Vespertilio Al Shira’aa’s ‘Best Chance’ At Irish Champions Festival

Al Shira'aa's Kieran Lalor has nominated Vespertilio (Fr) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) as the operation's best chance of a winner at the Irish Champions Festival where the rapidly-progressive filly lines out in Sunday's G1 Moyglare S. at the Curragh. 

Vespertilio forms part of a three-pronged attack on Ireland's flagship Flat festival that features homebred Atlantic Coast (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) in Saturday's G2 KPMG Champions Juvenile S. at Leopardstown and Ocean Jewel (Ire) (Sioux Nation) in the Matron S. on the same card. 

“We've six horses in training in Ireland and three of them are competing at the Irish Champions Festival, so we need to keep pinching ourselves,” racing and bloodstock manager Lalor said on Friday. 

The black and red silks of Al Shira'aa has already enjoyed top-level triumphs with Mutamakina (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) in America and Jannah Rose in France (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and Lalor has talked up the chances of Vespertilio in Sunday's eagerly-anticipated Moyglare. 

Vespertilio comes into that race off the back of a wildly impressive display in the G2 Debutante S. over the same course and distance and, while Lalor is respectful of the opposition with G3 Silver Flash S. conqueror Ylang Ylang (GB) (Frankel {GB}) heading the market, he is expecting a bold show.

He said, “Vespertilio is getting better and better with experience. She had a fantastic run in the Debutante, showing a tremendous turn of foot to come from last under Billy [Lee] and I don't think he had to ride her too hard to do that, either. I'd say if she had been closer to Ylang Ylang in the Silver Flash, I think she would have been right there at the line. She's only a May foal so is developing and growing all the time.”

Lalor added, “She's just getting better and better with racing. It's a tough task and to have a runner in the Moyglare is very special for us. We're going in there with a lot of confidence but obviously it's Group 1 and anything can happen. We're very excited. She's our best chance of the weekend and it's great for Willie [McCreery, trainer], who is a big part of our operation. He's a top-class trainer–he was a bloody good footballer but some would argue he's an even better trainer and he's hugely important to us.”

Atlantic Coast has the unwanted task of staring down the barrel of another Ballydoyle big gun in Diego Velazquez (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) at Leopardstown. 

Trained by Joseph O'Brien, the homebred colt made a fine start to his career when winning a Curragh maiden in good fashion, and Lalor is expecting more to come.

He said, “This is actually a good story because we usually sell all of our colts but the day before the Orby, David Cox of Baroda Stud called to say that this lad had kicked a wall and that he had to be scratched. Thank God he did! 

“Now, he probably would have made three or four hundred grand because he's such a beautiful-looking colt, but it's very special for everyone on the farm to have a homebred running in a Group 2 at the Irish Champions Festival.”

Lalor added, “It's a big step up from a maiden into a Group 2 but Joseph has done a brilliant job with him and I don't think stepping up to a mile will be an issue for him either. It's a good race, with Deepone and Formal Display in there, but it seems as though we all have to beat Diego Velazquez.”

Should Diego Velazquez justify his short price in the betting, it wouldn't be all that bad for Al Shira'aa, the emerging bloodstock force of Sheikha Fatima bint Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan. 

Lalor wisely secured Saadiyat (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}), a half-sister to Diego Velazquez, at Book 1 at Tattersalls in 2021 and the page has gone from strength to strength ever since. 

Saadiyat, like the majority of the Al Shira'aa string, will return to the farm just off the Curragh at Maddenstown and join the broodmare band when her career is over. 

The small but select approach to one of the newest owner-breeding operations in Ireland is paying rich dividends and, while Al Shira'aa were not active at Arqana last month, Lalor explained that it was not for a lack of trying and he revealed the team would be out in force at the Goffs and Tattersalls sales in the coming weeks. 

Lalor said, “We didn't get anything at Arqana but we plan on being active at the Orby at Goffs and at Tattersalls as well. I must say that the Orby looks very good this year. I've gone through the catalogue a couple of times and it looks like one of those great Orbys from the late nineties when everyone was scrapping for Flame Of Taras and the like. We've a very big list to get through and, in fairness to the breeders and to Goffs, they've put on a good book. Hopefully the physicals match up.”

But before then, Al Shira'aa also has Ocean Jewel to look forward to the Matron, and Lalor is not ruling out McCreery's filly out-running her odds of 33-1. 

He said, “Ocean Jewel is much better than what she showed at Naas a few weeks back. She won a Group 3 at Leopardstown over seven furlongs earlier this season and the question with her is if she will get the mile or not. If she does, she could get a slice of it but Tahiyra is the one to beat, for sure. The ground will suit Ocean Jewel and anything can happen at this level. She's a very good filly and deserves a shot at her Group 1 here. This has been the plan for a while.”

He added, “The really exciting thing about this is, when I speak to the boss, everything points to the future and with these fillies, they will all retire here and are exciting broodmares for us to look forward to.”

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Classic Bloodlines Underpin Burgeoning Al Shira’aa Operation

On the wall of Kieran Lalor's office is the photo of the 1965 Irish Derby winner Meadow Court, his celebrity co-owner Bing Crosby in shot, presumably just before, as legend has it, the great crooner serenaded the crowds at the Curragh with a rendition of When Irish Eyes Are Smiling.

The success of the colt, who was also runner-up to the great Sea-Bird in the Derby and went on to give Lester Piggott his first success in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S., prompted his legendary trainer Paddy Prendergast to rename his stables in his honour. The property at Maddenstown, on the Curragh, subsequently passed into the hands of John and Eimear Mulhern, before being sold in 2016 to Abu Dhabi's Sheikha Fatima bint Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The experienced equestrian is the eldest daughter of Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the younger brother of the current president of the United Arab Emirates and the son of the founder and inaugural president of the UAE, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. Beyond the sheikha's equine interests she has recently launched the Fatima bint Hazza Academic Scholarship Fund, aimed at encouraging and enabling Emirati women to take advantage of higher education.

The Thoroughbred arm of Sheikha Fatima's global equine operation known as Al Shira'aa is managed by Lalor, who returned home to Ireland after a long stint in the Bluegrass at Ashford, Castleton Lyons and WinStar, and has overseen significant investment and development at the storied farm over the last six years.

A nod to the multi-national ties of the property is provided by the welcome signs at the entrance, which are printed in Arabic, Gaelic and English. Once inside, a glance at the newly constructed stable yards and offices confirms the blending of styles: plenty of stylish modern glass melded with the grey native stone of Ireland.

At a time when Sheikha Hissa has stepped modestly into the limelight in her aim to continue the Thoroughbred breeding tradition of her late father Sheikh Hamdan at Shadwell, it is heartening to find another Arab woman at the helm of a relatively new enterprise with horses in training in Ireland, France and America. The seeds of Sheikha Fatima's equine interests were sown first in the sport horse world and Al Shira'aa has been the title sponsor of show jumping's iconic Hickstead Derby since 2017, as well as backing the British Young Horse Championships at Bolesworth.

It is a name which is gradually seeping into the consciousness of the racing world. Lalor has been busy on behalf of “The boss” through recent yearling sale seasons, buying selectively with an eye very much on the long-term future of the farm.

Half-sisters to Classic winners Mother Earth (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) and Poetic Flare (Ire) (Dawn Approach {Ire}), and to Arc winner Waldgeist (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) were recruited in 2021. The first of that trio, Ocean Jewel (Ire), was one of the first-crop winners for Sioux Nation when striking for Willie McCreery last September before adding some black type to her name with a runner-up spot in the Listed Ballyhane Blenheim S.

“It's easier to go to a sale, and you're seeing the select drafts of all these top breeders are putting on the market, but our ultimate goal is to breed our own Group 1 horses. We try and breed everything to be a racehorse first and foremost,” Lalor says.

“We want those Classic types, the mile-and-a-quarter, mile-and-a-half horse, that's our ultimate goal. Now, we do go and buy some speed, like the Sioux Nation filly Ocean Jewel, but with the background of Mother Earth being a top-class, sound filly that ran in so many Group 1s and never threw in the towel. But the ultimate goal with her is to come to back to the broodmare band to be bred to try and produce a miler or a mile-and-a-quarter type of horse.”

Kieren Lalor | Zuzanna Lupa

He adds of Sheikha Fatima, “She's very passionate about all breeds of horses. She was very successful at show jumping and dressage herself, and she has a big show jumping team competing all around Europe and the UAE.”

Her black-and-red racing silks have already been carried with some distinction in the Thoroughbred world, with Al Shira'aa celebrating its first top-level success in 2021 with Mutamakina (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) in the GI EP Taylor S. at Woodbine.

“She's going to Wootton Bassett. We're very excited, she's a fabulous filly,” says Lalor of the 7-year-old mare who started out in training with Carlos Laffon-Parias, for whom she won a listed race in Vichy, before being transferred to Christophe Clement and winning four graded stakes in North America.

Laffon Parias, who, along with Pascal Bary, trains the French-based horses for Al Shira'aa, also oversaw the racing career of Rumi (Fr) (Frankel {GB}), a Group 2 and Group 3 winner who heads this year to be covered by Kingman (GB). Also heading to the Juddmonte covering shed is Jannah Flower (Ire), runner-up in the G1 Prix de Royallieu last year for Pascal Bary and, like Rumi and Mutamakina, bought by Shawn Dugan.

“She was twice a listed winner, second in a Group 2 and second in a Group 1 on the day before the Arc, and she's going to Frankel,” Lalor adds of Jannah Flower.

The prefix of Jannah, which translates to paradise, is likely to be seen more widely in the coming years. This season, Sheikha Fatima and her team at Al Shira'aa will have high hopes for Jannah Rose (Ire), a Frankel filly bred by John Hayes and bought for €650,000, who has raced just once and won at Chantilly. She now holds entries for the French Classics, as does Saadiyat (Ire), a Lope De Vega (Ire) half-sister to Broome (Ire) and Point Lonsdale (Ire).

“Jannah Rose was quite possibly one of the nicest yearlings I've ever seen at a sale,” Lalor recalls. “She was a fantastic-looking individual, and she moved great. She was one horse I said to the boss, 'We just have to own her, whatever it takes.' In her debut victory, she had to overcome quite a bit in that race to get out into the open. She was very green but when she engaged that run before the finish line, it really got the heart going. That was only a maiden win, but it was quite an emotional win, because she was a very expensive filly. A lot of things can go wrong, but she's one we'll be very excited about.”

He adds, “Our main focus has always been France. They have a great system, that really rewards breeders and owners.”

The operation currently boards a group of mares in France with Julian Ince at Haras du Logis, which includes Celestial Beast, a full-sister to the GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint winner and sire Bobby's Kitten. Three of them are booked to Logis resident Victor Ludorum (Ire) and another three to Galiway (GB).

In America, the mares are entrusted to Gainesway, and the four being covered there this year are booked to the smart names of Uncle Mo, Into Mischief, American Pharoah and Justify.

“[Gainesway manager] Brian Graves has been a good friend of mine for a long time. They are part-owner in Miss Jessica J (Empire Maker), and so it was just an organic kind of relationship that started there. We've tried to have one every year from Europe go over there [to race]. Geoff and Sandra Mulcahy do all of our lay-ups over there and they do a great job, and once they go into the breeding arena they go to Gainesway.”

He adds, “The two Triple Crown winners have both started well. American Pharoah has had some good winners here as well. I'd be all for them, and the boss, thankfully, feels the same. She jumped at the chance of using Justify.”

While Al Shira'aa is very much an owner-breeder operation, all breeders have to sell some stock to keep the numbers at a reasonable level, and David Cox of Baroda Stud is called upon when required to offer youngsters for sale.

“Everybody has that decision, and it's a very difficult decision to make because inevitably you're going to sell a really good horse, but our limit is 30 mares,” Lalor says.

“Until we expand to the level where we could have more flexibility we try to stay strictly to that number. The grand scheme is to improve on all this, so we have 28 [mares] at the moment, and when one comes in, one goes out.

“Obviously we do want to grow and expand, but that comes with time. We can't just go and buy a broodmare band in one or two years. We've obviously a lot of families in the racing stable and most of them will come into the breeding operation, but we have some flexibility in that regard because if they are doing well and they are healthy and enjoying it they will continue racing. The boss likes to keep them in training, so we race as 4- or 5-year-olds. Mutamakina was six when she retired.”

Mares and foals at Meadow Court Stud | Al Shira'aa

Classic relations loom large on the lists of horses of various ages on the walls of Lalor's office. Lady In Lights (Ire), a Dansili (GB) half-sister to the Guineas winners Magna Grecia (Ire) and St Mark's Basilica (Fr), was bought in December 2020 carrying to No Nay Never, and her resultant foal, now two and named Spirit Lady (Ire), is one of an illustrious group of 12 juveniles currently being broken in by Ian McCarthy. Also among that intake is the Siyouni (Fr) half-sister to Native Trail (GB), named Native Pearl (Fr); Jannah Pearl (Fr), a Galileo (Ire) sister to Rumi; and Crimson Tide (Fr), a full-sister to Glycon (Fr) (Le Havre {Ire}), all of whom were purchased at Arqana last August.

“The first thing we do when we buy a yearling, they come back here, and they go out together in the field for three months,” Lalor notes. “So they detox from the sales, all of that prepping at such a young age can be quite a lot for them. We try to let them go back to being a horse, as opposed to going straight to a breaker or pre-trainer and then getting turned out in January for a month or so. And our first instruction to Ian is to let them do it in their own time, as individuals.”

He continues, “It's the same with all the trainers. There's no pressure to push them.

“Like with Caelestis, the Dubawi [half-sister to Waldgeist], there was probably a lot of expectation for her to come out last year. But she was immature and green, and Pascal [Bary] said, 'No, she's not going to be ready until next year.'”

For someone who has cut their teeth with sport horses, as Sheikha Fatima has, waiting an extra year between a youngster's 2- and 3-year-old season clearly doesn't rankle. And, after all, with the earlier purchases now embarking on their broodmare careers, and the early drafts of homebreds in the paddocks, there is much to occupy the team's thoughts at all levels.

“Sheikha Fatima is very much involved,” says Lalor. “We spent hours on the phone in December going over matings. I go and short-list at the sales, but she sees everything and makes the final decisions. She loves coming to the farm and seeing the foals, the development, how they grow. She has a really good eye for a horse, and with the matings, as I say, we spend hours going over them.”

He adds, “Sometimes I wonder whether we are raising horses or trees. We've planted more than 2,000 trees on the farm and it's an organic farm, so we don't spray with chemicals, we use seaweed. It's going to be fabulous in 10 or 20 years when all these trees grow. Everything on the farm is done with the wildlife in mind.

“The boss is really passionate about it, and it's more fun when they're as involved as Sheikha Fatima is. That kind of makes it all worthwhile, and when you get to work with horses like this, trying to develop our own product.”

At a time when the demise of the owner-breeder is much rued, it is indeed encouraging to see an historic farm rejuvenated, from the paddocks to the stock therein.

“I remember the first time we met the boss, and we spoke about what she wanted out of this,” says Lalor. “We looked about, at all those Classic breeders. Coolmore are probably the best in the business, they're just exceptional, and Juddmonte, too. And so with the same goals and mindset, we dove into this. Hopefully I think we're on the right path, but we will keep trying to improve and try to keep moving in the right direction.”

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Al Shira’aa Buys Waldgeist’s Sister For 1.25-Million Gns

Al Shira'aa Farms continued the spending spree on well-bred fillies it had begun last week at Goffs Orby when going to 1.25-million at Tattersalls on Thursday for the very first lot through the ring, the Dubawi (Ire) half-sister to Arc winner Waldgeist (Ire). Lot 336 was bred by Newsells Park Stud in partnership with Gestut Ammerland and sold by Newsells.

 

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