out if he is actually a seven-furlong specialist.
Dalham Hall Stud's classic-winning miler Dubawi (by Dubai Millennium) is well-known around the world as being one of the very best sires in active service. He gets top two-year-olds, sprinters, milers and middle-distance horses, and one of the brightest stars of the latter group in 2016 is his five-year-old son Postponed.
Some horses have impressed once or twice, but Postponed has won four times, by an aggregate of almost 11 lengths, three of those at the highest level, and he has not met with defeat since June 2015. That was his third-place finish to Snow Sky and Eagle Top in the Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes at Ascot, back when we knew him as a Group 1-placed Group 2 scorer with the potential to hit the top. A month later he beat Eagle Top by a nose in the Group 1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes over the same course and distance, and his only subsequent outing that season was his win in the Group 2 Prix Foy on very soft ground at Longchamp in September. It was shortly after that victory that he left the Luca Cumani stable to join Roger Varian's team. Postponed kicked off 2016 with a three-length defeat of subsequent Group 1 scorer Dariyan in the Group 2 Dubai City of Gold over 12 furlongs at Meydan in early March, he beat Japanese star Duramente by two lengths in the Group 1 Dubai Sheema Classic over the course and distance three weeks later, and then trounced Breeders' Cup heroine Found by four and a half lengths in the Group 1 Coronation Cup at Epsom in June. Yesterday, he dropped back to the extended 10 furlongs of the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes at York and, in a quick time, beat last month's King George hero Highland Reel by one and a quarter lengths, with Mutakayyef another length back in third.
Given his age and all that he has achieved, it is to be expected that he will be taking up a prominent stallion role in either 2017 or 2018, a career path that is already under way for one of his relations.
Dubawi is 14 years old, his tally of 112 stakes winners includes 23 who have won at least once at the highest level somewhere in the world, and although it is still early for him as a sire of stallions, his first one with runners is Haras de Bonneval's classic winner and classic sire Makfi and his second is the Group 1-winning miler and pattern sire Poet's Voice. That is promising, but no more than that: we need more data before being able to determine what sort of long-term impact his male line might have. Some of the progeny of his top-level winners Akeed Mofeed, Al Kazeem, Hunter's Light, Monterosso, Night Of Thunder, and Waldpark, and those of Group 2 scorers Aljamaaheer, Universal and Worthadd, will have appeared on the track before the first offspring of Postponed get there, so by that time we should know a lot more. Bred by St Albans Bloodstock Llp and a 360,000gns graduate of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale, Postponed is the second foal out of Ever Rigg (by Dubai Destination), a mare whose sole win in five starts came over 12 furlongs on the polytrack at Kempton. Her first foal, Neamour (by Oasis Dream), was placed four times from seven starts, from seven to 12 furlongs, and her first foal is an Archipenko (by Kingmambo) colt born last August. Their three-year-old half-brother Avoidable (by Iffraaj) ran three times on the all-weather track at Wolverhampton earlier in the year, with a two-length fifth on his second start being the most distinguished of his performances. Their two-year-old half-sister has been named God Given (by Nathaniel), the mare had a Makfi (by Dubawi) colt in 2015, and that three-parts brother to Postponed was followed by a full-brother to the Group 1 star, who arrived at the end of April.
Ever Rigg was the sixth foal out of the Group 1 Moyglare Stud Stakes heroine Bianca Nera (by Salse), she is a half-sister to several winners, including the five-times scorer Glencairn Star (by Selkirk), but it is three of her half-sisters who deserve more detailed comment.
Bite of The Cherry (by Dalakhani) was twice listed-placed, Bijou A Moi (by Rainbow Quest) is the dam of the Group 3 Winter Derby scorer Robin Hoods Bay (by Motivator), and Pietra Dura (by Cadeaux Genereux) is the stakes-placed dam of Turning Top (by Pivotal), who won the Grade 3 Beverley Hills Handicap and was runner-up to Hibaayeb in the Grade 1 Yellow Ribbon Stakes. That filly was also placed in the Grade 2 Robert J Frankel Stakes, in the Grade 2 Santa Anita Stakes and in the Grade 2 Las Palmas Handicap, and on her penultimate start in graded company, was fourth (no blacktype) behind Dubawi Heights in another edition of the Grade 1 Yellow Ribbon Stakes. Bianca Nera, the top-rated juvenile filly in Ireland in 1996, had an Exceed And Excel (by Danehill) colt in 2014 and a Farhh (by Pivotal) filly in May, and she was the best of several winners out of Birch Creek (by Carwhite), a Group 3-placed half-sister to Group 3 Ballyogan Stakes winner and Group 2 Flying Childers Stakes runner-up Great Deeds (by Forzando). Her full-sister My Mariam is the dam of the twice listed-placed filly In The Ribbons (by In The Wings), but it is two of her other siblings who have made the more notable contributions to the family's reputation. Hotelgenie Dot Com (by Selkirk) was a leading juvenile, who was placed in both the Group 1 Moyglare Stud Stakes and Group 1 Fillies' Mile, and she is the dam of the classic-placed dual Group 1 star Simply Perfect (by Danehill). That Jeremy Noseda-trained grey first caught the eye when runner-up in the Group 2 Queen Mary Stakes just 16 days after chasing home Dutch Art in a Windsor maiden, and she rounded off that first season with wins in the Group 2 May Hill Stakes (at York that year) and Group 1 Fillies' Mile. Simply Perfect chased home Finsceal Beo and Arch Swing in the Group 1 1000 Guineas on her seasonal reappearance, was well-beaten in the Oaks, and then took the Group 1 Falmouth Stakes over a mile at Newmarket shortly before finishing third behind classic star Darjina in the Group 1 Prix d'Astarte at Deauville, beaten by just a length. She was only beaten by a total of two lengths when fourth behind Majestic Roi in the Group 1 Sun Chariot Stakes over the same trip at Newmarket that October and then put up that bizarre display in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf at Monmouth Park, pulling her way to the front, leading the pack for a bit, and then hanging right across the course, taking a couple of her rivals with her, before being pulled up. Her second foal is Mekong River (by Galileo), who ran away with the Listed Eyrefield Stakes at Leopardstown as a juvenile, won the Group 3 International Stakes over 10 furlongs at the Curragh at three, and later went to race in Scandinavia. His full-brother Graphite is entered in next year's Derby, and she had another Galileo (by Sadler's Wells) colt in 2015.
Simply Perfect's unraced full-sister One Moment In Time had a couple of fillies in Australia before returning to the country of her birth in 2009. She too had a Galileo colt last year, and he is a full-brother to three winners, most notably Bondi Beach.
For just under two weeks last year he was the Group 1 St Leger winner of 2015, but the stewards' room decision that awarded him the prize on the day was reversed on appeal and so first-past-the-post Simple Verse got her name on the roll of honour for the oldest classic instead. Before then he had short-head Order Of St George in the Group 3 Curragh Cup and chased home Storm The Stars in the Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes, and this season he has won twice from three starts. Bondi Beach, who is trained by Aidan O'Brien, kicked off the year with a two and three-quarter length win in the Listed Martin Molony Stakes over 12 and a half furlongs at Limerick, he followed-up with an odds-on success in the Group 3 Vintage Crop Stakes over 14 furlongs at Navan and then finished third behind Stellar Mass in the Group 3 Ballyroan Stakes over 12 at Leopardstown. As you might expect, his entries include the Group 1 Palmerstown House Estate Irish St Leger and the Group 2 Qipco British Champions Long Distance Cup. Bianca Nera's other notable sister is Crackling (by Electric), a dual winner who came up with the Listed Warwickshire Oaks scorer Ronaldsay (by Kirkwall) and whose descendants include a popular young Irish stallion. That horse is Gale Force Ten (by Oasis Dream), the first foal out of that stakes-winning mare. He was second in the Group 2 Norfolk Stakes and third in the Group 1 Middle Park Stakes as a juvenile, kicked off his three-year-old campaign with listed success over seven furlongs at Dundalk, and was beaten by less than a length when fourth behind Style Vendome in the Group 1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains (French 2000 Guineas), splitting subsequent Group 1 stars Intello (third) and Havana Gold (fifth) in that five-way finish. Just 13 days after that he chased home Magician in the Group 1 Irish 2000 Guineas at the Curragh, then justified favouritism in the Group 3 Jersey Stakes at Ascot before finishing sixth in the Group 1 July Cup. The best of his subsequent placings was fourth (no blacktype) in the Group 1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp. Gale Force Ten stands at the Irish National Stud and some of his first foals will be on offer later this year. Crackling is also the dam of the dual US Grade 3 scorer Pickle (by Piccolo) and that mare, in turn, is the dam of the prolific listed-winning sprinter Gusto (by Oasis Dream), whose half-sister Beauly (by Sea The Stars) was only beaten half a length by Abingdon in the Listed Lord Weinstock Memorial Stakes over 10 furlongs at Newbury in May.
If you go back to the sixth generation of the family then you will find two other notable individuals.
Life Sentence (by Court Martial), who was placed in the Princess Elizabeth Stakes, Chesham Stakes and St Hugh's Stakes, became the dam of 1963's 2000 Guineas and King Edward VII Stakes winner Only For Life (by Chanteur), sire of the Timeform 124-rated Observer Gold Cup (now Racing Post Trophy) scorer The Elk. Her half-brother Double Bore (by Borealis) was a talented middle-distance and staying horse in England, who won the Goodwood Cup in 1955 and was Timeform-rated 123, before going on to sire the prolific Australian big-race winner Scotch And Dry and also 1965's Caulfield Cup hero Bore Head. The connection between those horses and Postponed is remote, but should he or his Irish-based relative sire big race winners then they will not be the first ones in their family to do so. Before then, however, there are more races to be run, and with over £4.36 million already to his name, he is among the highest-earning European-trained horses of all time. Postponed is one of a glittering array of stars with an entry in next month's Group 1 Qipco Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown, he is one of the ante-post favourites for the Group 1 Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in October, and so there is a good chance that he could pass the £5 million mark so narrowly missed by the ill-fated pair St Nicholas Abbey (£4,954,590) and Red Cadeaux (£4,998,408) before he embarks on the next phase of his career. Timeform 140-rated champion Sea The Stars (by Cape Cross) wasted no time in establishing himself as one of the most important stallions in Europe. The 30 stakes winners that have emerged from his first three crops include the classic stars Harzand (Derby, Irish Derby), Sea The Moon (Deutsches Derby) and Taghrooda (Oaks) and the latter also won the Group 1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes and finished third in the Arc.
By the end of June the stallion had proved over and over that he can get excellent middle-distance horses, but then he recorded an important double in early July, one that showed him to be capable of getting leading milers too. Zelzal won the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat at Chantilly and Mutakayyef took the Group 2 Fred Cowley MBE Memorial Summer Mile Stakes at Ascot. The latter is five years old, so represents his sire's first crop, and he was bred by Cheveley Park Stud. They sold him in Newmarket as a yearling and the 260,000gns purchase carries the colours of Hamdan Al Maktoum. He was multiple blacktype-placed over nine and 10 furlongs at three and four years of age, but this season his two runs have been over the mile. He kicked off with a length defeat of Sovereign Debt in the Listed Best Western Hotels Ganton Stakes at York and then beat Dutch Connection by two and a quarter lengths at Ascot. Mutakayyef is the second foal out of Group 3 Nell Gwyn Stakes winner Infallible (by Pivotal) and that makes him a half-brother to the Stewards Cup scorer Intrinsic (by Oasis Dream). He won four of his 10 starts and did not earn any blacktype, but he is a well-bred and talented horse, who has a Group 1-winning relation standing at a major farm, and he has completed his first season at Hedgeholme Stud. Their half-sister Intimation (by Dubawi) has won twice, their dam has a yearling filly named Veracious (by Frankel) and she had a full-brother to Mutakayyef in early March. In addition to her pattern success, Infallible has the distinction of having been runner-up in both the Group 1 Coronation Stakes and Group 1 Falmouth Stakes. She is a full-sister to the pattern-placed sprinter Watchable and to the listed-placed gelding Remarkable, and her siblings also include Penchant (by Kyllachy), the unraced dam of Garswood. Also bred by Cheveley Park Stud, that son of their stallion Dutch Art (by Medicean) won the Group 1 Prix Maurice de Gheest, Group 2 Lennox Stakes, Listed European Free Handicap and Listed Harry Rosebery Stakes, he was runner-up in both the Group 3 Cornwallis Stakes and Group 3 Criterion Stakes, and he finished third in the Group 1 Prix de la Foret. He stands alongside his sire and grandsire and had his first foals this year. Irresistible (by Cadeaux Genereux), who is the grandam of Mutakayyef, won the Listed Kilvington Stakes and was placed in the Group 3 Brownstown Stakes, making her the most successful runner for her dam, the one-time scorer Polish Romance (by Danzig). That mare is the grandam of the pattern-placed juvenile blacktype scorers Parliament Square (by Acclamation) and Queen Bee (by Le Havre), and she is a full-sister to an American listed race winner called Polish Love. The next dam, however, is more notable as she is the Grade 1 Frizette Stakes and Grade 1 Matron Stakes heroine Some Romance (by Fappiano). That top filly was placed in the Santa Anita Oaks, Las Virgenes Stakes, Monmouth Oaks and Ashland Stakes – all Grade 1 – and she was the best of several blacktype winners out of the prolific Zippy Do (by Hilarious), a 15-times scorer whose haul included the Grade 2 Columbiana Handicap. Jane's Dilemma (by Master Derby), a half-brother to Some Romance, also won 15 times and his tally included the Grade 2 Gallant Fox Handicap and Grade 3 Display Handicap. Vilzak (by Green Dancer), another of their notable siblings, 'only' won three, but they included the Grade 1 Hollywood Turf Cup Handicap, he was multiple graded-placed and he was fourth behind classic-placed champion Theatrical in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Turf. Zippy Do's offspring also included the Grade 3-placed stakes-winning seven-times scorer Casey's Romance (by Miswaki) and Mint Cooler (by Key To The Mint), who won a listed contest and three other races and who was runner-up to Fiesta Gal in the Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks over 12 furlongs at Belmont Park. Mutakayyef is engaged in tomorrow's Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes over the extended 10 furlongs at York and he holds an entry in the Group Qipco Champion Stakes in two months time, but he has also been entered in the Group 2 Celebration Mile and Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes Sponsored by Qipco. It will be interesting to see if this gelding's newfound form level will hold up over 10 furlongs, a distance we know he stays, or if it is the shorter trip that will continue to bring out his best.
Dalakhani's retirement from active service was announced recently. An undefeated Group 1-winning juvenile who went on to add the Group 1 Prix Lupin, Group 1 Prix du Jockey-Club (French Derby) and Group 1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, his only defeat in a nine-race career was his shock half-length loss to the top-class Azamour in the Group 1 Irish Derby.
The grey son of classic star and influential sire Darshaan (by Shirley Heights) was rated 133 by Timeform, and given what his half-brother Daylami (by Doyoun) achieved as an older horse, reaching a peak Timeform mark of 138, one wonders what heights he might have achieved had he too raced on at four and five. Dalakhani joined the team at Gilltown Stud in 2004 and remained there until moving to Haras de Bonneval for the 2016 season. The 16-year-old has been represented by 48 stakes winners, eight of whom have won at least once at the highest level: Chinese White, Conduit, Duncan, Integral, Moonstone, Reliable Man, Second Step, and Seismos. Conduit is at stud in Japan, and Group 2-winning stayer Alex My Boy was retired earlier this season and may be going to stud in 2017. Reliable Man, who won the Group 1 Prix du Jockey-Club at Chantilly and the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes over a half-furlong shorter at Randwick, stands at Gestüt Röttgen and will have some of his first yearlings on offer at next week's Arqana Deauville August Yearling Sale and, of course, at the Baden-Baden September Yearling Sale. Three of Dalakhani's Group 1 stars are fillies and already one of those has become one of the leading broodmares in Europe. The first four foals of Moonstone, who won the Group 1 Irish Oaks, are listed scorers Nevis (by Dansili) and Stubbs (by Danehill Dancer), Group 3 Munster Oaks heroine Words (by Dansili), and current three-year-old US Army Ranger (by Galileo), the pattern scorer whose only defeat so far is his length and a half second to Harzand in the Group 1 Derby at Epsom. That augurs well for the future of the Aga Khan's homebred filly Candarliya, the Alain de Royer-Dupre trained four-year-old who was an odds-on winner of last month's Group 2 Prix Maurice de Nieuil over 14 furlongs at Saint-Cloud. She was third to Speedy Boarding in the 10 and a half furlong Group 2 Prix Corrida on her previous start, only beaten a neck by Fly With Me in the Group 3 Prix de Barbeville the month before, and in 2015 she won the Group 2 Prix de Royallieu and Group 3 Prix Minerve, performances between which came her second-place finish behind Treve in the Group 1 Prix Vermeille.
Candarliya, who has only been out of the first three once in 13 starts, is the first foal out of Candara (by Barathea), a mare who was placed over 12 furlongs in France.
Her second foal is the Mikel Delzangles-trained Canessar (by Kendargent), who won twice over 10 furlongs before finishing fourth behind Spring Master in the Group 3 Prix du Lys over a quarter-mile farther at Chantilly in June, and he was followed by a full-sister to Candarliya in 2014, a Sinndar (by Grand Lodge) filly in 2015, and a daughter of Motivator (by Montjeu) born in late April of this year. Candara is a half-sister to a few winners and her dam, one-time scorer Caribbeandriftwood (by Woodman), is a half-sister to the 14-times winner Mr Irish Love (by Rahy). Drifting (by Lyphard), who is the third dam of Candarliya, is inbred 2x3 to Northern Dancer (by Nearctic) and she is an unraced half-sister to several horses of note. Wixim (by Diesis) won the Group 2 Sandown Mile and was runner-up in the Group 1 Prix d'Ispahan, Run Softly (by Deputy Minister) won a Grade 3 handicap in the USA, and Berceau (by Alleged) won the Group 3 Prix de Royaumont. The latter is the dam of listed scorer Birthplace (by King Of Kings), but her half-sister Lakab (by Manila) is the dam of three stakes winners, most notably Hessonite (by Freud), plus a stakes-placed filly who went on to produce a New Zealand champion. Hessonite won 11 of her 22 starts, including the Grade 3 Beaugay Stakes over eight and a half furlongs at Belmont Park and eight listed races from seven to nine furlongs, and she earned over $879,000. The southern hemisphere star is King's Rose (by Redoute's Choice), daughter of Nureyev's Girl (by Nureyev), and winner of the Group 1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas, Group 2 Royal Stakes, Group 2 Sir Tristram Fillies' Classic, Group 2 WH Stocks Stakes, Group 2 Memsie Stakes, and Group 3 Eulogy Stakes. The races in which she was placed include the Group 1 Toorak Handicap, Group 1 Emirates Stakes, Group 1 Coolmore Classic and Group 1 Queen of the Turf Stakes, and she was crowned champion three-year-old filly of 2010/11. European Rose, a stakes-winning full-sister to Nureyev's Girl, is also a full-sister to two other mares of note. Lakabi is the once-raced dam of triple Group 3 scorer Soneva (by Cherokee Run) who is, in turn, the dam of The Blue Eye (by Dubawi), twice a major winner this year in Qatar. The other one is the unraced Great Notice and her progeny feature the pattern-placed stakes winner Gybe (by Fastnet Rock) and, even better, juvenile champion and classic-placed dual New Zealand Group 1 star Anabandana (by Anabaa), a filly who was runner-up in the New Zealand 2000 Guineas. If you go back another generation then you find that the fifth dam of Candarliya is Aladancer (by Northern Dancer), a talented filly won the Firenze Handicap and California Oaks and whose siblings includes both the Group 1 Premio Roma scorer Duke Of Marmalade (by Vaguely Noble) and Naval Orange (by Hoist The Flag), a one-time scorer who became the dam of multimillionaire and classic-placed four-times Grade 1 star Cryptoclearance (by Fappiano). Those horses are remotely connected to Candarliya, but there is more than enough in more recent generations of her pedigree to suggest that she could have a bright future at stud, whenever her racing days come to an end.
Reaching a total of 100 individual stakes winners is a huge landmark in the career of any stallion, and it is one that few will ever achieve. Kildangan Stud's classic hero and classic sire Shamardal (by Giant's Causeway) is almost there, and the high-class sprinter Toscanini is among his tally of 99 blacktype scorers.
A Darley-bred, Godolphin's four-year-old is trained by Michael Halford, all five of his wins have come over six furlongs, he won a listed contest at the Curragh in June and, at the same venue on Sunday, he beat Eastern Impact by one and a quarter lengths to take the Group 3 Qatar Racing & Equestrian Club Phoenix Sprint Stakes, a race in which he was short-headed a year before. The Shamardal horse Lord Of The Land was another two lengths behind in third, one length of his grand-daughter Fort Del Oro. That filly is by the Ballylinch Stud stallion Lope De Vega, who is the sire of this year's Group 1 stars Belardo and Jemayel, and the first of the Shamardal stallions with runners. Others are Shakespearean and current freshman sire Casamento, and he has a growing number of other sons who are at earlier stages of their stud careers. Initial runners for his daughters include the Group 1 Irish 2000 Guineas hero Awtaad (by Cape Cross) and the dual Group 2-placed dual Group 3 scorer Gifted Master (by Kodiac), so the early indicators are that Shamardal may be a force in pedigrees for a long time. Toscanini, who chased home Gleneagles in the Group 1 National Stakes as a two-year-old, is a gelding. His string of other blacktype placings include the runners-up spot in the Group 3 Anglesey Stakes, Listed Rochestown Stakes, last year's Group 3 Phoenix Sprint Stakes, and the Group 3 Renaissance Stakes, and in each of those he was beaten by less than a length. Last month he was third behind Gordon Lord Byron in the Group 2 Friarstown Stud Minstrel Stakes over seven furlongs.
A half-brother to the Grade 2-placed miler Tybalt (by Storm Cat), Toscanini is out of Tuzla, a mare who was, on breeding, an unlikely candidate for stardom. Easily the best flat representative of her mostly jumps sire, Panoramic (by Rainbow Quest), she is out of the moderate mare Turkeina (by Kautokeino), who was inbred 2x3 to Relko (by Tanerko), and her grandam, Turquoise Bleue (by Blue Tom), was also unremarkable as a runner and producer.
Tuzla showed some promise as a three-year-old in France, but did not win until she crossed the Atlantic, and from then there was no stopping her. By the time she retired, just over two years after landing in the USA, she had won a dozen races, was a millionaire, Grade 1 star, and placed at the Breeders' Cup. Her wins included the Grade 1 Ramona Handicap, Grade 2 Dahlia Handicap, Grade 2 Buena Vista Handicap, Grade 2 San Francisco Breeders' Cup Mile Handicap and Grade 3 Palomar Handicap. She failed by a neck to beat Silic in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Mile, and by the same margin to beat Happyanunoit in the Grade 1 Matriarch Stakes, and those were her final two starts. This half-sister to a multiple hurdles winner outran her pedigree and that was always going to make her a fascinating broodmare prospect. There is lots of Group 1 and Group 2 form in more distant branches of family, but there was no guarantee that the weak branch she represented could find renewed strength. The aforementioned Turquoise Bleue was unplaced, but that made her the only unsuccessful runner for Prix La Rochette scorer Mia Pola (by Relko), the fourth dam of Toscanini. A daughter of the Prix du Bois winner Polamia (by Mahmoud), a filly who was placed in races such as the Prix du Gros-Chene, Prix d'Arenberg and Prix de Saint Georges in the late fifties, Mia Pola was a broodmare of considerable influence. Her best son was Regal Bearing (by Viceregal), a prolific winner whose top results came in the Grade 2 San Luis Obispo Handicap and Grade 3 Golden Gate Handicap in California, and her stakes-winning daughter was Keep In Step (by Dance In Time), later the dam of South African Grade 1 sprint star Super Sheila (by Last Tycoon) and grandam of Group 2 Goldene Peitsche scorer Stormont (by Marju). Mia Pola's stakes-placed daughter Normia (by Northfields) became the dam of the Grade 1 Gamely Handicap winner Metamorphose (by Lord Avie) and the grandam of the European classic stars Sulamani (by Hernando) and Dream Well (by Sadler's Wells). The latter, who has sired blacktype winners on the flat and over jumps, won both the Group 1 Irish Derby and Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club (French Derby) in 1998, four years before his half-brother Sulamani won the same Chantilly classic. That colt also won the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes, the Grade 1 Turf Classic Invitational, Grade 1 Canadian International Stakes, Grade 1 Arlington Million, and Group 1 Dubai Sheema Classic, and his progeny include the Group 1 St Leger scorer Mastery, several South American Grade 1 winners and this year's Grade 3 Grand National hero Rule The World. Two of Mia Pola's other daughters also produced at least one stakes winner and the more notable of the pair is Midnight Lady (by Mill Reef). She won one of her two starts on the track, her son Kathmandu (by Kaldoun) won a listed contest at Nantes, but her juvenile stakes-winning daughter Party Doll (by Be My Guest) became the dam of two high-class offspring, one of whom has enjoyed some success as a stallion. That son is Titus Livius (by Machiavellian), a high-class sprinter who won the Group 2 Criterium des 2 Ans and the Group 2 Prix du Gros-Chene, and his talented progeny include the Hong Kong mile Grade 1 winner Tiber and also the Group 2-winning German miler Sehrezad. The first crop by that former Andreas Lowe-trained bay includes Millowitsch, a Group 3 winner over eight and a half furlongs at Krefeld in April, shortly before finishing fourth (no blacktype) behind Knife Edge in the Group 2 Mehl-Mulhens-Rennen (German 2000 Guineas) at Cologne. Party Doll's other notable runner is Briseida (by Pivotal), who beat the subsequent Group 1 Preis der Diana (German Oaks) heroine Rosenreihe by two and a half lengths in the Group 2 German 1000 Guineas. The classic scorer's three-year-old Orania (by Sea The Stars) was a neck runner-up in a 10-furlong Vichy maiden 15 days ago, a few days before her older half-brother Brisanto (by Dansili) finished out of the frame behind Elliptique in the Group 1 Grosser Dallmayr-Preis – Bayerisches Zuchtrennen at Munich. Listed-placed over the same trip at Compiegne the previous month, that colt was twice pattern placed in 2015 and he won the Group 3 Preis der Winterfavoriten over a mile at Cologne as a juvenile. These are the plentiful highlights of the first four generations of the pedigree, and although we cannot know for certain what led to Tuzla's surprising level of talent, given how weak her branch of the family had become, it does look likely that she has passed on some speed that lay dormant for a while. Also striking about Toscanini's pedigree is that his broodmare sire, Panoramic, is a half-brother to the top US filly Mariah's Storm (by Rahy) – he could even be described as being her three-parts brother – and she, of course, is the dam of the prolific Group 1 star and multiple US champion sire Giant's Causeway (by Storm Cat), the sire of Shamardal. The gelding is, therefore, inbred 4x3 to the Grade 3-winning mare Immense (by Roberto). Perhaps that inbreeding has played a significant part in the emergence of Toscanini as a high-class racehorse, or maybe it has input nothing of direct relevance to his ability; it is impossible to know.
There is also something else about his pedigree that deserves mention, even though its relevance, beyond academic interest, has waned since he was gelded.
Polamia was a lot more than just his speedy fifth dam, as her offspring also included 1966 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches heroine Right Away (by Right Royal), Prix Maurice de Gheest scorer Tryptic (by Tyrone), blacktype winner Timolina (by Timmy My Boy), and 1964 French juvenile champion Grey Dawn (by Herbager). He won the Prix Morny, Prix de la Salamandre and Grand Criterium that season, in the latter inflicting the only defeat that Timeform 145-rated great Sea Bird II ever met. Grey Dawn became a leading sire and his tally of 73 stakes winning progeny was complimented by one of more than 125 as a broodmare sire of stakes winners. If you want to go back another generation of Toscanini's pedigree then you will find more sprinting speed because Polamia's half-sister Sly Pola (by Spy Song) won both the Prix Robert Papin and Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp, and her half-brother Takawalk (by Native Dancer) won or placed in a string of good races from five to seven furlongs. Toscanini's career may not have gone in the direction that might have been predicted after he chased home Gleneagles at the Curragh two years ago, but he is among the leading sprinters in the country. He holds an entry in next month's Group 2 Derrinstown Stud Flying Five Stakes at the Curragh, a race in which he finished fourth to Sole Power in 2015, and it will be interesting to see how he gets on there as he has yet to win over the minimum trip. As for Shamardal, sire of the 2016 Group 1 winners Dariyan and Tryster, this outstanding young stallion has a chance to bring up the century tomorrow as his daughters Orcia and Burma Star are among the entries for the Listed Irish Stallion Farms European Breeders Fund Hurry Harriet Stakes over nine and a half furlongs at Gowran Park. When the Francois Rohaut-trained gelding Signs Of Blessing won the Group 1 LARC Prix Maurice de Gheest at Deauville this afternoon he brought his sire one step closer to what could be thought of as a type of immortality.
There is an internationally agreed list that contains just over 3000 names, none of which is allowed for use again on a registered thoroughbred. Those who win one of the 11 specified international races (three in Europe, two in the USA, two in South America, four in Asia) automatically have their name added, as do mares and stallions who reach specific qualifying criteria. For the latter, that means siring at least 15 individual Group/Grade 1 winners from those events listed under Part I of the International Cataloguing Standards. There is also provision for an application to be made on behalf of racehorses whom it is felt deserve inclusion, but who did not win a qualifying race, and the complete list of 34 new additions made earlier this year named four such horses, including the outstanding miler Kingman and the great hurdler Hurricane Fly. When the next update is published, early in 2017, the names of California Chrome (Dubai World Cup) and Highland Reel (King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes) will be there, and if he can get one more new Group 1 winner before the end of this year, then so will that of Invincible Spirit (by Green Desert). Signs Of Blessing is the 14th individual Group 1 winner for the Irish National Stud's main flag bearer. The aforementioned Kingman is his best son, the prolific Group 1 star and triple Prix Maurice de Gheest heroine Moonlight Cloud is both his best daughter and one of 3000+ horses on the protected list, and the horse who gave their sire his 13th top-level scorer was Profitable, winner of the Group 1 King's Stand Stakes at Royal Ascot in June. Signs Of Blessing, who was only beaten by a neck and a short-head when coming out third best in a five-way photo for the Group 1 Diamond Jubilee Stakes at that same meeting, had the Group 3 Goldene Peitsche and three listed wins to his name before his one and a quarter-length defeat of Donjuan Triumphant on Sunday. Jimmy Two Times was a neck back in third and he, in turn, was the same margin ahead of Sudeois (fourth) and Dutch Connection (fifth). Tragically, the Hong Kong ace Gold-Fun was fatally injured, so video footage of the race is not included here. The newly crowned Group 1 star made the unusual price of €102,000 at the Arqana Deauville August Yearling Sale in 2012, he is the third foal and best winner out of an unraced mare called Sun Bittern (by Seeking The Gold), and he comes from a branch of a strong international family that is no stranger to producing high-class horses. His dam is one on double-digit tally of offspring out of Listed Cheshire Oaks third Sunray Superstar (by Nashwan), yet is a half-sister to just three winners. Although that mare's full-sister Nadia won the Group 1 Prix Saint-Alary and chased home Aquarelliste in the Group 1 Prix de Diane (French Oaks), she too failed to make an impact at stud: her string of winners includes one listed-placed individual. Sunray Superstar and Nadia are half-sisters to an unraced mare called Principium (by Hansel), and in addition to the listed scorer and blacktype producer Baroness Richter (by Montjeu), she is the dam of the Group 1-placed dual Group 2-winning Japanese seven to 10 furlong horse Kongo Rikishio (by Stravinsky). Their dam, Nazoo (by Nijinsky), won the Listed Rochestown Stakes at Leopardstown as a juvenile and was a full-sister to the Group 3 Anglesey Stakes winners Lake Como and Single Combat. Her half-sister Heeremandi (by Royal Academy) won the Listed Silver Flash Stakes, was third in the Group 1 Prix Morny, and later became the dam of the Group 3 Tetrarch Stakes runner-up Emerald Cat (by Storm Cat), among several winners. Nazoo's half-sister Miznah (by Sadler's Wells) won the Listed Debutante Stakes at the Curragh, was runner-up in the Listed Silver Flash Stakes, and her star son is the Group 2 Yorkshire Cup and Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes winner Zindabad (by Shirley Heights). His multiple stakes-placed half-sister Geisha Girl (by Nashwan) is the dam of the Chilean Grade 2 sprint scorer Genial Boy (by Songandaprayer), and his non-winning half-sister Tithcar (by Cadeaux Genereux) has done her part for the family by coming up with the Group 3 Ballycorus Stakes scorer An Tadh (by Halling). Nazoo also has another sibling who must be mentioned and that is her one-time winning full-sister La Confidence, dam of the Grade 3 scorer and minor blacktype sire Perfect (by Affirmed) and of his outstanding full-sister Flawlessly. An inductee to the US Hall of Fame in 2004, prolific Grade 1 star Flawlessly was the US Champion Female Turf Horse in both 1992 and 1993, her 16 wins included multiple editions of the Matriarch Stakes, Ramona Handicap and Beverley Hills Handicap, but she had just two foals and she died at the age of 14. Her first was Flawlessness (by Storm Cat), who won once from nine starts, but that filly died as a four-year-old. The other was the unraced Dreamlike (by Storm Cat), and she has been having a successful stud career. Her first foal, Woke Up Dreamin (by Holy Bull), won six of his 16 starts, earned over $578,000 and got his best results at the age of five, when he won the Grade 2 True North Handicap and the Grade 2 Smile Sprint Handicap, both over six furlongs. He began his stallion career in Kentucky, moved to Iowa four years ago, and has sired some blacktype winners. Denomination (by Smart Strike), born when her talented brother was six, was placed in the Group 3 Prix d'Aumale at two, won the Group 3 Prix Vanteaux at three, and went on to take a trio of Grade 3 contests in the US, best at eight and a half and nine furlongs. She was followed by the Grade 3-winning sprinter Lemon Drop Dream (by Lemon Drop Kid). These are the highlights of the first four generations of the pedigree of Signs Of Blessing, a Group 1-winning gelding who is related to the Group/Grade 1 stars Nadia and Flawlessly, and there is more than enough there to show why his dam was worthy of going to one of Europe's top stallions. The contribution made by ancestors in the fifth (3.125% each) and sixth (1.5625% each) generations are too remote to have any meaningful influence on the current horse, beyond academic interest, but in the case of Signs Of Blessing it is worth commenting on who those ancestors are. His fourth dam, La Dame Du Lac (by Round Table), was an unraced half-sister to the Grade 1 winner and hugely influential stallion Halo (by Hail To Reason), to triple US champion Tosmah (by Tim Tam), and to Queen Sucree (by Ribot), who was the dam of 1974 Grade 1 Kentucky Derby hero Cannonade (by Bold Bidder). This means that the fifth dam of Signs Of Blessing is the multiple blacktype scorer Cosmah (by Cosmic Bomb), daughter of the talented Almahmoud (by Mahmoud) and so a half-sister to Bubbling Beauty (by Hasty Road) and Natalma (by Native Dancer). The former was the unplaced dam of Group 1 star and influential multiple French champion sire Arctic Tern (by Sea Bird II), and the latter was, of course, the dam of Northern Dancer (by Nearctic) and third dam of Danehill (by Danzig), founders of bloodstock dynasties. Signs Of Blessing was bred by Serge Boucheron, he carries the colours of Isabelle Corbani, and he holds entries in both the Group 1 Sprint Cup at Haydock and the Group 1 Qipco British Champions Sprint Stakes at Ascot. With the current crop of sprinters appearing to lack a standout performer, it is hard to rule out any of its prominent members in the top events, and so it is certainly possible that this gelding could win again at the highest level before his career eventually comes to an end.
Dual Derby hero and prolific champion sire Galileo (by Sadler's Wells) is on his way towards potentially become an even more influential stallion than was his own great sire.
His notable early sire sons include the Derby hero New Approach, an undefeated juvenile champion who rounded off his career with a six-length victory in the Champion Stakes at Newmarket. Three stakes winners at Royal Ascot among his first two-year-olds signalled tremendous potential, and that crop featured juvenile champion and classic star Dawn Approach, Oaks winner and St Leger runner-up Talent, and Derby second Libertarian. Sultanina, who raced only as a four-year-old, is another Group 1 winner among New Approach's oldest progeny, and the southern hemisphere half of that crop includes the Australian 10-furlong Group 1 scorer May's Dream. His current figures are 18 pattern winners and 11 listed scorers among 55 blacktype progeny. His third-crop daughter Beautiful Romance, who was Group 1-placed last year, won the Group 2 Middleton Stakes at York in May, his fourth-crop son Herald The Dawn won the Group 2 Futurity Stakes and was runner-up in the Group 1 Goffs Vincent O'Brien National Stakes in 2015, and at Munich yesterday, his second-crop son Elliptique won the Group 1 Grosser Dallmayr-Preis – Bayerisches Zuchtrennen. The Rothschild Family's homebred entire is trained by Andre Fabre, he was favourite for the 10-furlong contest, which he won by half a length from the Group 2-winning German-trained filly Royal Solitaire (by Shamardal), and another half-length back in third was dual Group 3-scorer Potemkin, also a five-year-old son of New Approach.
Not only is Elliptique a fifth individual Group 1 winner for New Approach, but he joins the roll of honour of horses who got an early start on the artificial tracks before going on to succeed at the highest level.
Last year both the Irish Derby (Jack Hobbs) and Irish Oaks (Covert Love) went to horses whose maiden success came on all-weather surfaces, and in 2016 we have seen Hawkbill (Coral-Eclipse), Seventh Heaven (Irish Oaks), Silverwave (Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud) and Zelzal (Prix Jean Prat) graduate from the all-weather surfaces to Group 1 glory. Also notable are last month's Group 2 Lancashire Oaks scorer Endless Time and the Group 2 Dante Stakes winner Wings of Desire, who chased home Highland Reel in the Group 1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot nine days ago. Elliptique got his start in a seven and a half-furlong conditions race for two-year-olds on the fibresand at Deauville three years ago. That was a few weeks before he finished third behind Ectot in a listed contest on turf at the same venue. He chased home that same colt in the Group 3 Prix des Chenes and then rounded off his first season with victory in the Group 3 Prix de Conde at Longchamp. His only win at three came in a 10 furlong conditions event on soft ground at Maisons-Laffitte, but at four he won the Group 3 Grand Prix de Vichy. He kicked off the current season with defeat of Manatee on the polytrack at Chantilly in March and then chased home Air Pilot in the Group 3 La Coupe, his only other outing before his Group 1 success. Elliptique is out of Uryale (by Kendor) and that makes him a half-brother to the triple mile stakes winner Cicerole (by Barathea). She was only beaten by half a length when runner-up in both the Group 3 Princess Elizabeth Stakes at Epsom and the Group 3 Prix Perth at Saint-Cloud, and she was also placed in the Group 3 Prix des Reservoirs and Group 3 Prix la Rochette. Their dam was listed-placed in France as a two-year-old, and that half-sister to listed scorer Wedding Night (by Valanour) is out of dual winner Green Field Park (by Akarad), a mare who has some well-known relations. Her half-brother Majorien (by Machiavellian) won the Group 2 Prix du Conseil de Paris and was runner-up in Grade 1 Charles Whittingham Handicap, Group 1 Grand Criterium and Group 2 Prix d'Harcourt. She also has two notable half-sisters, one of whom is Listed Hopeful Stakes winner Rose Indien (by Crystal Glitters). That speedy filly became the dam of eight winners, headed by the prolific Salty Sea (by Siberian Express), whose double-digit tally includes a listed handicap at Calder. His nine-times winning half-brother War Tempo (by Quiet American) has been placed in a listed contest and in more than 20 other races, and they have a stakes-placed half-sister called Darkwood (by Fit To Fight). Rose Indien is also the grandam of the Grade 2 Strub Stakes winner and dual Grade 2-placed Guilt Trip (by Pulpit) and of Group 2 Superlative Stakes scorer Silver Grecian (by Haafhd), and the latter is a half-brother to the Grade 2-placed hurdler Lettre de Cachet (by Authorized). Guilt Trip entered stud in Louisiana in 2015. The other notable sister of Green Field Park is the Group 2 Prix de Mallaret winner America (by Arazi) and it is she who is the dam of Group 1 Melbourne Cup hero Americain (by Dynaformer). He also won the Group 2 Prix Vicomtesse Vigier, Group 2 Prix Kergorlay, Group 2 Moonee Valley Gold Cup, Group 2 Zipping Classic and Group 3 Geelong Stakes, and his blacktype placings include the runners-up spot in the Group 1 BMW Stakes and third in the Group 1 Australian Cup and Group 1 Hong Kong Vase. Americain took up stallion duties at Calumet Farm in Kentucky, spent the 2015 season at the Irish National Stud, and then returned to Calumet. He got off the mark as a sire when his daughter Folk Magic, who is out of a half-sister to the pattern-placed multiple stakes winning sprinter/miler Chan Chan (by Spinning World), made a winning debut over six furlongs at Woodbine nine days ago. Green Rosy (by Green Dancer), the stakes-placed third dam of Elliptique, is a full-sister to the listed scorer and successful National Hunt and sport horse stallion Big Sink Hope, she is a half-sister to the US Grade 3 scorer Rose Bouquet (by Full Out), and to two mares who have produced stakes winners at stud. More notable of that pair is Rensaler (by Stop The Music) because she is responsible for the Grade 1 Oaklawn Handicap winner Jovial (by Northern Jove), Grade 3 scorer Brave Note (by Dancing Brave) and two listed scorers, whereas Aroz (by Fappiano) is the dam of two listed race winners and grandam of another one. It is fair to say that Elliptique was well-placed to pick up a Group 1 prize and that considerable improvement would be required from him if he is to repeat the feat against a top-class field. But with this win comes the possibility that he may now get a place at stud whenever his racing days come to an end, and as a grandson of Galileo and from the family of American, it would be interesting to see how he might fare in that role. With a Timeform rating of 127, Time Test is one of the most highly ranked individuals in training that does not have a Group 1 win to his name, something that he could certainly rectify by the end of the season. The Juddmonte Farms homebred is trained by Roger Charlton, he is one of the ante-post favourites for the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes at York in two and a half weeks' time and also holds an entry in the Group 1 Qipco Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown in September.
A four-year-old son of Dalham Hall Stud's classic star and outstanding stallion Dubawi (by Dubai Millennium), Time Test has run three times so far this season. He kicked off the campaign with a narrow win the Group 3 Brigadier Gerard Stakes on fast ground at Sandown in May, then finished third to Hawkbill and The Gurkha in the Group 1 Coral-Eclipse on soft ground at the same venue before beating Mondialiste by three-parts of a length in the Group 2 Sky Bet York Stakes over the extended 10 furlongs at York eight days ago. Winner of one of his three starts as a juvenile – he was runner-up in the other two – he started his three-year-old season with a valuable handicap success over 10 furlongs at Newbury, followed that with an easy win in the Group 3 Tercentenary Stakes at Royal Ascot, and was then fourth behind Arabian Queen in the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes before beating Custom Cut by a length in the Group 2 Shadwell Joel Stakes over a mile at Newmarket. His only other outing is his unplaced run behind Tepin in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Mile at Keeneland. As a Group 1-placed multiple pattern scorer by Dubawi, Time Test has already done enough to ensure that he would attract plenty of attention as a prospective stallion, especially with the plethora of Group 1 form that his best relations showed during their careers on the track. He has the ability to win at the highest level, and should he fulfill that promise then his potential to develop a notable stallion career would increase. The initial Dubawi stallions include classic sire Makfi and blacktype sire Poet's Voice, and those in earlier phases of their career include the Group 1 stars Akeed Mofeed (stands in Australia), Al Kazeem (UK), Hunter's Light (France), Monterosso (Japan) and Night Of Thunder (Ireland), as well as Group 2 scorers Aljamaaher (Ireland), Universal (UK) and Worthadd (Ireland). Retirement Plan (by Monsun), who is Time Test's older half-brother, is also at stud. He won three times from 11 furlongs to two miles, including the Shergar Cup Stayers Handicap, he was runner-up in the Mallard Handicap at Doncaster, and he took up stallion duties at Tullaghansleek Stud in Ireland earlier in the year. Time Test is the third foal out of the Group 1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud winner Passage Of Time (by Dansili), he has a two-year-old full-sister named Time Chaser, the mare had another Dubawi colt in 2015, and in April she had a first-crop son of the brilliant miler Kingman (by Invincible Spirit). In addition to her top-level success, Passage Of Time won the Group 3 Musidora Stakes and two listed contests, and she was third in each of the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf, Group 1 Prix Vermeille and Group 1 Nassau Stakes. Her full-brother Father Time won the Group 2 King Edward VII Stakes, was third in the Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes and fourth (no blacktype) in the Group 1 St Leger, and she is also a full-sister to listed scorer Continuum. The mare is out of one-time scorer Clepsydra (by Sadler's Wells), she has a two-year-old half-sister named Amser (by Frankel) and, of course, her siblings also include the Group 1 Falmouth Stakes heroine Timepiece (by Zamindar). That flashy bay also won four listed races, she was placed in the Nassau Stakes, Prix Rothschild and two editions of the Prix Jean Romanet – all Group 1 – and her first two foals are Dansili and Invincible Spirit (by Green Desert) fillies born in 2015 and 2016 respectively. Clepsydra is out of the Listed James Seymour Stakes winner Quandary (by Blushing Groom) and that makes her a half-sister to Double Crossed (by Caerleon), the stakes-winning dam of the prolific and popular Group 1 star Twice Over (by Observatory). That multimillionaire's dozen wins included the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes, Group 1 Coral-Eclipse Stakes and two editions of the Group 1 Champion Stakes, he won several other pattern contests from three to six years of age, and his top-level placings include third to Zenyatta and Gio Ponti in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita. He was only beaten by half-length when second to Rip Van Winkle in another edition of the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes, beaten by the same margin when runner-up to Byword in the Group 1 Prince of Wales's Stakes at Ascot, and also when third to Virtual in the Group 1 Lockinge Stakes at Newbury. Time Over's final race was when finishing fourth behind Frankel at York, at the age of seven, and he took up stallion duties in South Africa. Quandary was out of Lost Virtue (by Cloudy Dawn), who was an unraced half-sister to the Grade 1-placed Grade 2 Shuvee Handicap winner Anti Lib (by Tom Rolfe), and that made her a half-sister to eight winners. Two of them were of particular note and one of the pair was a top-class racehorse that became a producer of influence. Over The Ocean (by Super Concorde) won the Group 3 Prix Gontaut-Biron at Deauville and the Group 3 Prix Perth at Saint-Cloud and he was sent to Argentina, but sadly died after just one season at stud. His half-sister All At Sea (by Riverman), on the other hand, earned a Timeform rating of 124 after a three-year-old campaign that saw her win the Group 1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp, Group 3 Musidora Stakes and Listed Pretty Polly Stakes. She was only beaten by a neck when runner-up to Ruby Tiger in the Group 2 Nassau Stakes at Goodwood, chased home prolific Group 1 star Rodrigo De Triano in the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes 17 days later, and she was also a runner-up in the Oaks at Epsom. That classic was memorable and not just for the front-running three and a half length victory of User Friendly. All At Sea was favourite, she was cruising with over a quarter-mile to go, but her stamina gave out and she could not catch her rival, who went on to take two more classics. The pair completely outclassed the rest of the field, finishing 20 lengths clear of the third-placed long-shot Pearl Angel. All At Sea's stakes-winning daughter Insinuate (by Mr Prospector) is the dam of the Group 3 Supreme Stakes winner and Group 2 Hungerford Stakes third Stronghold (by Danehill), and of Listed Pretty Polly Stakes winner Take The Hint (by Montjeu). She is also the grandam of the Group 2-placed dual stakes winner Stipulate (by Dansili) and that gelding, now aged seven, is trained by Brian Ellison and ran twice in premier handicaps at the Galway Festival, with fourth behind Creggs Pipes on Tuesday being the better placing. Imroz (by Nureyev) was placed in a listed contest at York and in a Grade 3 handicap in California, this daughter of All At Sea is the grandam of last year's Group 3 Prix d'Aumale winner Antonoe (by First Defence) and she is dam of Posteritas (by Lear Fan), who is, in turn, the stakes-winning dam of Group 1 Prix Jean Prat scorer Mutual Trust (by Cacique). Time Test is the latest example of the long-established tradition of Group 1 performers for this family and there is good reason to believe that he could join his dam and several of his relations by winning at least once at the highest level before he eventually goes to stud.
Coolmore Stud's prolific champion sire Galileo (by Sadler's Wells) has been having another tremendous year and his earnings in the combined Ireland and UK sires' championship title race have already passed the £6.2 million mark. His nearest rival on that table is his half-brother Sea The Stars (by Cape Cross), whose earnings of just over £2.4 million are highly commendable and likely to hit or surpass the £3 million mark by the end of the year.
In the past few weeks Galileo has been represented by six individual Group/Grade 1 winners, not all of whom are reflected in that particular earnings total, and the sextet includes Highland Reel, the widely-travelled colt who won the Group 1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot eight days ago. An Aidan O'Brien-trained four-year-old, he was somewhat lucky to be able to add that prestigious event to his CV this year as the hot-favourite Postponed, bidding for a repeat success in the 12-furlong feature, missed the race due to a fever. But, to be fair to him, this is Highland Reel's third victory at the highest level, he was classic-placed at three, a Group 2 scorer at two, and he has done more than enough to attract plenty of interest as a prospective stallion. His dam's famous full-brother has had mixed success at stud, as has her top-class half-brother, but the family also includes a multiple Group 1 star who has made quite an impression with his early runners in Europe, success that will, no doubt, also serve to promote their younger relation when his time in the covering shed comes. Highland Reel was runner-up in a seven furlong Leopardstown maiden in June of his two-year-old season and was an easy odds-on winner of both his subsequent starts that year. The first was a mile maiden at Gowran Park, which he won by a dozen lengths, and the second was the Group 2 Vintage Stakes at Goodwood, which he took by two and a quarter lengths. Unplaced when favourite for the Group 1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains (French 2000 Guineas) on his reappearance the following spring, he bounced back to chase home New Bay in the Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club (French Derby) three weeks later, but then disappointed when well-beaten in the Group 1 Irish Derby. That was his first attempt at 12 furlongs, and although he won the Group 3 Gordon Stakes over that trip a month later, he then dropped back to 10 furlongs for his next three outings. He made all for wide-margin win in the Grade 1 Secretariat Stakes at Arlington, finished a three and three-quarter length fifth behind Golden Horn in the Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes, took third behind the outstanding filly Winx in the Group 1 Cox Plate at Moonee Valley, and then stepped back up in trip to beat Flintshire by a length and a half in the Group 1 Hong Kong Vase over 12 furlongs at Sha Tin. Highland Reel added a seventh country to travels when running fourth behind Postponed in the Group 1 Dubai Sheema Classic at Meydan in March, then it was back to Hong Kong for an unplaced effort in the Grade 1 Audemars Piguet QEII Cup over 10 furlongs at Sha Tin, before his narrow defeat by Dartmouth in last month's Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Highland Reel was bred by the Hveger Syndicate and his dam, Hveger (by Danehill), was a talented performer in her native Australia. She won just once, but she was runner-up in the Group 2 South Australia Oaks and finished third in the Group 1 Australasian Oaks, both at Morphettville.
Being a daughter of the Group 1 AJC Oaks heroine Circles Of Gold (by Marscay) and, thus, a sibling of two multiple Group 1 stars, she was always a candidate to make an impact at stud, and to get the very best of opportunities in that role. She has lived up to that potential, and there is a chance that she could have a classic winner to her name by the end of the year. Her Australian-born daughter Valdemoro (by Encosta De Lago) was runner-up in both the Group 1 Storm Queen Stakes at Rosehill and in the Group 1 Victoria Oaks at Flemington, and the colt she had after Highland Reel is the dual Derby-placed Idaho (by Galileo), one of the ante-post favourites for the Group 1 Ladbrokes St Leger at Doncaster in September. His was third to Harzand at Epsom in June and then runner-up to that star at the Curragh. His two-year-old full-sister Cercle de La Vie made 460,000gns from Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale, and the mare had another Galileo filly in May 2015. Hveger's most notable half-brother is Haradasun (by Fusaichi Pegasus), the Australian champion and dual Group 1 star who took the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot in 2008. He has not had as many notable progeny as might have been hoped, but he is the sire of South African Grade 1 scorer Harry's Son and the Australian Group 2 winners Kabayan and Respondent, among others of note.
Elvstroem is a full-brother to Hveger and the champion and multimillionaire won the Group 1 Victoria Derby, Group 1 Caulfield Cup, Group 1 Underwood Stakes and Group 1 C F Orr Stakes among a string of pattern successes in Australia, plus the Group 1 Dubai Duty Free at Nad Al Sheba in Dubai.
His many top-level placings included second to Valixir in the Group 1 Prix d'Ispahan at Longchamp and third to Azamour in the Group 1 Prince of Wales's Stakes at York, and having spent his early years at stud in Australia, he has now finished his first season at Haras du Petit Tellier in France. Elvstroem is an interesting addition to the European stallion ranks as he is a well-bred Danehill (by Danzig) horse that has proved that he can get sprinters, milers, middle-distance horses and stayers. His only Group 1 scorer among a dozen stakes winning offspring is Hucklebuck, a talented performer from six furlongs to mile and who is out of a mare by the outstanding Last Tycoon (by Try My Best) horse O'Reilly. His other pattern scorers include the Group 2-winning stayer Outback Joe, a son of the Group 1 Melbourne Cup heroine Let's Elope (by Nassipour). There are plenty of mares in Europe who represent the Try My Best (by Northern Dancer) and Blushing Groom (by Red God) lines and, of course, it will be interesting to see how he gets on with all those Sadler's Wells (by Northern Dancer) and Green Desert (by Danzig) line mares too.
In addition to her victory in the Group 1 AJC Oaks, Circles Of Gold's top-level form includes second place in each of the Group 1 Caulfield Cup, Group 1 Queensland Oaks and Group 1 Eat More Fruit 'n' Veg Stakes, and she is the best of several winners out of a four-times scorer called Olympic Aim (by Zamazaan). Her gelded half-brother Gold Wells (by Barathea) won a Group 2 contest over a mile, but the sibling that catches the eye on the page is National Song (by Vain).
She did not win anything, but her stakes-placed daughter Gold Anthem (by Made of Gold) is the dam of Starspangledbanner (by Choisir) and grandam of Amicus (by Fastnet Rock). The latter, a Chris Waller-trained filly who will turn five tomorrow, won the Group 1 Schweppes Thousand Guineas over a mile at Caulfield two years ago, and twice at Group 2 level since then. Starspangledbanner, of course, won the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas and the Group 1 Oakleigh Plate in Australia, added the Group 1 Golden Jubilee Stakes and the Group 1 July Cup in England, and he is a member of the Coolmore Stud stallion team in Ireland. As is well known, he was sub-fertile in his earliest years at stud and after two seasons on the Coolmore roster he went back into training and then back to his breeders' Rosemont Stud in Australia. Then his small first crop hit the track. Now aged four, they include the The Wow Signal, Anthem Alexander, Home Of The Brave and Silver Rainbow, and the stallion has completed a third Irish season. Group 1 Prix Morny and Group 2 Coventry Stakes winner The Wow Signal has finished his first season at Haras de Bouquetot in France, Group 2 Queen Mary Stakes heroine Anthem Alexander has been placed in the Group 1 Cheveley Park Stakes and Group 1 Commonwealth Cup, Group 3 scorer Home Of The Brave was runner-up to Dutch Connection in the Group 2 Lennox Stakes at Goodwood on Tuesday, and Silver Rainbow made it five wins from a dozen starts when taking the Listed Prix du Cercle over five furlongs at Deauville yesterday. If you go back another generation of the pedigree then you will find that Olympic Aim, the third dam of Highland Reel, is a half-sister to the dual Group 1 star Bit Of A Skite (by Showoff) and to Shagolvin (by Sharivari), the Group 1-placed Group 2-winning third dam of Group 1 WATC Derby scorer Markus Maximum (by Pentire). This is a family that has a well-established tradition of producing Group 1 horses, and also ones who can travel and excel in both the northern and southern hemisphere. Highland Reel is a triple Group/Grade 1-winning son of Galileo, he has raced in seven different countries, on four continents, and he is an epitome of the modern top-class racehorse. He is related to three stallions who have sired a Group 1 winner, and he has a pedigree and CV that should give him plenty of appeal wherever he eventually goes to stud.
Dubai Destination (by Kingmambo) was a high-class racehorse. He rounded off his juvenile season with a length defeat of the subsequent prolific Group 1 star Rock Of Gibraltar in the Group 2 Champagne Stakes at Doncaster, and although runner-up in the Listed Predominate Stakes on his only start at three, he bounced back at four to beat Right Approach by four lengths in the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot.
A $1,500,000 yearling whose siblings include the Group 1-winning miler Librettist (by Danzig), he made a promising start as a freshman sire when his son Ibn Khaldun won the Group 1 Racing Post Trophy. Since then he has continued to get stakes and pattern winners, but not of sufficient calibre and frequency to maintain a high level of interest in an ultra competitive flat market, and having spent his early years at Dalham Hall Stud, he is has been a dual-purpose sire at Glenview Stud since 2010. Sometimes a well-bred stallion who fails to hit the top as a sire of racehorses can become a broodmare sire of note, and Dubai Destination is excelling in that area. His daughters have come up with the Derby, Arc, Coral-Eclipse and Irish Champion Stakes hero Golden Horn (by Cape Cross), with King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, Dubai Sheema Classic and Coronation Cup star Postponed (by Dubawi), and a string of other pattern winners, including Dutch Connection. That Charles Hills-trained four-year-old was bred by Susan Roy, whose colours were also carried by the colt's sire Dutch Art (by Medicean), and he recorded the best win of his career to date when beating Home Of The Brave by one and three-quarter lengths in the Group 2 Qatar Lennox Stakes at Goodwood on Tuesday. This was his third run in the Godolphin colours, he chased home Mutakayyef in the Group 2 Summer Mile on his previous start, and he began his current campaign with a neck defeat by Toormore in the Group 2 bet365 Mile at Sandown in April. At two he won the Group 3 Acomb Stakes at York before finishing third to Gleneagles in the Group 1 National Stakes at the Curragh, and the highlights of his three-year-old season were victory in the Group 3 Jersey Stakes and second place in both the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat and Group 2 Lennox Stakes.
Classic-placed dual Group 1 star Dutch Art stands alongside his sire, Medicean (by Machiavellian), and his Group 1-winning son Garswood at Cheveley Park Stud and his 23 stakes winners also feature the Group 1 sprint star Slade Power, who is a popular member of the team at Kildangan Stud. Both Slade Power and Garswood should be represented at this year's foal sales by members of their first crop.
Dutch Connection is the third foal out of Endless Love, he is a full-brother to the stakes-placed seven-furlong winner Dutch Romance, his younger full-sister Dutch Princess is also in training with Hills, and the mare is back in foal to Dutch Art. She was unraced, but her dam, La Vita E Bella (by Definite Article) was a mile listed scorer as a juvenile and placed in the Group 3 Prix Saint-Roman at Saint-Cloud. Her other progeny include a trio of multiple winners, two of whom have earned blacktype. Wittgenstein (by Shamardal) began her career in England, where she was placed over seven furlongs at Kempton on her third and final start, and then joined the Doug O'Neill stable, picking up placings in listed contests in California. Her first foal is a Kingman (by Invincible Spirit) filly, who arrived in April. Baltimore Rock (by Tiger Hill) bypassed the flat, made a winning debut in a Bangor bumper four years ago and, since then, the Neil Mulholland-trained gelding is best-known for his victory in the Grade 3 Imperial Cup at Sandown in 2014. On his most recent outing, he finished a well-beaten fourth behind Douvan in the Grade 1 Ryanair Novice Chase at Punchestown in April. La Vita E Bella is a half-sister to Bella Tusa (by Sri Pekan), who was a talented juvenile before going on to produce some winners at stud. She won the Listed Dragon Stakes at Sandown and the Listed Harry Rosebery Stakes at Ayr, and she finished third in the Group 2 Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte. There are lots of others in the various branches of the first four generations of the pedigree who have earned blacktype, including a Grade 3 scorer in Brazil, although nothing of the calibre of this week's Goodwood winner. Dutch Connections's good two-year-old form, along with that of his grandam and her sister, will catch the eye whenever the time comes for him to take up a place at stud, a role that he has surely earned. Other attractions are that he is inbred 4x4 to Mr Prospector (by Raise A Native) and has neither Danzig (by Northern Dancer) nor Sadler's Wells (by Northern Dancer) in his lineage. In the meantime, however, there are more good prizes to be won with him, and his entries include the Group 2 Betfred Hungerford Stakes, Group 2 Celebration Mile, Group 2 Saint Gobain Weber Park Stakes, and Group 1 Haydock Park Sprint Cup. Azamour (by Night Shift) was a top-class performer. He won both his starts at two, including the Group 2 Beresford Stakes over a mile at the Curragh, and took third and second respectively in the 2000 Guineas and Irish 2000 Guineas on his first two outings the following spring before going on to a string of major wins.
Victories in the Group 1 St James's Palace Stakes and Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes preceded a third-place finish in the Group 1 Champion Stakes at Newmarket, and when he returned to action at the age of four he added two more top-level wins: the Group 1 Prince of Wales's Stakes, run that year at York, and the Group 1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, run at Newbury. His final start was in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Turf at Belmont Park, and after finishing third there behind Shirocco, he retired to Gilltown Stud. Sadly, Azamour died two years ago, when only 13 years old, but those he left behind include the Group 1 stars Covert Love (Irish Oaks, Prix de l'Opera), Dolniya (Dubai Sheema Classic) and ill-fated Valyra, who died shortly after her Prix de Diane (French Oaks) victory. In 2016, his representatives include the Group 2 German 1000 Guineas heroine Hawksmoor, Group 3 Bonham Thoroughbred Stakes scorer Thikriyaat, mile Group 2 second Irish Rookie (previously a classic-placed stakes winner), and Thursday's Group 3 Markel Insurance Fillies' (Lillie Langtry) Stakes winner California. The latter is trained by John Gosden, she carries the well-known Denford Stud colours and, like the colt (Mehmas) who won the Group 2 Richmond Stakes that same day, she was bred by Epona Bloodstock Ltd. That is Denis Brosnan's Croom House Stud in Co Limerick, the filly was bred in partnership with Patsy Byrne, and she made 75,000gns in Newmarket as a yearling. California made a winning debut over 10 furlongs at Wetherby a year ago, followed-up at Doncaster two months later and, two starts after that, was runner-up in a listed contest over 13 furlongs on the artificial track at Lingfield. She won a 12-furlong Ascot handicap three weeks ago, and her first pattern success, which came over a quarter-mile farther, has given her future paddocks value a tremendous boost. So have the recent exploits of her Group 1-winning 'cousin'. A half-sister to the Group 1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud runner-up Drumbeat (by Montjeu), California is out of the now deceased Maskaya (by Machiavellian). Her two-year-old half-brother Poseidon (by Born To Sea) made €320,000 at the Goffs Orby Sale, and her dam's final foal is a yearling So You Think (by Montjeu) filly. The mare's best half-brother, Chinese Whisper (by Montjeu), was placed in the Group 1 Gran Criterium, Group 3 Prix La Force and Group 3 Prix de Guiche, but two of her half-sisters are more notable. Modeeroch, a representative of the only crop of ill-fated sprint champion Mozart (by Danehill), won the Listed Fairy Bridge Stakes, Listed Knockaire Stakes and Listed Tyros Stakes, and her eight pattern placings included the runners-up spot in the Group 2 Debutante Stakes. She is the dam of winners but, as yet, it is the other sister who has made an impact at stud, one that could become stronger when her star son takes up stallion duties. Danaskaya (by Danehill) was runner-up in the Group 2 Lowther Stakes and third in the Group 1 Cheveley Park Stakes, she was placed in two listed contests, and the lesser of her two prominent sons is the Scandinavian ace and multiple pattern scorer Berling (by Montjeu), a full-brother to Group 2 Debutante Stakes third Diamond Sky. The other brother is, of course, 2014's juvenile champion Belardo, the first-crop son of Lope De Vega (by Shamardal) who, at Newbury in May, added the Group 1 Lockinge Stakes to his earlier Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes victory. He has also won the Listed Doncaster Mile and the Listed Denford Stud (Washington Singer) Stakes, he was runner-up Solow in last year's Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot, third to Cable Bay in the Group 2 Challenge Stakes, finished fourth (no blacktype) to Gleneagles in the Group 1 Irish 2000 Guineas, and at Royal Ascot last month he chased home US champion Tepin in the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes, only beaten by half a length. The Roger Varian-trained colt was bred by Ballylinch Stud, he made €100,000 at Deauville as a yearling, and he joined the Godolphin team before the start of this season. And he is not the only Group 1 winner in California's immediate family. Majinskaya (by Marignan), the grandam of the newly crowned pattern race heroine, won a listed contest at Deauville and was placed in the Group 3 Prix de Psyche, she is out of the stakes-placed Makarova (by Nijinsky), and that makes her a half-sister to the dam of the French sprint star Kistena (by Miswaki). A Wertheimer brothers-homebred, that flying grey won the Group 1 Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp, the Group 3 Prix de Meautry and the Group 3 Prix Seine-et-Oise, she was placed in a string of other pattern events, and earned a Timeform rating of 123. Belardo is Timeform-rated 126. Kistena's best runner is the US listed scorer Tompest (by Storm Cat), and from small numbers, he has been represented on the track by the stakes-winning juvenile filly Storm With Flair. The fourth dam of California is the dual blacktype scorer Midou (by Saint Crespin) and the most influential of that mare's progeny is Vallee Secrete (by Secretariat), the mare who gave us Fruits Of Love (by Hansel) and Mujadil (by Storm Bird). The former won the Group 2 Princess of Wales's Stakes and two editions of the Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes, and he was multiple Group/Grade 1-placed, although disappointing at stud. Mujadil, on the other hand, won the Group 3 Cornwallis Stakes and went on to become a hugely successful stallion for Rathasker Stud, with the popular Group 1 Nunthorpe Stakes and Group 1 Golden Jubilee Stakes hero Kingsgate Native the standout among his string of pattern-winning offspring. Midou's siblings included her Cheveley Park Stakes winning full-sister Mige, who became the grandam of Group 1 1000 Guineas heroine Ma Biche (by Key To The Kingdom), and if you go back another generation then you will find the brilliant Midget (by Djebe). The fifth dam of California, she was placed in the Prix Morny and won the Cheveley Park Stakes as a two-year-old, earning a Timeform of 130, and although dropping to 125 the following year, she won the Coronation Stakes, Prix de la Foret, Queen Elizabeth Stakes and Prix Maurice de Gheest, and was placed in both the 1000 Guineas and Prix de Diane (French Oaks). Those stars are remotely connected to California, and they will not appear on the catalogue listing of any of her future progeny that may turn up at the sales, but as a Group 3-winning relation of the Group 1 stars Belardo and Kistena, she has more than enough attractive detail on her page to warrant the best of opportunities at stud, and to give her the potential to become a broodmare of considerable note in the years to come.
Big Bad Bob was neither the most obvious candidate for success as a flat sire nor as one who might earn a place at a top stud, but at the time of his premature death following an accident earlier this year, he was a busy and popular member of the team at the Irish National Stud.
The son of Bob Back (by Roberto) won eight of his 22 starts, including a 10-furlong Group 3 contest in Germany and listed races over 10 furlongs at Deauville and a mile at Ascot, and he began his second career at his owner-breeder's Islanmore Stud. It was the surprisingly high strike-rate of good winners to runners from those early produce that let to his promotion to the big league. He has had nine stakes winners, plus eight others who have been listed or Group 3 placed, and his best runner is also one of his most notable sales graduates. Bocca Baciata made €230,000 at the Goffs Orby Sale, and at the Curragh this afternoon this Group 1-placed pattern scorer won the Group 2 Kilboy Estate Stakes. Victory in that nine furlong contest made her the first of her sire's progeny to score at that level. She has the Group 3 Dance Design Stakes and two listed race wins to her name too, and it is she who chased home Minding in the Group 1 Pretty Polly Stakes at the Curragh last month. She has an official handicap mark of 111, down 2lbs from her career peak, and she will be a fascinating addition to the broodmare ranks whenever her racing days come to an end. Big Bad Bob is also responsible for the Group 3 scorers Berg Bahn, Bible Belt and Brendan Bracken, of whom the latter pair have been placed at Group 2 level, and his five listed scorers include the dual Group 3-placed Bob Le Beau. Bocca Baciata is trained by Jessica Harrington, she was bred by Citadel Stud, and she has now won five of her 16 starts. Her recent Group 1 placing is one of four occasions where she has run at the highest level, and although she did not earn any blacktype for the other three, she was not disgraced when fifth behind Pleascach in the Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas, fifth behind Simple Verse in the Group 1 Qipco British Champions Filly & Mare Stakes, or fourth behind Fascinating Rock in the Group 1 Tattersalls Gold Cup.
Bocca Baciata is one of three blacktype daughters of the Group 3 Prix Minerve third Sovana (by Desert King), and the other pair are the full-sisters Kalsa (by Whipper) and Topeka. The former won the Group 3 Prix Edmond Blanc over a mile at Saint-Cloud early last year, and Topeka won a mile listed contest and then the Group 3 Prix Miesque as a juvenile, and sprang a surprise when third, at 20/1, behind Beauty Parlour in the Group 1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches (French 1000 Guineas) four years ago.
Their three-year-old half-sister Suvenna (by Arcano) is trained by Michael Halford, won her maiden over seven furlongs at Dundalk in May and then followed-up over the same trip at Listowel nearly three weeks later. Sovana was sold for €58,000 as part of the complete dispersal of Citadel Stud's stock at Goffs in November 2013, she had a Dutch Art (by Medicean) colt in February 2015, and she is one of two blacktype earners for her dam, a one-time scorer named Piacenza (by Darshaan). That talented sibling is Perugina (by Highest Honor), who won the Group 3 Prix Eclipse over six and a half furlongs at Saint-Cloud as a juvenile and the Listed Prix Amandine over seven at Deauville the following summer. The best of that filly's placed efforts were her third in the Group 3 Prix du Bois and in the Listed Prix Herod, and although she became the dam of several multiple winners, most notably the prolific Si See Sea (by Cape Cross), her record pales in comparison to that of her half-sister. Piacenza, in turn, was out of the Listed Prix de Bagatelle runner-up Kahara (by Habitat) and that made her a half-sister to the outstanding Scandinavian horse Silvestro (by Zino), whose dozen wins included the Oslo Cup, Ovreroll Grand Prix, two editions of the Dansk Eclipse Stakes and also of the Stockholm Cup International. His half-sister Vitola (by Sallust), who was third in the Grade 2 Rare Perfume Stakes, became the dam of listed scorer Vitaba (by Northern Baby) and ancestor of several blacktype scorers, of whom Group 2 Premio Ribot scorer King Air (by Kingsalsa) is most notable. The fourth and fifth dams of Bocca Baciata are Listed Prix Finlande winner Starina (by Crepello) and Falmouth Stakes heroine Caprera (by Abernant) respectively, and the latter has quite a few notable descendants, starting with Starina's half-brother Romildo (by Busted). He won the Group 1 Prix Ganay, as did his son Marildo. Romildo's full-brother Pevero won the Group 3 Prix Foy and Group 3 Prix de Conde before going to stud in New Zealand, and their winning half-sister Virginia Reef (by Mill Reef) did her bit for the family by becoming the dam of dual Grade 3 scorer Virginia Carnival (by Carnivalay) and his notable half-sister Golden Reef (by Mr Prospector). That filly won the Grade 2 Schuylerville Stakes at Saratoga as a juvenile, was placed in both the Grade 1 Spinaway Stakes and Grade 1 Matron Stakes, and became both the dam and grandam of several blacktype earners. The most influential of Caprera's offspring, however, is her placed daughter Maresca (by Mill Reef). She was the dam of the Group 3 scorer Muroto (by Busted), of the stakes winners Vellano (by Lycius), Vanya (by Busted) and Mahalia (by Danehill), and of the multiple stakes-placed Zivania (by Shernazar), and so she is the direct ancestor of a long list of blacktype winners that includes the Group 1 stars Ectot (by Hurricane Run) and Most Improved (by Lawman). Those horses are so remotely connected to Bocca Baciata as to have little to no relevance beyond demonstrating how this is a family whose various branches have a long-established history of producing talented racehorses. She is a Group 2-winning half-sister to two blacktype winners, she represents the Roberto (by Hail To Reason) stallion line, and it will be fascinating to follow her eventual broodmare career.
Mecca's Angel earned a Timeform rating of 129 after her victory in the Group 1 Nunthorpe Stakes at York last year, making her the most highly-rated of her sire's offspring (Lethal Force was on 128) and one of the best sprinters of recent years.
Now aged five, the Michael Dods-trained mare was a neck runner-up to subsequent Group 1 Kings' Stand Stakes winner Profitable in the Group 2 Temple Stakes on her seasonal reappearance, was found to be in season when a huge disappointment in that Royal Ascot contest, she but bounced back in style at the Curragh yesterday when beating Brando by three lengths in the Group 2 Kilfrush Stud Sapphire Stakes. The five-furlong specialist was bred by the partnership of Yeomanstown Stud and Doc Bloodstock, her trainer snapped her up for just 16,000gns in Newmarket as a yearling, and her pedigree was reviewed here several weeks ago after the Group 3 Chipchase Stakes victory of her full-brother Markaz. So this is a quick recap of her family's achievements, along with a look at what her sire has done in 2016.
Mecca's Angel is the first foal out the stakes-placed six-times sprint winner Folga (by Clantime), Markaz is her year-younger brother, and they have a two-year-old full-sister named Dirayah, who made 825,000gns from Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale.
The Group 1 star is on course for an attempted repeat victory in next month's Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes, so long as the ground is suitable, while her brother is engaged in both the Group 2 Qatar Lennox Stakes over seven furlongs at Goodwood and in the Group 1 Haydock Park Sprint Cup over six. Their aptitudes are a nice example of how, as with humans, full-siblings can show their talents in different ways. Their grandam, Desert Dawn (by Belfort), was a quick and precocious juvenile who won the Group 3 Prix d'Arenberg and was placed in both the Group 3 Norfolk Stakes and Listed St Hugh's Stakes, but she was also effective as a three-year-old, when she added a listed sprint at Sandown. Desert Dawn is also the dam of a mile listed race winner called Desert Kaya, and despite the speed of the mare and her descendants, that filly's comparative stamina was not really any surprise. That is because she was by the Group 1 Prix du Jockey-Club (French Derby) winner Bikala (by Kalamoun), a half-brother to runaway Group 1 Irish Derby hero Assert (by Be My Guest) and to Group 1 Irish St Leger winner Eurobird (by Ela-Mana-Mou). These are the highlights of the first few generations of the pedigree, which makes it likely that its recent notable upgrading is due to the influence of Dark Angel (by Acclamation). The Yeomanstown Stud stallion raced only as a juvenile, when his best win came in the Group 1 Middle Park Stakes, and his 30 individual stakes winners include Lethal Force, Alhebayeb, Gutaifan and Heeraat, all of whom are pattern winners standing at stud. In Europe in 2016, Divine has won the Group 3 Ballyogan Stakes and was a head runner-up in the Group 3 Hackwood Stakes yesterday, Persuasive is an unbeaten mile stakes winner, and Nations Alexander a Group 2-placed juvenile listed scorer. Birchwood, who was a Group 1-placed juvenile Group 2 scorer last year, is a listed race winner this term, as are Log Out Island, Easton Angel, and Group 2-placed Gabrial. Although the multiple blacktype scorer Sovereign Debt has been out of luck so far this year, his half-length second to Gordon Lord Byron in the Group 2 Friarstown Stud Minstrel Stakes over seven furlongs at the Curragh today was his fourth consecutive blacktype second place finish. The David Nicholls-trained seven-year-old, who was bred by Yeomanstown Stud, has more than £420,000 in earnings to his name, and has more than enough ability to add at least one more blacktype win to his record. But back to Mecca's Angel, one of the two Group 1 stars for her sire. She has won nine of her 17 starts, to date, and been runner-up four times, with career earnings in excess of £400,000. In addition to her Group 1 and Group 2 prizes, she has won the Group 3 Prix de Saint-Georges at Longchamp, the Group 3 Dubai International Airport World Trophy at Newbury, and the Listed Scarborough Stakes at Doncaster, in which she beat Reckless Abandon by two and a quarter lengths, and her four lesser wins were achieved by an impressive aggregate of 26 lengths. It is entirely possible that she will win at least once more at the highest level before eventually going to stud, and as her offspring will have blacktype sprinters for each of their first three dams, there is every reason to hope that at least some of them will be notably talented. And as her own brother stays seven furlongs, and there is a mile stakes winner in the family, it is possible that, depending on their sires, some of her progeny could be potential Guineas-types. Former Tally-Ho Stud stallion Bushranger (by Danetime) was exported to Turkey last year following a disappointing phase of his stallion career. Hugely popular when he retired from the track, the dual Group 1-winning grandson of Danehill (by Northern Dancer) was an initial hit in the sales ring. But when stakes winners failed to materialise, the inevitable happened.
Almost as inevitable is that a disappointing stallion's best results will emerge after he is no longer available, either due to death or export, and in 2016 Bushranger has been having a breakthrough year. Mobsta won the Listed Cammidge Trophy at Doncaster in early April, added the Group 2 Greenlands Stakes at the Curragh just over a month later, and he holds entries in both the Group 1 Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes at York and the Group 1 Haydock Park Sprint Cup. Ross Castle won the Group 3 Prix Texanita over five and a half furlongs at Maisons-Laffitte in mid-May, and Now Or Never, who was an impressive mile Group 3 scorer at Leopardstown a few days before, has since been third in the Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas at the Curragh and fourth (no blacktype) in the Group 1 Coronation Stakes at Ascot. She holds an entry in the Group 1 Coolmore Fastnet Rock Matron Stakes. Outback Traveller moved up to a career-best mark of 109 after his narrow defeat of subsequent pattern scorer Brando in the Wokingham Stakes (Heritage Handicap) at Ascot last month, and although disappointing at York last week, he holds an entry in the Group 2 Qatar King George Stakes and also in the Qatar Stewards' Cup. The Bushranger revival also features Ridge Ranger, and Con Harrington's homebred mare, who is trained by Eric Alston, won the Group 3 188Bet Summer Stakes over six furlongs at York last Friday. Previously a pattern-placed stakes winner who was short-headed in last year's Group 3 Dubai International Airport World Trophy over the minimum trip at Newbury, the five-year-old is now on a career-best mark of 110. She too holds an entry in the Qatar Stewards' Cup, although with a pattern success now to her name, one would imagine that she might stick to that level, or even step up in grade. Ridge Ranger is a very valuable prospective broodmare, and not just because she is a pattern-winner for the mighty Danehill sire line. She is out of the six-furlong winner Dani Ridge (by Indian Ridge) and, in addition to the Group 3-placed pair Danidh Dubai (by Noverre) and Full Mandate (by Acclamation), she is a half-sister to current sprint star and future Darley stallion Profitable (by Invincible Spirit). Harrington also bred that Clive Cox-trained four-year-old. Last year he won a listed contest at York and finished fifth in the Group 1 Commonwealth Cup, but this year he has made considerable progress. He sprang a 20/1 surprise in the Group 3 Palace House Stakes at Newmarket on his seasonal reappearance, followed-up with a neck defeat of Mecca's Angel in the Group 2 Temple Stakes at Haydock, and the added the Group 1 King's Stand Stakes at Ascot. He finished fourth behind Limato in the Group 1 Darley July Cup at Newmarket on Saturday, his first attempt at six furlongs, and, as you might expect, his entries include the Group 2 Qatar King George Stakes at Goodwood, the Group 1 Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes (British Champions Series) at York and the Group 1 Haydock Park Sprint Cup. Daniella Drive (by Shelter Half), the grandam of Ridge Ranger, won a dozen of her 60 starts in the USA, and her Group 3 Diomed Stakes winner Blomberg is a full-brother to Dani Ridge. She was the better of two multiple winners out of De Laroche (by Noble Decree), a Canadian-bred mare that failed to win in 11 starts but had several prolific siblings. Wave To Dave (by Wavering Monarch) won six times, Jrs Lucky Lady (by Sensitive Prince) won 13, High Mesa (by Relaunch) reached a total of 15, and Manitoba Derby third Deemed Dividend (by Tentam) notched up 22 wins and 38 places from an impressive 119 starts. Their siblings also include Bold Flair (by Bold Reason), who was unraced but did her part for the family by producing 10-times scorer Choke Dado (by Full Choke). Winning is something that this family does a lot, and that augurs well for the eventual broodmare career of Ridge Ranger. Her siblings also include the five-times scorer Invincible Ridge (by Invincible Spirit) and that one's multiple-winning full-brother Ridge Wood Dani, and her three-year-old half-brother Acclaim The Nation (by Acclamation), who is also trained by Alston, was runner-up over five furlongs at Newcastle on his debut in May before opening his winning account over the same trip at Beverley 13 days ago. Dani Ridge had a full-brother to that gelding last year, and a Mastercraftsman (by Danehill Dancer) filly in 2014, who was bought back for 110,000gns at Newmarket in October. There are no guarantees in this business, although it is remarkable just how often export or death precedes a sudden leap forward in a stallion's profile.
Duke Of Marmalade (by Danehill) was triple Group 1-placed as a three-year-old, a top-class middle-distance runner as an older horse, and his pedigree made him an exciting prospect when he retired to Coolmore Stud. A son of one of the world's most influential stallions, he comes from the famous sire-producing family of stars such as A.P. Indy (by Seattle Slew), Al Mufti (by Roberto), Summer Squall (by Storm Bird), and Lemon Drop Kid (by Kingmambo). How could he fail to get at least a few Group 1-winning offspring? His early results would have been very good for most stallions, a string of stakes and pattern winners, some of whom were making the frame in the highest grade. But nothing won beyond Group 3 level and so the inevitable happened. Off he goes, up pops a Group 2 scorer in Australia, and then the 2015 season features Group 1 Prix de Diane (French Oaks) victory for Star Of Seville, Group 1 Deutsches Derby success for Nutan, and wins in both the Group 1 St Leger and Group 1 Qipco British Champions Fillies/Mare Stakes for Simple Verse. His final Irish-conceived crop are juveniles, and Europe's loss is South Africa's gain. He is heading into his third season at Drakenstein Stud. Duke Of Marmalade's notable results last year also featured a pair of Group 2 wins for Big Orange. The Michael Bell-trained gelding had won a couple of listed contests as a three-year-old, was beaten by 25 lengths and by 42 lengths in his first two outings at four, and then sprang a 25/1 shock in the Group 2 Princess of Wales's Stakes at Newmarket. That half-length defeat of Second Step was followed three weeks later with a neck victory in the Group 2 Goodwood Cup, and three months later he was beaten by only two and a half lengths when fifth behind Prince Of Penzance in the Group 1 Melbourne Cup at Flemington. He kicked off his latest campaign with a neck defeat by Vazirabad in the Group 2 Dubai Gold Cup over two miles at Meydan in late March, was a little disappointing when a nine-lengths third behind Exosphere in the Group 2 Jockey Club Stakes at Newmarket a month later, but then bounced back on the July course this afternoon for an impressive repeat success in the Group 2 Princess of Wales's Stakes. He holds entries in the Group 2 Qatar Goodwood Cup and in the Group 1 Palmerstown House Estate Irish St Leger, and his presence cannot be ignored in any good race from 12 furlongs to two miles. Big Orange was bred by Stetchworth & Middle Park Studs, he is the second foal out of a mile all-weather winner called Miss Brown To You (by Fasliyev), and his older half-sister, Empowermentofwomen (by Manduro) won an eight and a half furlong contest at Wolverhampton in February of her three-year-old season. She is now at stud and had a Choisir (by Danehill Dancer) filly last year, while her dam has a juvenile colt named Stormy Blues (by Sepoy) and had a Poet's Voice (by Dubawi) filly in 2015. Miss Brown To You is a half-sister to the pattern-winning sprinter Almaty (by Dancing Dissident), but also to the top-class international performer Military Attack (by Oratorio), who was known as Rave when winning at Newmarket and twice at Ascot in 2011. That dual 10-furlong Grade 1 scorer has earned the equivalent of just over £4.9 million and was last seen in action when out of the frame in the Group 1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup over 12 furlongs at Sha Tin in May. That earnings total is impressive, but his 'nephew' Red Cadeaux (by Cadeaux Genereux) was just short of the £5 million mark at the time of his tragic death. That popular Ed Dunlop-trained gelding won the Grade 1 Hong Kong Vase, Group 2 Yorkshire Cup and Group 3 Curragh Cup, but he was second or third a total of 20 times, many of those placings coming in major events around the world. He was, for example, the horse who chased home Animal Kingdom in the Group 1 Dubai World Cup, and he was three times a runner-up in the Group 1 Melbourne Cup, beaten just a nose by Dunaden in the 2011 edition of that famous two-mile contest. His dam Artisia (by Peintre Celebre) is slightly closer than just a half-sister to Miss Brown To You as both are by sons of Nureyev (by Northern Dancer). Almaaseh (by Dancing Brave), the grandam of Big Orange, was only placed, and her siblings include an unraced half-sister, Gmaasha (by Kris), who is the dam of Group 1 scorer Gladiatorus (by Silic) and of Group 3 Premio Regina Elena (Italian 1000 Guineas) winner My Sweet Baby (by Minardi). She is also a half-sister to the Group 1 Coronation Stakes runner-up and Phoenix Park listed scorer Hasbah (by Kris), who is a blacktype producer at stud, to Group 2 Challenge Stakes scorer Munir (by Indian Ridge), and to one-time winner Alyakkh (by Sadler's Wells), who is the dam of two listed race winners and grandam of four other blacktype scorers. The most notable of Almaaseh's siblings, however, is Haafhd (by Alhaarth), champion three-year-old of 2004 when he added the Group 1 Champion Stakes at Newmarket to his earlier win in the Group 1 2000 Guineas. He also won the Group 3 Craven Stakes, he stands at Beechwood Grange Stud, and his double-digit tally of stakes-winning progeny includes the Group 2 scorers Junoob, Noble Protector and Silver Grecian. As will be obvious from the identity of these relations, the third dam of Big Orange is the classic-winning miler Al Bahathri (by Blushing Groom). Her prolific half-sister Geraldine's Store (by Exclusive Native) was a Grade 1-placed Grade 2 scorer, and her unraced half-sister Bloudan (by Damascus) is the dam of Group 2 winner Radevore (by Generous), grandam of Group 3 scorer Lateen Sails (by Elmaamul) and third dam of the smart Richard Pankhurst (by Raven's Pass). Al Bahathri was also a half-sister to Peplum (by Nijinsky), who won the Listed Cheshire Oaks and was third in the Group 3 Princess Royal Stakes, and that filly went on to become the grandam of the Grade 2 scorers Aviate (by Dansili) and Jibboom (by Mizzen Mast) and of Group 1-placed pattern winner Early March (by Dansili). Arguably the most interesting of Al Bahathri's siblings, however, is her unraced full-sister Chain Fern, because it is she who gave us the ill-fated Grade 1 star Spanish Fern (by El Gran Senor) and from whom the Group/Grade 1 winners Lord Shanakill (by Speightstown), Together Forever (by Galileo), Heatseeker (by Giant's Causeway) and Hearts Of Fire (by Firebreak) descend. The first-named of that quartet was in the news recently as his son My Dream Boat won the Group 1 Prince of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot. Big Orange, of course, cannot have a stud career, but if he stays sound, happy and healthy then it is reasonable to think that he could become the next seven-figured earner in this famous family.
In the recent articles on Hawkbill and Endless Time, and in the earlier one on Group 2 Dante Stakes winner Wings of Desire, I noted the tremendous benefit that the all-weather tracks have been to racing in Ireland and Britain. To those three leading performers we can add last year's classic stars Jack Hobbs and Covert Love as shining examples of how high a horse can go having got their early start on the artificial surfaces.
France also has all-weather tracks and on Sunday the Group 1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud went to a colt whose only two starts as a juvenile were on the Viscoride surface at Pornichet La Baule. He made a winning debut over eight and a half furlongs that October and followed-up a few weeks later with a three-length score over the same course and distance. Silverwave kicked off his three-year-old campaign with a seven-length win over 10 furlongs on turf at Angers, he beat Epicuris by four lengths in the Group 3 Prix La Force over the same trip on heavy ground at Longchamp the following month, and was one of the market leaders when unplaced behind New Bay in the Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club (French Derby) at Chantilly. He was only beaten by three and a quarter lengths when fourth behind Erupt in the 12-furlong Group 1 Grand Prix de Paris in July, chased home New Bay in the Group 2 Prix Niel at the same venue two months later, and was 100/1 when unplaced behind Golden Horn in the Group 1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Clearly he had plenty of ability, but improvement would be necessary if he was to be up to winning at the highest level at four. So far in 2016, the now Pascal Bary-trained colt has run four times. He was unplaced behind Garlingari in the Group 2 Prix d'Harcourt, 25/1 when chasing home Dariyan in the Group 1 Prix Ganay, and then third behind runaway winner A Shin Hikari in the Group 1 Prix d'Ispahan. This form suggested that he was as least as good this year as he was at his best last season, but still some way below the very top. On Sunday he benefitted from some disappointing performances from the leading contenders and this enabled him to register a first win at the highest level. He beat Erupt by a length and a quarter, with the capable mare Siljan's Saga a neck back in third.
Silverwave was bred by the partnership of Marie-Laure Collet, Jean Collet and Marylene Collet, and after those two winning juvenile starts, he made €420,000 at the Arqana Deauville Autumn Mixed Sale. He was trained at two and three years of age by Alain Couetil, he is a first-crop son of classic winner and Haras de la Hetraie stallion Silver Frost (by Verglas), and he is one of five blacktype horses for his dam.
That mare is the unraced Miss Bio (by River Mist) and she is now one of those notable individuals who have produced at least two Group 1 winners at stud. In 2006, her son Stormy River (by Verglas), who could be described as being a three-parts brother to Silverwave, won the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat and Group 3 Prix de Fontainebleau. He was runner-up to Araafa in the Group 1 St James's Palace Stakes and to Librettist in the Group 1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp, and he was only beaten by three-parts of a length when third to Aussie Rules in the Group 1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains (French 2000 Guineas). A Group 1-placed pattern winner at the age of four, Stormy River stands at Haras de Saint Arnoult and his early progeny include the middle-distance Group 3 scorer Remus De La Tour and additional blacktype scorers Coaintiorn, Tara River, Storm River, Stormyra and Tempete Nocturne. Line Drummer (by Galileo), who is another of their half-brothers, has been pattern-placed in France and in Italy, half-sister Mary D'Or (by Verglas) is the stakes-placed dam of an Australian-bred listed scorer, and ill-fated Saphir River (by Slickly) was a multiple winner on the flat before going on to success over hurdles and fences, with his most notable piece of blacktype coming when runner-up in the Grade 1 Grand Prix d'Automne over three miles at Auteuil five years ago. Miss Bio is out of a one-time scorer named River Sans Retour (by Vacarme) and the standout among her 10 winning siblings is Fantastic Filly (by Myrakalu). She was a winner in France before crossing the Atlantic to take the Grade 3 Miesque Stakes and the Grade 3 Senorita Stakes, and her progeny include the lightly-raced Nouvelle Vague (by Henrythenavigator), who finished third in the Listed Prix La Camargo at Saint-Cloud early last year. The third dam of Silverwave is Riverstar (by Sir Ivor), a winning daughter of Prix de Royallieu scorer Riverside (by Sheshoon) and so a half-sister to the top-class Riverqueen (by Luthier), who won the Group 1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches (French 1000 Guineas), Group 1 Prix Saint-Alary and Group 1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud, and was runner-up in the Group 1 Prix de Diane (French Oaks). Riverqueen's descendants include the dual Group 1 Premio Presidente della Republica scorer Altieri (by Selkirk) and the ill-fated Group 1 Prix Jean Prat winner Rouvres (by Anabaa), both of whom are only remotely related to Silverwave. Riverside's siblings also included Lorn Lady (by Lorenzaccio) and that one-time scorer is the dam of Lady in Silver (by Silver Hawk), who won the Group 1 Prix de Diane (French Oaks) in 1989 and was runner-up in the Grade 1 Arlington Million, and others who descend from Lorn Lady include the Group 2 Goldene Peitsche winner Nobel Prize (by Lode), the ill-fated Grade 2 Lexington Stakes winner Quintons Gold Rush (by Wild Rush), and that colt's half-brother Golden Soul (by Perfect Soul) who chased home Orb in 2013's Grade 1 Kentucky Derby. Silverwave is a first Group 1 winner for his sire, the second one for his dam, and although he still has some way to go to take high rank among the very best older horses in Europe this season, Sunday's victory has probably all but guaranteed that a place at stud will await him whenever his racing days come to an end. Hawkbill was not the only major winner this weekend who got their start on the all-weather tracks. Like Saturday's Group 1 Coral-Eclipse hero, and last year's classic stars Jack Hobbs and Covert Love, the Charlie Appleby-trained Endless Time got her maiden success on an artificial surface.
Fifth of 12 in a seven furlong maiden at Newmarket in early August of her two-year-old season, her only other start that year came 18 days later, a neck win over a mile on the polytrack at Kempton. Since then she has run six times, winning five, and she has made the progression through handicap ranks to become a potential Group 1 contender. Next month's Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks may be on the agenda for Godolphin's four-year-old following her half-length success in the Group 2 bet365 Lancashire Oaks over 12 furlongs on soft ground at Haydock on Saturday. This was her seasonal debut and she rounded off 2015 with an easy listed race success over the same trip at Naas. Endless Time was bred by Mabaki Investments, and having initially made 115,000gns in Newmarket as a foal, she returned to that venue the following autumn where John Ferguson Bloodstock bought her for 180,000gns. Last year her full-sister made 240,000gns at the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale, a price that could have been even higher had the auction been a fortnight later. Now named The Sky Is Blazing, the filly was bought on 7th October, by Mayfair Speculators / Peter & Ross Doyle Bloodstock, which was four days after Endless Time won a 12-furlong handicap at Newmarket, a performance for which her handicap figure would increase to 98. Earlier in the year she had beaten subsequent classic star Simple Verse over the same trip at Goodwood. It was on 18th October, however, that Endless Time impressed in the Listed Es Que Love European Breeders Fund Bluebell Stakes over 12 furlongs at Naas. Endless Time is one of the latest major winners for multiple classic hero and outstanding young Gilltown Stud stallion Sea The Stars (by Cape Cross) and she is her dam's first blacktype horse on the flat. Her half-brother Courage (by Invincible Spirit) is a blacktype-placed staying hurdler, and her half-brother Marhaba Malyoon (by Tiger Hill) won over 10 furlongs and 14 furlongs in England, finished last in Pour Moi's Derby at Epsom, and has won as an older horse abroad. Mamonta (by Fantastic Light), who is the dam of Saturday's Group 2 scorer, has a yearling son of Shamardal (by Giant's Causeway) and a colt foal from the second crop of juvenile and classic star Dawn Approach (by New Approach), and she is on target to surpass her own dam's record at stud. Mamoura (by Lomond), who won twice as a three-year-old, came up with eight winners from 16 foals and, like her daughter, she has a Group 2 winner to her name. Mouramara (by Kahyasi), who is a half-sister to a pair of blacktype-placed multiple winners, won the Group 2 Prix de Royallieu and is now a notably successful broodmare whose offspring include two Group 1 performers. Mourayan (by Alhaarth) is the more notable of the pair as he won the Group 1 Sydney Cup at Randwick, was runner-up in the Group 1 Metropolitan Handicap at the same venue, in the Group 1 Mackinnon Stakes at Flemington and in the Group 1 Tancred Stakes at Rosehill, and he finished third behind Fame And Glory in the Group 1 Irish Derby. Mourilyan (by Desert Prince) won the Listed March Stakes at Goodwood and his Group 1 placing came when finishing third to Shocking in the 2009 edition of the Melbourne Cup. He was also runner-up in the Group 2 Goodwood Cup and in the Group 3 Dubai City of Gold, third in the Group 3 Geoffrey Freer Stakes and also in the Group 3 September Stakes. Their half-brother Mourad (by Sinndar) is also a blacktype winner, although his talents lie over obstacles. He was trained by Willie Mullins, won the Grade 2 Galmoy Hurdle at Gowran Park, the Grade 2 Christmas Hurdle at Leopardstown and the Grade 2 Boyne Hurdle at Navan, and his Grade 1 placings include three times behind Quevega in the Ladbrokes.com World Series Hurdle at the Punchestown Festival. Mamonta and Mouramara are also half-sisters to a one-time scorer called Mouriyana (by Akarad), and what makes that one significant is that her string of successful progeny includes the 10 and a half furlong listed scorer Epatha (by Highest Honor) and also Skins Game (by Diktat). That triple blacktype winner took the Group 3 Prix Edmond Blanc at Saint-Cloud, he was pattern-placed several times from eight to 10 furlongs, and he took up stallion duties in France in 2012. Mamouna (by Vaguely Noble), who is the third dam of Endless Time, earned her blacktype when runner-up in the Listed Atalanta Stakes at Sandown and third in the Group 2 Nassau Stakes at Goodwood, and in addition to Mamoura, her six winning progeny, from nine foals, include the Listed Challenge Stakes runner-up and Group 3 Meld Stakes third Mirana (by Ela-Mana-Mou). That filly became the dam of the Group 3 Prix de Flore scorer Miliana (by Polar Falcon). Fourth dam Mabira (by Habitat) won a listed handicap at Saint-Cloud and was a half-sister to 1984's Group 1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches (French 1000 Guineas) heroine Masarika (by Thatch). The next dam, Miss Melody (by Tudor Melody), was runner-up in the Group 3 Molecomb Stakes, and the notable horses who descend from the various branches extending from that mare include Group/Grade 1 stars Sulk (by Selkirk) and Dank (by Dansili) and the classic-placed Group 2 scorers Massyar (by Kahyasi) and Eagle Mountain (by Rock Of Gibraltar). That latter group of horses are so remote to Endless Time as to be all but irrelevant beyond illustrating the broad influence that her family has had. But there is more than enough talent among her more immediate relations to show why her pedigree always gave her a chance of becoming a high-class racehorse. It will be interesting to find out just how high in the rankings she can go by the time her racing career finally comes to an end, and as a Sea The Stars filly from this family there is every reason to hope that she can also become a notable success at stud. Dark Angel (by Acclamation) was not an obvious candidate to emerge as a force within the industry, as a stallion who would get Group 1 stars, stallion sons and successful broodmare daughters, but although it is still quite early in his career, the early indications are that he could become a stallion of considerable influence.
He raced only as a two-year-old, winning four of his nine starts, and although successful in the Group 1 Middle Park Stakes and Group 2 Mill Reef Stakes, he was unplaced against stronger opposition in the Group 2 Flying Childers Stakes and in the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes and his end of year official rating was only 114. Timeform gave him a 113. His combination of relatively low ratings, a successful though rather unfashionably bred sire, and a distaff side to his family whose few stakes winners achieved that feat just once in somewhat minor company, made him something of a long-shot to become a major player. Stakes winning progeny and smart handicappers, with the occasional pattern horse thrown in? Yes, all but guaranteed. But anything more than that fairly typical profile was less likely a prospect for him than it was for some of his cohorts. Now, with his oldest progeny aged seven, Dark Angel is firmly established as a leading European sire, commanding a €60,000 fee at Yeomanstown Stud in Ireland. His 30 stakes winners include 14 who have won at pattern level, four of those being Group 2 scorers and another pair top-class sprinters. Lethal Force won the Group 1 July Cup and Group 1 Diamond Jubilee Stakes, and Mecca's Angel is a Timeform 129-rated Group 1 Nunthorpe Stakes heroine. The former is now a popular member of the stallion team at Cheveley Park Stud in Newmarket and responsible for foals that made 110,000gns, 100,000gns, €135,000, 92,000gns and €120,000 in 2016. The pattern-winning Dark Angel horses Alhebayeb (Tara Stud; first foals), Gutaifan (Yeomanstown Stud; first season) and Heeraat (Mickley Stud; first foals) are also sires, as is Group 1-placed Tough As Nails (Old Meadow Stud; yearlings), and there are others who look likely to be joining them before long. Markaz is one of those. The Owen Burrows-trained four-year-old was bred by the partnership of Yeomanstown Stud and Doc Bloodstock, he is a £200,000 graduate of the Doncaster Premier Yearling Sale, and he is a full-brother to the aforementioned sprint star Mecca's Angel. He was a Group 3-placed winner as a juvenile, won the Group 3 Criterion Stakes and finished runner-up in the Group 2 Park Stakes, both over seven furlongs at three, and at Newcastle today he added a victory in the Group 3 Betfred Chipchase Stakes over six furlongs on the tapeta track. With his looks, pedigree and race record, he seems all but guaranteed to get a place at stud. Dark Angel's record is strong with sprinters and others who show speed at up to a mile, and also with two-year-olds. Less than an hour after Markaz's latest victory, the Richard Hannon-trained juvenile filly Nations Alexander won the Listed Cambridge Magazine Supporting the AHT Empress Stakes over six furlongs at Newmarket. That, in turn, came an hour before the talented handicapper and previous one-time stakes winner Gabrial won the Listed Sky Bet Midsummer Stakes over eight and a half furlongs at Windsor. Markaz and his top-class sister Mecca's Angel are out of Folga, a six-times winning daughter of the talented sprinter Atraf (by Clantime). She earned her blacktype when runner-up in a listed sprint at Bath, her celebrity progeny are her first two foals, and her third is a filly named Dirayah (by Dark Angel), who made 825,000gns from Book 1 of the 2015 Tattersalls October Yearling Sale. Number four is their full-sister who arrived in mid-April of last year. Her dam is the talented sprinter Desert Dawn, one of the best horses sired by Belfort (by Tyrant). She won the Group 3 Prix d'Arenberg as a juvenile, was placed in the Group 3 Norfolk Stakes and in the Listed St Hugh's Stakes that same season, and went on to take the Listed Trafalgar House Sprint Stakes at Sandown. Her daughters Folga and mile listed scorer Desert Kaya (by Bikala) are the only other blacktype horses in the family until you find a stakes-placed handicapper a couple of generations further back, and although there are high strike-rates of winners to foals born in each layer of the pedigree, this is not a family from which you could have expected horses such as Markaz and Mecca's Angel to emerge. Yes, their dam and grandam had speed and blacktype ability, but the credit for elevating the family to its current position is largely due to Dark Angel, a stallion who has exceeded all reasonable early expectations and who looks sure to remain a leading sire for years to come. As for the immediate prospects of Markaz, he holds entries in next month's Group 1 Darley July Cup and Group 2 Qatar Lennox Stakes. But regardless of how he gets on in those, or in any other big-race targets, this dual pattern-winning full-brother to a Group 1 star has probably already done enough to attract interest as a prospective stallion.
It is still too early to know for certain, but the early indications are that Coolmore Stud's multiple champion sire Galileo may end up having an even greater impact on the breed that did his own great sire, Sadler's Wells (by Northern Dancer).
His daughters have produced the European classic stars Galileo Gold (by Paco Boy), La Cressonniere (by Le Havre), Night Of Thunder (by Dubawi) and Qualify (by Fastnet Rock), among others who have won at the highest level, and his early stallion sons include the classic sires New Approach and Teofilo, plus the now Ireland-based Soldier Of Fortune whose six flat stakes winners feature a pair of South American Grade 1 scorers. His Timeform 147-rated superstar Frankel already has three blacktype earners among his first juveniles, Sixties Icon has had winners at listed, Group 3 and Grade 2 level so far this year, and the early Galileo stallions also include Rip Van Winkle, whom Timeform rated 134, the same figure they awarded to his sire. He won the Group 3 Tyros Stakes as a juvenile, took the Group 1 Sussex Stakes and Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at three and added the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes at four. He joined his sire at Coolmore Stud, and although he has not done as well as his initial results promised, there would not appear to be any reason why he won't continue to get stakes and pattern winners, and maybe even at least one more who can win at the highest level. Dick Whittington was the first of his progeny to achieve that feat, a leading juvenile in Rip Van Winkle's first crop. He won the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes (video) and Group 3 Anglesey Stakes that year, but was only seen out once as a three-year-old, finishing a disappointing fourth behind Muhaarar in the Group 3 Greenham Stakes at Newbury. The Aidan O'Brien-trained colt has overcome the setbacks that kept him out of action for the rest of 2015, was unplaced in his first two starts this season, but now appears to have found his form again. He was only beaten by a head and half a length when third in the Group 2 Greenlands Stakes over six furlongs at the Curragh last month and then went to Leopardstown on Thursday evening for an impressive win in the Group 3 Oliver Brady Memorial Shabra Ballycorus Stakes over seven furlongs.
Dick Whittington was bred by Swordlestown Stud, who sold him to Camas Park Stud for €55,000 in Goffs as a foal, and when he returned to that arena the following autumn he produced a decent return on that investment, this time making €280,000.
He is the best of several winners out of Sahara Sky (by Danehill), his lightly-raced three-year-old half-sister Carenot (by Iffraaj) won an eight and a half furlong maiden for the William Haggas stable at Beverley in April, and his two-year-old half-brother Winning Ways (by Lope De Vega) is also a member of that same team. That colt is entered in a newcomers' race over six furlongs at Windsor tomorrow evening and his other entries include the Group 1 Goffs Vincent O'Brien National Stakes at the Curragh in September. Sahara Sky was unraced but it is hardly a surprise that she could produce a pattern winner at stud, given her family connections. Her dam, Old Domesday Book (by High Top), won just once but was placed in the Listed Sir Charles Clore Memorial Stakes and in the Listed Ballymacoll Stud Stakes, both at Newbury, and the best of her nine successful offspring was Owington (by Green Desert). He was the top-rated juvenile in Germany in 1993, the top three-year-old sprinter in Europe in 1994, and his five wins were headed by the Group 1 July Cup. He also won the Group 2 Moet et Chandon Rennen, the Group 3 Cork and Orrery Stakes and the Group 3 Duke of York Stakes, and the races in which he was placed featured the Group 1 Middle Park Stakes and two editions of the Group 1 Sprint Cup. Sadly, Owington died young and his sole crop included Group 2 Lowther Stakes winner Jemima, pattern-placed stakes winner Jezebel, Group 1 Gran Criterium runner-up Whyome, Group 2 Cherry Hinton Stakes third Flowington, and also Gateman, a triple Group 3 and multiple listed race winner whose earnings topped £475,000. His half-sister Midnight Shift (by Night Shift), who won over six furlongs at Redcar and Leicester, is the dam of the Group 3 Ballyogan Stakes winner Miss Anabaa (by Anabaa), of Portland Handicap scorer Out After Dark (by Cadeaux Genereux) and of the multiple sprint handicap winner Move It who achieved a peak official rating of 105. She is also the grandam of last year's Group 3 Prix du Bois winner Fly On The Night (by Equiano) and of Listed Sweet Mimosa Stakes scorer Minalisa (by Oasis Dream). There are various other blacktype earners to be found among the descendants of Old Domesday Book, but nothing of the calibre of Owington, Dick Whittington or their pattern-winning relations, and the third dam of Thursday evening's star is Broken Record (by Busted), a handicapper who was third in the Group 3 Jockey Club Stakes. Dick Whittington has plenty of speed, as do his best immediate relations, but being a son of Rip Van Winkle he also looks likely to get a mile. The best of five pattern winners among eight blacktype scorers for his sire, he holds an entry in next month's Group 1 Darley July Cup over six furlongs and Group 2 Kilfrush Stud Sapphire Stakes over five, but his entries also include the Group 2 Friarstown Stud Minstrel Stakes over seven furlongs and the one-mile Group 1 Qatar Sussex Stakes. It will be interesting to see where he goes and to find out how high in the rankings he can ascend, and as a Group 1-winning grandson of Galileo and 'nephew' of pattern sire Owington, one would imagine that a place at stud is somewhere in his future. Kildangan Stud's Shamardal (by Giant's Causeway) is just five away from reaching his 100th individual stakes winner, a landmark that few stallions ever achieve. The dual classic star is only 14 years old, his huge tally includes 17 who have won at least once at the highest level somewhere in the world, and it looks entirely possible that his four-year-old daughter Usherette may join that select group by the end of the season. Godolphin's filly was bred by Darley, she is trained by Andre Fabre and she was unraced as a juvenile. She made a winning debut on the artificial track at Chantilly in late March of her three-year-old season, followed-up over a mile on turf at the same venue but then beat only one home behind Amazing Maria in the Group 1 Prix Rothschild over the same trip at Deauville several weeks later. She was not seen out again until March 2016, a gap of seven months, but she justified favouritism in a conditions race over seven and a half furlongs on the polytrack at Deauville, followed-up over seven at Chantilly a month later, also on polytrack, and then headed to Newmarket for only her third start on turf. Her eye-catching defeat of Arabian Queen in the Group 2 Dahlia Stakes over nine furlongs at that venue led to her being sent off favourite for the Group 2 Duke of Cambridge Stakes over the mile at Royal Ascot this afternoon, and she won that in style by two and a quarter lengths. She holds an entry in next month's Group 1 Tattersalls 250th Year Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket. Should she fulfill her promise and win at the highest level then, in addition to joining her sire's string of Group 1 stars, she will also be the latest on a long list of horses in the first few generations of her pedigree who have won or been placed at that grade. Usherette is the first foal out of Monday Show (by Maria's Mon), a four-times winner in France who earned her blacktype when finishing third in a listed contest in Germany. Her full-sister Show Day, who is trained by Henri-Alex Pantall, has won a nine-furlong maiden and a mile apprentices' race this season, their two-year-old half-brother has been named Powderhouse, and the mare had a Cape Cross (by Green Desert) colt last year.
Monday Show is out of the Group 3 Prix Penelope winner La Sylphide (by Barathea) and that makes her both a half-sister to pattern-placed Vaasa (by Dalakhani) and a full-sister to Expansion. He won the Grade 2 Red Smith Handicap over 11 furlongs on turf at Aqueduct and the Grade 3 Fair Grounds Handicap over a quarter-mile less, and the races in which he was placed included the Grade 1 Man O'War Stakes and the Grade 1 Manhattan Handicap, both at Belmont Park. La Sylphide, who was born in Switzerland, is one of six blacktype horses out of Vanishing Prairie (by Alysheba), a mare who won her only two starts for the Michael Grassick stable and by a total of eight lengths. They were a 10-furlong Leopardstown maiden followed by a conditions race over 12 and a half furlongs at Down Royal. Vanishing Cupid (by Galileo) and Windy King (by Hurricane Run) won listed contests in France, Verdi (by Llandaff) was stakes-placed over a mile, and Purple Moon (by Galileo), who won the Listed Glorious Stakes at Goodwood, was a half-length runner-up in the Group 1 Melbourne Cup, short-headed in the Grade 1 Hong Kong Vase, and finished third in both the Group 1 Gold Cup at Ascot and the Group 1 Sheema Classic at Nad Al Sheba. The remaining member of the sextet is Vespone (by Llandaff) who won the Group 1 Grand Prix de Paris, the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat and Group 3 Prix La Force, and was runner-up in both the Group 1 Prix Ganay and Group 1 Premio Presidente della Republica. Vanishing Prairie's progeny include several other successful runners, one of whom is Verzasca (by Sadler's Wells), a one-time scorer in France and dam of the listed race winners Val D'Hiver (by Zafeen) and Vertana (by Sinndar). That pair got their top prize over nine furlongs and 12 furlongs respectively. The fourth dam of Usherette is the unraced Venise (by Nureyev) and that makes Vanishing Prairie a half-sister to four horses of note. Vetheuil (by Riverman) won the Group 2 Prix du Muguet and three listed races, he was runner-up in the Group 1 Prix Jacques le Marois and third in the Prix d'Ispahan. His unraced half-sister Viking's Cove (by Miswaki) is the dam of the French listed scorer Precious Bunny (by Peintre Celebre), who is inbred 2x3 to Nureyev (by Northern Dancer), while another unraced sibling, Vallee Des Reves (by Kingmambo), is the dam of Group 1 Coronation Stakes winner and Group 1 1000 Guineas runner-up Maids Causeway (by Giant's Causeway). Most notable of Venise's offspring, however, is Verveine (by Lear Fan). She won the Group 2 Prix de l'Opera and Group 3 Prix du Calvados, she was third in the Group 1 Prix de Diane (French Oaks), Group 1 Prix Saint-Alary and Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac, and her seven blacktype progeny feature two who have won at the highest level. Volga (by Caerleon) won seven times from two to five years of age, with her best success coming in the Grade 1 E P Taylor Stakes at Woodbine in Canada, and the standout performance among five wins for Vallee Enchantee (by Peintre Celebre) came in the Grade 1 Hong Kong Vase at Sha Tin. Volga's full-sister Victory Cry won the Group 3 Grand Prix de Vichy, and the gelded Vesuve (by Green Tune) is a pattern-placed stakes winner. Verveine's two-year-old is a filly named Vila Nova (by Silver Frost). There is more than enough in these first four generations of the family to show how well-bred Usherette is and the tremendous potential that she has both as a racehorse and as a future broodmare. But, as with many top pedigrees, there is plenty more of note further back, a host of major names that won't appear on the catalogue page of any of her immediate relations or future progeny. They are too far removed from her to be having any direct influence, but are of sufficiently high profile that to ignore their presence would be to leave out an important part of her family's history. Venise was out of Virunga (by Sodium) who won the Group 3 Prix de Mallaret, was runner-up in the Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks and in the Group 1 Prix Saint-Alary, and finished third in the Group 1 Prix de Diane (French Oaks). Only half of her 10 foals became winners, but one of those was the Group 1 Prix Jacques le Marois victor Vin De France (by Foolish Pleasure), another was the Group 2 Mill Reef Stakes scorer Vacarme (by Lyphard), and a third one of note was Vosges (by Youth). She earned her blacktype when taking third place in the Group 1 Prix Vermeille at Longchamp, her daughter Victoire Bleue (by Legend Of France) won the Group 1 Prix du Cadran, her classic-placed grandson Vertical Speed (by Bering) won the Group 2 Prix Hubert de Chaudenay and Group 3 Prix du Lys, and her great-granddaughter Volume (by Mount Nelson) won a listed race at Newbury before finishing third behind Taghrooda in the Group 1 Oaks at Epsom and a closer third to Bracelet in the Group 1 Irish Oaks at the Curragh. Virunga's unraced daughter Vahine (by Alysheba) is the dam of Group 2 Prix Hubert de Chaudenay winner and successful young French National Hunt sire Vendangeur (by Galileo), and another of her unraced daughters is Valley Of Hope (by Riverman), a mare from whom several notable performers descend. That mare's daughter Sister Bella (by Sadler's Wells) was third behind runaway winner Ramruma in the Group 1 Irish Oaks and is a full-sister to Nicola Bella, a minor winner who became a broodmare of note. Nicola Bella is the dam of the 10-furlong Group 1 scorer and Gestut Hof Ittlingen stallion Neatico (by Medicean), whose first foals arrived this year. She is also responsible for the Grade 2 winner Beautyandthebeast (by Machiavellian) and of Persian Belle (by Machiavellian), the unraced dam of Group 1-placed dual pattern scorer Calvados Blues (by Lando) and of the recent Group 2 Prix de Sandringham heroine Volta (by Siyouni). Usherette and Volta share a common ancestor – Virunga – but their actual relationship to each other is remote. Each is a filly of considerable potential and it will be fascinating to see how their race records ultimately compare, and to follow their eventual careers at stud.
In the early summer of 1999 the Ballydoyle team had a juvenile who looked like a potential champion in the making, a colt who had cost $925,000 as a foal. He was 1/3 favourite when taking a six-furlong Curragh maiden by five and a half lengths on his debut in May and 2/7 favourite when following-up with a four and a half length score in the Group 3 Railway Stakes over the same course and distance a month later.
His trainer, Aidan O'Brien, was quoted as calling him “a special sort of colt” and when the Brushwood Stable-bred bay reappeared three months later it was as the 4/11 favourite for the Group 1 National Stakes over a mile on soft ground, also at Irish racing's headquarters. Bernstein flopped that day, the race was won by subsequent Arc and dual Derby hero Sinndar, and when he ran in the Group 1 2000 Guineas at Newmarket the following spring he was defeated by considerably farther, beating only one home in a big field behind King's Best. The well-related son of Storm Cat (by Storm Bird) dropped back in trip for a narrow win in the Shergar Cup Sprint over six furlongs at Ascot, was well-beaten in the Group 1 Nunthorpe Stakes, then narrowly won the Group 3 Concorde Stakes over seven furlongs before running unplaced in a nine-furlong Grade 3 handicap at Churchill Downs. Bernstein retired to Buck Pond Farm in Kentucky, moved to Castleton Lyons Stud in 2005, shuttled to Argentina, and such was his level of international success that his premature death, aged just 14, was a clear loss. That loss is more keenly felt now as those who were foals at the time of his demise include a pair of stars who have won at the highest level in both Europe and the USA. The Japanese-born Karakontie won the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere Grand Criterium as a juvenile, added both the Group 1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains (French 2000 Guineas) and Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Mile at three, and he is in his first season at Gainesway Farm in Kentucky. The other is 2015 Eclipse Award winner Tepin, the Mark Casse-trained mare who was winning for the fifth time at the highest level when she took the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes (British Champions Series) over a mile on the opening day of Royal Ascot 2016. She was bred by Craig and Carrie Brogden's Machmer Hall Farm in Paris, KY, she was bought by her owner Robert Masterson for $140,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Yearling Sale, and she has earned in excess of $3.3 million. Her dozen wins include the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Mile, the Grade 1 Just A Game Stakes, the Grade 1 First Lady Stakes and the recent Grade 1 Jenny Wiley Stakes, and her victory in England was her seventh consecutive success. Indeed, since the start of her four-year-old season this remarkable mare has won 10 times and been runner-up twice from a dozen starts. Those defeats were by a nose and by a head.
Tepin is the fourth foal out of an unraced mare called Life Happened (by Stravinsky) and each of her older siblings has been a successful racehorse. Buddha Bop (by Buddha), who was the mare's first foal, won four times and earned over $80,000. Her second, Prime Cut, is a full-brother to Tepin and his wins are complemented by the runners-up spot in the Grade 3 Lexington Stakes at Keeneland and third in the Grade 2 Peter Pan Stakes at Belmont Park.
Her third foal is the high-class miler Vyjack (by Into Mischief), a millionaire, prolific scorer and winner of the Grade 2 Kelso Handicap, Grade 2 Jerome Stakes and Grade 3 Gotham Stakes. He has been placed in the Grade 1 Wood Memorial Stakes and in the Grade 1 Forego Stakes, and the Bill Mott-trained six-year-old was only beaten by a neck when runner-up in the Grade 3 Red Bank Stakes over a mile at Monmouth Park nine days ago. The fifth foal is a filly named Azara (by More Than Ready), number six is a three-year-old colt called Taniko (by Gio Ponti), and she had a Harlan's Holiday (by Harlan) colt in 2014, shortly after she was the $750,000 top-priced lot at the opening day of the Keeneland January Sale. She had originally cost the Brogdens just $4,500 at the Keeneland November Sale of 2008. Life Happened is out of the stakes-placed triple winner Round It Off (by Apalachee) who is also responsible for the dual Grade 3 scorer and prolific stakes winner Disco Rico (by Citidancer). He was a champion sprinter in Maryland, began his stallion career in that state, and he was based in New York when he died at the age of 17. His stakes-winning progeny include At The Disco, La Chica Rica, Pure Disco and Vickis Dancer, a quartet that earned over $2 million between them and a total of 39 races won. Notching-up big win totals is a common theme with this family. Round It Off's most notable sibling was Miss Slewpy (by Slewpy), a 14-times scorer whose tally included the 10-furlong Grade 2 Ladies Handicap at Aqueduct and two editions of the nine-furlong Grade 3 Carousel Stakes at Laurel Park, and their dam was the Grade 3-placed triple blacktype winner Capp It Off (by Double Zeus), who won nine of her 18 starts, but died young. Turn Capp (by Turn To Reason), the stakes-placed fourth dam of Tepin, won 20 of her 44 starts and was just as prolific at stud. Her 14 winning progeny, six of whom earned in excess of $100,000, included another two who won nine times and several others who won six, seven or eight races. One of her less successful runners compensated at stud. Queen's Crown (by King Emperor) won just once on the track but three of her four foals were winners, one of them scored nine times, and eight-times winner Majesty's Crown (by Magesterial) went on to become the dam of an Eclipse Award winner. That star was 1997's US champion sprinter Smoke Glacken (by Two Punch) and his 10 wins included the Grade 1 Hopeful Stakes, Grade 2 Sapling Stakes and Grade 2 Frank J de Francis Memorial Dash Stakes as well as several Grade 3 events. He spent his stallion career at Gainesway Farm in Kentucky, was pensioned in late 2013 and died earlier this year. His tally of over 60 stakes winning progeny includes the Grade 1 winners Irish Smoke, On Fire Baby and Persistently. His half-sister Smokey Glacken (by Forestry) also won 10 times, including a Grade 2 handicap, four Grade 3 contests and several listed races, although their Grade 3-placed stakes-winning sister Capote's Crown (by Capote) only won three. The siblings also include the unraced Crouse Mill (by Strike Gold), dam of the Grade 2-placed stakes winner Rouse The Cat (by Sir Cat), and another unraced mare in Crowning Touch (by Thunder Gulch), dam of dual Grade 2 scorer Crown Of Thorns (by Repent). He lost the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Sprint by a nose, went to stud in Florida, his oldest progeny are three-year-olds, and they include a Grade 3-placed stakes winner. Smoke Glacken and his relations are only distantly connected to Tepin, but there is more than enough in the first few generations of her pedigree to suggest that she could become a notably successful broodmare whenever glittering racing career finally comes to an end. Before then, of course, there should be plenty more good prizes to be won with her as Tepin is among the outstanding filly milers of recent decades, a roll of honour that includes standouts such as Miesque, Milligram, Sonic Lady, Ridgewood Pearl, Russian Rhythm, Six Perfections, Moonlight Cloud and Goldikova, to name just a few.
Darley tweeted a picture yesterday of their latest stallion recruit arriving safely at Kildangan Stud. The 11-year-old began his career at Rathasker Stud, spent this season at Overbury Stud, and his move comes about in part due a pair of fillies who lit up a recent classic meeting in Ireland.
Fast Company was trained by Saeed bin Suroor and the son of Danehill Dancer (by Danehill) ran just three times. He made a three-length winning debut over seven furlongs at Salisbury, followed-up with a three and a half length score in the Group 3 Acomb Stakes at York, and then failed by half a length to end the winning run of undefeated juvenile champion New Approach in the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes at Newmarket. Raven's Pass was two and a half lengths further back in third and Rio De La Plata was fourth, making it a strong edition of that prestigious event, and Fast Company earned a Timeform figure of 126 for his performance. He has been popular at the sales since his first foals appeared in the auction ring, he has covered large books, and he made a quick start as his first runners included Baitha Alga, winner of the Listed Woodcote Stakes at Epsom and then the Group 2 Norfolk Stakes at Royal Ascot. His third crop includes Val Nanda, who won a five and a half furlong listed contest for juveniles at Capannelle last month, and his second crop features Jet Setting. That €7,000 foal, produced from a €3,000 mare, is the Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas heroine of 2016. She has won three of her four starts since joining the Adrian Keatley stable, she is catalogued as Lot 43 in the Goffs London Sale on 13th June, and I reviewed her pedigree in The Irish Field in April. The day before Jet Setting beat Minding by a head at the Curragh, another daughter of Fast Company starred at the same venue. The Willie McCreery-trained Devonshire, who represents Fast Company's first crop, beat last year's Group 1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches (French 1000 Guineas) runner-up Irish Rookie by two lengths to take the Group 2 Lanwades Stud Stakes over a mile.
This was only a third win from 15 starts for Devonshire, but she too was a classic filly in 2015 as she chased home Pleascach and Found in the Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas. Both she and Irish Rookie are entered in next week's Group 2 Duke of Cambridge Stakes at Royal Ascot, and Jet Setting is in the Group 1 Coronation Stakes.
Devonshire was bred by Patrick Burns of Newlands House Stud, brother of Rathasker Stud's Maurice Burns, and she is one of two blacktype winners out of Nova Tor (by Trans Island), a mare who won six times over the minimum trip, three of them on the artificial tracks. She carries the famous Godolphin colours and she cost €100,000 at the Goffs Sportsman Yearling Sale. The classic-placed Group 2 scorer is her dam's third foal, her year-older half-sister Hurryupharriet (by Camacho) won the Listed Harry Rosebery Stakes over five furlongs at Ayr as a juvenile, and their two-year-old full-brother, who made €85,000 at the Goffs Orby Sale in September, has been named Veneer of Charm. Nova Tor is out of an unplaced mare called Nordic Living (by Nordico) but all seven of her siblings that raced were winners. They include Kisella (by Mujadil) and Yungaburra (by Fath), who won nine times apiece, and also Titian Saga (by Titus Livius), the juvenile six-furlong Newmarket scorer whose daughter Hay Chewed (by Camacho) won the Listed Land O'Burns Fillies' Stakes over the minimum trip at Ayr two years ago. That five-year-old is now trained by Conrad Allen, she has been unplaced in the Group 3 Palace House Stakes and in the 'Dash' at Epsom on her first two starts of the season, and she holds an entry in next week's Group 1 King's Stand Stakes at Ascot. Like Devonshire, she was bred by Newlands House Stud. Nordic Living was one of only two foals out of the dual juvenile winner To Die For (by Diesis), her half-brother Long Beach (by Imperial Frontier) was a precocious dual five-furlong winner at two, and her dam was out of the Grade 3-placed US listed handicap scorer Bally Knockan (by Exclusive Native). That mare was also responsible for the Grade 3 Laurel Futurity winner River Traffic (by Irish River), a colt whose blacktype placings featured third in the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby and third in the Grade 1 Hollywood Turf Cup, and she was out of Ferly (by Traffic Judge), a nine-times scorer who won a Grade 3 handicap. Devonshire is rated 109, one pound lower than the mark she was on after her classic third last year, and although that is low for a Group 1-placed Group 2 scorer, that will not matter when she retires to the paddocks. There should be more good prizes to be won with her before her racing career comes to an end, and there is every reason to hope that she could produce one or more offspring who are at least as talented as she is. One Foot In Heaven is lightly-raced for a horse of his age. He did not make his debut until mid-October of his three-year-old season, when he finished sixth in a 10 and a half furlong Saint-Cloud maiden, and he opened his winning account two months later on the polytrack at Deauville. First time out at four he was third in an 11-furlong contest at Lyon Parilly, and at that point of his career one could be forgiven for thinking that he was not going to live up to his illustrious pedigree.
The colt still has some way to go to be as talented as his dam, but the son of outstanding Australian stallion Fastnet Rock (by Danehill) won a 12 furlong listed contest at Maisons-Laffitte in April, followed-up in the Group 3 Prix d'Hedouville over the same trip at Saint-Cloud a few weeks later, and then completed a hat-trick when beating Garlingari by three-parts of a length in the Group 2 Grand Prix de Chantilly on Sunday. He was bred by Craigavon Agro Ltd, he is trained by Alain de Royer-Dupre, he is the fourth foal and fourth winner for his dam, and that mare is the Group 1 Champion Stakes heroine Pride (by Peintre Celebre). She also won the Group 1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud and Group 1 Hong Kong Cup, the Group 2 quartet of Prix Corrida, Prix Jean Romanet, Prix Foy and Prix du Conseil de Paris, and also the Group 3 Prix Allez France. She was only beaten a neck by Rail Link in the Group 1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, by the same margin when runner-up to Vengeance Of Rain in the 2005 edition of the Group 1 Hong Kong Cup, and by three-parts of a length when chasing home David Junior in that year's Group 1 Champion Stakes at Newmarket. She retired with the equivalent of almost £2.2 million in prize money to her name, and Timeform rated her 128 as a six-year-old. Pride's fifth foal is a three-year-old colt named Man of Honor (by Raven's Pass), her sixth is a juvenile filly named Speciality (by Lawman), and she had a son of classic star Reliable Man (by Dalakhani) in 2015. She is out of Specificity (by Alleged) and that makes her a half-sister to Fate (by Teofilo), a mare who also raced to the age of six. She won the Group 3 Prix de Flore, was runner-up in the Group 2 Prix Corrida, and her third place finishes include to Cirrus Des Aigles in the Group 1 Prix Ganay, to Ming Dynasty in the Group 2 Prix du Conseil de Paris, and to Al Kazeem in the Group 2 Prix d'Harcourt. Pride is also a half-sister to Tenderly (by Danehill), who is the non-winning dam of the US six and a half furlong Grade 3 scorer Ten Meropa (by Johannesburg), and of Specifically (by Sky Classic), the one-time winner whose double-digit tally of successful progeny is headed by the Group 1 1000 Guineas heroine Speciosa (by Danehill Dancer). That classic star also won the Group 2 Rockfel Stakes and the Group 3 Nell Gwyn Stakes, she was runner-up in the Group 1 Pretty Polly Stakes, third in the Group 2 May Hill Stakes, and has produced a couple of minor winners. Her current two-year-old is named Leveck (by Dutch Art), that colt was followed by a son of Dark Angel (by Acclamation), and having been rested for a year, she was reported in the spring as being booked to visit Kyllachy (by Pivotal) this season. Speciosa's half-brother Major Rhythm (by Rhythm) has a double-digit tally of wins to his name, including a Grade 3 handicap at Arlington and several listed races, and her half-sister Special Meaning (by Mount Nelson), who was runner-up in a Group 3 contest at Hanover in October 2014, won six times including a 12 furlong listed event at Goodwood. Specificity, the grandam of Speciosa and of One Foot In Heaven, won the Listed George Stubbs Stakes over two miles at Newmarket, she is out of the Group 3 Princess Royal Stakes winner and Group 2 Ribblesdale Stakes runner-up Mandera (by Vaguely Noble), and that makes her a half-sister to a couple of horses of note. Touching Wood (by Roberto) won both the Group 1 St Leger and Group 1 Irish St Leger in 1982, and dual Grade 3 scorer African Dancer (by Nijinsky) was only beaten by a length when second to Marlin in the Grade 1 San Juan Capistrano Invitational Handicap in 1997. With a Group 2 success to his name one would imagine that One Foot In Heaven will now step up to Group 1 level at some point in the season, and if he could win or be placed in that sort of company then, with his pedigree connections, he could have prospects of getting a good place at stud whenever his racing days come to an end. |
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