The Lanwades Stud-based first-season sire Study Of Man (Ire) (by Deep Impact {Jpn}) became the latest member of that class to register a first winner as Vimal Khosla's colt Deepone (GB) scored on debut at Leopardstown on Friday. Sent off the well-supported 3-1 favourite for the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden over an extended seven furlongs, the Paddy Twomey-trained bay who was a 62,000gns Book 3 purchase was settled a few lengths off the pace by Billy Lee travelling smoothly. Sweeping to the front on the outer passing the furlong pole, the bay asserted to score by 2 1/2 lengths from the Jessie Harrington-trained fellow newcomer Instant Appeal (GB) by another first-season sire in Advertise {GB}).
Most of the attention was focused on Ballydoyle's first juvenile runner Alabama (Ire) (No Nay Never) before Cork's five-furlong Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden on Saturday, but ultimately it was another newcomer in the Paddy Twomey-trained Noche Magica (Ire) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}–Pious Alexander {Ire}, by Acclamation {GB}) who stole the limelight to become the first European 2-year-old TDN Rising Star of 2023. Always travelling smoothly anchored towards the back by Billy Lee, Mohammed Ahmad Ali Al Subousi's £230,000 top-priced colt of the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale moved forward with ease to take control 1 1/2 furlongs out and draw away for a 3 3/4-length defeat of the experienced Sturlasson (Ire) (Invincible Army {Ire}). There was another 3/4 of a length back to the 6-4 favourite Alabama in third in a maiden that despite being short on numbers will probably serve as a key reference point as the season advances.
“Like plenty of mine on debut, he was green and fell out of the gates but once he was going and joined them, Billy said he was just going through the gears,” Twomey said of the dark bay, Night Of Thunder's second TDN Rising Star who had attracted support as the 7-4 second favourite. “He said that that ground actually blunted his speed. He doesn't want that heavy ground, but I felt he was ready to start and run a nice race. I don't gallop horses in the spring and he had one breeze and a little half-speed with a three-year-old last week and that's all he has done so far–it is natural ability with him.”
“Mark McStay bought him for a new owner to the yard, Mohammed Ahmad Ali Al Subousi, who is a Dubai businessman, and I'm delighted to have him and delighted he sent the horse to us. Hopefully it's onwards and upwards now and while I didn't think past today, I'd say six is no problem and we'd love to go to Ascot in June. Wherever we go before then, I think he is good enough.”
Added McStay to the TDN, “Noche Magica was a very easy horse to pick as a yearling–he was very much a standout from the moment I saw him. He is a good blend of his sire, grandsire and damsire. The Dubawi (Ire) line, the Dubawi shape, that came through. Night Of Thunder was complemented by the little bit of length that Acclamation (GB) sometimes adds.
“He had good size and good scope. Noche Magica looked like a horse who would make a good 2-year-old, but he also had the scope and the size and the look of a horse that would hopefully make into a 3-year-old in time.
“I've been a Night Of Thunder fan from day one. I've followed his career closely from my days at Godolphin and Darley. I've bred mares to him, I've purchased horses by him. I've always liked the sire and Noel O'Callaghan and Rob Tierney at Mountarmstrong breed a very nice horse and produce a very nice horse at the sales.
This pedigree goes back to Sandhurst Goddess (Ire) (Sandhurst Prince {Ire}). [Her daughter] Lady Alexander (Ire) (Night Shift), I remember beating King Of Kings (Ire) (Sadler's Wells) in the Anglesey S. at the Curragh. It is one of the fastest families in the stud book with Dandy Man (Ire) (Mozart {Ire}), who was a very, very fast racehorse and a hugely influential sire when it comes to speed at the centre of the pedigree. You've got Mother Earth (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) in the family as well.
“All in all, I thought he was a pretty straightforward horse to select. I thought he was the nicest horse in the Goffs Premier Sale last year. I didn't write any notes [on his sales page]. He got a tick and a very high grade. Luckily I found a client like Mr. Al Sabousi who was willing to pay for him, because I knew he wasn't going to be cheap and thankfully we got him.”
The dam, who also has a yearling colt by Starspangledbanner (Aus), is a daughter of the G3 Anglesey S. and G3 Molecomb S. winner Lady Alexander who produced the G3 Palace House S.-winning sire of note Dandy Man who was also runner-up in the King's Stand S. when it still held Group 2 status at Royal Ascot. Another of her progeny, Anthem Alexander (Ire) by Starspangledbanner took the Royal meeting's G2 Queen Mary S. as well as finishing third in the fixture's G1 Commonwealth Cup and second in the G1 Cheveley Park S., while this is also the family of the G3 Abernant S. scorer and G1 Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp-placed Hamza (Ire) (Amadeus Wolf {GB}) and of Patience Alexander (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) who after winning the Listed Marygate S. went to Royal Ascot and finished third in the G3 Albany S.
6th-Cork, €16,000, Mdn, 4-8, 2yo, 5fT, 1:03.82, s/h. NOCHE MAGICA (IRE), c, 2, by Night Of Thunder (Ire) 1st Dam: Pious Alexander (Ire), by Acclamation (GB) 2nd Dam: Lady Alexander (Ire), by Night Shift 3rd Dam: Sandhurst Goddess (GB), by Sandhurst Prince (Ire)
£230,000 Ylg '22 GOFFUK. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $10,467. O-Mohammed Ahmad Ali Al Subousi; B-Mountarmstrong Stud & Alexander Bloodstock (IRE); T-Paddy Twomey. Click for for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
Paddy Twomey and statistics go hand in hand. It seems as though, whenever the trainer's name is mentioned, a number or a stat of some sort will follow. And it's easy to see why: statistically, Twomey is the most upwardly-mobile handler in Ireland.
This is a man who has been operating at a 23 per cent strike-rate or higher since 2018. That takes serious doing in an environment as competitive as Ireland.
While the 46-year-old has been training officially since 2012, his Tipperary-based operation has been open to outside owners for roughly half of that time, and boy has it snowballed in that period.
From sending out six winners from 26 runners domestically in 2018, Twomey has bettered that tally–and strike-rate–every year since, and sent out an incredible 31 winners from 105 runners which equated to a 30% hit-rate last year.
Of those 31 winners in Ireland, six were achieved with two-year-olds, including G3 Round Tower S. winner Treasure Trove, and the stable also broke the €1 million mark for prize-money earned for the first time in a season.
But the achievement that mattered the most to Twomey was a first Group 1 success achieved with La Petite Coco (Ire) (Ruler Of The World {Ire}) in the G1 Pretty Polly S. which was quickly followed by another top-flight victory to mark a season to remember when Pearls Galore (Fr) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) landed the G1 Matron S. on Irish Champion S.
“We try to improve every year,” says Twomey, reflecting on last year's achievements. “We had two Group 1 winners so that is where the bar is set. The aim is to try and keep on improving and to do the best we can by our horses.”
Twomey has a wealth of talent to work with for the upcoming season and is already off the mark courtesy of Irish St Leger hope French Claim. There are Group 1 aspirations for Rosscarbery, who changed hands for 1,000,000gns at the sales last December and will race in the colours of Lady Bamford this season, while the trainer has been typically-shrewd in adding to the ranks over the winter months.
Judging by the pedigrees on show in the two-year-old department, there are plenty of stars for the future waiting to bob their heads above the parapet and, while the trainer has 60 juveniles to run this season, he revealed that he would be happy if he could add “a good one” to the team at the upcoming breeze-up sale circuit.
“We're looking forward to the breeze-up sales and hope to be active at them. We will be at the Craven and at Doncaster and hope to travel to Arqana and possibly Goresbridge as well. If things fell our way and we managed to pick up a good one out of them, I would be delighted.”
Older Horses
French Claim (Fr) (French Fifteen {Fr})
Teme Valley Racing
He had a good year last year, was third in the Irish Derby, and finished up being rated 108. He wasn't beaten that far in the St Leger, when things didn't go his way, and then it was trainer error in the Irish Cesarewitch–I shouldn't have run him that day.
It was good to see him off the mark at Navan last week. That was a good starting point for him and I think he is an exciting horse for the year ahead.
Hopefully he can step up in a stakes race next, probably the Vintage Crop back at Navan next month, and then on to a Group race.
I think he appreciates an ease in the ground but he's a relentless galloper and hopefully we can have a good campaign with him. He could be an Irish Leger horse.
Rosscarbery (Ger) (Sea The Stars {Ire})
Lady Bamford
She was a great addition last year, starting in a maiden in April, taking us to Sligo and Roscommon and everywhere along the way. I enjoyed training her and she ran her best RPR on her last start-every time she ran, she ran better than the last day. She is very giving and very genuine.
She went to the sales at the end of last year and was sold but luckily Lady Bamford decided to send her back to us. We are very much looking forward to training her this year. She is a dual Group 3 winner and is Group 1-placed.
I think 10 and 12 furlongs is probably her optimum, she doesn't quite get 1m6f, and races like the Pretty Polly, Prix Jean Romanet and the Yorkshire Oaks could suit.
Ultimately, something like the Breeders' Cup Fillies and Mares at Santa Anita would be the goal, and I'd say her campaign will be very much geared towards the second half of the season.
Just Beautiful (GB) (Pride Of Dubai {Aus})
Moyglare Stud
A filly we are very keen on. She ran a good race in the G3 Renaissance S. at the Curragh at the end of last year and then we decided not to run her again with this year in mind. We had a couple of hold-ups in the spring of last year and it basically wiped out last season on us.
She has been training very well this winter and into this spring so she might start in the G3 Athasi S. at the Curragh next month. I think anywhere from six to seven furlongs will suit and she likes fast ground. I'm looking forward to her this year.
Final Gesture (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire})
Bobby Flay
This is a very well-bred filly. We liked her form in France and Bobby Flay kindly sent her to us. This is our first horse for him and the plan will be to target the fillies' staying division in Ireland and England this season.
If she is good enough, we'd love to travel to America in the second half of the season for something. The first aim is to win a stakes race and the second is to achieve Group form. If we can win a Group race, we can think about travelling, and we're excited about her.
Rolling The Dice (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire})
Arabian Bloodstock
A nice filly, she won a Newbury maiden as a two-year-old and was third to Inspiral (GB) (Frankel {GB}) and Prosperous Voyage (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) in the G2 May Hill S. at Doncaster. She lost her way a little bit as a three-year-old, though. She joined us last August and we're looking forward to running her this year.
Mea Domina (Fr) (Pivotal {GB})
Merry Fox Stud Limited & Newsells Park Stud Ltd
A nice filly with a good pedigree, she has been bought as a potential broodmare for her owners. We're delighted to have her. She showed nice ability when winning her maiden at Fontainebleau and again when winning her listed race quite comfortably at Saint-Cloud. The plan is to start her off in the Heritage S. at Leopardstown on Wednesday.
Spasiba (Fr) (Ultra {Ire})
Paddy Twomey
A lovely horse, he was physically immature at three and we didn't over-race him as a result. He's rated 92 and the plan would be to start in a winners' race over 1m4f or 1m6f and then maybe into a handicap and see where we end up. I'm looking forward to him.
Beamish (Fr) (Teofilo {Ire})
John Joseph Flynn
He's entered in the Alleged S. at the Curragh on April 16 and it looks like being a good starting point for him. He won't mind a bit of an ease in the ground. He's a lightly-raced horse for one who is turning five–he's only run six times in his life–but he's in good form and we're looking forward to him this year.
Erosandpsyche (Ire) (Sepoy {Aus})
Barbara Dreeling
He joined us last year and progressed through the ranks of the sprinting division, culminating with a second-placed effort behind Highfield Princess (Fr) (Night Of Thunder) in the G1 Flying Five S. at the Curragh on Irish Champions Weekend.
He's an exciting horse for the season ahead but it will probably be the second half of the season before he gets going. He likes nice ground.
Twomey embraces jockey Billy Lee after La Petite Coco's Group 1 triumph | Racingfotos.com
Three-Year-Olds Colts
Change Sings (Ire)
Trevor Stewart
A Saxon Warrior (Jpn) colt out of Cassandra Go (Ire) (Indian Ridge {Ire}), he's a lovely horse and makes his debut at Leopardstown on Wednesday. We're looking forward to starting him off.
Fillies
Persian Jewel (Ire) (Showcasing ({GB})
Teme Valley Racing
She had a nice introduction at Leopardstown on Sunday. The ground was a good bit heavier than what she would like and I was very happy with how she came home. I would hope that she is a filly who can go and win her maiden the next day.
Bella Blue Eyes (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire})
Eddie Walsh
She ran once for us last autumn, and the plan would be to start off in a maiden and try to win that. She's a nice filly for Eddie Walsh, who has been a great supporter of mine since I started training.
Easy (Ire) (Kodiac {GB})
Team Valor International LLC & Gary Barber
A nice filly, she joined us after winning her maiden for Andy Slattery and we ran her first time up for us in the Ingabelle S. on Irish Champions Weekend, but unfortunately she picked up a little setback that day which ruled her out for the rest of the season.
We hope to start her in a winners' race or a handicap and hopefully she can progress through the ranks. I'd say she has plenty of ability.
Treasure Trove (Ire) (Siyouni {Fr})
Merry Fox Stud Limited
She was good last year, winning three times and achieving black-type on six different occasions, which takes a bit of doing for any horse at any stage of their life. For a two-year-old to do it, it's remarkable. She's tough and hardy–the aim this year is to win a stakes race.
She's Guineas-entered but I probably see her more as a sprinter and races like the Polonia S. at Cork could suit her well. In a dream scenario, she'd get to the Commonwealth Cup, but it's only early in the season yet, so let's see where we get to.
Tagline (GB) (Havana Grey {GB})
Arabian Bloodstock
She was a good two-year-old and placed in the Dick Poole S. and ran well in the G3 Oh So Sharp S. as well. She will be a good fit for the fillies' sprint division in Ireland.
Shelton (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}})
Martin Schwartz
She came from the breeze-ups last season and won impressively at the Curragh, where she beat Basil Martini (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}), who went on and won a Group 3 afterwards.
Shelton was also a good second in the G3 Flame Of Tara S. and got a small setback in the G1 Moyglare Stud S. after that. I think it will be the second half of the season before she is out.
Two-Year-Olds
Colts
Noche Magica (Ire)
Night Of Thunder (Ire) colt out of Pious Alexander (Ire) (Acclamation {GB})
Bought by Avenue Bloodstock for £230,000 from Mountarmstrong Stud at the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale
Mohammed Ahmad Ali Alsubousi
He's a nice colt and hopefully he will start around mid-April in a six-furlong maiden. I like what I have seen from him and he'll be one of my earliest runners. He should be out this month.
King Cuan (GB)
Tasleet (GB) colt out of Rutherford (Ire) (Dutch Art {GB})
Cost €21,000 at Goffs Sportsman's Sale from Leon Carrick
Red Lily Racing Syndicate
He is a brother of Ernest Rutherford (GB) (Ardad {Ire}), who won for Michael O'Callaghan, and is a nice colt for a new syndicate in the yard. The syndicate is Naas-based so the dream would be to aim him at the Ballyhane S. and the Goffs Sportsman's race. He's entered in both and hopefully he will turn out to be a bit of value for what we paid for him.
Red Hugh O'Donnell (Ire)
Dark Angel (Ire) colt out of Rionach (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire})
Robert Moran
The first foal out of Rionach, who ran to a high level and placed in the Athasi S. This horse is a nice colt who looks like he will make a two-year-old. He has good action and is a lovely straightforward horse to deal with.
Eulace Peacock (Ire)
Dark Angel colt out of Cnoc An Oir (Ire) (Born To Sea {Ire})
Team Valor and Gary Barber
Another nice Dark Angel colt who is very straightforward and is good-actioned. He looks like he will appreciate nice ground and I'd imagine it will be mid-summer before he starts.
Deepone (GB)
Study Of Man (Ire) colt out of Avyanna (Ire) (Galileo {Ire})
Bought by Paddy Twomey for 62,000gns at Tattersalls Book 3 from Beechvale Stud
Vimal Khosla
Nice colt who I hope to run some time in May, once the seven-furlong races start. This is a nice horse and has the option of median auction races.
Get The Papers (Fr)
Soldier Hollow (GB) colt out of Belle Riviere (Frankel)
Haras De Saint Pair
Another nice colt who qualifies for those median auction maiden races and, when the seven furlong races start, he will be ready to go. We like him and he'll be out from mid-season onwards.
Lone Piper (GB) Kingman (GB) out of Guilty Twelve (Giant's Causeway)
Merry Fox Stables
Nice and straightforward horse out of a Group 3-winning Giant's Causeway mare. Looks one for the second half of the year and I like what I see.
Staple (Ire)
Dark Angel colt out of Samaah (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire})
Bought by Alex Elliott for 280,000gns from Yeomanstown Stud at Tattersalls Book 1
Valmont
He's a nice colt and has been training well. He was picked up at Book 1 and Valmont is new to our yard. It's nice to have them on board and we have some good prospects for them.
Not Afraid (GB)
Night Of Thunder colt out of Zeb Un Nisa (GB) (Iffraaj {GB})
Bought by Alex Elliott for 280,000gns at Tattersalls Book 2 from Hascombe & Valiant Stud Ltd
Valmont
A nice colt who came from Book 2, I am happy with what he is showing us so far and will be one for the second half of the season.
Bothar Street Sense colt out of Flashly (Denman {Aus})
Homebred
Newtown Anner Stud
A lovely Newtown Anner homebred, he is out of a half-sister to Kentucky Oaks winner Cathryn Sophia (Street Boss). It's an unusually-bred horse for this part of the world but he's a nice first foal out of Street Sense and I like what I am seeing from him.
McClane (Ire)
Fracas (Ire) colt out of Saoire (GB) (Pivotal {GB})
Homebred
Joseph Joyce
This year is a first for me as I am going to have three juveniles by Fracas to train, which Joseph Joyce kindly sent to me. This is a son of Saoire, who obviously won the Irish 1,000 Guineas for Francis Crowley, and we also have a sister of Smash Williams (Ire) and another sister to McTigue (Ire).
They are very much for the second half of the year but look to be nice horses and we're looking forward to training them for Joseph, who is a true owner-breeder in that he raced the stallion and the dam.
Say Never No More (Ire) No Nay Never colt out of Queen Iseult (GB) (Camelot {GB})
Bought by Jason Taylor Equine at Goffs Orby Sale from Castlehyde Stud for €280,000
Lapetus Racing Syndicate
These colts are for the Lapetus Racing, which is a new American-based syndicate to have joined the yard, and their aim is to unearth a horse good enough to go to Royal Ascot and, ultimately, the Breeders' Cup after that. The horses were bought by David Ingordo and Jason Taylor at Goffs and, like I said, the Breeders' Cup is the dream.
Cathal (Ire) No Nay Never colt out of Lucky At The Bay (Lucky Pulpit)
Bought by Jason Taylor Equine for €120,000 from Baroda Stud at Goffs Orby
Lapetus Racing Syndicate
He is very much in the mould of the No Nay Nevers that I have seen at the races-a strong and forward type. We're just about to start doing fast work with him.
Fillies
Vanity Pays (GB)
Kodiac (GB) filly out of Mystic Jade (GB) (Raven's Pass)
Bought by Paddy Twomey for 100,000gns from Fernham Farm at Tattersalls Book 1
Stanley Watson and Trevor Stewart
Nice filly who has been working well. Hopefully she will start when we get a bit of nice ground or else on the all-weather by the end of April. She's sharp and early. She's pleasing us.
Jenni (Ire)
Mehmas (Ire) filly out of Inuk (Ire) (Kodiac)
Ennistown Stud
Mehmas is a stallion who we really like and this filly is out of a Kodiac half-sister to The Mackem Bullet (Ire) (Society Rock {Ire}). She's one of our more forward two-year-olds and we hope to run her over five furlongs in mid-April. I like what I see with her. I'd say Noche Magica, Vanity Pays and Jenni will be my first two-year-old runners this season-they're a bit ahead of the rest of them at this stage anyway.
Lady Lilibetrage (Ire) Magna Grecia (Ire) filly out of Quick Chat (First Defence)
Bought by Jason Taylor Equine for €200,000 from Glenvale Stud at Goffs Orby
Lapetus Racing Syndicate
She is straightforward and has been training well. She looks like a filly for six to seven furlongs in the middle of the summer. I think she'll like a bit of nice ground.
Dark Lyric (Ire)
Dark Angel filly out of Hay Chewed (Ire) (Camacho {GB})
Bought by Richard Ryan for €160,000 at Goffs Orby from Grangemore Stud
Teme Valley Racing
She is finding her work very easy and we're happy with her. We've been lucky with Dark Angel and she looks another nice filly by him.
Elana Osario (GB)
Lope De Vega (Ire) filly out of Moi Meme (GB) (Teofilo {Ire})
Bought by Paddy Twomey for 375,000gns from Hillwood Stud at Tattersalls Book 2
Robert Moran
She is a lovely filly and is one for the second half of the season. I thought Robert did a good job in naming her because Alana Osario was the wife of Lope De Vega. This filly has some class so hopefully she can live up to that good name.
Mysticmoon (Ire)
Lope De Vega filly out of Onthemoonagain (Fr) (Cape Cross {Ire})
Eddie Walsh
This is the second Lope De Vega we have and she looks as though she will be one for the second half of the season. Coincidentally, she's the first foal out of Onthemoonagain, who ran to quite a high level in America for Martin Schwarz, a big supporter of this yard.
Lucky Silks (Ire)
Mehmas filly out of Champagne Or Water (Ire) (Captain Rio {GB})
Bought by Paddy Twomey for €260,000 from Tally-Ho Stud at Goffs Orby
Martin Schwartz
Champagne Or Water was a stakes winner for Willie McCreery and her first foal was Group 1-placed in Canada last year. This is the second foal and is one for mid-season onwards.
Conradi (GB) Calyx (GB) filly out of Althiba (GB) (Shamardal)
Bought by Alex Elliott for €110,000 from the Channel Consignment at the Arqana October Yearling Sale
Valmont
Nice filly and I'm very pleased with what she is showing us. We haven't dipped her yet but she's nice.
Heart Of Darkness (GB)
Mehmas filly out of One Kiss (GB) (Sayif {Ire})
Cost 50,000gns at Tattersalls Book 2 from Llety Farms to Skymark Farm
Lady O'Reilly
A nice sharp filly who looks as though she will want good ground. She should be ready to run when the ground dries up in May and June.
Alinta (Ire)
Australia filly out of Termagent (Ire) (Powerscourt {GB})
Homebred
Mrs Diana Vasicek
She has a nice pedigree, being a daughter of G1 Moyglare Stud S. winner Termagent. She's one for the second half of the season and hopefully she makes up into a nice filly.
Eternal Harmony (Ire)
Night Of Thunder filly out of Majenta (Ire) (Marju {Ire})
Homebred
Mrs Diana Vasicek
Majenta was another very good racemare, having finished third in the Lenebane S. for Kevin Prendergast. This is a nice filly who I hope to run in late-summer or the autumn.
Porters Place (Ire)
Make Believe filly out of Shreyas (Ire) (Dalakhani {Ire})
John Joseph Flynn
A nice filly who we picked up for 70,000gns out of Book 2, she is out of the 110-rated Shreyas, who is a sister to Youmzain (Ire). I think she has the makings of being a very nice three-year-old.
Eagle Of Destiny (Ire) Gleneagles (Ire) filly out of Miss Macnamara (Ire) (Dylan Thomas {Ire})
Cost €175,000 from Clonlisk Stud at Goffs Orby
Robert Moran
A sister to Sonnyboyliston (Ire) (Power {GB}) and Lot Of Joy (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), she would look like one to have a run or two at the back end of the season before what will hopefully be a productive three and four-year-old campaign.
Forthright (Ire)
Zoffany (Ire) filly out of Last Gold (Fr) (Gold Away {Ire})
Bought by Hugo Merry at Tattersalls Book 3 for 65,000gns from Castletown Stud
Valmont and partnership
A sister of Lumiere Rock (Ire), who is a smart Saxon Warrior (Jpn) filly for Joseph O'Brien, she is for a partnership that includes Valmont.
Clermont Ferrand (Ire)
Kodiac filly out of Alsace Lorraine (Ire) (Giant's Causeway)
Homebred
Merry Fox Stud
A lovely homebred for Merry Fox Stud, she does everything right and is for the second half of the season.
Super Sox (GB)
Showcasing filly out of Minoria (GB) (Harbour Watch {Ire})
Cost €50,000 from Clenagh Castle Stud at Tattersalls Ireland
Dowager Countess of Harrington
The second foal out of Minoria, she is a sister to It's Showtime Baby (GB) (Showcasing {GB}), who was a good two-year-old for Jessica Harrington last season. This is quite a tall filly and she is pleasing us. Hopefully she'll be out by mid-season.
It's early-February and already the Flat enthusiasts are getting excited about what stallion will end the season as champion first-season sire. A futile exercise, one would have thought? Not a bit of it.
Even the greatest handlers of young stock, Malcolm Bastard, Alan McCabe, Joseph O'Brien, Conor Hoban and Dick Brabazon, men who know better than most the folly that comes with predicting 2-year-old talent, are keen to have their say on which up-and-coming stallion can make the biggest splash this season.
O'Brien is sticking loyal to Ten Sovereigns (Ire) in his prediction for first-season sire championship honours while Bastard, who broke and pre-trained Too Darn Hot (GB), has reported striking similarities between the unbeaten champion 2-year-old and his stock.
Meanwhile, Dick Brabazon, one of the finest horsemen in Ireland who has had Snow Fairy (Ire) (Intikhab) and Exultant (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) through his Curragh base, has taken a swing on Study Of Man (Ire) to come up trumps with a top-notcher.
Welcome to this year's earliest predictions to what the next Mehmas (Ire), Cotai Glory (GB) or Havana Grey (GB) will be. Each opinion is right until proven otherwise and, for starters, Bastard, McCabe and Hoban are in agreement that the bookmakers have found the right favourite in Blue Point (Ire), priced up as a general 5-2 market leader by most firms.
McCabe, who pre-trains for Rabbah Bloodstock, Simon Crisford and Charlie Appleby among others, is particularly keen on Blue Point's stock and said, “I think he will make a big splash. I think that bookmarkers are barking up the same tree as I am with Blue Point as I think he will go well in the first-season sire championship. In fact, there was a very smart Blue Point colt I was dealing with, and he's gone into Simon Crisford's. He was the smartest Blue Point I had and, if he is not winning up at the July Course at Newmarket, I'd be very surprised.”
Bastard agrees.
Malcolm Bastard | Racingfotos.com
He said, “We have six or seven Blue Points and they are nice solid horses who are very good in their minds. They all have nice action about them. They are only just cantering away nicely at this time of year, so it is difficult to say, but the Too Darn Hots and the Blue Points stand out a little bit at the moment. The Blue Points are definitely not early horses, not ours anyway.”
But it's the Too Darn Hots who have set the temperature at Bastard's Wiltshire operation with the renowned handler of young stock particularly impressed by the progeny of the young sire.
“I have about a dozen Too Darn Hots and they are very similar to him. From day one, he cantered like an old pro–he was a beautiful-moving colt–and his progeny seem to be the very same. I think they will be late summer horses, if not autumn horses, like he was. They will be seven furlongs plus and they are not going to be sprinters so he's probably priced right [at 14-1]. You'd expect him to have a really good number of winners by the end of the season and quality horses out of that number as well.”
Hoban may be one of the newest names on the Irish scene but he has made a major impact already. The professional jockey has had two Classic winners, Magical Lagoon (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Sonnyboyliston (Ire) (Power {GB}), through his hands and has built up an impressive portfolio working with Barnane Stud, Yulong Investments, Johnny Murtagh, Eddie Lynam, Jessica Harrington and Paddy Twomey.
Along with the progeny of Blue Point, Hoban nominated Invincible Army (Ire) to throw down an early marker this spring, and said, “I have a very nice Invincible Army colt. He'll be going to one of the breeze-up sales and he seems to be doing everything well. He's the only Invincible Army I have but I'd be keen to recruit more of them at the sales as everything about him is promising. He just has a lovely way of going and nothing seems to phase him. I'm very interested in the sire.”
Hoban added, “I don't have a Ten Sovereigns but there seems to be a bit of chat about them, which is interesting, and the couple of Blue Points that I have are really nice. They are forward-going, are strong and seem to have good minds. I've had a couple of Phoenix Of Spain (Ire)s as well and, while they won't be that precocious, they are well-balanced horses who have great attitudes. They will be more for the second half of the year.”
One man who has his fair share of Ten Sovereigns to work with is O'Brien and he likes what he sees.
“It's early days, obviously, but we've been lucky enough to have accumulated quite a few by Ten Sovereigns and we really like what we are seeing from them,” the trainer said.
McCabe has the biggest sample size to choose from given he has broken in the best part of 100 yearlings to go into training for this year and, while he admits a certain amount of luck is needed for a stallion to break through, he identified a broad spectrum of young sires whose stock has impressed him.
Blue Point: favourite for the first-season sire championship | Racingfotos.com
He said, “I'd be very keen on the Masar (Ire)s and the Too Darn Hots as well. The Blue Points are a sharp bunch and they look as though they will be 2-year-old types and the Too Darn Hots are just beautiful horses. They are lovely to deal with and are all very good-looking horses. We like them a lot.
“The Masars are very similar to the first Night Of Thunder (Ire)s. They're very honest horses and I'd imagine he will be pretty successful. Masar won over seven furlongs as a 2-year-old and was no slouch. He'd a great constitution as a racehorse and, like Night Of Thunder, they come in all different shapes and sizes. They seem to have good minds and are easy to work with.
“I only had one Magna Grecia (Ire) colt but I liked him a lot. He looked like he would be a runner. I have a little filly by Intrinsic (GB) and she goes very well. Intrinsic won a Stewards Cup and his trainer Robert Cowell said that, if he didn't get injured, he'd definitely have been a group horse. He's only had a handful of runners and he's had winners, with one of them [Intrinsic Bond (GB)] achieving an RPR of 101 so he may not be a bad sire at all. I know he's not a first-season sire but we've a lovely Kodi Bear (Ire) as well and I'd be a fan of him as a sire.”
On the championship as a whole, he added, “I used to ride Kheleyf and nobody would have predicted he'd have done what he did at stud. You get horses who you think will do well at stud and they don't do it for whatever reason and then you get others who you think will be basement level and they come up with the goods. It's very hard to predict but, if I was a betting man, I'd be rowing in behind Blue Point to get rocking and rolling early. You need a lot of luck.”
One stallion who is a longer shot at ending the year as the champion first-season sire is Study Of Man but, for different reasons, the stock of the impeccably-bred French Derby winner has impressed Brabazon.
He explained, “We deal more with the owner-breeder type of horse, the one that will be slower to mature, but still, when I go through my list, we've got a nice filly by Magna Grecia and another by Phoenix Of Spain. But if I was to nominate one sire that I am particularly interested in the progeny of, it would have to be Study Of Man, as the two that we have by him are very athletic, hardy and tough types. He could be a very interesting sire and it would be great if Deep Impact (Jpn) had a major influence over here given what he achieved in Japan. He's a horse I will follow with great interest this year. His granddam is Miesque so it is one hell of a pedigree. Saxon Warrior (Jpn) has got going in Ireland so it will be really interesting to see how Study Of Man gets on. Now, it's only February, and I might be talking nonsense at this early stage in the year, but these two Study Of Man fillies have really caught our eye.
“We've only just started out on the Curragh gallops with our 2-year-olds now. I am beside the Old Vic gallop and we've only just started with the colts cantering up the Old Vic now. We'll get the fillies going now soon. It's all about education for me. I am not the trainer, so I let the trainer train them and I only educate them. I am always shouting at the riders to remember they are only babies. Sometimes they start scooting around on them if they start showing a bit but I always try to mind them and turn the horses into a career horse for their owners. I am not going to win any Brocklesbys, I am afraid! I have accepted that at this stage in my life. My aim is for the horse to last. I just lay the foundation for the trainers and then follow the horses' careers with great interest.”
He added, “The riders are so important. Tim Carroll is my main rider and he's just super. He just has a natural feel for a horse and can tell exactly how well each horse is going. If he says this is nice, I take note of what he says. He has picked a few already and he is a fan of the Study Of Mans. They don't all go on the right way but you'd have a fair idea at this stage.”
Similarly, Bastard has seen enough from the progeny of Land Force (Ire), Inns Of Court (Ire) and Ten Sovereigns to suggest that their 2-year-olds can achieve good things on the track this season.
He concluded, “We've had a few Land Forces and they've been quite nice to deal with as well. They've got a bit of size and scope about them and plenty of strength. They have good bone, are nice in their minds and are quite forward-going and they look okay. He might be a bit of a surprise package. He could do well. Inns Of Court is another worth mentioning. I must say, we only had one by Inns Of Court, but he was very nice and I expect him to do very well. We have a few by Ten Sovereigns, who go well but, again, the ones we have seem as though they will want a bit of time. There is nothing really early amongst them but they are nice horses. They are quite scopey.”
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