‘He’s Everything Clive Cox Said He’d Be’: Caturra Takes To The Ropes

The winds of change have blown through Overbury Stud in the last year. Gone is the stalwart of the British National Hunt ranks, Kaya Tara (GB), who died in retirement in December at the age of 28. Last summer the Gloucestershire farm had welcomed the horse that many will hope could be his replacement, Golden Horn (GB), bought from Anthony Oppenheimer by Jayne McGivern as his burgeoning National Hunt statistics caught many an eye. Then, at the other end of the spectrum, in came Caturra (Ire) last autumn, the first son of Mehmas (Ire) to stand in Britain and, judging by early demand, a welcome addition to the more commercial end of the stallion ranks in the UK.

“The response has been tremendous,” says Overbury Stud's Simon Sweeting, who may well be giving serious consideration to installing a revolving door on the covering barn. “He has got some super mares. His owner, Saeed bin Mohammed Al Qassimi, has really got behind him and he's bought some lovely mares, especially for him. And obviously he is determined that he succeeds, like we all are. But we've got some tremendous support from people that I would consider to be really good breeders. Nick Bradley is sending at least six mares, Fiona Denniff is supporting him, Whatton Manor Stud, Richard Kent, Paul Shanahan has a share in him. Byerley Stud and Houghton Bloodstock are also sending a lot. Good, sensible breeders who produce winners have got behind him, so hopefully that's going to give him a chance.”

The saying goes that if something ain't broke, don't fix it, and for the team at Overbury, it was well worth taking a chance on Caturra so soon after the early success of Ardad (Ire), who was Britain's leading first-season sire in 2021, and whose stand-out son, the treble Group 1 winner Perfect Power (Ire), has recently joined Darley's team of stallions at Dalham Hall Stud. 

It is easy to join the dots: Ardad, Caturra, and Perfect Power were all bred by Tally-Ho Stud, where Ardad's sire Kodiac (GB) has stood with distinction for years, and which is also home to Mehmas. Furthermore, both Ardad and Caturra won the G2 Flying Childers S. Ironically, this was also the race that was seemingly at the mercy of Cotai Glory (GB) when he jinked and unseated George Baker. Seven years later, Cotai Glory, who also stands at Tally-Ho Stud, edged out Ardad to be the leading freshman sire of Europe.

“It's extraordinary how Tally-Ho keep producing horses like this, but they do. And we're very lucky to be the beneficiaries further down the line,” admits Sweeting. 

This week scientists at University College Dublin and PlusVital have published research which has identified genes associated with stress in the racehorse, and it serves as a timely reminder as to the importance of that magical ingredient in a horse's make-up which is every bit as important as ability: temperament. This is a trait which has often been spoken about in regard to Mehmas himself, who was famously so laidback as an early juvenile in his days with breeze-up pinhooker Roger Marley that he barely paid the son of Acclamation (GB) any attention–until he started galloping.

Caturra hails from the second crop of Mehmas and, according to his former trainer Clive Cox, and now to Sweeting, he appears to have adopted a similar no-nonsense approach to life. 

“He's absolutely brilliant. He really is just a very straightforward horse,” Sweeting says. “He enjoys the routine. He's very relaxed about the way that we do things with him, seeing a lot of the other horses like mares and foals in the same yard as him, and the other stallions. He's quite happy and relaxed out in the paddock, and he's taken to the covering tremendously. He's everything, in fact, that Clive Cox said he would be. He does what you want, as he did when he was in training.”

He continues, “He's getting more than his fair share of mares in foal. It's obviously the slower part of the season, so he is not under pressure. But he's getting them in foal with great regularity. So we are really pleased with the early results. He's very virile, and he's got a great libido.”

Sweeting adds, “Temperament is obviously such an important thing because, I keep saying it to people: if the trainers like them, then you've got half a chance. But if the trainers don't like them, if they haven't got a good attitude, they can very quickly turn against them and then you are sunk before you even start.”

Caturra is out of the Sleeping Indian (GB) mare Shoshoni Wind (GB), a decent handicapper over five and six furlongs, with three wins to her name and a runner-up finish in the Listed Empress S. at Newmarket. Though he has predominantly speed influences close up in his pedigree, the four-year-old's third dam, Pat Or Else (GB) (Alzao), is a half-sister to the St Leger and Gold Cup winner Classic Cliche (Ire) (Salse) and to Yorkshire Oaks and Prix Vermeille victrix My Emma (GB) (Marju {Ire}). With around 115 mares currently booked to him, Caturra clearly will be given a good chance to try to emulate the start made by his own sire in Ireland, and by his fellow Overbury resident, Ardad, whose popularity continues with 145 mares booked in to date. 

“We did wonder when we started him how Caturra would impact on Ardad or vice versa,” Sweeting says. “But actually they're in two different brackets. One is proven and one is not. And they are two very different things for breeders to pick out and reasons for them to use either one. 

“Caturra at the moment is a good level below [Ardad] in price, although a very similar type of horse at the start. But Ardad, he just feels very established now, and particularly having another stakes winner at the weekend, he just feels like he's done it and people can rely on him. You know you're going to get a good-looking horse, you know you've got the potential of a racehorse, and you know that people are going to like them at the sales. Whereas Caturra, you're paying a lot less money, but of course he has to prove himself, so they are in two different places in the market.”

While the two young sprint stallions are clearly going to be kept busy this covering season, busier still will be the Derby and Arc winner Golden Horn. He is listed as having covered 152 mares in his final year at Darley, and his book will be just as full this time around, with the Cheltenham Festival winner Concertista (Fr) (Nathaniel {Ire}) among a line-up of smart jumping mares to be paying him a visit.

“He is going to be busier than all of the others,” Sweeting notes. “We're lucky. We've got a great covering team. We've got a good system and it works pretty well. It is a busy time of year but I am certainly not going to complain about that. When you've got three or four horseboxes there, three times a day, it's a good sign.”

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British EBF Support Tops £2 Million

Edited Press Release

For the first time in the 40-year history of the organisation, the British European Breeders' Fund will increase its contribution to prize money to £2 million.

“Britain continues to be recognised for the quality of its stallion market: we stand promising young sires and established producers of Champions,” said British EBF Chairman Simon Sweeting. “The support of all our stallion owners to the British

EBF means we can support well over 700 flat races in 2023 with £1.9million, our biggest commitment to date. With our National Hunt programmes considered too, the British EBF contribution is over £2 million, directly to racing's prize money. It is a genuine enhancement of the value of the race programme, with a particular focus on developmental races and projects that protect the diversity of the race programme and, ultimately, the Thoroughbred.”

Areas of the programme that will benefit from the extra support include juvenile developmental races, sire/dam-restricted 2-year-old races and a small series of novice and maidens for 3-year-olds.

“Some of our established high-value Novice and Maiden races at premier fixtures will benefit from extra funding. Our successful sire/dam-restricted races will receive a boost as an important cross-industry initiative to encourage the production of quality stayers in Britain. We are also supporting the BHA in special projects to strengthen developmental opportunities in the older horse programme.

“This is in addition to our long-standing commitments to our high-value fillies' and mares' handicaps, designed to retain mares in GB and give them productive targets throughout the season, and of course, our flagship British EBF £100,000 2yo Series finals founded last year.”

The British EBF 2yo Series covers over 140 qualifying races and is capped by a finale for fillies at Goodwood and one for colts and geldings at York, each worth £100,000. It aims to support the commercial end of the sales and stallion market by utilising Restricted Novice and Maiden races as qualifiers. A number of these, now supported by long standing EBF contributor Juddmonte, are to be run at £30,000, making them valuable qualifying targets on the way to the finals.

In 2022, David Mensuisier's €13,000 purchase Munch (GB) (New Bay {GB}) claimed the fillies' final at Goodwood. The race went on to produce subsequent Listed Winterkonigin Trial winner Sirona (Ger) (Soldier Hollow {GB}). The colts' final was won by the unbeaten Eve Johnson Houghton trained Streets of Gold (Ire) (Havana Gold {Ire}), a £27,000 Tattersalls Ireland purchase whose spring target is the G1 2000 Guineas. The race also produced Legend of Xanadu (GB) (Sixties Icon {GB}) who went on to with the Listed Doncaster S. at the end of last season.

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Foal Trade Reaches New High at Tattersalls

NEWMARKET, UK–A pair of colts by the young Darley and Shadwell stallions Masar (Ire) and Mohaather (GB) shared the top spot on the final day of foal trade at Park Paddocks which brought the curtain down, not just on a record week for weanlings but also a record year for Tattersalls–and that's before the Mares Sale even begins.

The average and median for the fourth session were both up on last year, with a total of 2,267,750gns added to the overall tally from the sale of 150 foals. For the sale as a whole, the aggregate of 35,255,050gns represented an increase of 13% on last year's trade, with the average up by 11% at 47,386gns and the median by 4% to 26,000gns. From a larger catalogue of 1,173 foals, of which 983 were offered and 744 sold, the only figure to drop was the clearance rate, which was down to 76% from 81%.

Commenting on a week led by a million-guinea Kingman (GB) foal from Whitsbury Manor Stud, Tattersalls chairman Edmond Mahony said, “Strong yearling sales will always drive demand for foals and the extraordinary strength of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sales has been followed by a Tattersalls December Foal Sale which has achieved significant increases in average and median as well as a record turnover in excess of 35 million guineas. The cream of the British and Irish foal crop has been assembled here at Park Paddocks and buyers at every level of the market and from throughout the world have all contributed to yet another record-breaking sale in a year of extraordinary sales at Tattersalls.”

 

Sweeting's Surprise

On the day that Overbury Stud announced that it would be standing G2 Flying Childers S. winner Caturra (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) next year, the farm's draft took co-top billing when selling a Masar (Ire) half-brother to this season's Lingfield Oaks Trial winner Rogue Millennium (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) for 110,000gns to Yeomanstown Stud.

The colt was born three months after his dam, the G3 Cumberland Lodge S. winner Hawaafez (GB) (Nayef), was sold by her breeder Shadwell for 14,000gns to Richard Brown of Blandford Bloodstock, who, unbeknown to Overbury's Simon Sweeting, bought the 14-year-old mare on his behalf. Three days after she safely foaled her Masar colt, his 3-year-old sister Rogue Millennium stormed to her listed victory. Enhancing the pedigree further was the victory earlier this month of 2-year-old Naomi Lapaglia (GB) (Awtaad {Ire}),  who won on debut at Kempton for Richard Spencer.

“I wasn't around and [Richard] did it himself,” said Sweeting. “It looked like a chancey buy to start with but the mare was an exceptional racehorse and Rogue Millennium has come along, and everything else has landed into place. The 2-year-old is now one for one and her Kingman yearling has gone to trainer George Boughey.”

He added, “It is definitely a progressive family. That sale did take me by surprise, but it is a lovely surprise to have. He was a late foal, but he has been very straightforward and everything has worked out well.”

 

Shadwell Restock With Classy Foals

While the Masar colt was one that escaped the Shadwell clutches, some new recruits have been added to the future racing string for Sheikha Hissa, with Angus Gold signing for seven foals this week, including the day's other 110,000gns colt, by first-season sire Mohaather.

“Obviously, we are a bit biased,” Gold confessed. “Mohaather was a very special horse for us. We thought he was slightly underrated if anything. For me, what he did at Goodwood that day in the Sussex S. was out of the ordinary. I haven't seen a horse quicken like that since Kingman in the same race.”

He continued, “So we are big fans and I have liked the stock I have seen. What I particularly liked is that, leading into this week, lots of people have told me that they have a really nice Mohaather foal, which is great to hear. We bought one two days ago, and the vendor told me they had an even better one at home. There are some really good vibes about him.”

Gold indicated that Shadwell will have around 75 to 80 horses in training in 2023 and, having sold a number of mares last year, the stud has a foal crop of only around 35.

“I spoke with Sheikha Hissa and she was keen to get some foals to supplement the racing team, if we could buy at relatively sensible money,” he added.

Tom Blain, more usually seen at the head of his expanding Barton Stud consignment, was one of the breeders of the Mohaather colt under the name of Ickworth Stud. The colt is the first foal of the Exceed And Excel (Aus) mare Time Of Change (Ire), a sister to the G2 Gimcrack S. runner-up Taajub (Ire).

“Time For Change is owned in partnership, it is a great thrill and I am delighted for all involved,” Blain said. “It was a bit weird to watch one of our own sell. We bought the mare for 9,000gns and I know the family as we used to board her dam Purple Tiger. There is a lot happening under the second dam.

He added of the colt, “I think he should make up into a serious racehorse and I just want to thank Angus for his support. It is great that Shadwell and Sheikha Hissa are backing their own stallion; we used him a number of times in the first year so we are really happy.”

Mohaather's name featured three times in the top 10 list on Saturday, with Tally-Ho Stud buying another from the Barton Stud draft, a filly out of Muaamara (GB) (Bahamian Bounty {GB}), for 68,000gns, while Cathy Grassick went to 50,000gns for a filly from Whatcote Farm Stud who is a three-parts-sister to recent juvenile winner American Sonja (GB) (Tasleet {GB}).

 

Freshman Action

As our accompanying vox pop shows, one of the talking points for the bloodstock industry at this time of the year is always which young stallions are taking the eye–and which are not.

Of course, what really matters is what their offspring end up doing on the track, and there will be plenty of disappointments and surprises to come next summer and beyond, but the foal sales always provide a first litmus test of a stallion's progeny.

Ghaiyyath (Ire), as a top-class performer himself, and with two Classic winners as parents, should have what it takes for a decent stud career, and plenty of buyers have backed him at Goffs and Tattersalls. This week his 10 weanlings sold returned an average of 130,700gns, and the only other first-season sire to set a six-figure average was Ghaiyyath's fellow Darley sire Pinatubo (Ire). He only had a handful of foals for sale this week but the quintet changed hands for an average of 126,400gns.

Earthlight (Ire), like Pinatubo a son of Shamardal, also proved popular with 12 sold at and average of 56,500gns, while Mohaather, referenced above, had 21 weanlings sold this week at an average of 41,881gns.

 

The Key Players

With a million-guinea filly in its draft, it was no surprise to see Whitsbury Manor Stud at the top of the consignors' table with 19 foals sold for 2,201,500gns. Norelands Stud posted a decent average for the sale of 123,667gns for nine sold, with Langton Stud's boutique draft had three sold for an average of 248,333gns.

Juddmonte's outlay of 2,425,000gns on Friday put them at the top of the buyers' list but noted pinhookers Tally-Ho Stud, JC Bloodstock and Yeomanstown Stud were all as busy as ever, with 15, 14, and 13 foals bought, respectively.

Concluding his appraisal of the week's trade, Edmond Mahony continued, “To see so many British and Irish breeders rewarded so handsomely this week reflects the quality of the stock which they have brought to the market and we should thank the consignors for their confidence in the Tattersalls December Foal Sale. In addition to Whitsbury Manor Stud's outstanding one million guineas sale-topping Kingman filly, the sale has produced the four highest-priced foals in Europe and a record-equalling 27 foals sold for 200,000 guineas or more.”

He added, “While the December Foal Sale is always dominated by the tireless and loyal British and Irish pinhookers, their European counterparts have also made their presence felt, as have a significant number of the world's leading owners who recognise the December Foal Sale as a consistent source of Classic and Group 1 performers. It is no coincidence that the connections of the Group 1-winning 2-year-olds Blackbeard (Ire) and Chaldean (GB), both bought at the 2020 December Foal Sale, have again targeted this sale, and international buyers from America, China, France, Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, Spain, Switzerland and from throughout the Gulf region have also made significant contributions, particularly at the top of the market.

“The international influence will without doubt be even stronger as we move on to the Tattersalls December Mares Sale which starts on Monday and features the inaugural Sceptre Sessions for elite fillies and broodmares. We have an exceptional catalogue which includes some of the best race fillies and mares to be offered at public auction for many a year and we look forward to ending the Tattersalls year on a high note.”

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Caturra Retires to Overbury Stud

The G2 Flying Childers S. winner Caturra (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}–Shoshoni Wind {GB}, by Sleeping Indian {GB}) has joined the roster at Overbury Stud in a deal brokered by Richard Brown of Blandford Bloodstock. His opening fee will be £6,500.

The 3-year-old will be available for viewing in Newmarket this week from Sunday to Wednesday at Crockfords, opposite the rear entrance of Tattersalls.

The arrival of Caturra at the Gloucestershire stud has echoes of Ardad (Ire), the leading first-season sire in Britain in 2021. Both horses were bred by Tally-Ho Stud and won the Flying Childers, having been bought by Brown as youngsters–Ardad at the breeze-up sales and Caturra as a yearling for 110,000gns from Tattersalls October Book 2.

Caturra was trained by Clive Cox for Saeed bin Mohammed al Qassimi and won as early as the May of his juvenile season before going on to land the Listed Rose Bowl S. at Newbury and gaining his Group 2 success. This season he has added further group placings in the G3 Prix Sigy at Chantilly and the G2 King George S. at Goodwood.

“He's got everything a top juvenile needs: great physical maturity–and he's an outstanding model–but also a wonderful mind. From the moment he stepped in the yard, he was a natural for Royal Ascot,” said Cox.

“The Flying Childers win was very special. To be able to accelerate off fast sprinting pace like he did–that really takes some doing. I loved the way he'd really get his head down to gallop. And so straightforward: I've never had a sprinter with such a sober attitude. Caturra had a lie down at the races when he arrived at Doncaster. That's rare! He saves all his energy for when he needs it, and he's a lovely, kind horse to work with. I am very confident he'd have been competitive at the highest level again at four.”

Caturra is a member of the second crop of Mehmas, who set a new world record in 2020 with 56 first-crop juvenile winners.

Richard Brown commented, “Caturra is the fastest son of Mehmas, and he won the same big race as Ardad. Those are two of the biggest names in the commercial market, and Caturra– who's a particularly good-looking horse–has every chance of joining them. He's just like Ardad.”

Overbury Stud will be offering a number of breeding rights in Caturra. Manager Simon Sweeting said, “We are keeping things simple: these are the same terms Ardad started at, and if ever there was a second Ardad, this is this horse. A fast and notably precocious Flying Childers winner by a top commercial stallion, just like Ardad. And, if anything, Caturra is even better looking, with a most lovely head and bags of strength and quality. We're really looking forward to showing him to breeders during the December Sales.”

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