Grand Glory | Horse Racing Free Tips

Seven Days: Abundance

Can we have too much of a good thing? When it comes to racing in the spring the answer is almost certainly not, but the rapidity with which all the decent action takes place can make it difficult to take it all in. For example, in the last 11 days we have had three Derby favourites. First the horse who had held that honour all winter, Luxembourg (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), who was then replaced by his stable-mate Stone Age (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), all the rage after his Derby Trial victory at Leopardstown following the defection of Luxembourg from Epsom. But Stone Age held his position for only four days before he was pipped by the Dante S. winner Desert Crown (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}), about whom the dogs had apparently been howling that Sir Michael Stoute was on his way to claim the Derby for a sixth time, 41 years after Shergar (Ire) galloped his way into the history books.

By Derby day itself, Piz Badile (Ire) (Ulysses {Ire}) will almost certainly shorten merely for the fact that Frankie Dettori has been booked to ride him, but there is plenty to suggest that he would not be unworthy of that support. We'll see.

In the meantime, thoughts have turned to the Prix du Jockey Club, a great stopgap between the Guineas and Derby since its distance was shortened to 2,100m back in 2005. On Sunday, Charlie Appleby said of his Poule d'Essai des Poulains winner Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), “I always had it in the back of my mind that he might be a French Derby horse.” With that colt having become the first British-trained winner of the race for 17 years, it would be no surprise to see him attempt to emulate the last one, Shamardal, by snaring a French Classic double. It would also help to alleviate one problem faced by Appleby in attempting to keep Modern Games, Coroebus (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Native Trail (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) apart. But let's face it, as problems go, it's high on the first-world list.

Jean-Claude Rouget has also been waxing lyrical about the Prix des Suresnes winner Al Hakeem (GB) (Siyouni {Fr}), drawing flattering comparisons to Sottsass (Ire), and seemingly not just for the very similar pattern of his breeding. Then there is the good-looking Lassaut (Fr), from the first crop of Jockey Club winner Almanzor (Fr), whose running-on fifth in the Poule d'Essai des Poulains can be regarded as a decent trial for June 5.

It would also be folly to overlook the claims of G2 Prix Greffulhe winner Onesto (Ire), the colt by Frankel (GB) who returned to Europe after being an unlikely candidate for a Florida breeze-up sale. But he breezed with ease, earning himself a $535,000 price tag and a place in Fabrice Chappet's Chantilly stable. We'll be hearing more about Onesto later this week in TDN, but a viewing of him during Chappet's second lot on Monday morning was enough to leave a strong impression that he is a horse with a perfect temperament for the big day.

Mosse Pockets His Plans

The indefatigable Gerald Mosse, impeccably bedecked in his trademark white gloves and a silver brooch of two horses' head at the collar of his silks, rode his 15th French Classic winner at Longchamp on Sunday. It was his first since winning the Prix du Jockey Club on Reliable Man (GB) in 2011.

Of his latest, Mangoustine (Fr) (Dark Angel {Ire}), he said, “She really kicked strongly and fought all the way to the line. She kept something in the pocket for the end.”

Mangoustine was not the only one. The 55-year-old jockey has already passed the necessary exams to start a secondary career as a trainer but, understandably after the elation of his second win in the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches following Zalaiyka (Fr) (Royal Academy) 24 years ago, he said thoughts of retirement are far from his mind.

“For now I'll keep my training licence in my pocket,” added Mosse.

Born To Run

Somewhat unusually, four of the top five lots at last year's Arqana Breeding Stock Sale have remained in training this season, and three of them have enjoyed a real purple patch of late.

On Saturday, Rougir (Fr) (Territories {Ire}), the sale-topper at €3 million, made a triumphant comeback in her new home country of America, where she was the impressive victrix of the GIII Beaugay S. for Peter Brant, Michael Tabor and trainer Chad Brown.

Brant and Brown also teamed up with Speak Of The Devil (Fr) Wootton Bassett {GB}), a €1.95 million purchase, to win the GII Longines Churchill Distaff S. on the Kentucky Derby undercard. Meanwhile Grand Glory (GB) (Olympic Glory {Ire}), now six, has remained in training in France with Gianluca Bietolini for her new owner Haras de Hus, and she has added the Listed Prix Zarkava and G3 Prix Allez France to her tally of wins this season.

The World's Gone Mad

It would be churlish to present a round-up of the action of the past week and not mention the mighty Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), who won his third G2 Yorkshire Cup. It seems extraordinary that the horse who last week set a new European record for the number of Group wins (18) should have an invisible question mark hanging over him with regard to his future stud career.

Too small and the wrong colour for a National Hunt stallion, some say, but frankly that option shouldn't even be in the reckoning. Wouldn't it be refreshing if a son of one of the best horses most of us have ever seen, from a Wildenstein dynasty deep with talent, who has proved his own abundant ability and soundness year after year, be afforded the respect he deserves by Flat breeders. After all, who among us would not love to race a horse such as this?

Too much to ask? Let's hope not.

Titannia Upholds Family Honour

Two years ago we noted the Danish Classic double of Tassmania (Den), the filly whose existence is largely owing to her dam Transsylvania (Den) (Le Havre {Ire}) having won a nomination to Sir Percy (GB) as part of her prize for landing the Listed Lanwades Stud S. in Norway in 2015.

Transsylvania's owner/breeders Dean and Mette Olsen duly bred her to Sir Percy, resulting in victory in the Danish 1000 Guineas and 2000 Guineas for her daughter Tassmania. Now the family is at it again.

Transsylvania's current 3-year-old Titannia (Den), by Appel Au Maitre (Fr), won the Danish 1000 Guineas on May 7 and is now poised to attempt to emulate her half-sister by taking on the colts. The filly, who was retained by the Olsens, also provided Lars Kelp with his first Classic victory since returning to the training ranks with just five horses under his care.

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Castillon’s Glory The Result Of Years Of Hard Work

DEAUVILLE, France–When Arqana issued the news, on Oct. 11, that Grand Glory (GB) (Olympic Glory {Ire})—the Group 1 winner raced by a partnership of Albert Frassetto, John d'Amato, and Mike Pietrangelo—would be offered at their upcoming December Breeding Stock sale, there was something curious about the story.

Reading the alert from the TDN, Benoit Jeffroy and the team at Haras de Castillon immediately picked up on it: the story did not list a consignor.

“Amelie [Lemercier] sent me a text, and she said, 'Did you see? She's going to Arqana,'” recalled Jeffroy, sitting in the restaurant above the Arqana sales ring the day after the mare sold for €2.5-million, the second-highest price of the sale. “We read the story, and we had the same thought at the same time.”

Jeffroy continued, “I picked up my phone and called Marco Bozzi [who had originally bought her as a yearling]. We know Marco, because we have been consigning yearlings now for the last four or five years. So I rang him up and I said 'who is consigning the filly?' and he said, 'nobody. The trainer [Gianluca Bietolini], maybe?' I said, 'Well, listen, maybe we can help you guys. There's a little bit of work to do to promote the filly.' He said he would speak to the owners, and they came back and said 'okay, yeah, that's fine.' So we worked together and the result was a €2.5-million filly.”

If that sounds like it was much too easy, it actually was the result of a lifetime of very hard work on Jeffroy's part. The native of Finistere in the Brittany region of Western France grew up on a cattle farm. His father was a cattle breeder and livestock agent, but they also always had a few Thoroughbred mares to breed.

“They bred on a smaller level, but they have been quite successful on that level, and they had a Group 1 winner with Never On Sunday (Fr) (Sunday Break {Jpn}),” he said. “I grew up on the farm around cattle and horses and then one day, it clicked for me when I was 11 or 12, and I really got into pedigrees. I really loved it. Trying to do pedigrees for my parents and my grandfather, I said, 'this is interesting.'”

Jeffroy attended an agricultural school and specialized in their equine program. But he was eager to get out into the world, learn English, and go to work.

When he was 18, he took a job at Cambridge Stud in New Zealand, not speaking a single word of English. He quickly picked up the language, and applied to the Darley (now Godolphin) Flying Start course and was shocked when he was chosen without ever having attended university. He found that a flying start was exactly what the two-year international management course gave him.

“It was my university,” he said. “If you've done the Flying Start, and you've traveled a bit, you can't imagine the number of people you know. And if you have all of that, it's unbelievable. It's a big help at the beginning.”

His first job out of the programme was for Darley, where he spent five years setting up a program to work on nominations from the French marketplace, among other things. But in 2009, his father asked him if he and his brother would take over the farm in Brittany.

“My brother was already a farmer, and so we said, 'okay, we can do that, but we're going to do it our way.' There were nine mares there at the time. We sold six of them.”

In the ensuing twelve years, they have grown the farm in Brittany, SCEA des Prairies, to 300 hectares, where they board around 90 mares for themselves and for clients.

Jeffroy caught the attention of Qatar's Sheikh Joaan, who recruited him to set up Haras de Bouquetot in Normandy for the Qatar Racing operation. Jeffroy continued to run the farm in Brittany with his brother Thomas, as well as Bouquetot, and realized that it would be beneficial to have his own farm in Normandy.

“So I bought Castillon, and I thought, 'it's going to be a small operation,'” he said. “And you know how it goes; you know people, and they ask if you can take their mare. And we can grow, so we grew. We went from 30 hectares to 160 in six years. We are in Livarot, which is about a 40-minute drive from here, and it's a great location. We have access to every kind of facility we need.”

Jeffroy continues to keep all of those balls in the air—dividing his time among the three farms. “We are employed by Sheikh Joaan at Bouquetot, and he gives us the chance to do our own things, so Castillon is my farm,” he said. “Amelie shares her time between the two entities, and that's why she was recruited in 2020. And it's not a question of numbers, it's a question of who is working with you and having a good team, and whether it's Bouquetot or Castillon or Brittany, we have a great team of people on the ground and at the office who do the day-to-day work. I go around to every farm, and I do weekly or monthly strategy meetings, what we want to do for the season. I look at every foal and every yearling every week, but I let the managers do their job. I can't be everywhere, and we have a good team.”

The farm in Brittany continues to turn out top runners, including the exciting 2-year-old filly Zelda (Fr) (Zelzal {Fr}), who they race in partnership with the Franco-American basketball star Tony Parker. Jeffroy learned that Parker was looking to buy a few nice fillies, and his manager, Clement Tropres, was from Jeffroy's hometown of Finistere. After an initial four-hour lunch meeting, Tropres asked him if he had any young fillies who would fit the bill.

“I said, 'yes, there's a yearling filly I really liked. I kept her.' She's a sister to [their homebred] Chez Pierre (Fr) (Mehmas {Ire}), who was unbeaten at that time. She couldn't go to the sales because she had two abscesses behind, so we kept her, but I asked Jean-Claude Rouget if she was worth what I thought. Jean-Claude said, 'She's really good,' so we did a deal and Tony came in. And we've been lucky.”

Maybe never as lucky as they were on Saturday at Arqana. “It was very exciting,” said Jeffroy. “It's our first really big mare that we had to consign and I think we were already thinking it would be a good idea to try to promote better drafts in December in Arqana.”

Castillon is part of a wave of new younger consignors popping up in France, and they watched with interest as Sumbe topped the sale this week with their first-ever consignment.

“We thought there was an opportunity in France to do better,” he said.” We see what is happening in America, and in France, there is this potential. What Sumbe has done is great. We're pretty much thinking the same things at the same time, and it worked out pretty well. We're just starting at Castillon. It's pretty new. We're trying to do better as consignors of stock at the December sale.”

For Castillon, who had already started to make a name for itself in a more local marketplace, having consigned a V2 Yearling sales topper, it was a chance to break into the international spotlight in a big way.

“I think a lot of people now will probably recognize Castillon,” said Jeffroy. “'Oh, yeah, those are the guys who sold Grand Glory.' It's a big help, and it's a good promotion for us. And I'm so happy it went so well for the connections, who are great, great people. We knew Marco, but the owners had no idea who we were. We are a new, young consignor. But they trusted us, and I think we did a great job, so I hope they are happy. Happy team, happy clients.”

And what's the ultimate goal? The likeable 36-year-old struggles with the answer. “To win the Arc? With a homebred from Brittany? I don't know. I'm not a guy who aims for things. I just go with the flow. I just keep working. I have always worked, since I was a kid. And at the end of the day, you have to thank everybody who works so hard for you every day, because Castillon is not only me. There are a lot of people behind it.

“I just take it year by year, we try to improve, have happy clients, that's the most important thing, probably. There's no great aim, really. Should I want a bigger farm? I don't know. I just go like it goes, and see.”

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Grand Glory Sold For €2,500,000

Group 1 Prix Jean Romanet winner Grand Glory (GB) (Olympic Glory {Ire}) will form the cornerstone of a new Thoroughbred breeding operation at Haras de Hus after being bought for €2,500,000 by Anne-Sophie Yoh-Benet of YOHEA on behalf of a new owner.

The 5-year-old mare was trained by Gianluca Bietolini for Albert Frassetto, John d'Amato and Mike Pietrangelo to win six of her 18 races, including two Group 3s. There remains a possibility that she could race on at the Saudi Cup meeting in February before being covered.

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Group 1 Fillies Star At Arqana December

DEAUVILLE, France-the sales caravan has rolled into its final stop of the season, the European bloodstock community having made its annual descent upon Deauville, France over the past two days for the Arqana December Breeding Stock Sale. With an expected deluge of rain remaining at bay through the first part of Friday, the usual suspects from across Europe and further afield were out of full force inspecting the cross section of fillies, broodmares and foals that will take their turns in the ring beginning at 10 a.m. on Saturday.

“People seem very happy with the horses we have here,” said Arqana's Executive Director Freddy Powell. “It's always a good sign when agents that have been here for the last couple of days tell you that their clients, that were not supposed to come, are coming because of the shortlists that they're sending. So it's all positive.”

Arqana December has gone from strength to strength over the past decade, with last year's edition staged in the midst of the pre-vaccine pandemic one of a few exceptions to its straight upward trajectory. Last year's sale still nonetheless returned satisfactory results in the circumstances, and with the quality of the catalogue assembled it is guaranteed there will be more than few fierce bidding battles over the weekend.

“The market has been very strong at Fasig-Tipton and Keeneland, and in Newmarket and Goffs as well,” said Powell. “Hopefully we'll be able to be on the same lines. There is a great demand for horses, at the top level in particular. Maybe the economy of the past two years has caused people to put some nice stock on the market, and nice stock is rare, so if you can get it in your sale it's quite good.”

In G1 Prix Jean Romanet winner Grand Glory (GB) (Olympic Glory {Ire}) and G1 Prix de l'Opera scorer Rougir (Fr) (Territories {Ire}), Arqana offers the only current-year Group 1-winning fillies to grace a European breeding stock sale in 2021. Indeed, Arqana has firmly established its reputation as a reliable marketplace for black-type fillies from across the continent, and in addition to Grand Glory and Rougir buyers will have the chance to take home the likes of G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches runner-up Speak Of The Devil (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}); last year's G2 Airlie Stud S. winner and G1 Phoenix S. third Aloha Star (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}); Listed Prix Panacee winner Rumbles Of Thunder (Ire) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}), a descendant of champion American filly White Star Line; Criterium Arqana victress Purplepay (Fr) (Zarak {Fr}), who was also third in the G1 Criterium International; this year's G3 Princess Elizabeth S. winner Parent's Prayer (Ire) (Kingman {GB}); and 2020 listed winner and Group 3-placed Emoji (Ger) (Soldier Hollow {GB}).

“We have some great race fillies here and it's very satisfying to see the likes of Rougir and Grand Glory, who were traveling not long ago; Grand Glory only came back two days ago from Japan and she looks great,” Powell said. “There are a few different marketplaces in the world where those fillies would have also done well, but I think vendors do understand that there are places that make sense to sell these fillies.”

Arqana has likewise built up momentum at its December Sale in successfully selling German fillies, and as such there is another strong presence in this year's catalogue from that nation.

A handful of bidders last week missed out on Waldlied (GB) (New Approach {Ire}) when Graham Smith-Bernal bought out partner Gestut Ammerland for a sale-topping 2.2-million gns at Tattersalls, and Dietrich von Boetticher's Ammerland brings Waldlied's 3-year-old three-quarter sister Wildfeder (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) (lot 188) to Deauville. They are out of the excellent producer Waldlerche (GB) (Monsun {Ger}), whose crown jewel is the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe scorer Waldgeist (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). Another from the family on offer is Domaine de l'Etang's 14-year-old mare Waldjagd (GB) (Observatory) (lot 175), who was second in the G2 Diana-Trial, has produced two stakes winners and is in foal to first-season sire Hello Youmzain (Ire).

Ronald Rauscher topped last year's December Sale with the 4-year-old filly Durance (Ger) (Champs Elysees {GB}), who was bought by Bryant Prentice's Pursuit of Success for €750,000, and Rauscher this year brings 4-year-old filly Deia (Ger) (Soldier Hollow {GB}) (lot 202), a stakes-winning full-sister to Group 1 winner Dschingis Secret (Ger); and Amabelle (Ger) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) (lot 193), the dam of G2 Diana-Trial winner Amazing Grace (Ger) (Protectionist {Ger}) carrying a full sibling. Marwell Park offers the listed-winning Tickle Me Green (Ger) (Sea The Moon {Ger}) (lot 204) on behalf of Gestut Gorlsdorf in foal for the first time to Oasis Dream (GB), while Haras d'Ombreville offers the well-related listed winning and group performer Schwesterherz (Fr) (Areion {Ger}) (lot 179) on behalf of trainer Henk Grewe. Other standouts with German connections include group winners Jin Jin (Ire) (Canford Cliffs{Ire}) (lot 142) and No Limit Credit (Ger) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) (lot 158) from trainer Andreas Suborics; last year's G2 German 1000 Guineas winner Lancade (GB) (lot 167); Group 3-winning 3-year-old filly Reine D'Amour (Ger) (Soldier Hollow {GB}) (lot 198); and the Group 3-placed Tangut (Ger) (Adlerflug {Ger}) (lot 155), a half-sister to the dam of Arc winner Torquator Tasso (Ger) (Adlerflug {Ger}) whose third dam is the great producer Allegretta.

“We're quite present in Germany; [Arqana's Head Of Bloodstock] Ludovic Cornuel spends a lot of time there and we've done very well with horses in training in particular for German clients,” said Powell.

The sale also features a selection of black-type broodmares including Mishhar (Ire) (Authorized {Ire}) (lot 11), the dam of G2 Royal Lodge S. winner New Mandate (Ire) (New Bay) who is from the immediate family of dual Classic winner Avenir Certain (Fr) (Le Havre {Ire}) and in foal to first-crop covering sire Ghaiyyath (Ire); the well-related group winner Samba Brazil (Ger) (Teofilo {Ire}) (lot 82) in foal to Le Havre (Ire); the stakes-winning and producing Persona Grata (GB) (Sir Percy {GB}) (lot 170) in foal to Night Of Thunder; and the Group 2-winning Satomi (Ger) (Teofilo {Ire}) (lot 177) in foal to Lope De Vega (Ire). There is a high-class selection of mares in foal to first-crop covering sire Sottsass (Fr), the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner who himself cost €340,000 as an Arqana August yearling. They include Sarvana (Fr) (Dubai Destination) (lot 80), the dam of the Group 2-winning and multiple Group 1-placed Gold Trip (Fr) (Outstrip {GB}); G3 Premio Dormello winner Noblesse Oblige (Ity) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) (lot 81); and Landikusic (Ire) (Dansili {GB}) (lot 116), a winning full-sister to Zoffany (Ire).

As the Arqana December Breeding Stock Sale has gone from strength to strength, a constant presence has been the consignments from Wertheimer et Frere and the Aga Khan Studs, from which breeders perennially source future stakes producers. Wertheimer et Frere's 2021 draft of 20 includes the winning 3-year-old filly Ever Pink (Ire) (Anodin) (lot 133), whose second dam is the excellent producer Brooklyn's Dance; Sparklia (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) (lot 138), a winning half-sister to four stakes winners including G2 Prix Daniel Wildenstein and G2 Prix de Sandringham scorer Impassable (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}); Panthere (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) (lot 194), a winning half-sister to G1 Prix Saint-Alary winner Queen's Jewel (GB) (Pivotal {GB}); and Frontgate (War Front) (lot 207), a stakes-placed 3-year-old from the family of Group 1 winners Green Tune (Fr) (Green Desert) and Pas De Reponse (Danzig).

The Aga Khan's 40-horse draft includes Visoriyna (Fr) (Dansili {GB}) (lot 127), a stakes-placed half-sister to multiple Group 1-winning stayer Vazirabad (Fr) (Manduro {Ger}) in foal to Persian King (GB); the unraced Ebiyanza (More Than Ready) (lot 149), a half-sister to multiple group winner Ebaiyra (Distorted Humor) and listed winner Edisa (Kitten's Joy); and Daladia (Medaglia d'Oro) (lot 216), who is from the immediate family G1 Prix de l'Opera winner Dalkala.

The Arqana December Breeding Stock Sale likewise has an excellent record for selling future Group 1 winners as foals, with Cartier 2-year-old champion Native Trail (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}), 2021 G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches victress Coeursamba (Fr) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}), 2021 G2 King Edward VII S. winner Alenquer (Fr) (Adlerflug {Ger}) and Rougir, who cost just €14,000 in 2018, among the current stars. Among this year's standout foals on paper are a full-brother to Coeursamba (lot 145) and a half-brother to Alenquer, by The Grey Gatsby (Ire) (lot 136); a Wootton Bassett half-brother to dual Group 3 scorer Lesstalk In Paris (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}) (lot 111); a Sea The Stars (Ire) filly out of the listed-winning Volshka (Fr) (Le Havre {Ire}) (lot 129); Lope De Vega (Ire) half-brothers to group winners Zonza (Fr) (Alex The Winner) (lot 161) and Bourree (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) (lot 215); a Kingman (GB) colt out of the aforementioned Waldjagd; a Frankel (GB) half-brother to dual Group 1 winner Recoletos (Fr) (Whipper) and multiple group winner Castellar (Fr) (American Post {GB}) (lot 206), and another Frankel colt out of Castellar herself (lot 226).

The Arqana December Breeding Stock Sale's select session begins on Saturday at 10 a.m. The action also kicks off at 10 a.m. on Sunday, and at 11 a.m. on Monday and Tuesday.

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