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Value Sires Part 4: First 2-Year-Olds

The wait is very nearly over for the young pretenders we will examine in this fourth installation of our multi-part Value Sires series: stallions with their first runners in 2021. While the full verdicts must be delayed until these are given a fair shake with their first full seasons with 2- and 3-year-olds, the reality is that the first juvenile races in the coming months will be akin to a perpetual Christmas morning in the bloodstock world, with each of us eager to unwrap the packages we have been examining and investing in over the past three years and reveal what is inside.

While we will refer heavily to yearling sale averages throughout this commentary, the reality is that we can't come close to knowing what is there until these sires' youngsters hit the racecourses. Last year's first-season sire sensation Mehmas (Ire) was all the way down in 10th on the 2019 first-crop yearling average table, while runner-up Adaay (Ire) was 14th and French standout Goken (Fr) in 23rd. Nonetheless, we will take one last crack at predicting who we may be applauding come season's end.

Darley's Profitable (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) made a strong debut at the foal sales in 2019 with an average 2.7x his stud fee, and the G1 King's Stand S. winner continued to live up to his name last year at the yearling sales.

He led his cohort by both number offered and sold (97 and 82) yet despite those whopping numbers managed to uphold an average 3.9x his opening fee of €12,000 at Kildangan Stud: €46,428/£41,899-seventh overall on the freshman table. His median of €38,536/£34,776 (3.2x) indicated, too, that quality resonated throughout the bunch. Profitable was a winner at two, a five-furlong listed winner at three and King's Stand scorer at four who is by the right sire in Invincible Spirit, and he remained popular with breeders last year covering 156 mares after covering 182 and 142 in his first and second seasons. Profitable was well-priced from the start at €12,000 and held his fee over his first three seasons, but in a year where most everything is being trimmed he is down to €10,000 at Kildangan Stud in 2021.

Profitable was superseded in price on the Kildangan roster in 2018 by fellow newcomer and Royal Ascot Group 1 winner Ribchester (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}), who won the 2017 Queen Anne S. among four top-level victories going a mile.

Ribchester started out at €30,000 but is available for €17,500 this year after covering 129 mares in 2020. Ribchester was the fourth-leading first-season sire at the yearling sales last year, with 68 sold for an average of €66,659/£60,156, 2.2x their covering fee. Ribchester won the G2 Mill Reef S. at two, the

G1 Prix Jacques le Marois at three and the G1 Lockinge S., G1 Queen Anne and G1 Prix du Moulin at four and was rated 124. He has the added benefit of being by Iffraaj, whose Wootton Bassett (GB) went to a new level in 2020.

The leading first-season sire by average at the yearling sales last year was Coolmore's dual Group 1-winning sprinter Caravaggio (Scat Daddy), who had 64 sell from 81 offered for an average of €108,452/£97,871 (3.1x his debut fee of €35,000) and a median of €76,003/£68,588 (2.17x). After seeing his fee rise a shade to €40,000 for 2020 after he was leading first-crop sire at the foal sales in 2019, Caravaggio was last fall packed off to Ashford Stud in Kentucky to continue his career at $25,000. With 217 mares-the highest for a new flat sire–having visited Caravaggio in 2018, however, it is likely his presence will still be keenly felt in Europe. Caravaggio was a supremely talented sprinter who won the G1 Phoenix S. at the end of an unbeaten 2-year-old campaign and added the G1 Commonwealth Cup at three over subsequent champion sprinters Harry Angel (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) and Blue Point (Ire) (Shamardal) before retiring with a rating of 120.

Caravaggio is one of two sons of Scat Daddy in this sire intake; the other is Yeomanstown's El Kabeir, who was likewise popular at the yearling sales, averaging 3.3x his opening €8,000 stud fee at €26,544/£23,955 from 60 sold. El Kabeir won the 1700m

GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. at two and the following spring took a pair of Kentucky Derby prep races, the GIII Jerome S. and the GIII Gotham S., over the same trip. After proving popular enough to hold his debut fee for his first three seasons, El Kabeir is down to €6,000 for 2021.

Checking in second to Caravaggio on average was French flagbearer Almanzor (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), who had 53 yearlings sell for an average of €97,960/£88,403 (2.8x his first-year fee of €35,000) and a median of €76,889/£69,388 (2.2x). Almanzor sees his fee trimmed for the first time this year to €30,000 at Haras d'Etreham. The winner of the G1 Prix du Jockey Club and the G1 Irish Champion S. and G1 Champion S. over Found (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) as a 3-year-old, Almanzor was rated 129 and named Cartier champion 3-year-old. His popularity heading into this crucial fourth season will only have been helped by the ascendant year enjoyed by his sire Wootton Bassett in 2020.

The Galileo Gang

Galileo (Ire) has a great shot to bolster his already prolific record as a sire of sires with six high-class sons in this class. Chief among them on the yearling averages-and the joint priciest when they retired with Caravaggio and Almanzor-is the dual Guineas and four-time Group 1 winner Churchill (Ire), who had 67 yearlings sell for an average of €93,319/£84,215 (2.7x his €35,000 fee). Winner of Royal Ascot's Listed Chesham S. in his second start, Churchill ticked off the G3 Tyros S., G2 Futurity S., G1 National S.–beating Mehmas (Ire)–and G1 Dewhurst S. to earn champion 2-year-old honours, and added the English and Irish Guineas' the following spring. Churchill is a grandson of the G1 Cheveley Park S. winner Airwave (GB) (Air Express {Ire}) and his dam, Meow (Ire) (Storm Cat) was second in the G2 Queen Mary S. and has produced the Cheveley Park winner Clemmie (Ire) and the G3 Diamond S. scorer Blenheim Palace (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) from subsequent matings to Galileo. Dual Group 1 winner Ulysses (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) finished fifth on the averages table, his 39 sold averaging €60,202/£54,329–

that was 2x his opening fee of £30,000 at Cheveley Park Stud, and should his first crop take off the breeders who have used him more recently stand to reap the benefits: he has dropped steadily to £17,500, £15,000, and is down to £10,000 in 2021. It us unlikely, however, that we will see the best of his offspring this season; he himself ran just once at the back end of his 2-year-old campaign and came into his own the summer of his 3-year-old year prior to winning the G1 Coral-Eclipse and the G1 Juddmonte International (the latter over Churchill) at four. Rated 126, Ulysses is by a Derby winner and out of an Oaks winner, his dam being the stoutly bred Kingmambo mare Light Shift.

Another later-developing multiple Group 1-winning son of Galileo is the Irish National Stud's Decorated Knight (GB), who is this year down to €7,500 from an opening fee of €15,000, with the INS having recently announced that breeders using the horse this year will receive a bonus nomination in 2022. Like Ulysses, it would be a surprise to see the Decorated Knights out running early this year, he having run just once at two and having done his best work at five, when he won the G1 Jebel Hatta, G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup and G1 Irish Champion S. either side of finishing unplaced behind Ulysses in both the Coral-Eclipse and Juddmonte International. It will be an interesting study in genetics, however, to see whether or where the precocity of Decorated Knight's female family shines through; his dam, Pearling (Storm Cat), is a full-sister to Giant's Causeway and You'resothrilling, both pattern race winners at two, with You'resothrilling having already produced the juvenile Group 1 winners Gleneagles (Ire) and Happily (Ire) by Galileo.

Highland Reel (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) is likely best remembered for his middle-distance Group 1 wins at the Breeders' Cup, Royal Ascot and Hong Kong International meeting at four and five, but the whole story is that he was a supremely talented and tough top-level competitor from two onwards. Highland Reel won the G2 Vintage S. at two and the GI Secretariat S. and his first G1 Hong Kong Vase at three during a season in which he ran in six different countries. He added the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. and the GI Breeders' Cup Turf at four in addition to seconds in the G1 Juddmonte International, G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and the Hong Kong Vase. As good as ever at five, Highland Reel took the G1 Coronation Cup, G1 Prince of Wales's S. and a second Hong Kong Vase and was placed in the Breeders' Cup Turf and G1 Champion S. The quest to breed a horse of Highland Reel's constitution is what the foundation of the Thoroughbred breed is built on, and a flashy pedigree indicates he was no fluke. Highland Reel's yearling average was bolstered by the 320,000gns half-brother to Palace Pier (GB), but he nonetheless sits 10th on the table at €33,007/£29,787 for 53 sold. Like Ulysses, Highland Reel is down to €10,000 this year from a debut €17,500, so merits a hard look by breeders.

Galileo has two classy sons in France among this group. After three years at Elwick Stud at £6,000, the GI Woodbine Mile and GI Arlington Million scorer Mondialiste (Ire) relocates to Haras d'Annebault at €4,000. The harsh reality is that he did not even win a race until midway through his 3-year-old season and has covered small books, so stud success will be an uphill battle for Mondialiste, but nonetheless his yearlings didn't go unnoticed last year; they sold for up to 60,000gns and 47,000gns at Tattersalls. Likewise, his pedigree says 'sire': he is out of the dual Group 1-winning Occupandiste (Ire) (Kaldoun {Fr}) and a half-brother to G2 Prix de Sandringham scorer Impressionnante (GB) (Danehill), the dam of Intello (Ger) (Galileo {Ire}).

Flying the flag at Haras de Montfort et Preaux is The Queen's Recorder (GB) (Galileo {Ire}), who made a solid start at the yearling sales with 31 sold from 39 offered at an average of €16,010/£14,448 off a €6,000 fee that is now down to €4,000. Recorder won the G3 Acomb S. at two and is out of the G2 Cherry Hinton S. winner Memory (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}).

The Dubawi Trio

While Galileo has a good chance in the coming seasons to bolster his already lofty reputation as a sire of sires, so too does Dubawi (Ire), who had three sons among the top 10 freshman sires at the yearling sales last year. The G3 Jersey S. winner Time Test (GB) was well priced from the outset by the National Stud at £8,500 and is one of very few horses to maintain his fee through his first four seasons. Out of the Group 1-winning Dansili (GB) mare Passage Of Time (GB), Time Test won the Jersey and the G2 Joel S. at three and the G3 Brigadier Gerard S. and G2 York S. over 2000 metres at four before relocating to America, where he was twice Grade I-placed. His 46 yearlings offered last year clearly caught the eye, with 39 sold for an average of €37,957/£34,254 that was an excellent 4.5x his stud fee and good for seventh on the first-season sires' table.

One slot behind him was Dubawi's four-time Group 1 winner Postponed (Ire), whose 25 yearlings sold averaged €35,358/£31,909. Postponed was among the best of his generation at four and five, winning the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. and the following year the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic, G1 Coronation Cup and G1 Juddmonte International consecutively, but despite the fact that he also comes from a solid pedigree, being a grandson of the G1 Moyglare Stud S. winner Bianca Nera (GB) (Salse) and a half-brother to Group 1 winner God Given (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}), his fee has been on a steady slide and is this year down to £7,500 from a debut £20,000. If he proves the next Night Of Thunder (Ire) or even New Bay (GB), however, those using him for four figures this year will doubtless get the last laugh.

Like Time Test, Haras de Bonneval's G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud scorer Zarak (Fr) (Dubawi {Ire}) has held his fee steady at €12,000 since retiring to stud. Zarak's 28 yearlings sold averaged €34,133/£30,803, 2.8x his fee, and his median was a respectable €24,704/£22,293, 2x his fee. Zarak was merely doing what was expected of him when winning a Group 1, being a much anticipated son of the Aga Khan's unbeaten Arc winner Zarkava (Ire) (Zamindar), and the page has continued to be boosted by his stakes-winning sisters Zarkamiya (Fr) (Frankel {GB}) and Zaykava (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}).

Four-Figure Head Turners

A horse in a lower price bracket that really turned heads with his first-crop yearlings last year was Tally-Ho Stud's Cotai Glory (GB) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}), who won the G3 Molecomb S. at two, the G3 Dubai International World Trophy S. at four over Group 1 winner Alpha Delphini (GB) (Captain Gerrard {Ire}) and who was second to Profitable in the G1 King's Stand S. Cotai Glory's 62 yearlings sold averaged €25,345/£22,872, 4.2x his opening fee of €6,000–he has been at €5,000 since 2019. Tally-Ho will be hoping lightning can strike thrice; the stud best known as the home of Kodiac (GB) also brought us Mehmas (Ire) last year.

Mehmas is a son of Acclamation (GB), who has also provided us with Dark Angel (Ire), and Acclamation has two sons in this group: Aclaim (Ire) and Attendu (Fr). The former stands alongside Time Test at the National Stud and, after opening at £12,500 in 2018, has been at £9,500 since. Aclaim's 48 yearlings sold averaged €28,251/£25,495, 2.3x his fee. The G1 Prix de la Foret winner is out of the Danroad (Aus) mare Aris (Ire) and is a grandson of Cumbres (Fr) (Kahyasi {Ire}), a half-sister to Montjeu (Ire).

The Wertheimer-bred Attendu was only ninth in Aclaim's Foret, but prior to that he had won a trio of Group 3s over seven furlongs or a mile, including when he beat Group 1 winners Esoterique (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) and Territories (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) in the Prix du Palais-Royal in 2016. Attendu stood for €5,000 at Haras du Quesnay his first two seasons and has since been at €3,000, and he made a strong showing with his first yearlings, they averaging 4.6x his fee at €23,135/£20,878 for 12 sold, with his median also holding up at €17,459/£15,755.

There were, in fact, a handful of young sires at the lower four figures in France who returned promising results at the yearling sales. Whitecliffsofdover (War Front) was a $1.15-million yearling who was third behind National Defense (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) in the G1 Jean-Luc Lagardere. He remains at €3,000 at Haras De La Haie Neuve, his first yearlings having brought more than 8x his stud fee at an average of €25,126/£22,674. Those figures were of course buoyed by the lone yearling he had at the Arqana Select Yearling Sale, a colt that brought €135,000 from Jean-Claude Rouget, but a median of €12,607/£11,377 (4.2x his fee) indicated there was some quality across the board for his 12 sold.

Haras du Mezeray's dual winner and multiple group-placed De Treville (GB) boasts a pedigree that would fit in at any stud farm around the world, being by Oasis Dream out of the multiple Group 1 winner and producer Dar Re Mi (GB) (Singspiel {Ire}). De Treville is listed as private for 2021 after starting out at €3,000, and while just two of his five yearlings through the ring last year sold, they made €90,000 and €20,000 at Arqana October.

Al Wukair (Ire) packs a fair bit of punch at Haras de Bouquetot at €6,000, down from €8,000. The son of Dream Ahead went toe to toe with the best of his generation; a listed winner at two, he beat French champion 2-year-old National Defense in the G3 Prix Djebel at three before finishing third behind Churchill (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the G1 2000 Guineas. His career high came later in the summer when he bested popular young Irish sire Inns Of Court (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) in the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois. Al Wukair had 24 of 25 sell at the sales last autumn, averaging 3x his stud fee at €24,326/£21,953.

Similarly popular was The Grey Gatsby (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}), whose 19 sold averaged 3.2x his €7,000 fee at Haras du Petit Tellier at €22,271/£20,098. The Grey Gatsby won the G1 Prix du Jockey Club before upsetting Australia (GB) in the G1 Irish Champion S. at three and placing in three Group 1s at four.

The yearling sales also brought good results for Group 1 winners Ectot (GB) (Hurricane Run {Ire}) (11 sold averaged 4.2x his opening fee at €20,762/£18,736; he stands for €4,000 at Bouquetot), Ivanhowe (Ger) (Soldier Hollow {GB}) (sold for up to €25,000 and €23,000 off a €4,500 fee; he now stands for €3,300 at Haras du Cercy); Zelzal (Fr) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) (sold for up to €70,000; he started at €8,000 at Bouquetot and is down to €6,000), and Elm Park (GB) (Phoenix Reach {Ire}) (€3,000 at Haras du Saz, he had yearlings sell for €25,000 and €17,000). Former Godolphin campaigners Ultra (Ire) (Manduro {Ger}) and Birchwood (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) are both available for €5,000; Ultra won the G1 Jean-Luc Lagardere and stands at Haras du Logis, while Birchwood won the G2 Superlative S. and was third in the G1 National S. and GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf before winning a listed race at three. Birchwood was well represented at the sales with 31 sold from 35 offered, and those averaged 3.4x his stud fee at €17,104/£15,435. Birchwood stands at Haras de la Huderie.

A pair of Group 1 winners are likewise available in Ireland for €5,000. Tally-Ho, the stud farm that brought us last year's record-breaking first-season sire Mehmas (Ire) this year provides the G1 2000 Guineas winner Galileo Gold (Ire) (Paco Boy {GB}) with his first runners. The winner of the G2 Vintage S. at two before finishing third behind Ultra in the Lagardere, Galileo Gold justified his 14-1 Guineas upset with a second in the G1 Irish 2000 Guineas before beating The Gurkha (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the G1 St James's Palace S. And while there may be some question marks over his sire Paco Boy, there is little to fault elsewhere in Galileo Gold's pedigree, his dam being by Galileo, the damsire of Night Of Thunder, and a half-sister to dual Group 1-winning sprinter Goldream (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}). Galileo Gold's third dam is a half-sister to Montjeu (Ire). Galileo Gold will have the numbers to give him a shot at the sire title, having covered 140 and 93 mares in his first two years at stud. He was amazingly down to just 38 mares last year, hence why his fee has dropped from €15,000 in 2018 to €5,000 this year, and even those who used him last year at €7,500 will be in line for a good payday at the sales should his first crop take off in 2021.

Like Galileo Gold, National Defense's fee of €5,000 is sharply down from the €12,000 at which he started at the Irish National Stud, and while more recent mare numbers will work against him down the road, he has every chance to make an impact with his first runners. By sire of sires Invincible Spirit out of the multiple stakes producing Kingmambo mare Angel Falls (GB), National Defense won two of his three starts at two including a 4 1/2 length romp in the Lagardere and was rated 118p by Timeform.

Value Sires Podium

Gold: Highland Reel (€10,000) – a runner of the highest class from two to five with the pedigree to back him up.

Silver: Profitable (€10,000) – a Group 1-winning sprinter who was well-backed at both the foal and yearling sales and who has been consistently popular with breeders.

Bronze: Al Wukair (€6,000) – among the best of his generation in all of Europe and a Marois winner. Well received at the yearling sales.

The post Value Sires Part 4: First 2-Year-Olds appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Value Sires: First Yearlings of 2021

In the third installation of our Value Sires series, we will dig into the sire crop with its first foals born in 2020, and therefore with its first yearlings this year. After some two years in waiting since most of these retired to stud, the judges got the chance at the recently concluded foal sales to lay eyes on the first progeny of most of them, and though it is still incredibly early days, their opinions, corroborated through their actions in the ring, will have an impact on the perception of these horses and the support they receive in their crucial third and fourth seasons.

It is interesting to note that the top four first-season sires by average at the European foal sales in 2020 were all born abroad, and are all by sires that stand outside Europe. It’s not like any of them have snuck up on us, of course-Saxon Warrior (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), Roaring Lion (Kitten’s Joy), Zoustar (Aus) (Northern Meteor {Aus}) and US Navy Flag (War Front) were four of the top five most expensive horses of their crop to retire to stud in 2019. But it is affirmation of the global nature of the game.

We noted in our prior edition of Value Sires that all bar three of the 18 sires with their first foals to be born in 2021 are taking fee cuts, and the nature of the pandemic and the global economic uncertainty means of course that much of this sire crop, too, has had its fees reduced.

Leading the way on first-crop foal sale averages was Coolmore’s G1 Racing Post Trophy and G1 2000 Guineas winner Saxon Warrior, who had 16 sold for an average of €108,315/£98,679-3.6x his debut stud fee of €30,000, and he was the only member this sire crop to crack six figures on foal sale averages. His median of €82,502/£75,162 was 2.75x his fee. Saxon Warrior had 94 foals registered from his first crop and covered a further 166 mares last year at a fee of €27,500, and he stands for €20,000 in 2021.

Unbeaten in three starts at two, Saxon Warrior won the G2 Beresford S. before besting Roaring Lion in the Racing Post Trophy. He once again bettered that rival as well as the likes of Derby winner Masar (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) and GI Breeders’ Cup Mile victor Expert Eye (GB) (Acclamation {GB}) in the Guineas first up at three. Though that proved his final win, Saxon Warrior put in fine performances in some of Europe’s greatest races over the remainder of the summer, including second-place finishes by a neck to Roaring Lion in both the G1 Coral-Eclipse and G1 Irish Champion S. Saxon Warrior is the second foal out of the G1 Moyglare Stud S.-winning and Classic-placed Maybe (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) who, after a stint in America to visit American Pharoah and War Front, returned to Japan and produced a full-brother to Saxon Warrior in 2020. Maybe is herself out of Sumora (Ire) (Danehill), a three-quarter-sister to G1 Oaks winner and multiple stakes producer Dancing Rain (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), while sires Dr Devious (Ire) and Shinko King (Ire) and last year’s G1 Irish Oaks winner Even So (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) appear under the third dam.

Second on the first-crop foal sale averages was Horse of the Year Roaring Lion, who tragically died in the summer of 2019 after covering a book of 133 mares that resulted in 90 registered foals for a fee of £40,000 at Tweenhills Stud. Roaring Lion’s eight foals sold at the sales averaged €69,603/€63,411, with a median of €62,272/£56,732. While his legacy will be sadly fleeting, he nonetheless has an excellent chance to make a last impact, with Group 1 winners Bateel (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), Giofra (GB) (Dansili {GB}), Golden Lilac (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Simple Verse (GB) (Duke of Marmalade {Ire}) among those to have produced by him, as well as excellent young mares like Kiyoshi (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), Purr Along (GB) (Mount Nelson {GB}) and Wekeela (Fr) (Hurricane Run {Ire}).

The team at Tweenhills are afforded some consolation by the fact that they have another exciting young sire among this group, the Australian shuttler Zoustar (Aus) (Northern Meteor {Aus}). Zoustar’s popularity in his first season shuttling was such that he sired 102 foals in his first crop, and he covered a further 124 mares last year. Zoustar started at £25,000 in 2019, took a rare second-season fee hike last year to £30,000 and is back down to £25,000 in 2021. His 18 first-crop foals sold at the breeding stock sales averaged €67,281/£61,295, 2.7x his stud fee, with a median of €49,971/£45,525, 2x his stud fee.

The team at Qatar Bloodstock, which had bought into Zoustar during his racing career, made the strategic decision to not shuttle the horse until he had proven himself Down Under, and that decision has paid dividends, with Zoustar having an excellent body of work behind him in his homeland before he even set foot on UK soil. Zoustar won two key sire-making races in Australia, the G1 Golden Rose S. and G1 Coolmore Stud S., over seven and six furlongs at three, and it took him no time at all to fulfill that prophecy in the stud barn. He was far and away the leading first- and second-crop sire of his generation in Australia, and in his first season among the general sire ranks in 2019/20 wound up seventh with just three crops of racing age. Zoustar thus far has 16 stakes winners with his fourth crop of juveniles having just hit the racetracks Down Under, with 12 of those emanating from his first crop including his brilliant sprinting mare Sunlight (Aus), who led home a trifecta for her sire in the Coolmore Stud S. of 2018. Sunlight is one of five pattern race winners by Zoustar with dams or second dams by Sadler’s Wells or Danehill, which bodes well for the European broodmare population.

European breeders may be less familiar with Zoustar’s sire Northern Meteor-another winner of the Coolmore Stud S. who got off to a brilliant start at stud before an untimely death. He is a son of the excellent Australian sire Encosta de Lago (Aus), who is by Sadler’s Wells’s full-brother Fairy King, and out of a daughter of the influential American sire Fappiano. European breeders will be plenty familiar, however, with Zoustar’s damsire Redoute’s Choice (Aus), who not only hails from one of the most international families in the stud book but who is himself proven in the Northern Hemisphere through the likes of G1 Grosser Dallmayr Preis winner Danceteria and the excellent staying filly Enbihaar, the winner of five Group 2s.

Like Zoustar, US Navy Flag started out at €25,000 at Coolmore in 2019, and after dropping to €17,500 last year he is down to €12,500 for 2021. US Navy Flag’s 10 foals to sell at the sales last year averaged €39,971/£36,415, with a median of €41,297/£37,623. Like Saxon Warrior, US Navy Flag is out of a Group 1-winning daughter of Galileo, his dam being the four-time Group 1 and Classic winner Misty For Me (Ire), a full-sister to the G1 Prix Marcel Boussac scorer Ballydoyle (Ire) who has also produced the triple Group 1 winner Roly Poly (War Front). US Navy Flag’s second dam, Butterfly Cove (Storm Cat), is a half-sister to the dual Group 1-winning juvenile and sire Fasliyev (Nureyev).

US Navy Flag embodied the precocity his pedigree suggested he should. He ran a remarkable 11 times at a 2-year-old, finishing worse than fourth just twice and winning the G1 Middle Park S. and the G1 Dewhurst S. over his subsequent GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf-winning stablemate Mendelssohn (Scat Daddy). US Navy Flag returned at three to win the G1 July Cup in a performance that was a joint career-best with his Dewhurst win (RPR 122). He sired 60 first-crop foals last year and covered an additional 143 mares in his second book.

Darley’s Champions

Rounding out the top five first-crop sires by average at the foal sales last year was Darley’s Cracksman (GB) (Frankel {GB}), who had 16 foals sell for an average of €35,958/£32,759. Cracksman has stood for £25,000 the past two seasons and is down to £17,500 for 2021.

Cracksman has earned the gold medal on the value sire podium in this column the past two years based on his racetrack merits; he was one of the best racehorses we’ve seen in the past 10 years, his official rating of 130 trailing only Frankel (140), Sea The Stars (Ire) (136) and Harbinger (135) among European colts in the past decade.

A debut winner in October of his 2-year-old campaign, Cracksman won an Epsom Derby trial conditions race next out before finishing a length off Wings Of Eagles (Fr) (Pour Moi {Ire}) when third in the Derby in his third start. He split that rival and the winning Capri (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the G1 Irish Derby before embarking on a three-race win streak that began with the G2 Great Voltigeur S. and G2 Prix Niel and culminated in a seven-length score in the G1 Champion S. (RPR 131), good enough to earn him champion 3-year-old honours at the Cartier awards.

Cracksman added victories in the G1 Prix Ganay and G1 Coronation Cup and a title defense in the G1 Champion S.-in which he won by six lengths, equaling his RPR of 131 from the year prior-at four. He packs plenty of power on pedigree, too, being out of the stakes-winning and multiple stakes-producing Pivotal (GB) mare Rhadegunda (GB), who is herself a granddaughter of the G1 1000 Guineas and G1 Sussex S. scorer On The House (Be My Guest). Cracksman sired 98 first-crop foals last year and covered 112 mares in his second book.

Cracksman is joined at Dalham Hall by another Cartier champion in Harry Angel (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}). A half-brother to the G2 Mill Reef S. victor Pierre Lapin (Ire) (Cappella Sansevero {GB}) out of Beatrix Potter (Ire) (Cadeaux Genereux {GB}), a half-sister to Hong Kong star Xtension (Ire) (Xaar {GB}), Harry Angel was a sprinter of the highest quality. He also won the Mill Reef at two and leapt into the big leagues at three with back-to-back scores in the G1 July Cup and G1 Sprint Cup. Harry Angel has had 89 foals reported from his first crop and bred an additional 98 mares last year. After standing for £20,000 his first two seasons, Harry Angel is down to £12,500.

Expert Selection

Another young Group 1 winner who has been well supported is Juddmonte’s GI Breeders’ Cup Mile scorer Expert Eye (GB) (Acclamation {GB}), who has 96 first-crop foals and covered 105 mares in his second book including a handful of Juddmonte bluebloods. Expert Eye was precocious enough to win the G2 Vintage S. at two, and add the G3 Jersey S. at Royal Ascot by 4 1/2 lengths and the G3 City Of York S. before shipping to Churchill Downs to take the Breeders’ Cup Mile. There have been fewer sire lines hotter than Acclamation as of late, he having supplied the likes of Dark Angel and Mehmas (Ire), and Expert Eye has the female side to match; his dam Exemplify (GB) (Dansili {GB}) is a half-sister to champion and dual Classic winner Special Duty (GB) (Hennessy), and it is also the family of multiple Grade I winners Sightseek (Distant View) and Tates Creek (Rahy). Expert Eye is down to £12,500 after standing for £20,000 and £17,500, with his first-crop foals (22 sold) having averaged €35,857/£32,667.

Completing the Coolmore clan with its first yearlings in 2021 are the Castlehyde Stud duo of Sioux Nation (Scat Daddy) and Gustav Klimt (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). Sioux Nation shares a likeness with No Nay Never not only through their sire by also through the fact that they both won the G2 Norfolk S. at two and followed it up with a Group 1 score; for No Nay Never it was the Prix Morny, and for Sioux Nation it was the Phoenix S. Both also trained on to win Group 3 sprints at three, and Sioux Nation was just three quarters of a length behind Havana Grey (GB) (Havana Gold {Ire}) when third in the G1 Flying Five S. Sioux Nation was the busiest first-season flat sire in Britain and Ireland last year, covering 241 mares which yielded a first crop of 133 foals. His second book numbered 158 mares. Sioux Nation was well received at the foal sales, his 28 sold averaging €29,622/£26,987, 2.4x his opening stud fee of €12,500. Sioux Nation, who is out of the Oasis Dream (GB) mare Dream The Blues (Ire), is down to €10,000 for 2021.

Gustav Klimt hails from the same Galileo over Danehill cross that has produced the excellent sires Frankel and Teofilo. His race record didn’t nearly hit the heights of either of those two, but nonetheless he won the G2 Superlative S. at two and, in addition to taking the Listed 2000 Guineas Trial S. at Leopardstown at three, placed in the G1 Irish 2000 Guineas, the G1 St James’s Palace S., G1 Prix Jean Prat and G1 Sprint Cup during a busy 10-race 3-year-old campaign. Gustav Klimt has a sire’s pedigree, too, being out of Massarra (GB), who has produced five stakes winners and is herself a daughter of Rafha (GB) (Kris {GB}), the dam of Invincible Spirit (Ire) and Kodiac (GB). It is also the family of Pride Of Dubai (Aus), who made an eye-catching start with his first 2-year-olds last year, and future sire power could be added to the page by not only Gustav Klimt but also Pinatubo (Ire), who is the most expensive first-season sire of 2021, and James Garfield (Ire) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}), who also stands his second season in 2021. Gustav Klimt is down to €4,000 after standing for €7,500 and €6,500 the past two seasons.

Rathbarry Stud’s James Garfield bested Invincible Army (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) in the G2 Mill Reef S. in 2017 and trained on to beat Expert Eye (GB) (Acclamation {GB}) in the G3 Greenham S. before being beaten a half-length in the G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest. He had 45 first-crop foals last year before covering another 31 mares and is down to €4,000 from an opening fee of €7,000.

Speed Proves Popular

Whitsbury Manor Stud’s Havana Grey (GB) (Havana Gold {Ire}) was the busiest of this sire crop at the foal sales last year, with 44 offered and 36 sold for an average of €26,161/£23,834 (3.3x his opening fee of £8,000) and a median of €18,812/£17,139. His first crop numbered 108 foals, and he maintained his popularity when covering a further 130 mares in 2020 dropped to £6,500. He is available for £6,000 this year. From the family of the great Al Bahathri (Blushing Groom {Fr}) and her sire son Haafhd (GB) (Alhaarth {Ire}), Havana Grey is out of the Dark Angel (Ire) mare Blanc de Chine (Ire). He is best remembered for his victory at three in the G1 Flying Five S. over the likes of Sioux Nation, but he was also prolific at two, running eight times and winning the G3 Molecomb S., two listed contests and finishing second in the G1 Prix Morny.

Havana Grey looks to follow in the footsteps of Whitsbury Manor incumbent Showcasing, and it is a son of his, Tasleet (GB), who represents Shadwell here. Tasleet turned heads at the mare sales in 2019, his first in-foal mares selling for an average of 5.3x his opening fee of £6,000. The G3 Greenham S. and G2 Duke of York Clipper Logistics S. winner remained popular at the foal sales last year, with 17 sold averaging 3.8x his fee at €22,834/£20,803 and returning a median 3.3x his fee at €19,605/£17,861. Tasleet’s dam Bird Key (GB) (Cadeaux Genereux {GB}) is a half-sister to the dam of Sheikh Hamdan’s outstanding sprinter Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), who continued to enhance the page last year with wins in the G1 King’s Stand S., G1 Nunthorpe S. and G2 King George S. While Tasleet can’t claim to have reached the racecourse status of that illustrious relative, he has some upside down to £5,000 in 2021. He ran six times at two and was a listed winner and placed in the G2 Richmond S. and G3 Somerville Tattersall S. before winning a three-runner Greenham S. when it was switched to Chelmsford’s all-weather course in 2016. Despite running just once more at three he returned at four to win the Duke of York before finishing second in three Group 1s-the Diamond Jubilee, Sprint Cup and British Champions Sprint S. Tasleet has a first crop of 63 foals and covered 51 mares last year.

Another Shadwell-bred among this crop is Massaat (Ire), a son of the red-hot Teofilo (Ire) who stands at Mickley Stud for £4,000, down from £5,000 the last two seasons. Massaat finished second to Air Force Blue (War Front) in the G1 Dewhurst S. in his third start and confirmed that form by finishing second to Galileo Gold (Ire) (Paco Boy {GB}) in the G1 2000 Guineas before going on to win the G2 Hungerford S. at four and finish third in the G1 Prix du Moulin. Massaat boasts a page littered with high-class runners; he is a half-brother to G1 Commonwealth Cup winner Eqtidaar (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), who has his first foals in 2021, and last year’s G3 Horris Hill S. scorer Mujbar (GB) (Muhaarar {GB}). His dam, Madany (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}) is a half-sister to the four-times stakes producer Zeiting (Ire) (Zieten), who is also the second dam of French Classic winner Precieuse (Ire) (Tamayuz {GB}).

If toughness is what you’re after, Bearstone Stud’s Washington DC (Ire) may be the way to look. The son of Zoffany (Ire) ran 32 times over four seasons on the track and won a stake in all but his final year. Washington DC won the Listed Windsor Castle S. at Royal Ascot and was second to champion Air Force Blue (War Front) in the G1 Phoenix S., and went on to win two listed races and place in two Group 1s and an overall five pattern races in 11 starts at three before registering a career high at four in the G3 Phoenix Sprint S. His first foals earned plaudits at the foal sales, too, averaging 3.9x his opening fee of £6,000 at €23,376/£21,296. After standing for £5,000 in 2020, Washington DC is down to £4,500 in 2021.

Tweenhills’s Lightning Spear (GB) is down to £5,000 from an opening fee of £8,500. Lightning Spear won his lone starts at two and three, but he didn’t truly get going until four. From that point, he rarely had an off day through his 7-year-old campaign, and after winning the G2 Celebration Mile at five and six and placing six times in Group 1s, he at last got that elusive top level prize to his name when beating Expert Eye (GB) (Acclamation {GB}) in the G1 Sussex S. in 2018. Free of Northern Dancer in his first three generations, he is a son of the influential Pivotal.

Though he is down to £3,000 for 2021, the National Stud’s G2 Coventry S. scorer Rajasinghe (Ire) (Choisir {Ire}) turned heads at the foal sales last year; off a debut fee of £5,000, his six first-crop offerings brought 50,000gns, 46,000gns, 37,000gns, etc. for an average of €33,936/£30,941 that was 6.8x his stud fee, and a median of €32,827/£29,906.

Irish Value

Available for €5,000 in Ireland this year are Kessaar (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) and Smooth Daddy (Ire) (Scat Daddy). Kessaar was Ireland’s busiest first-season sire in 2019 standing outside the Coolmore banner, with a book of 97 mares at Tally-Ho Stud yielding 75 registered foals. Kessaar is the latest juvenile group winner to be ushered off to stud after early success on the racecourse, he having won the G3 Sirenia S. and the G2 Mill Reef S. during a seven-race 2-year-old campaign. His second book dipped to 42 mares last year, but strong debuts by Kodiac sons Adaay (Ire), Kodi Bear (Ire), Prince Of Lir (Ire) and Coulsty (Ire) last year alone should ensure Kessaar still has his fans, especially as he dips from an opening price of €8,000 to €5,000.

Smooth Daddy will have the weight of numbers against him on the racecourse, having sired 25 foals in his first crop before covering a further 37 last year at Starfield Stud, but what he does have going for him is that he is a graded stakes-winning son of Scat Daddy who was tough and sound throughout a five-year, 32-start career, the highlight of which was a win in the GIII Fort Marcy S. going 1800 metres on the turf over Time Test (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}).

Unfortunately (Ire) (Society Rock {Ire}), winner of the G1 Prix Morny and G2 Prix Robert Papin at two and the G3 Renaissance S. at three, stands for €4,500 at Oak Lodge Stud in Ireland. He has 32 first crop foals and covered 50 mares in 2020 with substantial support from his joint owners Cheveley Park Stud and Linda and Reddy Coffey.

Group 1 Winners In France

France welcomed a pair of classy Group 1 winners in 2019, and heading those on fee at the time was Haras du Quesnay’s Recoletos (Fr) (Whipper). The G1 Prix d’Ispahan and G1 Prix du Moulin scorer debuted at €8,000 and is down to €6,500 in 2021, and he is a classy individual that trained on to win a further four pattern races after defeating the future G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe victor Waldgeist (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the G2 Prix Greffulhe at three and finishing third in the G1 Prix du Jockey Club. Recoletos retired with a rating of 121 and hails from a stout family; in addition to being a half-brother to the dual pattern race winner Castellar (Fr) (American Post {GB}), he is a grandson of Pharatta (Ire) (Fairy King), a graded/group winner in Britain and America and is also related to the dual Derby winner Shahrastani (Nijinsky).

On both pedigree and race record one has to imagine that Haras du Logis’s Cloth Of Stars (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) has a great chance to stand for much more than €7,000 down the road. The winner of the G3 Prix des Chenes in his second start at two before finishing second in the G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud, Cloth Of Stars won the G3 Prix la Force and G2 Prix Greffulhe during a four-race 3-year-old campaign. He returned at four to win the G3 Prix Exbury, G2 Prix d’Harcourt and G1 Prix Ganay consecutively before finishing second to Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) in the Arc, and he came back the following October to fill third in the great race, and on both occasions was the first colt across the line in the Arc. Cloth Of Stars retired as a tough, consistent Group 1 winner rated 123 and holds further clout as a sire prospect being out of a full-sister to Oaks winner Light Shift and a half to G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup winner Shiva (Jpn) (Hector Protector), both of whom are excellent producers.

Haras De La Haie Neuve offers Seahenge, a $750,000 yearling by Scat Daddy, for €4,000, down from €5,000. Seahenge won the G2 Champagne S. at two and was third in the G1 Dewhurst S., and is one of four stakes horses out of the listed-winning Fools In Love (Not For Love), those also including last year’s GI Belmont S. and GI Runhappy Travers S. third Max Player (Honor Code). Another son of Scat Daddy available in France for €5,000 this year is the 1700m GIII Pilgrim S. winner Seabhac, who is enshrined at Haras de Saint Arnoult.

Germany’s flagbearer of this sire crop is the nation’s 2016 Horse of the Year Iquitos (Ger) (Adlerflug {Ger}), who stands at Gestut Ammerland for €6,000. Iquitos was Group 3 placed at three but really got going the following season when he won the G1 Grosser Preis von Baden and the G2 Grosser Preis der Badischen. First or second in all but two of his seven starts at five, Iquitos added the G1 Grosser Dallmayr-Preis and was twice second at Group 1 level. The bay wrapped up a prolific career with a victory over Defoe (Ire) (Dalakhani {Ire}) in the G1 Grosser Preis von Bayern in November of 2018.

Value Podium

Gold: Cracksman (£17,500) – he has occupied this space the last two years and deserves to more than ever down in price. One of the best colts we’ve seen of the past 10 years.

Silver: Expert Eye (£12,500) – a world-class Group 1 winner by sire-maker Acclamation. Juddmonte rarely misses the mark.

Bronze: Havana Grey (£6,000) – a quality sprinter at two and three who was popular at the foal sales and has the book sizes to sustain him.

The post Value Sires: First Yearlings of 2021 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Value Sires Part I: The Newcomers

The calendar has turned at last, with likely many more than usual looking for a fresh start in a new year. Even outside the midst of a global pandemic, the excitement of a new sire crop typically provides plenty of reason for excitement and optimism, despite the fact the very few of the 30-something young pretenders preparing to stand their first seasons in the UK, Ireland and France will truly ‘make it.’

But isn’t that the point? Those made of thick enough stuff to be involved in the breeding and rearing of Thoroughbreds already harbour a high tolerance for risk, and while the odds may differ wildly, each stallion we are about to run through nonetheless offers a chance of being the diamond in the rough that could result in slick profits in the ring or bragging rights on the racecourse.

Our annual multi-part Value Sires Series begins today with stallions that will cover their first books in 2021. We’ll dissect the entire group, from A(rizona {Ire}) to W(ooded {Fr}), before revealing our Value Podium, in which we will aim to strike a balance between those looking to score early in the auction ring and those looking further down the road at the winning post.

Darley Dominance

Just as it did last year, Darley introduces the two most expensive horses in this sire crop split between its studs in Newmarket and Kildare, though perhaps in a sign of the times the fees are slightly more modest. Pinatubo (Ire) (Shamardal), one of the best 2-year-olds we have ever seen, leads the way as he enters stud at Dalham Hall at £35,000, and it is hard to find holes in either his race record or pedigree. Unbeaten across a brilliant six-race juvenile campaign, Pinatubo was out early with a 3 1/4-length victory at Wolverhampton on May 10, and two starts later was running away with Royal Ascot’s Listed Chesham S. by the same margin. A five-length romp in the G2 Vintage S. at Glorious Goodwood was followed by a scarcely believable nine-length tour de force in the G1 National S. at The Curragh, the performance that earned him the plaudit of being ranked higher than even Frankel (GB) at two. His two-length score in the G1 Dewhurst S. to round out the season may not have looked as fancy on ratings, but the fact that he did it over the soft going while turning back the best performance ever put in by another top juvenile of their generation, the G2 Coventry S. winner Arizona (Ire) (No Nay Never), only solidified the toughness that complimented Pinatubo’s brilliance.

There is no getting around the fact that Pinatubo’s early 3-year-old campaign did not go as hoped, with the colt that was veiled in invincibility after his juvenile campaign failing to sparkle while placing in the G1 2000 Guineas and G1 St James’s Palace S., though the latter performance continued to look better all season as the only horse to finish in front of him, Palace Pier (GB) (Kingman {GB}), proved to be a brilliant miler and eventually earned Cartier 3-year-old honours.

With the cobwebs blown out after those two efforts, Pinatubo dropped back to seven furlongs to take Deauville’s G1 Prix Jean Prat in July. His final start when second behind the elder Classic winner Persian King (GB) (Kingman {GB}) in the G1 Prix du Moulin cannot be overlooked, either, as on ratings it was his second-best performance next to the National S. Pinatubo retired thereafter with an official rating of 128, second only to his former stablemate Ghaiyyath in this sire crop, and he was the highest-rated 2-year-old since Celtic Swing (GB) in 1994. The best 2-year-old in over 20 years who trained on to be a Group 1 winner at three, by sire of sires Shamardal and from the family that has brought us Invincible Spirit (Ire) and Kodiac (GB); there are no sure things in the world of breeding Thoroughbreds, but Pinatubo certainly has the odds in his favour.

Also with every chance at Darley’s Kildangan satellite is newcomer Ghaiyyath (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), who debuts at €30,000 and like Pinatubo he has little to knock on race record and pedigree. Ghaiyyath was in the spotlight early, having topped the 2015 Goffs November Foal Sale when bought by Godolphin for €1.1-million. He had plenty to live up to as a son of the G1 Irish 1000 Guineas winner Nightime (Ire), and while it took him a little longer than Pinatubo to hit his best stride, Ghaiyyath was always giving off Group 1 signs. Out in the second half of his 2-year-old campaign, he won the G3 Autumn S. Ghaiyyath missed the first half of his 3-year-old campaign but came roaring back with wins in the G3 Prix du Prince d’Orange and G2 Prix d’Harcourt before shipping to Germany to win the G1 Grosser Preis von Baden by 14 lengths, for which he earned an RPR of 129. Despite struggling over the soft going next out in the G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, Ghaiyyath went into winter quarters with plenty of expectation on his shoulders, and he delivered in 2020. He strung together a hat trick of Group 1 wins from 2000 metres to 2400 metres, defeating Anthony Van Dyck (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the G1 Coronation S., Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) in the G1 Coral-Eclipse (RPR 129) and Magical (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the G1 Juddmonte International (RPR 131). Ghaiyyath retired with an official rating of 130, was ranked as the world’s highest-rated horse on the Longines World’s Best Racecourse Rankings as of Nov. 8 and was named Cartier Horse of the Year.

Ghaiyyath’s pedigree has only improved, too, since his seven-figure purchase at Goffs, with his half-sister Zhukova (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) winning the GI Man O’ War S. in 2017 before being bought to join the Godolphin broodmare ranks for 3.7-million gns. And with newly turned 3-year-old and 2-year-old colts by Dubawi as well as a yearling son of Kingman for Nightime, there is every chance the pedigree will continue to flourish.

Ghaiyyath is joined on the Kildangan roster by Earthlight (Ire), like Pinatubo an unbeaten dual Group 1-winning 2-year-old by Shamardal. While Earthlight didn’t quite hit the heights of Pinatubo and Ghaiyyath on ratings, he was undoubtedly an excellent sprinter who is an attractive prospect at €20,000. Sealing his status as the best 2-year-old in France in 2019 with a win in the Prix Morny, Earthlight traveled to Newmarket and bested the subsequent G1 Commonwealth Cup scorer Golden Horn (GB) (Lethal Force {Ire}) in the G1 Middle Park S. A setback early in the season ruled him out of consideration for the French Guineas, and a bit of the gloss perhaps came off after Earthlight was only fourth in the G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest, but after bouncing back in the G3 Prix du Pin he posted a joint career-best effort when just pipped by One Master (GB) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) over the heavy going in the G1 Prix de la Foret. Earthlight’s pedigree is brimming with class, too: his dam Winters Moon (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) was third in the G1 Fillies’ Mile and is a half-sister to Group 1 winners Mandaean (GB) (Manduro {Ger}) and Wavering (Ire) (Refuse To Bend {Ire}), while Derby winner Golden Fleece appears further down the page.

The highest-priced of Coolmore’s three new recruits in 2021 is the triple Group 1-winning Sottsass (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) (€30,000). A winner in his second start at two, Sottsass surged into Classic contention with a 6 1/2 length score in Chantilly’s Listed Prix Suresnes before besting Persian King (GB) (Kingman {GB}) in course record time in the G1 Prix du Jockey Club. Sottsass won the G2 Prix Niel before finding only Waldgeist (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) too good in a soft-ground Arc, after which his connections set their sights firmly on the 2020 renewal of France’s great race. Sottsass’s 4-year-old preparation saw him take the G1 Prix Ganay over the same 2100 metre trip as the Jockey Club before he at last fulfilled his Arc potential. Sottsass was the world’s highest-rated 3-year-old of 2019, and like young sire sensation Night Of Thunder (Ire) is out of a daughter of Galileo (Ire). And that daughter is none other than Starlet’s Sister (Ire), who is making quite a name for herself as a broodmare with the seven-time Grade I winner Sistercharlie (Ire) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) also to her credit.

Etreham Snaps Up Group 1 Winners

The aforementioned Persian King also starts out at €30,000 in 2021, he at Haras d’Etreham in Normandy, France. From the first crop of Kingman, Persian King is out of a Dylan Thomas (Ire) three-quarter sister to G1 Prix Ganay scorer Planteur (Ire), from the Wildenstein dynasty that also includes Peintre Celebre. Persian King was favoured for the 2019 Prix du Jockey Club after winning five straight races, including the G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains, but had to settle for second behind Sottsass and sat out the remainder of the year after connections revealed he had been sore after. Persian King came roaring back in the summer of 2020 to post his two best efforts when winning the G1 Prix d’Ispahan over 1800 metres (RPR 120) and the G1 Prix du Moulin going a mile over Pinatubo (RPR 124), and was a fine third behind Sottsass in the Arc after setting the pace over the heavy going in his first and only try over 2400 metres. Persian King brings plenty of class to the table and is an excellent coup for French breeders.

Also fitting that description is Hello Youmzain (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}), who likewise starts out at Etreham at €25,000. Hello Youmzain won the G2 Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte at two before besting Calyx (GB) in the G2 Sandy Lane S. at three. He further advertised his credentials as a top-class sprinter when third behind Advertise (GB) in the Commonwealth Cup, and later solidified them with a win in the G1 Sprint Cup. Etreham and Cambridge Stud purchased the colt at the end of his 3-year-old campaign, and Hello Youmzain rewarded their faith to keep him in training when winning this year’s G1 Diamond Jubilee S. His dam, Spasha (GB) (Shamardal), has proven to be a consistent source of class as the dam of four stakes horses, and the quality continues down the page with plenty of classy runners including Derby winner Slip Anchor (GB) under the third dam. With Kodiac beginning to build a legacy as a sire of sires, too, there is plenty to like about Hello Youmzain.

Group 1 Milers

Kameko (Kitten’s Joy) debuts at Tweenhills Stud at £25,000, and somewhat remarkably he is the first G1 2000 Guineas winner to retire to stud in Britain since Frankel (GB). Kameko was first or second in each of his four starts at two, culminating in a win in the G1 Vertem Futurity Trophy, and he backed that up when beating Wichita (Ire) and Pinatubo (Ire) in the fastest-ever Guineas. After a string of fourth-place finishes in Group 1 company over the summer, the old Kameko resurfaced again in the G2 Joel S. in September, where he beat older horses in a career-best performance (RPR 125). He retired with an official rating of 122, and his credentials are further backed up by a solid pedigree; his Grade III-winning dam is a half-sister to Group 1-winning 2-year-old Kingsbarns (Ire).

Another top-class miler newly available in 2021 is Circus Maximus (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), who is introduced at Coolmore at €20,000. Circus Maximus boasts a top-class pedigree, being out of the Niarchos Family’s G2 Duke Of Cambridge S. winner Duntle (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) who traces back to the influential Lady Winborne, herself the dam of eight stakes horses and a half-sister to French champion Allez France.

Circus Maximus justified his pedigree by becoming one of the most reliable milers of recent seasons. He was third behind Persian King and Magna Grecia in what worked out to be an excellent G3 Autumn S. at two, and won the Listed Dee S. at first asking at three. He was sixth behind Anthony Van Dyck in the Derby and went just once beyond a mile in his 11 starts thereafter. He won the G1 St James’s Palace S. at Royal Ascot next out and, after finishing a half-length second behind Too Darn Hot (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) in the G1 Sussex S., traveled to France to beat the year-older G1 Irish 2000 Guineas winner Romanised (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}) in the G1 Prix du Moulin. After winning the G1 Queen Anne S. on seasonal debut this year, Circus Maximus was second after setting the pace in a vintage renewal of the G1 Sussex S., and added placings in the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois, Moulin and GI Breeders’ Cup Mile. He is, interestingly, the only son of Galileo to retire to stud in Europe this year.

Mohaather (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) was the winner of that aforementioned vintage Sussex, and he likewise is available at Shadwell’s Nunnery Stud for £20,000. A 110,000gns yearling purchase by Sheikh Hamdan, Mohaather showed all the right signs when winning the G3 Horris Hill S. in October of his 2-year-old campaign, an effort he backed up at first asking at three with a win in the G3 Greenham S. Bone bruising thereafter ruled the colt out of a summer 3-year-old campaign, but he caught the eye at Ascot in July of 2020 with a 3 3/4-length win in the G2 Summer Mile (RPR 123), and followed that up with his popular Sussex score (RPR 127) in what would prove his final start, with bone bruising again interfering.

Mohaather was bred by Fulke Johnson Houghton, and there is plenty of class under his first dam alone; he is a full-brother to the multiple graded stakes-winning and Grade I-placed Prize Exhibit (GB), and to the dam of G1 Queen Anne S. winner Accidental Agent (GB) (Delegator {GB}).

France Signs Up Quality Speed

There are few sires more in vogue than Wootton Bassett (GB) at the moment, and on the cusp of his first Group 1-winning son Almanzor (Fr) having his first runners in 2021, his second, Wooded (Ire), goes to stud at Haras de Bouquetot for €15,000. Wooded was a winner and twice group-placed at two, and immediately played his hand at three with a 3 1/2-length score in the G3 Prix Texanita on May 13. Beaten just over three lengths in both the G1 Prix Jean Prat and G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest this summer, he was three-quarters of a length second in the G3 Prix du Petit Couvert when dropped back to five furlongs in September, and held off the defending winner and subsequent GI Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint heroine Glass Slippers (GB) (Dream Ahead) when winning the G1 Prix de l’Abbaye in October.

Bouquetot made a late signing in December in the form of dual Group 1-winning miler Romanised (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}), who will stand for €7,000 in 2021. Romanised was a winner in April of his 2-year-old campaign before finishing second to Masar (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) in the G3 Solario S., and the following spring he beat US Navy Flag (War Front) when winning the G1 Irish 2000 Guineas. Romanised trained on to win the G2 Minstrel S. and G1 Prix Jacques le Marois at four and was a nose second to Circus Maximus in the Prix du Moulin, and he won the Minstrel again in 2020. His triple stakes-producing dam is a half-sister to Hong Kong star Designs On Rome (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}).

In addition to Wooded and Hello Youmzain, another Group 1-winning sprinter to retire to France is this year’s G1 Commonwealth Cup winner Golden Horde (GB) (Lethal Force {Ire}), who starts out at Montfort & Preaux for €10,000. Golden Horde won the G2 Richmond S. at two before placing in the G1 Prix Morny and G1 Middle Park S., and he built on those efforts to take this year’s Commonwealth Cup. Golden Horde retires after respectable beaten efforts in the G1 July Cup, G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest and G1 Sprint Cup, and he boasts a female family sprinkled with class, being out of a winning daughter of Pivotal from the family of the great American champion Serena’s Song.

Two further Royal Ascot winners retire to stud this season: Without Parole (GB) (Frankel {GB}) and Arizona (Ire) (No Nay Never). The Gunthers’ Without Parole, who starts out at Newsells Park Stud at £10,000, is out of the Lemon Drop Kid mare Without You Babe, who seems to improve the pedigree year after year; she is also the dam of GI Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Tamarkuz (Speightstown)-who has gotten off to a promising start at stud himself with five first-crop winners last year from 26 foals–and She’s Got You (GB) (Kingman {GB}), who won a listed race in the U.S. last autumn. Without Parole went unbeaten through his first four starts at two and three, culminating in the G1 St James’s Palace S. in what the second-fastest ever running of the race. Without Parole later transferred to trainer Chad Brown in the U.S. and while he was plagued with poor racing luck on a few occasions, he picked up Grade I placings in the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Mile and 2020 Shoemaker Mile and Shadwell Turf Mile.

Arizona, who is available for €7,000 at Coolmore, won the G2 Coventry S. three weeks after breaking his maiden by eight lengths at The Curragh. He was then placed behind Pinatubo in both the National S. and the Dewhurst, in the latter putting in a career-best effort and running the champion to two lengths over the soft ground. Arizona wound up rated only behind Pinatubo and Kameko in his 2-year-old crop, and in addition to being a full-brother to the multiple graded stakes winner Nay Lady Nay (Ire), he is from the family of the useful French sire Dabirsim (Fr) and the dual Oaks-winning filly Sea Of Class (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}).

Farhh Makes His Mark

The Irish stallion ranks welcome a handful of intriguing prospects in the €5,000 to €7,000 range, including two sons of Darley’s underrated Farhh (GB): King Of Change (GB) (Derrinstown Stud, €7,000) and Far Above (GB) (Starfield Stud, €6,000). As is common for the progeny of Farhh, King Of Change was a later developer, breaking his maiden in April of his 3-year-old campaign before running second to Magna Grecia in the 2000 Guineas at 66-1. King Of Change was not seen again until the autumn, but proved that effort was no fluke when winning the Listed Fortune S. and the G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. King Of Change was again being prepared for a late-season campaign last year before time was called on his career. Though he was lightly raced, the brilliance he flashed is reflected in his official rating of 120. From the sire-making Pivotal line, he is out of the Echo Of Light (GB) mare Salacia (Ire), who has also left the classy miler Century Dream (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}).

Far Above, meanwhile, was set for a big sprinting campaign in 2020 off the back of a win in Deauville’s Listed Prix Kistena in the summer of 2019 and the G3 Palace House S. last June. Injury unfortunately cut his career short, but his raw speed and classy pedigree-his third dam is Bahr (GB) (Generous {Ire}), whose legacy includes the Group 1-winning dam and son Nahrain (GB) (Selkirk) and Benbatl (GB) (Dubawi {Ire})-mean that he should find plenty of patrons in his second career.

Shrewd stallion master Joe Foley introduces another sprinter, Sands Of Mali (Fr) (Panis), for €6,500 at his Ballyhane Stud, and he was good enough to win at group level at two and three, taking the G2 Gimcrack S., G3 Prix Sigy and G2 Sandy Lane S. before a career-high win over a top-class field of older horses-like Harry Angel (Ire), Donjuan Triumphant (Ire), Brando (GB), The Tin Man (GB), Limato (Ire), Librisa Breeze (GB) and Dream Of Dreams (Ire)-in the 2018 G1 British Champions Sprint S.

Yeomanstown Stud debuts Shaman (Ire) (Shamardal) (€6,000), a Wertheimer et Frere homebred who won at first asking in July of his 2-year-old campaign and trained on to win group races at three and four (the G3 Prix la Force and G2 Prix d’Harcourt). He was also Group 1-placed at three and four, including a second to Persian King in the Poule d’Essai des Poulains, and as is typical of products of his breeder he has a stellar pedigree to back him up, his third dam being the excellent producer Elle Seule (Exclusive Native).

River Boyne (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}) returns to his birthplace, Tara Stud, to stand for €5,000, and he brings some solid credentials, having been a reliable top-class miler in the U.S. the past three seasons. River Boyne finished out of the top four just twice in 21 starts in the U.S. and won two Grade IIs, a Grade III and last year’s GI Frank E. Kilroe Mile.

Two new sons of Scat Daddy are available for four figures in the UK: Sergei Prokofiev (Whitsbury Manor Stud, £6,500) and Legends Of War (March Hare Stud, £5,000). Sergei Prokofiev was a $1.1-million yearling who was a listed winner by May 20 of his 2-year-old campaign and went on to win the G3 Cornwallis S., and the Listed Cork S. going 5 1/2 furlongs at three. His dam, Orchard Beach (Tapit), is a half-sister to the dual graded stakes-winning and track record-setting sprinter Necessary Evil (Harlan’s Holiday).

Legends of War was similarly expensive, having topped the 2018 Tattersalls Craven Breeze-Up Sale on a bid of 900,000gns. He won twice at two and was second in the G2 Gimcrack S. before transferring to the U.S., where he won the 2019 GIII Franklin-Simpson S.

Joining the French ranks at €6,000 each are a trio of group winners at two: Elarqam (GB) (Frankel {GB}) (Haras de Saint Arnoult), Threat (Ire) (Footstepsinthesand {GB}) (Haras du Mont Goubert) and Van Beethoven (Scat Daddy) (Haras de Grandcamp). Elarqam, Sheikh Hamdan’s 1.6-million gns son of the great Attraction (GB), was a group winner at two, four and five over middle distances and won five stakes in all. Threat won the G2 Gimcrack S. and G2 Champagne S. in addition to finishing second in the G2 Coventry S. and G2 Richmond S., while Van Beethoven was a winner in early May who ran eight times at three and won the G2 Railway S.

Value Podium

Gold: Earthlight (€20,000)-an excellent sprinter who got off to a fast start, trained on and is by a sire of sires.

Silver: Golden Horde (€10,000)-a top-class 2-year-old who became a Group 1 winner at three. The sire line is doing the job and the female family is deep.

Bronze: Shaman (€6,000)-a Group 3-winning and Classic-placed son of Shamardal who was always knocking at the door at the highest level.

The post Value Sires Part I: The Newcomers appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Kentucky Value Sires for 2021–First Juveniles, Part II

This is the second part of the latest instalment in our ongoing series assessing stallion options for the new covering season, now tackling sires who have just sold their first yearlings. The first part, which appeared in Tuesday’s edition, can be read here.

Dixie Union has achieved quite a legacy as a broodmare sire and, following on from Mohaymen (Tapit), two other stallions in this group are out of his daughters.

KLIMT (Quality Road-Inventive by Dixie Union) has maintained an industrial output through his first three books at Darby Dan, entertaining 222, 187 and 172 guests, duly pegged at $10,000. That volume comes at a risk, of course, and anyone who fancied a Klimt yearling could choose from no fewer than 108 into the ring. Of these, 81 found a new home at $29,890.

Klimt at Darby Dan | EquiSport

Himself a $435,000 Gulfstream 2-year-old, you can certainly picture him landing one or two pinhook coups: he reiterated his precocity by looking the fastest youngster out west, notably as four-length winner of the GI Del Mar Futurity in 1:21.8 (94 Beyer). His sire can’t have had too many juveniles quite like that and, while Klimt himself did not last at three, he does have the genetic base for his stock to progress: his hard-knocking, graded stakes-winning third dam is a sister to Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Concern (the pair out of another Grade I winner). First things first, however—and, with such volume behind him, he surely needs to put himself in the shake-up for the freshman title.

The other who shares the same damsire is UNIFIED (Candy Ride {Arg}-Union City by Dixie Union). Lane’s End launched him at $10,000, which fee he retains after selling 62 of 83 yearlings offered at $43,390, an average magnified by the $450,000 home-run colt who topped a session at Keeneland September.

Unified has very attractive roots, his third dam being a Storm Bird half-sister to Dehere and the next two by Secretariat and Damascus. Though himself unraced at two, his mother is a sister to a Grade II-winning juvenile and Unified certainly landed running with a 99 Beyer on debut before consecutive Grade III and Grade II wins, clocking 1:47.14 in the Peter Pan. Though ultimately confined to seven starts, he missed the GI Carter H. only by a neck and he’s a lovely physical.

Though down to 68 mares in his third season, he has ample ammunition (opening books of 152 and 102) to resume momentum now. In the same, exemplary barn that has housed his sire and damsire, Unified has every chance of making the grade.

Likewise, his chum CONNECT (Curlin-Bullville Belle by Holy Bull) who started alongside at twice the fee after formally gilding a career of similar span and dash with a Grade I in the Cigar Mile. Having maintained numbers at 112 and 114 after an opening book of 165, he gets a friendly clip to $15,000 after selling 49 yearlings (of 84 into the ring) at $52,975.

Another very natural racehorse, Connect packed six wins and four six-figure Beyers into just eight starts and helped to elevate the GII Pennsylvania Derby to elite status by holding the maturing Gun Runner. While of adequate caliber, his family has a conspicuously accommodating outcross quality.

Competition among sons of Curlin is heightened by a cut from $20,000 to $12,500 for KEEN ICE (Curlin-Medomak by Awesome Again). Some such action, admittedly, was looking pretty urgent. Calumet amassed as many as 176 mares for his opening book, and 55 yearlings sales (of 70 into the ring) achieved a lower average than his fee ($15,069). Pretty disastrous, on the face of it, but to me this more realistic tag brings a truly admirable racehorse right back into play.

I’d especially recommend Keen Ice to anyone who might look to retain a filly, as he doubles down that mighty distaff influence Deputy Minister 3 x 3 and his fourth dam is the Emory Hamilton matriarch Chic Shirine (Mr. Prospector). If overstating his GI Travers S. defeat of American Pharoah risks faint praise, then he parlayed these genes into a resilience and durability—24 starts, including 15 at Grade I level, for earnings of $3.4 million—that any breeder should be eager to replicate.

There are some grassy roots in the family, too, so at his revised fee Keen Ice absolutely deserves a fresh look by flexible end-users. That big first book will give him a legitimate platform over the next couple of years to renew traffic that has meanwhile slackened to 73 and 43 mares.

Another now at a still more compelling fee is LORD NELSON (Pulpit-African Jade by Seeking The Gold). Halved to $10,000 by Spendthrift, he is definitely back on the agenda after making plenty of appeal even when opening at $25,000.

His yearlings sold in a good ratio, 37 of 46 offered, at $84,972. Remember that he was knocked out by laminitis when lined up for his debut book and he has been spared the “mass transit” service since, numbers through his first three years controlled at 127, 131 and 123.

Lord Nelson offers an interesting blend. He has all the commercial speed you could ask for, as winner of three consecutive Grade I sprints including the Bing Crosby in 1:07.65, the fastest six furlongs ever clocked electronically at Del Mar. Though he only achieved his peak form at four, that was partly down to experimentation in stretching his speed and he was actually a seven-length stakes winner at two. But he also has a most interesting pedigree: very fast, plainly, for a grandson of A.P. Indy, he evidently kindles a lot of speed from the 3×3 duplication of Mr. Prospector (as Pulpit’s damsire and as grandsire of his own dam). Yet the bottom line balances that with a classy Argentinian family, with all that means in terms of versatility and the robustness we saw in Lord Nelson’s recuperation.

Though himself a speedball, Lord Nelson’s build also suggests that he may be able to draw out some of the stretch latent in his pedigree. We have become accustomed to premium newcomers at Spendthrift, since this guy first arrived, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he turned out to have as much influence as any.

AMERICAN FREEDOM (Pulpit-Gottcha Last by Pleasant Tap) comes from the final crop of the same sire of sires and, as a $500,000 yearling, must have been just about the prettiest. Launched at $10,000 by Airdrie, he has every chance to build fresh momentum from an opening book of 152 mares (if on the customary slide since, to 96 and 54).

That’s a tribute to his physique though, albeit as many as 82 yearlings into the ring gave purchasers ample choice: 60 sales averaged $27,266. More important, perhaps, is the fact that his owners and Airdrie have fired up his engine with 133 mares from their quality herds. Interestingly, moreover the drums seem to be beating quite loudly among 2-year-old consignors.

Now that he’s down to $6,000, American Freedom might prove a timely gamble. After all, he claimed the scalps of Gun Runner plus all three Classic winners in his crop, and got closest of Arrogate’s pursuers in the GI Travers. And a stakes-winning Pleasant Tap mare can only bring in the good stuff, as she had already shown in producing MGSW and Grade I runner-up Gottcha Gold (Coronado’s Quest).

There’s a lot to like about MIDNIGHT STORM (Pioneerof the Nile-My Tina, by Bertrando), down to $7,500 at TaylorMade from an opening $12,500. He offers a mixture of the traditional assets we need to preserve—he won Grade II races four years running in the course of a 10-for-27 career, banking $1.78 million—with the versatility that should be at an increasing premium as the turf/synthetics program expands. He registered multiple triple-digit Beyers on both dirt and turf, and sealed his Grade I by wiring the Shoemaker Mile field, holding off subsequent Breeders’ Cup winner Tourist (Tiznow) in 1:33.55.

Books of 119, 88 and 69 provide a solid enough base and likewise his sales debut: 36 of 48 yearlings sold at $39,856. It’s a fashionable sire-line—and remember that his lamented sire was also versatile, in terms of surface—but there’s no denying that the family adds a genetic dimension to his overall air of flexibility.

Turf was an option never explored by GORMLEY (Malibu Moon-Race To Urga by Bernstein) but it’s certainly something to keep in mind for his stock. His second dam was Classic-placed in Europe and his fourth is champion turf mare Estrapade, while his own sire was out of a top-class French juvenile.

Not that there appeared to be any particular need to leave the main track with a horse who won Grade Is at both two (ended Klimt’s unbeaten spree in the Frontrunner S.) and three (beat Battle Of Midway (Smart Strike) in the Santa Anita Derby). Unfortunately he soon derailed but Spendthrift herded up the customary numbers for a first book of 180, ample to put him in the conversation for the freshmen’s championship—something to keep in mind, now that he is down to $5,000 from an opening $10,000.

Though there was plenty of choice at the yearling sales, he found customers for an excellent ratio (59 of 73 offered) at $37,544. Subsequent books of 127 and 72 suffice to keep him in the game if he can get one or two early headliners, something he is perfectly entitled to do with the depth of Classic influences through his pedigree. Virtually a bet to nothing at his new fee.

Speaking of turf, reverse shuttler ASTERN (Medaglia d’Oro-Essaouira {Aus} by Exceed And Excel {Aus}) is down again to $7,500 from $10,000, after being cut last year from an opening $15,000 at Darley. Albeit he has somewhat puzzled the local market to this point, with 23 of 38 yearlings sold at $35,617, now he gets the chance to show whether they can actually run.

He’s certainly been priced to engage the attention of breeders lacking the regard of their Australian counterparts for a horse who—trading in speed, as an interesting instance of the way this cosmopolitan sire-line obeys the predilections of each local industry—matched the Group 1 success of his half-sister Alizee (Aus) (Sepoy {Aus}), not to mention of their third and fourth dams.

He’s half a year deeper into his career than his Kentucky rivals, with a handful of runners already in his native land. Down there a lot of people would be pretty offended, on Astern’s behalf, by his relative valuation in Kentucky. But we’re about to find out which hemisphere has him right, and books of 116, 90 and 90 are sufficient to permit a rising tide for any breeder enterprising or audacious enough to take a chance on him now.

A Southern Hemisphere import that was able to parade his wares on American tracks is Calumet’s BAL A BALI (Brz) (Put It Back—In My Side {Brz} by Clackson {Brz}). Horse Of The Year in Brazil, he recovered from laminitis after his migration to win a couple of Grade Is on U.S. grass. He proved much too exotic a proposition for the domestic yearling market, 34 of 39 selling at just $7,302, but he does have early numbers behind him (books of 125 and 74 before falling right off to 22 last spring) and also has dirt strains to draw upon in his outcross pedigree. It’s obviously over to him, but he is now realistically priced at $5,000 (started at $15,000) and would hardly represent the first transfusion of South American blood to invigorate the gene pool here.

In contrast the same farm hosts a couple of young stallions trading primarily on very familiar pedigrees. The third dam of MR. Z (Malibu Moon-Stormy Bear, by Storm Cat), indeed, is a Ribot (GB) half-sister to Mr. Prospector himself (who also figures on the page as damsire of Malibu Moon). His own mother is a half-sister to the prolific Canadian turf champion Chief Bearhart (Chief’s Crown) and, while Mr. Z only won twice, he stood up well to aggressive campaigning to become a millionaire. A handful of his yearlings sold mostly for no money but he has now been halved to $2,500 so maybe his first book of 61, more than he’s managed in the two seasons since, can give him a foothold.

Barnmate WAR CORRESPONDENT (War Front-Tempo West, by Rahy) also has a noble pedigree, as a brother to Declaration of War out of a half-sister to Union Rags, and he won a couple of graded stakes on turf. The half-dozen yearlings he sold, of nine offered, averaged $18,576 and he’s now $5,000 from an opening $7,500, again with small numbers behind him.

Though ultimately rescued more or less from oblivion, for a roll of the dice at stud, WILDCAT RED (D’wildcat-Racene, by Miner’s Mark) was a legitimate dasher in his time, as a dual graded stakes winner who was beaten only a neck by Constitution (Tapit) in the GI Florida Derby. He has only covered small books at Buck Pond Farm, but that won’t necessarily stop him outlasting one or two who started with a higher profile. Of just three yearlings sold, after all, one made $180,000 to become the top colt at the OBS Selected Yearling Sale, some yield on a $7,500 fee. Bravo, Wildcat!

That’s the beauty, when we reach this stage of the game. It’s now up to their runners, and nobody can know what will happen once the gates open.

CHRIS McGRATH’S VALUE PODIUM

Gold: Mastery ($25,000 Claiborne)

Always looked the goods and sales debut did nothing to alter that

Silver: Lord Nelson ($10,000 Spendthrift)

What a generous cut for a very fast horse with stretchy genes

Bronze: Gormley ($5,000 Spendthrift)

Bumper first book could give him freshman momentum

The post Kentucky Value Sires for 2021–First Juveniles, Part II appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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