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In the Footsteps of Nearco, a New Chapter Begins at Beech House

Eighty-five years and a number of equine generations ago, Nearco (Ity) embarked on his stallion career at Beech House Stud. The year was 1939 and, understandably given the age, a bomb shelter was constructed by order of the stud's owner Martin Benson to protect its most prized resident.

Benson had bought the unbeaten Nearco, winner of the Grand Prix de Paris and Derby Italiano, from his breeders Federico Tesio and Mario Incisa della Rochetta for a then-record £60,000 (the equivalent of just over £5 million today). To note that the son of Pharos (GB) became champion sire twice in England is to tell only a fraction of his story. Nearco's influence on the Thoroughbred breed as we know it today has been profound. His son Royal Charger (GB) established a sire-line which includes Hail To Reason and his descendants Halo, Sunday Silence and Deep Impact (Jpn). Another son, Nasrullah (GB), is responsible for several significant branches, including the lines of Bold Ruler, Grey Sovereign (GB), Red God and Never Bend. And then there was Nearco's son Nearctic, the sire of Northern Dancer. Need we say more?

A glance at the official IFHA and Longines world rankings released earlier this week attest to Nearco's continuing dominance. The first nine names on the list are all his direct male descendants, and it takes Cody's Wish and Titleholder (Jpn), from the Mr. Prospector line and in joint-tenth place, to break that run. In second behind Equinox (Jpn), and the joint-top-rated horse in Europe last year was Mostahdaf (Ire), his rating of 128 placing him on a shared mark with Ace Impact (Ire).

Mostahdaf's retirement to the Shadwell stallion roster for 2024 brings a little piece of bloodstock history full circle. Having been based at Nunnery Stud in Thetford for a number of years, Shadwell's collection of British stallions has now returned to Beech House Stud, which was bought by the late Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum in 1990.

Mostahdaf now stands in the box once occupied by Nearco, who is buried at the stud and whose name can be found six generations back on the top line of Mostahdaf's pedigree (among other places), through Frankel (GB), Galileo (Ire), Sadler's Wells, Northern Dancer and Nearctic. Those names alone are enough to provide an entrée to the stallion market. How many sires will be advertised in the years to come with the line 'A son of Frankel'?

As with all horses, though, that's only one half of the equation. Mostahdaf is a result of Sheikh Hamdan's purchase in 2009 of the Dubawi (Ire) filly Handassa (GB). Bought from her breeder Red House Stud for 100,000gns, she is out of a half-sister to the champion sprinters Goodricke (GB) and Pastoral Pursuits (GB) and earned more black type for the family herself when winning the Listed Garnet S. over a mile for Kevin Prendergast.

Nearco being led from his bomb shelter by Ernie Lee in 1941. The photograph is believed to have been taken by Reginald Anscomb

Handassa rang the bell with her third foal, Nazeef (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), winner of the G1 Sun Chariot and G1 Falmouth S. during a high-flying career with John Gosden, and it has been pealing loudly once more thanks to the progressive talents of Mostahdaf.

“He was the highest-rated Prince of Wales's Stakes winner since Dubai Millennium back in 2000. He defeated a long list of Group 1 winners in his two Group 1 wins last year and was a very impressive horse throughout his career,” says Shadwell's Will Wright, whose job it is to encourage breeders to send their mares to the new stallion. That shouldn't be too difficult.

The Royal Ascot triumph was followed by victory in the G1 Juddmonte International. In those back-to-back successes, Mostahdaf had first Luxembourg (Ire), Adayar (Ire) and Bay Bridge (GB) in his wake, then Nashwa (GB) and Paddington (GB). His overall record reads 10 wins from 17 starts and almost £2.5 million in career earnings. Moreover, he is an enticing addition to a line-up in Britain which includes the top-rated turf horse in the world in 2022, Baaeed (GB), and fellow Group 1 winner Mohaather (GB), whose first runners will be seen later this year. It is a young line-up of burgeoning promise, and in Ireland the Shadwell team is completed by two more Group 1 winners, Minzaal (Ire) and Awtaad (Ire).

Shadwell has also recently 'supplied' Baaeed's highly-credentialed brother Hukum (Ire) to Darley Japan and the treble Group 2 winner Mutasaabeq (GB) to the National Stud.

An imposing dark brown stallion, Mostahdaf's wins came between 7f and the 1m4f of the G3 September S. They included two Listed victories at a mile and those crucial Group 1s over 10f and 10.5f. He has the range and scope of a middle-distance horse, with some intriguing sprint elements close up in his family.

“That speed, as we know, is important in the modern-day market,” says Wright. “He's got everything. Obviously [there's] Frankel, and the ability to win stakes races over a mile. He won on debut by four lengths over seven furlongs.”

Anyone who saw Mostahdaf up close at the races last year as a five-year-old would have seen that he was already showing signs of being interested in the next phase of his career, not that his sometimes-noisy intent stopped him compiling his best season on the track. At Beech House in the weak January sunshine, his behaviour is more lamblike. In fact, he is the very picture of relaxed contentment as he stands placidly, his footing being adjusted here and there for the camera by his skilful handler Chris Constantine.

The young Shadwell team, both equine and human, looks to have settled into the new surroundings very happily after crossing the border from Norfolk back to Suffolk.

Wright says, “To have the stallions standing at Beech House is great and has put us back in the heart of Newmarket. It's very exciting to position ourselves in the home of horse racing, and to have our stallions here makes them far more accessible to breeders visiting the sales, etc.

“The move to Beech House is very exciting for all concerned. Obviously this is a stud of great history, being home to past greats Crepello and St Paddy. The list goes on, but obviously Nearco is the headline name here.”

The former presence of the Derby winners Crepello (GB) and St Paddy (GB) hark back to the days of Beech House Stud being owned by their breeder Sir Victor Sassoon. Crepello, too, has a link to Tesio being a son of another of the trainer-breeder's great horses, Donatello (Fr), as does Ribero, another former Beech House stallion and an Irish Derby and St Leger-winning son of Tesio's masterpiece Ribot (GB).

As a final thought, it is worth reflecting on a bloodstock 'Sliding Doors' moment as recounted by Tesio's friend and business partner Mario Inciso della Rochetta in his book 'The Tesios as I Knew Them'.

Incisa tells how Nearco's dam Nogara had been an intended mate for Lord Derby's Fairway (GB), a match carefully plotted by Tesio in the hope that the sizeable Fairway could add substance to the small mare, and his stamina enhance her sprinting race record. A change of stud manager at Woodlands Stud to a new man who had no knowledge of Tesio, meant that Nogara was turned down for Fairway. The mare was thus rerouted to France and Fairway's full-brother Pharos (GB), who was described by Incisa as being physically more compact than his brother. He wrote that Tesio was in despair. That lasted only until the weanling Nearco started to boss his paddock mates at Olgiata, as he would later do to his rivals on the racecourse.

The rest, as they say, is history, and it is a rich one at that. Some six and seven generations removed from Nearco and his appearance at Beech House Stud, three of his many male-line descendants are at his former home and in the early throes of being able to establish their own importance in the bloodstock world.

Will they be modern-day influencers of the breed? Time will tell. But what we do know for sure is that the consequences of Martin Benson's measures to ensure that the less-than-friendly bombs of the Second World War did not fall on Nearco have been far-reaching indeed.

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The Foxes Returns At Southwell

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Thursday's Observations features G2 Dante S. hero The Foxes (Ire) (Churchill {Ire}).

13.00 Southwell, Cond, £25,000, 4yo/up, 11f 23y (AWT)
THE FOXES (IRE) (Churchill {Ire}) may not have hit the heights last term following his G2 Dante S. success, but King Power Racing's class act is back with the slate clean in this Winter Derby Trial Conditions S. Also runner-up in the GI Belmont Derby Invitational, the Andrew Balding trainee is a half-brother to all-weather specialist Matterhorn (Ire) (Raven's Pass) and to stablemate Bangkok (Ire) (Australia {GB}) who also proved proficient on the Polytrack having garnered last year's Betway Easter Classic All-Weather Middle Distance Championships Conditions S.

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‘He’s Put Us On The Map’ – Capital Stud Boss Puts Faith Behind Authorized

Capital Stud boss Ger O'Neill has revealed that Authorized (Ire) will stand for a similar fee to dominant National Hunt stallion Walk In The Park (Ire) and outlined his hopes that the new recruit to the County Kilkenny operation will help raise the relatively new outfit's profile amongst Irish breeders.

O'Neill's perseverance paid off in securing the 20-year-old Derby winner and sire of Tiger Roll (Ire), one of the most famous jumps horses of the modern era, from the Jockey Club of Turkey for what he described as “a frightening” sum of money earlier this month.

No insurance could be secured for Authorized, which added to the risks involved in stumping up the cash for the sire who once again made headlines recently when exciting youngster Readin Tommy Wrong (Ire) remained unbeaten for Willie Mullins when landing the Grade 1 Lawlor's Of Naas Novice Hurdle.

“It's either cracked or clever, I'm not sure which one,” O'Neill joked, brushing off the magnitude of the risk involved in shuttling a 20-year-old stallion back to Ireland. “I asked a lot of industry leaders what their favourite National Hunt Stallion was before getting the deal done and, nine times out of 10, Authorized was pretty high up the list.

“Ask anyone what their top three stallions are and you are likely to be told Blue Bresil (Fr), Walk In The Park and Authorized. If you look at the sales, he had a €109,000 average for his three-year-olds between France and Ireland in 2023. The market really wanted him here and we were delighted to go and get him.”

O'Neill added, “Like a lot of studs, we had asked about buying him 12 months ago and it was a definite no. It was probably through perseverance that we got there in the end. They put a price on him that was, to be honest, not very realistic, but we got a group of people together and started to do the figures on it.

“I mean, it's a huge move to buy him, but I think he's going to do really well for the Irish breeders. Not only that, but he's going to be great for our stud and has put us on the map alongside the likes of Coolmore and Rathbarry for being one of the bigger National Hunt studs now. With Triple Threat (Fr) joining the National Hunt side of our roster recently, to go with Mirage Dancer (GB) and Hunting Horn (Ire), who were already here, we believe we have something for every kind of jumps breeder.”

Along with Tiger Roll and more recently Readin Tommy Wrong, Authorized has been represented by Stayers' Hurdle winner Nichols Canyon (GB), Irish Grand National winner I Am Maximus (GB), and fellow high-class jumpers Goshen (Fr) and Echoes In Rain (Fr).

His return to Ireland, 15 years after he stood at Kildangan Stud, will be a major boost for Irish breeders, according to O'Neill, who said the people in the ownership group of the stallion convinced him to plough on and get the deal done.

“Donnchadh Doyle, Darragh McCarthy, Jerry Horan and a good few others have gotten involved,” he explained. “Jerry, to be fair to him, has been with us from the start and is a great man to have on board. He's a well-liked character in the industry and is very knowledgeable. He's been a great fella to have on our side. Greg Broderick, the Irish International Show Jumper, is also involved. There's a big group of us and it's a big leap of faith, but you can't go around worrying about what might happen if it doesn't work out.”

O'Neill added, “We bought him with no insurance. We tried everywhere to get insurance but it just wasn't possible. But look, things happen in Show Jumping every day. Horses go lame and their value plummets. That's just part and parcel of the sport. It's the same with working with stallions and, if something were to happen to Authorized, it would obviously be a huge blow but that's the risk we were willing to take. Donnchadh Doyle is one of the bravest men I know and his advice was to plough on and get him bought. We know the risk involved and, the upside of the whole thing is, if we can get a few years out of him, it could be very beneficial for the industry.

“Not only that but, after Willie and Jackie Mullins heard that we were after buying Authorized, they booked in a load of their mares to us. Some of the biggest studs in Ireland have four and five mares booked into him. A lot of people are going to breed to him and race the progeny so I don't think you're going to see huge numbers of them ending up in the sales ring. The aim is that he will cover over 100 mares but if he can cover 150, we'll do it. Blue Bresil and Walk In The Park have covered over 200 apiece in the past few years but we don't foresee Authorized reaching those numbers. We're happy that, if he can cover over 100 mares and is happy here, we'll be happy as well.”

It's not just jumps stallions that breeders can avail of at Capital Stud. Alkumait (GB), the G2 Mill Reef Stakes-winning half-brother to the 2,000 Guineas hero Chaldean (GB), had his first foals in 2023 while G3 Marble Hill S. winner Castle Star (Ire) is another recent addition to the ranks. Both horses stand for €5,000.

O'Neill said, “We're trying to add to the roster all the time. We started out with Hunting Horn. Darragh McCarthy is one of the founders of Capital Stud and he probably had more of a desire to stand stallions than I did initially. When Hunting Horn came on the radar, we took the decision to go and buy him. Things have really snowballed from there.

“Mirage Dancer was another brilliant horse to be able to get at the time. He won his Group 1 down in Australia. He has a huge pedigree and, when we saw a video of him walking, we were all blown away by him. Then Triple Threat has gone down very well as well. There are 100 mares booked into Triple Threat already and Harold Kirk, for example, is one person who really believes in him.”

He added, “But the Flat side of the operation is really growing, too. We got an amazing update with Alkumait when Chaldean came out and won the 2,000 Guineas and, not long after that, his sister [Get Ahead (GB) (Showcasing {GB})] made 2.5m gns at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale. His foals sold very well last year. Castle Star is another good addition and the ownership group in him are going to throw everything behind him. That's another thing about our business model, we will try and support the breeders that use our stallions from the bottom to the top, and hopefully that will be mutually beneficial for the two of us going forward.”

The arrival of Authorized comes at a time when the National Hunt Sales in Britain and Ireland have been dominated by two stallions; Walk In The Park and Blue Bresil. O'Neill says he is confident that Authorized can shake up things at the upper end of the market and, in doing so, entice further footfall to the stud.

He said, “We're going to have an open day for Authorized in February and would encourage people to come and see him. He wasn't here on time for the Irish Stallion Trail but a lot of people came to visit and see the place off the back of the announcement that he was coming.

“The other thing I would say about Authorized is, he could do his bit to attract breeders to the place. The breeder who rings up to use him, they might have another mare for Triple Threat, or even Mirage Dancer and Hunting Horn. He's helped us lift our game.”

Capital Stud has come a long way since Hunting Horn and Mirage Dancer joined the roster only four years ago. O'Neill, who is best known as an Irish International Show Jumper, has been able to fast-track its emergence as a pretty serious outfit through his exploits in that sphere but the hope is that Capital Stud can maintain its progression and rival the big boys. It is thought that the addition of Authorized will aid that process.

“My background is in Show Jumping. I am an Irish International Show Jumper and am lucky enough to have won a few Nations Cups. I've always had an interest in breeding and rode in a few point-to-points when I was younger. From that, I rode out for Mags Mullins and really enjoyed that and have kept my eye in on the racing after I returned to the Show Jumping. I said I'd dip my toe in the breeding game and four years later we're really getting stuck in.”

O'Neill added, “We'd like to get as big as we can. We are very motivated to make Capital Stud better and are excited to see how far we can go in this industry. It's a very hard business but it's an enjoyable one and I'd love nothing more than to be standing one of the big-name Flat stallions. That's the goal. If we don't hit that goal, fine, but it won't be for a lack of trying. We're always on the lookout to find the next big stallion and the foundations are in place for us to kick on and make Capital Stud one of the major destinations for National Hunt and Flat breeders alike.”

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Winning Profitable 3-Year-Old Joins Tattersalls February Sale

Billy Webster (Ire) (Profitable {Ire}) (lot 275A), a winner of three of his four starts, has been added to the Tattersalls February Sale, which takes place on Feb. 1-2.

Offered by George Scott's Eve Lodge Stables, the dark bay wildcard is owned by H E Redha Munfaredi and is rated 97 by Timeform off a dominant 1000-metre win at Southwell on Jan. 6. A son of the Nayef mare Some Site (Ire), he is her lone winner. His second dam is GIII Matchmaker S. winner Horatia (Ire) (Machiavellian), who foaled the G3 Pinnacle S. winner Moment In Time (Ire) (Tiger Hill {Ire}), who was third in the GI E. P. Taylor S. at Woodbine.

To view the complete Tattersalls February Sale catalogue, please click here.

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