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Four-time Group 1 winner and prolific sire Mastercraftsman (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}-Starlight Dreams, by Black Tie Affair {Ire}) has died age 15 at Coolmore's Castlehyde Stud in Ireland following a suspected heart attack on Friday morning.

“Mastercraftsman was a lovely horse to have anything to do with and will be missed by everyone here,” said Castlehyde manager Tom Gaffney. “He has sired some wonderful animals and hopefully there will be a few more stars by him to come.”

Mastercraftsman was bred by Lynch Bages and was the fifth foal out of Starlight Dreams, who would develop into an excellent producer as the dam of Grade III winner Genuine Devotion (Ire) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}) and G1 Moyglare Stud S. runner-up Famous (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), dam of this year's Listed Oaks Trial victress Sherbet Lemon (Lemon Drop Kid), in addition to Mastercraftsman. Mastercraftsman, however, was undoubtedly her leading light.

Placed into training with Aidan O'Brien, Mastercraftsman broke his maiden at first asking at The Curragh in May of his 2-year-old campaign for owner Derrick Smith, with Sue Magnier and Michael Tabor later joining the partnership. The grey would sail unbeaten through his next three starts-the G2 Railway S., G1 Phoenix S. and G1 National S.-under Johnny Murtagh before finishing fourth in the G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere. Despite losing his unbeaten record, Mastercraftsman had done enough to be named Cartier champion 2-year-old colt of 2008.

With Murtagh choosing stablemate Rip Van Winkle (Ire) for the 2009 G1 2000 Guineas, Mastercraftsman was partnered by Pat Smullen for the Classic, and they checked in fifth, one spot behind Rip Van Winkle and 4 1/4 lengths off the peerless Sea The Stars (Ire). While Rip Van Winkle followed Sea The Stars through the middle distances in the G1 Derby and G1 Eclipse S. in his next two starts, Mastercraftsman stuck to the mile, a move which resulted in victories in the G1 Irish 2000 Guineas and G1 St James's Palace S., reunited with Murtagh. The two Ballydoyle colts changed course thereafter; while Rip Van Winkle dropped back to a mile to take the G1 Sussex S. and G1 Queen Elizabeth II S., Mastercraftsman went up to a mile and a quarter, finishing second in the G1 Juddmonte International and third in the G1 Irish Champion S., both times beaten by Sea The Stars. Mastercraftsman dropped down in class for a confidence-boosting five-length score in the G3 Diamond S. four weeks after the Irish Champion S., and closed out his career with a fourth-place finish in the 2009 GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile at Santa Anita.

Mastercraftsman began stud duties at Coolmore in 2010 for a fee of €20,000 and was an immediate hit, with three of his seven Northern Hemisphere-bred Group 1 winners having emanated from that initial crop. Kingston Hill (Ire) gave his sire a first-season Group 1 win when scoring in the Racing Post Trophy, and he went on to win the following year's G1 St Leger in addition to finishing second in the Derby.

Kingston Hill wasn't his sire's first Classic winner, however. That honour went to The Grey Gatsby (Ire), who took the 2014 G1 Prix du Jockey Club before besting that year's Derby winner Australia (GB) in the Irish Champion S. Racing until the age of six, The Grey Gatsby, still his sire's highest-rated runner, would be placed at the top level four more times, and he has his first 2-year-olds this year.

Mastercraftsman's third first-crop Group 1 winner was Amazing Maria (Ire), who hit her top stride at age four when winning the G2 Duke of Cambridge S., G1 Falmouth S. and G1 Prix Rothschild on the bounce for breeder Sir Robert Ogden and trainer David O'Meara.

Mastercraftsman's immediate success meant successive fee bumps to €35,000 and €40,000 for his fifth and sixth seasons, and it was at an advertised fee of €35,000 that his most accomplished filly was produced. A homebred for the Niarchos Family, Alpha Centauri (Ire) looked a class apart when winning at first asking and when taking the Listed Irish EBF Fillies' Sprint S., but she had to settle for second as the favourite in Royal Ascot's G3 Albany S. and was just fifth in the G1 Moyglare Stud S. The grey came roaring back at three, however, winning four consecutive Group 1s over a mile-the Irish 1000 Guineas, Coronation S., Falmouth S. and Prix Jacques le Marois-before finishing second to six-time Group 1 winner Laurens (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) while picking up an injury in the G1 Matron S. Alpha Centauri's first foal is a yearling colt by Galileo, and she produced a filly by that champion sire this year. Alpha Centauri's full-sister Discoveries (Ire) is one of 111 2-year-olds for Mastercraftsman this year and she was the winner of a hot Curragh maiden on June 25.

Mastercraftsman made it a habit of producing top-class fillies, with A Raving Beauty (Ger) winning the GI Just A Game S. and GI First Lady S. and Off Limits (Ire) the GI Matriarch S. in America. Technician (Ire) once again advertised his sire's stamina influences with victory in the 2019 G1 Prix Royal-Oak.

Mastercraftsman has also found success as a sire in the Southern Hemisphere following shuttle stints to Windsor Park Stud in New Zealand and to Haras Firmamento in Argentina as well as a short stint in Chile. His New Zealand-conceived Group 1 winners include Danzdanzdanz (Aus), The Auld Floozie (NZ), Saint Emilion (NZ) and Valley Girl (NZ), while he is also the sire of five South American Group 1 winners headed by G1 Latinoamericano victor Ya Primo (Chi). Mastercraftsman has to date sired 16 Group 1 winners worldwide, 82 total stakes winners and the earners of over £45-million. He has sired eight stakes winners thus far in 2021 and recorded a one-two in the Listed Upavon S. at Salisbury on Wednesday when Lilac Road (Ire) bested Technique (GB).

The post Mastercraftsman Dies Age 15 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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When the gates sprang open for Saturday's Listed Oaks Trial Fillies' S. at Lingfield, Sherbet Lemon (Lemon Drop Kid) wasn't aware of her odds–which, at 28-1, where the longest in the eight-filly field. And while it may have come as a surprise to many when she dug in late over the soft course to overhaul more fancied rivals, the grey was simply doing what her substantial pedigree suggested she should.

The name Lemon Drop Kid may not turn many heads in Europe, but Lane's End's five time Grade I-winning relative of A.P. Indy–who was pensioned from stud duty in January after covering until the age of 24 last year–has carved out a considerable reputation on both sides of the Atlantic.

Lemon Drop Kid–who has thus far provided nine Grade/Group 1 winners which represent a near-equal mix of dirt and turf specialists–is best known on these shores as the sire of the Sir Michael Stoute-trained Cannock Chase, winner of the GI Canadian International as well as the G3 Huxley S. and G3 Tercentenary S., as well as his Tercentenary and G2 Prix Eugene Adam-winning full-brother Pisco Sour and Ron Arculli's multiple group winner Red Verdon. Lemon Drop Kid's progeny have been admirably diverse: he sired the 2006 GI Kentucky Oaks winner Lemons Forever; Beach Patrol, the winner of three Grade Is over middle distances on the turf; and the hard-knocking Richard's Kid, winner of two GI Pacific Classics and the GI Goodwood S. Lemon Drop Kid has provided the GI Spinster S. winner Romantic Vision out of a daughter of Giant's Causeway; the GI Ashland S. winner Christmas Kid out of a Green Desert mare and the GI Diana S. scorer Somali Lemonade out of a daughter of Nureyev.

Lemon Drop Kid himself was among the leaders of his generation on the racetrack. Bred by Will Farish and W.S. Kilroy, he has a pedigree very much in the purple; he shares a second dam with the same breeders' legendary sire A.P. Indy, and like that son of Seattle Slew he achieved Classic glory in the GI Belmont S.–one of five Grade I wins on the dirt for Lemon Drop Kid which also included the Futurity S. at two, the Travers, the Whitney and the Woodward.

Lemon Drop Kid was a dirt phenom who was never tried on the turf, but it is plain to see why so many of his progeny relish the green; his pedigree is one that has effortlessly criss-crossed the Atlantic for generations. Lemon Drop's kid's fifth dam is the Irish Oaks winner Uvira II (Umidwar {GB}), who was bred by the third Aga Khan and exported to the U.S. in 1941 after being bought by Emerson Woodward. Uvira changed hands on numerous occasions after arriving in the U.S., but richly rewarded her various owners by producing not only five stakes-winning colts, but a myriad of influential daughters, chief among those Missy Baba (My Babu). Missy Baba emulated her dam by carving out a legacy through her daughters. Various branches of Missy Baba's descendants have produced the likes of American Horse of the Year Havre de Grace (Saint Liam), GI Belmont S. winner Tonalist (Tapit) and GI Flower Bowl Invitational S. winner Riskaverse (Dynaformer)–all three of those out great-granddaughters of Missy Baba–and the 2017 Canadian champion 3-year-old filly and multiple graded stakes winner Holy Helena (Ghostzapper).

Missy Baba's greatest gift, however, was her fifth foal, Gay Missile, the Ashland S.-winning daughter of Sir Gaylord. Her second foal, Lassie Dear (Buckpasser), has had a dizzying influence on the breed transatlantically; not only is she the second dam of both A.P. Indy and Lemon Drop Kid, but her descendants likewise include the G1 Sprint Cup and G1 Prix de la Foret victor Wolfhound; French champion Gay Mecene; GI Preakness S. winner and fellow Lane's End sire Summer Squall; dual Grade I-winning miler Court Vision; European champion Duke of Marmalade (Ire) and his Derby-winning half-brother Ruler of the World (Ire).

Just as significantly, Lemon Drop Kid is a son of Kingmambo, who blends dirt and turf brilliance through his own sire Mr. Prospector and dam Miesque who, like her first two dams before her, was born in the U.S. but excelled in France and beyond.

The propensity of Lemon Drop Kid's progeny has been split nearly evenly between dirt and turf, with 52 of his foals having won black-type races on the dirt and 56 on turf. At the time he was pensioned in early January, Lemon Drop Kid ranked 11th by earnings on the TDN's list of cumulative leading active sires in North America–an indication of his enduring potency as a sire–and today he is on the cusp of two milestones: Sherbet Lemon was Lemon Drop Kid's 99th stakes winner, and his total progeny earnings sits at a shade over $99-million. He is also building a considerable reputation as a broodmare sire: his daughters have produced 74 stakes winners, their 13 Grade I winners including four-time top-level scorer Forever Unbridled (Unbridled's Song); last year's GI Turf Classic S. scorer Digital Age (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}); G1 St James's Palace S. victor and young Newsells Park sire Without Parole (GB) (Frankel {GB}); and four-time Group 1 winner Elusive Kate (Elusive Quality). Lemon Drop Kid's influence could be felt on British shores again this summer should the G1 Al Quoz Sprint winner Extravagant Kid (Kiss The Kid) take up his entry in the G1 King's Stand S. or G1 Diamond Jubilee S. at Royal Ascot; he is by Lemon Drop Kid's dual Grade III-winning son Kiss The Kid.

In selecting Lemon Drop Kid as the second mating for Sherbet Lemon's dam, Famous (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), after importing her from Ireland in 2015, Greg Goodman of Mt Brilliant Farm in Lexington, Kentucky–famously the birthplace of Man O'War–gave Famous an excellent chance to get a stone cold runner and, with the resulting foal being a filly, a potential broodmare with all the right ingredients.

Famous herself was bred by Lynch Bages and raced in the colours of Derrick Smith after she was secured by Demi O'Byrne for €1-million at the 2008 Goffs Million sale. Famous would have had considerable residual value even had she not placed in the G1 Moyglare Stud S., being a full-sister to the Group 1 Phoenix S., National S., 2000 Guineas and St James's Palace S. winner Mastercraftsman (Ire) and a half to the GIII Locust Grove H. winner Genuine Devotion (Ire) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}). The family, which also includes G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and G1 Juddmonte International victor Sakhee (Bahri) and dual Grade I scorer River Memories (Riverman), has continued to blossom in recent years, with the likes of G2 Zipping Classic and G2 Middleton S. scorer Beautiful Romance (GB) (New Approach {Ire}) appearing under the second dam.

Famous was secured privately by Mt Brilliant at the end of her racing career and kept at Coolmore with a small band of Goodman's mares. She visited Galileo (Ire) her first five years at stud, her first foals yielding two minor winners. Incidentally, it was after Famous touched down in the U.S. that she took off: her first American-born foal was the Galileo colt Il Paradiso, who was scooped up by MV Magnier for $300,000 at Keeneland September in 2017 and went on to be third in the G1 Melbourne Cup and G2 Lonsdale Cup.

Famous's first mating in the U.S. was to Bernardini, who is bred similarly to Lemon Drop Kid being by his close relative A.P. Indy. Goodman, then, must have been thrilled to get a filly, what with Bernardini's burgeoning reputation as a broodmare sire, and he retained that resulting progeny, Love Beach, to race after she went through the ring at Keeneland September in 2018 for $150,000. Love Beach was third behind the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner Sharing (Speightstown) in the Listed Selima S. as a 2-year-old.

Next came Sherbet Lemon, who was the selection of Federico Barberini for $200,000 at Keeneland September and races in the colours of Apple Tree Stud for trainer Archie Watson. Sherbet Lemon won on debut on the Newcastle all-weather in February and made up ground from the rear of the pack to be third in the Wetherby novice race on Apr. 25 that produced Juddmonte's 'TDN Rising Star' Noon Star (GB) (Galileo {Ire}). After she toughed out a soft-ground win over some similarly well-bred types on Saturday, connections indicated that a date in the G1 Cazoo Oaks on June 4 is likely in the cards.

As for Famous, she continues to get every chance to live up to her name. She has a 2-year-old colt by More Than Ready named Bad Gus, and after missing a season when barren in 2020 she foaled a Tapit filly this year.

While American buyers have become the norm on the dockets at European yearling and breeding stock sales, Goodman, originally from Texas, was perhaps one of the pioneers of that phenomenon. After a few initial visits to Tattersalls to get a feel for the market, Mt Brilliant purchased three mares at the December sale in 2011 including a full-sister to Oaks winner Casual Look (Red Ransom) named Dress Uniform for 360,000gns and the Group 3-placed Gooseberry Fool (GB) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), a three-quarter sister to G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains scorer Aussie Rules (Danehill), for 440,000gns. Goodman returned the following year to snap up Desert Classic (GB) (Green Desert), the dam of GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf scorer Wrote (Ire) (High Chaparral {Ire}), carrying a full sibling to him for 875,000gns, and others purchased over the years in conjunction with agent Marette Farrell include the graded stakes-placed Dame Marie (Smart Strike), a half-sister to G1 St Leger winner Rule Of Law (Kingmambo) for 500,000gns; and the half-sisters Superioritycomplex (Ire) and Abingdon (Street Cry {Ire}) from the Ballymacoll dispersal in 2017. Mt Brilliant also has Debonnaire (GB) (Anabaa), the dam of Australian Group 1 winner Hartnell (GB) (Authorized {GB}), and like Famous bred a few foals out of her in Europe before bringing her across to Kentucky.

Sherbet Lemon's story, then, is one of blending the best of the breed on both sides of the Atlantic through and through. Should her good fortune last through to the winning post at Epsom, it would be a success story generations in the making.

The post Lemon Lives Up To Big Pedigree appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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