Dark Angel (Ire) | Horse Racing Free Tips

Real World Targets Saudi Cup

Dual group winner Real World (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) pleased trainer Saeed bin Suroor in his work on Thursday and is being pointed at the $20-million G1 Saudi Cup in February. Godolphin's 5-year-old son of Nafura (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who won the Listed Royal Hunt Cup at Royal Ascot on June 16, added the Aug. 21 Strensall S. prior to signing off last season with a narrow victory in the G2 Prix Daniel Wildenstein at ParisLongchamp on Oct. 2.

“He worked today and he worked really well, he's in good order and I'm very happy with him,” said Bin Suroor on Thursday. “The target with him is to take him to Saudi, but I would like to give him a race first at the end of this month.

“I will judge him when he works next week and see when I think he is ready for a race and then we'll make a plan. We don't need to run him on dirt before Saudi, I'll run him on turf, we'll go back on dirt in the Saudi Cup.”

He added, “When we took him back to Newmarket he grew and became a better horse, it's as simple as that. That is why I want to run him on turf first, to get him ready for the Saudi Cup.”

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A Champion Sire In GB For First Time In 34 Years

The ascent of Frankel (GB) to the head of the stallion ranks in Britain and Ireland was documented in some details in Monday's TDN, and it is lent a touch of poignancy coming in the year in which his great sire Galileo (Ire) left us. In the extraordinarily long reigns of both Sadler's Wells and his son Galileo we have become accustomed to having a superstar stallion in our midst, and Frankel will do well if he is to come anywhere close to the 14 sires' championships of Sadler's Wells and the 12 (and counting?) recorded by Galileo, who was in second place this year. It is far from impossible, however.

In Frankel's first championship, the title is in effect returned to Britain for the first time since the former National Stud resident Mill Reef was champion sire in 1987 for the second time. It is scarcely believable that Mill Reef's sireline has dwindled so significantly in Europe in the intervening years, with the Classic winners Sir Percy (GB) and Reliable Man (GB) the two most notable bearers of this genetic thread remaining.

There is some diversity among the sirelines of this year's top 20, up to a point. Five trace back to Sadler's Wells: Frankel, Galileo, Australia (GB) (10th), Camelot (GB) (15th) and Dawn Approach (Ire) (20th).

Dark Angel (Ire) and Mehmas (Ire), both sons of Acclamation (GB), are doing their bit to fan the resurgence of the line of another of Northern Dancer's sons, Try My Best, and were fifth and 14th respectively, with the latter being an impressive finish for last year's champion first-season sire Mehmas.

Another of Northern Dancer's sons, Nureyev, is represented by his great grandson Siyouni (Fr), who was 12th in Britain and Ireland and is champion sire in France for the second consecutive year. More about him in the coming days.

Through the line of Northern Dancer's grandson Storm Cat we have Lope De Vega (Ire) in sixth, his late sire Shamardal in 19th, and between that pair is No Nay Never, extending that line father still through Hennessy and Scat Daddy, in 11th place.

The Danzig strain of Northern Dancer remains strong, mostly through Green Desert, from whom springs third-placed Sea The Stars (Ire), Kingman (GB) in seventh, Invincible Spirit (Ire) in 17th, and the latter's dependable and under-rated son Mayson, who was 18th in the table. The trio of Danehill-line representatives in the top 20 are Kodiac (GB), a growing influence in his own right and eighth this year, the late Zoffany (Ire), who was one place behind him, and the 13th-placed Dandy Man (Ire), who continues to deliver the goods year after year despite receiving little fanfare.

We only really break free of Northern Dancer when it comes to Dubawi (Ire), who had a standout winners-to-runners strike rate of 54% and is a dazzling representative for the influence of Mr Prospector in Europe. Dubawi was third overall in the table, with progeny earnings only around £250,000 short of his long-time nemesis Galileo. His most prominent son Night Of Thunder was 16th overall with only three crops of racing age, and we can expect to see more of Dubawi's stallion sons creeping into contention in the coming years.

Star performers

With Frankel's five individual European Group 1 winners of 2021 putting him way out in front, and almost £1.5 million ahead of Galileo on British and Irish earnings, joint gold stars are awarded to his pair of Classic winners Adayar (Ire) and Hurricane Lane (Ire), both of whom contributed significantly to Charlie Appleby gaining his first trainers' championship in Britain.

For Galileo, a quieter year by his own lofty standards was headlined by the G1 Prix de Diane winner Joan Of Arc (Ire), while Love (Ire) collected another top-level win in the G1 Prince of Wales's S.

Though not counting towards his domestic tally, Dubawi's record-breaking feat of being represented by three Breeders' Cup winners in one year must not pass without further mention. He has an emerging star in the G1 QIPCO British Champions Sprint winner Creative Force (Ire), as well as one who has recently departed the scene in the neat and hardy Space Blues (Ire), who signed off with consecutive wins in the G2 City of York S., G1 Prix de la Foret and GI Breeders' Cup Mile. The GI Breeders' Cup Turf winner Yibir (GB) will be one to follow with great interest through his 4-year-old season.

Sea The Stars, only narrowly behind Dubawi in fourth, looks to have another superstar on his books in the unbeaten Baaeed (GB), an important colour-bearer for Shadwell in a time of transition. From winning a Leicester maiden in early June to becoming a dual Group 1 winner just four months later, the hype raged all season for William Haggas's new stable-star, but it was well justified by the time he got the better of the Cartier Older Horse of the Year Palace Pier (GB) (Kingman {GB}) in the G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. on QIPCO British Champions Day. Baaeed's return in 2022 will be hotly anticipated, as will a potential step up in distance, which is well within his compass on paper.

For Dark Angel, who completed the quintet of stallions with earnings in excess of £3 million, his best performers clinched their biggest successes outside Britain and Ireland, with the juvenile Angel Bleu (Fr) collecting a pair of Group 1 wins in France, and Althiqa (GB) and Raging Bull (Fr) both landing Grade 1s in America. The latter is now standing at Gainesway Farm in Kentucky.

But Dark Angel also had a pair of Group 2 winners at Royal Ascot, with Berkshire Shadow (Ire) landing the Coventry S., and Indie Angel (Ire) taking the Duke of Cambridge S. Continuing the Ascot run was the Royal Hunt Cup winner Real World (Ire), who progressed impressively through the season to add three stakes wins to his tally, including the G2 Prix Daniel Wildenstein.

Honourable mentions

Of those stallions with more than one crop of runners, it was a breakthrough year for Ballylinch Stud's young son of Dubawi, New Bay (GB), who was represented by a first Group 1 winner in Saffron Beach (Ire) and, like his sire, had a winners-to-runners ratio of 54%. The four-time winner Bay Bridge (GB) could well be an emerging older star for the Sir Michael Stoute stable, while the juvenile Bayside Boy (Ire), trained next-door by Roger Varian, surely has the Classics on his agenda for 2022.

A former Ballylinch resident, Dream Ahead, has served a stint in France and is now about to stand his first season in Britain at Bearstone Stud, where he should fit right in with the Holdcrofts' speed-orientated broodmare band, which now includes Dream Ahead's best daughter Glass Slippers (GB). Though she could not build on her two Group/Grade 1 wins of 2020, Glass Slippers was not disgraced this season with a couple more top-level placings, and Dream Of Dreams added the G1 Diamond Jubilee S. to his G1 Haydock Sprint Cup victory of 2020.

Dream Ahead remains deserving of being given a chance by breeders, and it is worth noting that his Group 1-winning son Al Wukair (Ire) made a promising start with his first runners in 2021, siring the second-highest number of winners (15) among the French-based freshman sires.

A stallion that we can expect to see shooting up the charts in Britain and Ireland in the years to come is Wootton Bassett (GB) following his relocation to Coolmore earlier this year. Third overall in France, where he started his stud career with some distinction, he was behind only Siyouni and Adlerflug (Ger), who respectively had a dual Classic winner and the Arc winner to boost their earnings.

In 2021, Wootton Bassett, another who traces back to Mr Prospector through Iffraaj (GB) and Zafonic, had only 34 runners in Britain and Ireland, but they were a classy bunch, including Audarya (Fr), runner-up in two Group 1s this year having won two last year, G2 Royal Lodge S. winner Royal Patronage (Fr), and G3 St Simon S. winner Ilarab (Ire).

It is also easy to imagine the profile of Rathbarry Stud's Kodi Bear (Ire) rising in the years to come. He had a couple of highly likeable performers this season in the super-tough Oaks runner-up Mystery Angel (Ire) and the G2 Railway S. winner and GII Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint runner-up Go Bears Go (Ire).

In a year when Gleneagles (Ire) covered just 35 mares compared to 149 in 2020, he enjoyed a decent season on the track, with Loving Dream (GB) having become his first Group 1 winner in the Prix de Royallieu, following victory in the G2 Ribblesdale S. Gleneagles was also represented by the G2 Kilboy Estates S. winner Insinuendo (Ire), G2 Prix Greffulhe winner Baby Rider (Fr) and the G2 German 1000 Guineas winner Novemba (Ger).

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A Golden Opportunity At Sumbe

Sumbe-under its previous guises as Haras de la Cauviniere and Haras de Montfort et Preaux and still today under the guidance of new owner Nurlan Bizakov-has made a concerted effort to upgrade the level of stallions standing of France. It has done so with success, too; as part of its fruitful relationship with Gerard Augustin-Normand, the Cauviniere principals retained the 2009 G1 Prix du Jockey Club winner Le Havre (Ire) to stand in France, and the son of Noverre rose through the ranks to become one of the most successful domestic sires ever, climbing to a career-high fee of €60,000 and leaving behind 50 stakes winners and five Group 1 winners and counting.

Shortly after changing its name to Montfort et Preaux, the stud added Recorder (Ire), The Queen's homebred G3 Acomb S. winner by Galileo (Ire) who was well supported by breeders and, with eight first-crop winners this year, sits behind only Zarak (Fr) on the French first-season sires' table.

Last year, Golden Horde (Ire) (Lethal Force {Ire}) became the first stallion recruited to the stud since it was purchased by Bizakov and renamed Sumbe in homage to his hometown in Kazakhstan. The G1 Commonwealth Cup winner Golden Horde represents a unique opportunity for French breeders, he being one of very few representatives of the red-hot Acclamation sireline in the country, and its only Group 1 winner.

Bred by CN Farm, Golden Horde was picked up by trainer Clive Cox for £65,000 at the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale of 2018. He made his debut in mid-May for owner Al Mohamediya Racing and broke his maiden at second asking two weeks later when making all to win a Windsor maiden by 4 1/2 lengths. Two lengths from the winner Arizona (Ire) (No Nay Never) when fifth in the G2 Coventry S., Golden Horde won the G2 Richmond S.-just like Acclamation's ascendant sire son Mehmas (Ire)-over Threat (GB) (Footstepsinthesand {GB}), who would go on to add the G2 Gimcrack S. and G2 Champagne S. in his next two starts. Golden Horde, meanwhile, stepped up to Group 1 company finishing third behind Earthlight (Ire) (Shamardal) in the G1 Prix Morny before running that rival to a neck when second in the G1 Middle Park S.

Golden Horde returned to Royal Ascot for a belated 3-year-old debut in the G1 Commonwealth Cup, and shook off the cobwebs in decisive fashion when racing prominently and pulling 1 1/2 lengths clear in the closing stages for a first top-level win. Facing older horses for the final three starts of his career, Golden Horde made a good account of himself on each occasion, beaten 1 1/2 lengths when third in the G1 July Cup, fifth in the G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest and third in the G1 Sprint Cup S. Golden Horde proved both consistent and versatile, having been Group 1-placed over both good and soft ground.

“He was very consistent, very tough, and I loved his way of racing-first out, running hard all the way and very, very tough and genuine,” said Sumbe's Mathieu Alex. “It's a great pleasure to have him here too, he is very well behaved and has a great mind, and we have a lot of faith in him.”

Golden Horde's pedigree has continued to go from strength to strength since his purchase as a yearling. His dam, the Pivotal (GB) mare Entreat (GB), was sold by her breeder Cheveley Park Stud for 14,000gns at Tattersalls July in 2016 carrying Golden Horde. A month after Golden Horde became a pattern-race winner, his elder sister Exhort (GB) (Dutch Art {GB}) also scored at listed level. Line Of Departure (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}), Entreat's 3-year-old of 2021, won the Listed Cathedral S. in June, and was ultimately gelded after tall assignments in the July Cup and G2 Hungerford S. Entreat has a 2-year-old filly by Zoffany (Ire) named Heart To Heart (GB) who was a 580,000gns Tattersalls October purchase last year by MV Magnier and won one of nine starts this year, and a filly foal by Zoustar (Aus) who was bought back for 240,000gns at the same sale. Golden Horde traces back to a highly productive American family: his third dam is Imagining (Northfields), best known as the dam of the champion and Group 1 producer Serena's Song (Rahy), whose legacy includes G1 Coronation S. winners Sophisticat and Rizeena (Ire), Jim Bolger's useful sire Vocalised, dual Grade I winner and Grade I sire Honor Code and G1 Prix d'Ispahan victor Zabeel Prince (Ire).

The recent death of Golden Horde's broodmare sire Pivotal may mean that his genes are more highly sought after than ever, especially considering Pivotal's position in the pedigree of French champion sire Siyouni as well as exciting young stallions like St Mark's Basilica (Fr), Sottsass (Fr), Cracksman (GB) and Advertise (GB).

“Golden Horde's sireline is very proven-Acclamation, Dark Angel, and his dam Entreat is by Pivotal and is the dam of six winners including three stakes winners, and it is the family of American champion Serena's Song and Sophisticat,” Alex said.

Breeders can be encouraged, too, by the fact that Sumbe threw the strength of its broodmare band behind Golden Horde, who Alex describes as “a very good-looking horse,” in his first season at stud.

“He's very masculine and has a lot of strength, and he's a great mover,” Alex said. “We supported him heavily on the farm sending 20 very good mares–stakes performers and dams of stakes performers. He's been very well received in France, and across Europe.”

After covering his first book in 2021 for a fee of €10,000, Golden Horde will be available for €8,000 next year.

“I think Golden Horde should be a very commercial sire because he was a very talented 2-year-old who brings a lot of precocity, but also trained on and won a Group 1 race at Royal Ascot as a 3-year-old,” Alex said. “He's a fast horse, a very good-looking horse with a great pedigree, so fingers crossed-he has a lot of things going for him.”

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Gainesway’s Raging Bull Hits the Mark for Breeders

It can be a daunting task, bringing a horse untried on dirt to a stallion barn in Kentucky. But Gainesway Farm has nothing but confidence in their new addition, believing Raging Bull (FR) (Dark Angel {Ire} -Rosa Bonheur, by Mr. Greeley) has a unique combination of characteristics that will prove irresistible to American breeders.

“We're very excited to have Raging Bull,” said Gainesway Farm's Sean Tugel. “Gainesway was really established on bringing turf milers over here from Europe, so we're kind of going back to our roots. Turf racing in America continues to grow in stature and Raging Bull was an extremely talented horse, making 22 starts including 15 Grade Is. His sire, Dark Angel, is respected worldwide as a great source of speed and precocity, so I think he fits the mold of a successful stallion.”

Raging Bull has only been at Gainesway for a few weeks now, having shipped in from Del Mar after the GI Breeders' Cup Mile, but Tugel said breeders have been thrilled by what they've seen with the strapping bay.

“From the initial viewings by the breeders, they're really excited when he comes out,” Tugel said. “Physically, he's a big, strong horse. He's got a lot of leg under him and he has bone and substance. I think he's the kind of horse that you can really imagine getting dirt horses as well as turf horses and that's what really separates him apart from previous turf horses who have stood in America, that size and stature that he presents.”

Machmer Hall's Carrie Brogden was impressed after her first visit with Raging Bull.

“I was kind of surprised because you don't expect to have a turf horse that is so big and grand,” she explained. “He had size and presence and was dappled from head to toe. He was sound as a bell and charged up and down the lane when we saw him. He has size and scope, much more like an American horse than a European horse. I understand why he's here. He's big and beautiful and anyone who sees him is going to realize that.”

Owner Peter Brant and Raging Bull make their way to the winner's circle for the GI Hollywood Derby | Benoit

Archie St. George shared a similar first impression.

“Raging Bull is a lovely horse,” he said. “He looks unbelievable. Turf racing has become very well-received over here and he has a lot of quality, presence and strength, so I would imagine that he's what the breeders want.”

The six-year-old's sire, Dark Angel, is a resident of Yeomanstown Stud and currently sits atop this year's European Leading Sires of 2-Year-Olds list.

“Dark Angel has established his credentials worldwide as a sire of sires,” Tugel noted. “He's been so successful everywhere else in the world but we haven't gotten a really top-notch son of his here in America yet. Certainly this is the first one. He's a great influencer of speed and with the miler/sprinter types, so I think bringing that to America is a great advantage for every American breeder.”

Bred in France by Dayton Investments Limited, Raging Bull is the third foal out of the stakes-placed Mr. Greeley mare Rosa Bonheur and is the grandson of Rolly Polly (Ire) (Mukaddamah), an Italian highweight at two who later claimed a pair of graded stakes in California for Bobby Frankel.

“On the female side, Mr. Greeley stood here at Gainesway so it's dear to our hearts, but it also gives us a lot of hope that he can be a cross-surface stallion and it gives it a little bit of an American feel as well,” Tugel explained. “Breeders can easily relate to the Mr. Prospector line. Raging Bull is a great outcross to all American stallion lines and he's a horse that will fit a lot of people's breeding programs in America.”

Campaigned by Peter Brant, Raging Bull was a debut winner as a 3-year-old at Keeneland's 2018 spring meet. That summer, the Chad Brown trainee claimed consecutive victories at Saratoga in the GII National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame S. and the GIII Saranac S. He stepped up to Grade I company in the Hollywood Derby and rallied from the back of the field to win by half a length.

As an older horse, Raging Bull won the GI Shoemaker Mile S. at four and the GI Maker's Mark Mile S. at five, scoring a 106 Beyer Speed Figure in his final career victory.

“The Maker's Mark Mile this year was an excellent race and really showed his determination,” Tugel said. “He weaved in and out of horses and had really good speed. To show up in the spring and beat a very talented field in front of all the breeders really put the cap on his career.”

The top-class performer retired with earnings of over $1.7 million after winning or placing in 12 graded contests over his three-year career, including a runner-up effort to MGISW Got Stormy (Get Stormy) in the 2019 Fourstardave H. as well as a second-place performance against Ivar (Brz) (Agnes Gold {Jpn}) in the 2020 GI Shadwell Turf Mile S.

Raging Bull all alone in the GI Shoemaker Mile S. | Benoit

“It's incredible when a horse can maintain that Grade I level over multiple seasons,” Tugel said. “To have that competitive will and to keep showing up every single time and line up in 15 Grade I races, it takes a lot of heart and a lot of soundness. He showed up and tried every single time. He had seven triple-digit Beyer Speed Figures. He's a horse that has that will, determination and soundness, and that's usually what separates the good ones.”

Tugel said when Gainesway was approached by owner Peter Brant about the possibility of standing Raging Bull upon his retirement, the farm jumped at the opportunity.

“He was on a lot of farms' lists and we were following him for a long time. Milers make great stallions and he was a consistent miler throughout his career. Soundness is something that we need in our breed and is also something that he brings, having made 22 career starts over multiple seasons.”

Raging Bull will stand for a fee of $10,000 in 2022.

“He's already been extremely well-received,” Tugel said. “People love him when he comes out of the barn. He's one of those horses that grabs your imagination. The fact that he ran in the Breeders Cup and then shipped right in and looks as good as he does, that's why he ran 22 times and was able to hold up to it. The same class that he showed on the racetrack, he's shown already here at Gainesway.”

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