Wandering Eyes

Racecaller John Blance brings his three-season Hong Kong stint to a close at Happy Valley on Wednesday night having transformed into something of a course specialist at the tricky city track and even broadened the vocabulary of the average racing fan along the way. The picturesque, undulating courses of northern England where Blance cut his teeth couldn’t be more different to the helter-skelter, 1,450m circuit nestled next to Causeway Bay’s towering commercial blocks. Yet that hasn... View the full article

LEXINGTON, KY–It was a lively afternoon of trade at Newtown Paddocks Monday with another strong renewal of the Fasig-Tipton July Horses of Racing Age Sale. “It was a very successful day,” Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning said of the sale’s sixth edition. “I thought horses sold very fairly. Consignors and buyers were both happy with the level of commerce that took place. We had a really interesting catalogue, lots of horses with lots of appeal both domestically and internationally. It really helps when you have consignments from racing operations like Stonestreet, WinStar, the Phippses/Claiborne were new this year. We saw ELiTE’s introduction to the marketplace last year, which has certainly added a jolt of energy. They raised the bar in the horses of racing age sale arena.” A total of 100 horses traded hands for a gross of $9,318,000, compared to last year when 84 Thoroughbreds brought $8,083,000. The average was down slightly from $96,226 last term to $93,180 and the median also decreased a bit, from $56,000 to $50,000 this term. There were 19 horses who failed to meet their reserves, four more than last year. The evening was topped by stakes winner My Miss Tapit (Tapit) (hip 485), who recently finished third in the GII Princess Rooney S. The 4-year-old filly was purchased by Breeze Easy and was consigned by relative newcomers ELiTE Sales, which made its debut as the leading consignor at last year’s Fasig July HORA Sale and followed up again as leading seller in 2018. “It was fun to come back for year two,” ELiTE founder and president Brad Weisbord said. “Year one we had a lot of pressure and obviously, when it works, you have a lot to live up to and this year we have the topper. I want to give a lot of credit to my partner Liz Crow. She recruited Blazen Betsy (Speightstown) (hip 412), who brought $325,000. Who would have thought a filly could bring that money out of Thistledown? But, she’s fast and pretty and by Speightstown.” In total, ELiTE sold 13 of its 17 horses for a total of $2.53 million. “It was a fantastic night,” Weisbord said. “We are so lucky to be in this position. We have a concept we thought would be unique. We believe we know this product of racehorses better than everybody else. We have hundreds of racehorses under management and we stare at speed figures every day. This is exactly what we do.” He continued, “We are thankful Fasig-Tipton puts on horses of racing age sales and we are super thankful for Todd Pletcher and Chad Brown, who are big supporters, Todd selling My Miss Tapit and Chad selling seven with us. Also thankful to their owners, Seth Klarman, Bill Mathis, Sol Kumin and Mike Dubb, some of whom support us in our daily program.” The second-highest priced horse of the day was a late addition to the sale, the 3-year-old filly Alter Moon (Alternation) (hip 574), who sold to bloodstock agent Steve Young for $675,000. Consigned by Taylor Made, she scored an impressive victory in the Azalea S., becoming the first stakes winner for her sophomore sire, on the same day as My Miss Tapit’s effort in the Princess Rooney. A total of 10 horses sold for $200,000 or more to 10 individual entities. Selling continues Tuesday at Newtown Paddocks with the Fasig-Tipton July Selected Yearlings Sale beginning at 10 a.m. My Miss Tapit Breezes Through July Sale My Miss Tapit (Tapit), fresh off a third-place finish in the GII Princess Rooney S., will be staying in the barn of trainer Todd Pletcher, but will make her next start in the colors of Sam Ross and Mike Hall’s Breeze Easy after the operation purchased the 4-year-old filly for $700,000 during Monday’s Fasig-Tipton Horses of Racing Age Sale. “They are looking for racehorses and she’s a racehorse,” said Breeze Easy advisor Randy Hartley. “They thought she was a beautiful filly and she was one of the top horses here. We’re also building a broodmare band. We have 27 mares now and we are breeding to all the best we can get to and we’re trying to buy the best.” Bred by Gainesway, My Miss Tapit (hip 485) was purchased by Pletcher on behalf of Bill Mathis’s Mathis Stable for $550,000 at the 2015 Keeneland September sale. The filly was catalogued in last year’s July sale, but was withdrawn and made three additional starts for the Mathis family, finishing fifth in the GIII Monmouth Oaks last summer and winning an optional claimer at Gulfstream Park in April. She finished third behind Stormy Embrace (Circular Quay) in the June 30 Princess Rooney. Runner-up that day was Rich Mommy (Algorithms) who RNA’d for $495,000 during Monday’s sale. My Miss Tapit is out of graded stakes winner Sindy With An S (Broken Vow) and she is a full-sister to graded stakes placed I’ll Wrap It Up and Rattataptap. She was consigned to Monday’s sale by Elite. “She is going to stay in training,” Hartley confirmed. “She’s going to go back to Todd because there is no sense is starting over. They are going to head to Saratoga and try to have some fun up there. They don’t have a lot of racehorses, they have a few 2-year-olds, but we are trying to build a broader stable and get more horses across-the-board, different distances and older horses. Sometimes it’s hard to develop that, but this was here now.” Hartley said the West Virginia-based Ross had called a last-minute audible to come to the July sale. “[Ross] wasn’t supposed to come to this sale,” Hartley said with a laugh. “He drove up here yesterday and he studied this thing like crazy. He loves it.” Breeze Easy purchased the top-priced yearling at Fasig-Tipton’s July sale two years ago, going to $475,000 to acquire a colt by Curlin. They reoffered the youngster at the 2017 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale where he sold for $1.5 million. Racing in partnership with Breeze Easy and John Oxley, Curlin’s Honor is a stakes winner and came up a neck short of Gidu (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) when second in the Paradise Creek S. at Belmont Park. Breeze Easy enjoyed international success when Shang Shang Shang (Shanghai Bobby) won the G2 Norfolk S. at Royal Ascot. Shang Shang Shang was purchased by Susan Montanye on behalf of Bill Heiligbrodt’s East Hickman Bloodstock for $110,000 at the 2017 OBS January sale and Breeze Easy purchased the youngster for $200,000 at this year’s OBS March sale. “That was one of those things that was just meant to be,” Hartley said of Breeze Easy’s acquisition of Shang Shang Shang, who was bred by Lorenzo Del Giudice. Del Giudice owns Roma Restaurant in Ocala. “We knew the foal from a baby,” Hartley said. “Mike [Hall] tried to buy her as a yearling because Lorenzo will never let them buy dinner there. So he said, ‘I’ll bid on your horse.’ He bid $100,000 and then Susan, our breeze rider who rides for us, bought her. They still liked her as 2-year-old and we just walked up there and he bought her. So it was just meant to be for them to have that horse.” —@JessMartiniTDN Alter Moon’s Late Addition Pays Dividends Jose Lopez’s JAL Racing struck while the iron was hot, parlaying the stellar recent form of Alter Moon (Alternation) (hip 574) into fireworks in the sales ring at Fasig-Tipton. The filly, added to the Horses of Racing Age Sale just last week, sold to $675,000 to bloodstock agent Steve Young. “She is a lightly-raced, young filly with a lot of ability who is coming into her own,” Young said after signing the ticket on behalf of an undisclosed client. “She’s going to go to New York and we’ll see how good she is. She has a good pedigree on the bottom side and she’s by a young sire. I think she can run a tick farther than she’s been running, but that might be getting ahead of ourselves.” A daughter of Sahara Moon (Malibu Moon), Alter Moon was fifth in the 1 1/16-mile GII Gulfstream Park Oaks in March. Cut back to seven furlongs, she ran second in the Apr. 21 Game Face S. before a 14 3/4-length romp in a 6 1/2-furlong allowance. The decision was made to test the waters at Fasig-Tipton after the filly scored a five-length victory in the June 30 Azalea S. Lopez purchased Alter Moon for $22,000 at last year’s OBS June sale. On the board in five of seven starts, she has won three times and earned $128,255. She will join the New York stable of trainer Chad Brown. Young agreed the Horses of Racing Age Sale provided buyers and sellers with prime opportunities. “I think it’s tremendous,” Young said of the auction. “I think it’s great for the people from Florida who had her and I think it’s great for us. Hopefully, she builds on what she’s done. The only time she’s run two turns was from an outside post at Gulfstream going 1 1/16 miles, so you can draw a line through that. I think she’s gotten better with racing. We couldn’t be happier with her.” Alter Moon was consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency and her connections were thrilled with Monday’s result. “Going in we were thinking $600,000 was what about what we wanted for her,” Taylor Made’s Marshall Taylor said. “She showed great the whole time. She walked out there and walked great every time and didn’t turn a hair and really showed well. The owner is very happy with the result. For us, that’s the best thing. Seeing the owner so happy with the transaction.” Taylor agreed the Horses of Racing Age Sale was a win-win for everybody. “I think it’s important because it gives owners the opportunity to take money off the table,” he said. “For example, this filly, if he ran her, who knows what she’ll go on to do, but it gave that owner the opportunity to put her in a sale midway through the year and get a good amount of money for the filly. And it gave the buyer the opportunity to race her the rest of the year and hopefully add on to her success.”–@JessMartiniTDN Fire Away Headed to Cape Town Phipps-bred Grade III winner Fire Away (War Front) is headed to stud in Cape Town, South Africa, after selling to bloodstock agent Joe Brocklebank, agent for Form Bloodstock, for $450,000 at Newtown Paddocks Monday. “He’s going to stand in South Africa,” Brocklebank said of hip 443. “He’s got a huge pedigree and he is a very attractive horse. He is very much like his father, War Front. I know the pedigree pretty well and the Phipps pedigrees speak for themselves.” As for the price, the horseman said, “To be honest, I thought he might bring a little bit more. I am very happy that we got him for $450,000.” Out of GSP Salute, Fire Away is a half-brother to GISW and young sire Mr Speaker (Pulpit) and GSP Snap Decision (Hard Spun). His second dam is undefeated Hall of Famer Personal Ensign (Private Account), the dam of MGISW My Flag (Easy Goer), who in turn produced champion Storm Flag Flying (Storm Cat). The 6-year-old also hails from the family of Grade I winners Miner’s Mark (Mr. Prospector) and Traditionally (Mr. Prospector). Trained throughout his career by Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey, Fire Away retires with a record of 23-7-4-4 and earnings of $613,397. His career highlights include victories in the rained-off GIII Dixie S. at Pimlico May 19 and Aqueduct’s Artie Schiller S. last November and Danger’s Hour S. in April. He was last seen finishing fourth in the GIII Poker S. on the Belmont lawn June 17. Fire Away was part of Claiborne Farm’s first Horses of Racing Age consignment and the operation’s president Walker Hancock was pleased with the sale. “This is the range we thought he was going to be in,” Hancock said. “It is a good price for a nice horse. We have a couple more good ones to come. The market seems strong so far.”–@CDeBernardisTDN One Liner to Join Asmussen Barn Grade III winner One Liner (Into Mischief) (hip 492) joined the barn of Steve Asmussen after the Hall of Famer signed the $400,000 ticked on the 4-year-old at Fasig July Monday. The conditioner was acting on behalf of longtime owner Carrol Castille. “Hopefully we can do some good with him running and then he will most likely stand at Carroll’s place, Whispering Oaks in Louisiana,” Asmussen said. “I liked how fast he is. I have run against him on several occasions. He’s a racehorse.” Campaigned by China Horse Club, WinStar Farm, SF Racing and Head of Plains Partners, the $150,000 KEEJAN buy earned $472,320 while under the care of Todd Pletcher with a record of 7-4-1-1. The dark bay won his first three starts, including last term’s GIII Southwest S., in which he beat a pair of Asmussen runners. Forced off the GI Kentucky Derby trail with bone bruising, One Liner finished third at Gulfstream Feb. 9 in his return from just short of a year on the sidelines and returned to winning ways next out in a Keeneland optional claimer. Runner-up in the GIII Pimlico Special S. May 18, he was off the board when last seen in the GI Metropolitan H. June 9. Out of Cayala (Cherokee Run), One Liner hails from the family of Grade I-winning half-brothers Daredevil (More Than Ready) and Albertus Maximus (Albert the Great) and Group 1 winner King Charlemagne (Nureyev). —@CDeBernardisTDN Dobson Strikes for Factorofwon Everett Dobson, shopping for potential mates for his multiple graded stakes winner Mastery (Candy Ride {Arg}), went to $400,000 to acquire stakes winner Factorofwon (The Factor) (hip 440) during Monday’s Fasig-Tipton Horses of Racing Age Sale. “She’s an absolutely lovely filly and she has some upside on her, she’s just a 3-year-old,” Dobson said. “I’m actually buying her, thinking down the road, to breed her to Mastery. She’ll be in the broodmare band someday. She’s already a stakes winner and that’s an added bonus.” Factorofwon, a $50,000 Keeneland September yearling, was purchased by Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal for $150,000 at last year’s OBS April sale. She won the Black Pearl S. down the hill at Santa Anita in the Red Baron’s Barn colors and just last Saturday, she was second in the Stormy Blues S. at Laurel Park for trainer Phil Schoenthal. Out of B R’s Girl (Pulpit), the gray is a half-sister to stakes placed Act (War Front). She was consigned to Monday’s auction by Warrendale Sales. Dobson said no trainer had been picked out for the filly, but added, “We will know by noon tomorrow hopefully.” Mastery was unbeaten in four lifetime starts in the colors of Dobson’s Cheyenne Stables, including wins in the GIII Bob Hope S., GI Los Alamitos Futurity and GII San Felipe S. He stood his first season at Claiborne Farm this year for $25,000. Asked if he would be doing more shopping for Mastery, Dobson said, “I’ve got a fairly sizable broodmare band currently, but I am looking for that quality, that kind, to go to him down the road.” He added, “I think this may be the first one I’ve ever bought out of a horses of racing age sale. I typically don’t buy here, but I just started looking at future opportunities for Mastery and she showed up and I liked her physically a lot. So we’ll go on with her this year and maybe next year or the following year, she’ll come back to the broodmare band to see Mastery.”–@JessMartiniTDN View the full article

In the waning moments of Monday’s Fasig-Tipton Selected Horses of Racing Age sale, Hip 574 Alter Moon brought a $675,000 final bid from agent Steve Young,, thus becoming the second highest priced lot of the evening. Consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency agent XVI, the bay is out of Sahara Moon (Malibu Moon), a granddaughter of champion 3yo filly and mulitple Grade I winning Resume (Reviewer). On the board in four of six starts this term, the $22,000 OBSOPN juvenile won Gulfstream’s Azalea S. June 30. View the full article

The Green Monkey (Forestry), the most expensive horse ever sold at auction, was euthanized in May due to laminitis. The story was first reported by Paulick Report. The horse had been residing at Hartley/De Renzo Thoroughbreds in Ocala, Fla. The Green Monkey was far better known for what he accomplished in the auction ring than what he did on the racetrack. He went into the ring at the 2006 Fasig-Tipton Calder Select 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale, where he worked an eighth of a mile in 9 4/5 seconds. That was among the reasons a bidding war between Coolmore and Darley took place with both entities determined to acquire the then 2-year-old. Eventually, Darley folded and Coolmore purchased the colt for $16 million. He was purchased a year earlier at the Fasig-Tipton 2005 Kentucky Select Sale by partners Randy Hartley and Dean De Renzo. For them, the 2006 sale turned out to the biggest pinhooking success in racing history. The Green Monkey didn’t live up to his price tag on the racetrack. Trained by Todd Pletcher, he started three times and his best finish was a third-place showing in his debut, a 2007 maiden race at Belmont. After finishing fourth in a turf maiden at Hollywood Park, he was retired. His career earnings were $10,440. “He was doing excellent, and then probably a year and a half ago, he foundered,” Randy Hartley told Paulick Report. “We just struggled with him ever since, trying to do everything we could to get him right. It just got to the point where it wasn’t the right thing to do.” The Hartley/De Renzo team bought back into the horse and stood him at stud. He had 46 foals of racing age. He had a champion in Puerto Rico in Green Money. His top earning horse was Green Doctor, a filly who won seven races and earned $335,351. Her biggest win came in the 2014 Fanfreluche S. at Woodbine. Hartley told the Paulick staff that The Green Monkey has been buried on their farm. “Nobody will have his stall or anything, it’s a special place,” he said. “There will never be another horse like him for us. I thank the lord for him.” View the full article

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The Fasig-Tipton July Selected Yearlings Sale will begin Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. at the Newtown Paddocks in Lexington. The one-day auction has attracted a catalogue of 349 head. Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning expects demand to be high–but realistic–as the yearling sales season opens. “I don’t think there is any reason to expect any dramatic change or shift in the yearling marketplace,” Browning said. “I think the market will be healthy. I think there will continue to be selectivity, but the demand will be strong.” The yearling sales follow on from a solid series of juvenile sales this past spring and Browning expects pinhookers will be ready to restock when the July sale gets underway Tuesday morning. “We are dealing with fairly mature and stable markets right now, whether its 2-year-olds, broodmares or yearlings,” he said. “The 2-year-old market, sure you’d wish that there were more across-the-board buyers, but we’re living in a world of selectivity. We’ve seen that trend in recent years and we’ll see it again in 2018. But overall the 2-year-old market was healthy-it wasn’t crazy-but it was healthy and I think we will see similar levels of participation from pinhookers in the yearling marketplace this year.” This year’s sophomore class of July graduates includes GII San Vicente S. and GIII Lazaro Barrera S. winner Kanthaka (Jimmy Creed), GIII Robert B. Lewis S. winner Lombo (Graydar), and G3 UAE Oaks winner Rayya (Tiz Wonderful). Browning, who said, “July is an athlete sale, plain and simple,” expects buyers to be happy with the offerings at this year’s auction. “The pre-sale interest has been very strong this year, stronger than last year,” Browning said. “And I’m optimistic about the group of yearlings that we’re going to have on display. It was a good group, physically, when we inspected them on the farm and I think we will have a very solid sale.” During last year’s July sale, 172 yearlings sold for a gross of $16,107,000 and an average of $93,645. Larry Best’s OXO Equine purchased the highest-priced offering at the 2017 sale, going to $1 million for a daughter of Medaglia d’Oro. The filly was the first July yearling to sell for seven figures since 2006 and was the sale’s co-record priced filly. View the full article

WinStar Farm is home to a quartet of stallions whose first crop of yearlings will pass through the sales rings this season, and with the arrival of Fasig-Tipton July, the level of anticipation around the farm is understandably high. In the final installment of a video series about first-crop yearling sires leading up to the July Sale, the TDN’s Lucas Marquardt sat down with WinStar’s Director of Bloodstock Services and Assistant Racing Manager Sean Tugel to discuss the prospects of Carpe Diem (Giant’s Causeway) and Constitution (Tapit), who join Daredevil (More Than Ready) and Commissioner (A.P. Indy) as new faces entering the yearling market in 2018. LM: Let’s talk about Constitution. How many does he have at the July Sale? ST: He has eight entered in the July Sale. LM: He was a Todd Pletcher trainee who came on strong early in his 3-year-old year. After his maiden win, before you knew it, he was winning the GI Florida Derby. Talk about that quick progression and if it was a surprise at all to you, knowing him as a young horse. ST: Constitution always showed a high level of ability from the time we brought him home to break him after we bought him at Saratoga with our partners Twin Creeks. He always showed a lot of precocity and a lot of ability. For whatever reason, he just took a little bit of time to get to the races, more so than some of our other 2-year-olds that year–but as soon as he hit the racetrack, he was able to show all the ability he had. He quickly became a Grade I winner in the Florida Derby and was a talking horse going in the Kentucky Derby. He replicated that form with a big 111 Beyer as a 4-year-old when he won the GI Donn H. {"id":3,"instanceName":"Articles No Playlist","videos":[{"videoType":"HTML5","title":"Sean Tugel Discusses WinStar's First-Crop Sires","description":"","info":"","thumbImg":"","mp4":"https://player.vimeo.com/external/279153115.hd.mp4?s=54c40a036af3d8dc3884ccab2735db35f0562002&profile_id=174","enable_mp4_download":"no","prerollAD":"yes","prerollGotoLink":"prerollGotoLink","preroll_mp4_title":"preroll_mp4_title","preroll_mp4":"https://player.vimeo.com/external/279154669.hd.mp4?s=6cd103df93200bea1e30b99a712c015e8bd8695a&profile_id=174","prerollSkipTimer":"5","midrollAD":"no","midrollAD_displayTime":"midrollAD_displayTime","midrollGotoLink":"midrollGotoLink","midroll_mp4":"midroll_mp4","midrollSkipTimer":"midrollSkipTimer","postrollAD":"no","postrollGotoLink":"postrollGotoLink","postroll_mp4":"postroll_mp4","postrollSkipTimer":"postrollSkipTimer","popupAdShow":"no","popupImg":"popupImg","popupAdStartTime":"popupAdStartTime","popupAdEndTime":"popupAdEndTime","popupAdGoToLink":"popupAdGoToLink"}],"instanceTheme":"light","playerLayout":"fitToContainer","videoPlayerWidth":720,"videoPlayerHeight":405,"videoRatio":1.7777777777778,"videoRatioStretch":true,"videoPlayerShadow":"effect1","colorAccent":"#000000","posterImg":"","posterImgOnVideoFinish":"","logoShow":"No","logoPath":"","logoPosition":"bottom-right","logoClickable":"No","logoGoToLink":"","allowSkipAd":true,"advertisementTitle":"Ad","skipAdvertisementText":"Skip Ad","skipAdText":"You can skip this ad in","playBtnTooltipTxt":"Play","pauseBtnTooltipTxt":"Pause","rewindBtnTooltipTxt":"Rewind","downloadVideoBtnTooltipTxt":"Download video","qualityBtnOpenedTooltipTxt":"Close settings","qualityBtnClosedTooltipTxt":"Settings","muteBtnTooltipTxt":"Mute","unmuteBtnTooltipTxt":"Unmute","fullscreenBtnTooltipTxt":"Fullscreen","exitFullscreenBtnTooltipTxt":"Exit fullscreen","infoBtnTooltipTxt":"Show info","embedBtnTooltipTxt":"Embed","shareBtnTooltipTxt":"Share","volumeTooltipTxt":"Volume","playlistBtnClosedTooltipTxt":"Show playlist","playlistBtnOpenedTooltipTxt":"Hide playlist","facebookBtnTooltipTxt":"Share on Facebook","twitterBtnTooltipTxt":"Share on Twitter","googlePlusBtnTooltipTxt":"Share on Google+","lastBtnTooltipTxt":"Go to last video","firstBtnTooltipTxt":"Go to first video","nextBtnTooltipTxt":"Play next video","previousBtnTooltipTxt":"Play previous video","shuffleBtnOnTooltipTxt":"Shuffle on","shuffleBtnOffTooltipTxt":"Shuffle off","nowPlayingTooltipTxt":"NOW PLAYING","embedWindowTitle1":"SHARE THIS PLAYER:","embedWindowTitle2":"EMBED THIS VIDEO IN YOUR SITE:","embedWindowTitle3":"SHARE LINK TO THIS PLAYER:","lightBox":false,"lightBoxAutoplay":false,"lightBoxThumbnail":"","lightBoxThumbnailWidth":400,"lightBoxThumbnailHeight":220,"lightBoxCloseOnOutsideClick":true,"onFinish":"Play next video","autoplay":false,"loadRandomVideoOnStart":"No","shuffle":"No","playlist":"Off","playlistBehaviourOnPageload":"opened (default)","playlistScrollType":"light","preloadSelfHosted":"none","hideVideoSource":true,"showAllControls":true,"rightClickMenu":true,"autohideControls":2,"hideControlsOnMouseOut":"No","nowPlayingText":"Yes","infoShow":"No","shareShow":"No","facebookShow":"No","twitterShow":"No","mailShow":"No","facebookShareName":"","facebookShareLink":"","facebookShareDescription":"","facebookSharePicture":"","twitterText":"","twitterLink":"","twitterHashtags":"","twitterVia":"","googlePlus":"","embedShow":"No","embedCodeSrc":"","embedCodeW":720,"embedCodeH":405,"embedShareLink":"","youtubeControls":"custom controls","youtubeSkin":"dark","youtubeColor":"red","youtubeQuality":"default","youtubeShowRelatedVideos":"Yes","vimeoColor":"00adef","showGlobalPrerollAds":false,"globalPrerollAds":"url1;url2;url3;url4;url5","globalPrerollAdsSkipTimer":5,"globalPrerollAdsGotoLink":"","videoType":"HTML5 (self-hosted)","submit":"Save Changes","rootFolder":"http:\/\/wp.tdn.pmadv.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/Elite-video-player\/"} LM: In terms of his first year at stud, you guys always support your horses and make sure they get off to quick starts, but you also have a partner in Randy Gullatt and Steve Davison’s Twin Creeks Racing. Talk about the partnership between you two, both in racing and, more recently, breeding. ST: Whenever Twin Creeks gets a stallion, they support it 100% and they’re all in. They’ve supported him very well with the numbers of mares bred, and they’ll be out there supporting–as we will–at the sales, trying to find some of the best Constitutions we can to go on and make him a really good son of Tapit at stud. LM: What are you hearing from breeders about the Consitution babies? Have they come on strongly from their weanling to yearling seasons? ST: He did have a very good showing in November with a select few, but he has quite a few entered in both the July sale and obviously Saratoga, where he was a $400,000 yearling himself. I think it’s a great representation that he gives you an early good physical. I know David Hanley, our general manager, is among many that have said that Constitutions have made a really big move forward from weanlings to yearlings, and I think a lot of people are sharing that same sentiment around town. LM: Are you seeing some of that same progression from the weanling to yearling season with the Carpe Diems? What have you been hearing from the breeders? ST: They’ve still been very high on the horse. Ever since they first started hitting the ground as foals, all of our breeders have been very complementary of him, very excited for him, and talking to the breeders, I know there’s a good representation of him at both Fasig July and the Saratoga sale. There are also many good physicals that will be going to Keeneland September. As far as breeders, they’re all very excited to be able to offer their Carpe Diems this year. They’re very excited for it, and many of them believe that they’re some of the best yearlings they have to offer in their consignments. LM: Carpe Diem himself was a sales-topping 2-year-old at OBS March. Can you talk about his development as a young horse? ST: Carpe Diem was an exceptionally good-looking yearling. He was a $550,000 [Keeneland September] yearling that went on to be a co-sales topping 2-year-old for $1.6 million. We bought him in partnership with Stonestreet. They’re always a great partner to have when trying to get a young horse started as a stallion. LM: Do you see many similarities to his sire, Giant’s Causeway? ST: A lot of people who have seen Carpe Diem since he came here to be a stallion have always commented on how much he resembles his sire. Giant’s Causeway was an absolutely phenomenal sire, and he is emerging as a sire’s sire through some of his young horses, especially Fed Biz–who we stand here as well. So we think that right now Carpe Diem is a great representation of his sire. He is one of the leading choices by Giant’s Causeway to breed to, and a lot of people with his initial stud fee of $25,000 respected the fact that he was a very nice individual to breed to. View the full article

Hip 485, My Miss Tapit (Tapit-Sindy With an S, by Broken Vow) realized a $700,000 final bid from Breeze Easy Monday at the Fasig-Tipton Selected Horses of Racing Age sale in Lexington, Kentucky. A $550,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase, the stakes-winning filly finished third most recently in the June 30 GII Princess Rooney S. at Gulfstream for Mathis Stable trainer Todd Pletcher. Bred by Gainesway Thoroughbreds, the full-sister to graded-stakes placed I’ll Wrap it Up was consigned by Elite Sales. View the full article

HOKKAIDO, Japan-Hopes were high that the JRHA Select Sale would continue the upward curve it has charted the last number of years and when yearlings took centre stage at Northern Horse Park for the opening session on Monday, those hopes were realized in no uncertain fashion. Trade was headed by a son of Deep Impact (Jpn) that sold for ¥250 million, but it was the depth of trade throughout the day that lead to a record breaking aggregate of ¥9,674,500,000 (US$87,585,779/£65,682,082/€74,432,021/A$117,109,043), up on last year’s total of ¥8.63 billion. 211 of the 233 offered yearlings changed hands for a clearance rate of 90%, in line with last year’s figure and those that sold did so at an average of ¥45,850,000 (US$415,145/£311,355/€352,742/A$555,179) and a median of ¥31,000,000 (US$280,683/£210,493/€238/469/A$375,351). Both these figures represented rises of 15% and 5% respectively. To lend further credence to the robustness of the market, last year 12 yearlings made in excess of US$1 million, but on Monday that number reached 17. At the close of business, Katsumi Yoshida, whose Northern Farm were the session’s leading vendor, said, “This is a surprising result, much stronger than expected for both clearance rate and aggregate. The top yearlings were difficult to purchase and it wasn’t all about one stallion either. We had a lot of overseas buyers here but they found it very difficult to buy, unfortunately for them. We can now look forward to Tuesday’s foal session with confidence when a number of young stallions will be represented by their first crop of foals.” The sale certainly got off to a flyer when lot 1, a son of Heart’s Cry (Jpn) from Northern Farm, sold to Makoto Hayano for ¥135 million and it didn’t take long for that price to be overshadowed when lot 13, a colt by King Kamehameha (Jpn) from the same farm made ¥240 million. The yearling is the second produce out of GI Gamely S. winner Miss Serendipity (Arg) (Not For Sale) who also scored at the top level in Argentina and was knocked down to Yoshihisa Ozasa. “When I inspected the horses at Northern Farm I really liked this colt,” the buyer said. “I liked his confirmation and pedigree, in particular his dam-line but the price was a bit more than I thought it would be.” Impact Factor… The first Deep Impact offering was the sale-topping lot 21 and the full-brother to stakes winner Satono Arthur (Jpn) out of the G1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas winner King’s Rose (NZ) continued the mare’s excellent record at this sale when selling to Danox Co Ltd for ¥250 million. The first produce out of King’s Rose, the above mentioned Satono Arthur made ¥195 million in 2015 and her second produce, an unraced 2-year-old colt by Lord Kanaloa (Jpn) sold for ¥180 million in 2017. While Monday’s price easily eclipsed the two previous significant sales, the successful buyer, Masahiro Noda, felt he still got some good value. “He was my pick of the sale and I was determined to buy this colt after seeing him at Northern Farm,” he said. “With such a strong start to the sale I thought he would have made more so I am very happy to get him at that price.” A Deep Impact colt out of a six-time American Grade I winner could be expected to be a headline act at any major international select sale and especially when the dam Ginger Punch (Awesome Again) has already produced a MGSW in Rouge Buck (Jpn) (Manhattan Café {Jpn}). Lot 52 did the 15-year-old mare proud when selling to Kaneko Makoto Holdings Co. Ltd for ¥190 million. The same price was achieved by the son of a mare whose progeny are no stranger to making a ‘deep impact’ at this sale. Lot 100 is out of Listen (Ire) (Sadler’s Wells) whose son topped this session last year when selling for ¥270 million and while Monday’s offering didn’t quit scale those heights, he still fetched the more than respectable sum of ¥190 million to agent Tony Club. The tried and trusted method of mating an American Grade I winner with Deep Impact also bore fruit when lot 104 stepped into the ring. When the mare Dubawi Heights (GB) is, as her name suggests, by Darley’s great stallion, she is a half-sister to a Group 1 winner in Make Believe (GB) (Makfi {GB}). It really is a combination of elements that can spark fireworks in a sales ring and it was Hajime Satomi who stepped up to the mark to add the Shadai Farm-bred colt to his string for ¥180 million. Satomi’s top class G1 Arima Kinen winner Satono Diamond (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) has been a little disappointing this year and should the dual Group 1 winner fail to recapture his sparkle, Satomi may well have another son of the stallion to potentially fill the void in lot 71. Satomi was pushed to ¥160 million to acquire Shadai’s colt out of European stakes winner Nova Hawk (GB) (Hawk Wing), who has a perfect breeding record to date with two winners from two foals of racing age. Speaking about his purchases Satomi said, “I like the European element of lot 104’s pedigree, he is slightly small at the moment but we think he will grow sufficiently and hopefully he can be a classic type. Lot 71 is a big, strong Deep Impact, a bit different to the other one but I am delighted to get two such colts by the sire. I thought they might make US$2 million each so I am pleasantly surprised at the price of each one.” Deep Impact raced in the colours of Kaneko Makoto and midway through the session the owner forked out ¥140 million for the colt out of the brilliant Azeri (Jade Hunter), offered as lot 116. The first filly to break the million-dollar mark was lot 33 also by Deep Impact and another out of a South American star in G1 Mil Guineas winner Safari Miss (Arg) (Not For Sale {Arg}), whose pedigree also includes G1 Prix Saint-Alary winner Queen’s Jewel (GB) (Pivotal {GB}). The filly was bought by Mizuki Noda for ¥115 million. Overall 22 of the 25 offered yearlings by Deep Impact sold for an average of ¥110 million which equates to $995,000/£746,325/€845,830. Heart’s On Fire… Owner Riichi Kondo has campaigned a number of horses with the ‘Admire’ prefix, among those the G1 Japan Cup and G1 Dubai Duty Free winner and current Darley stallion Admire Moon (Jpn), and heading a number of acquisitions for Kondo on Monday was lot 26. This ¥230-million colt by Heart’s Cry is out of dual Argentinian Group 1 winner Life For Sale (Arg) (Not For Sale {Arg}) and Kondo has big aspirations for the Northern Farm-bred yearling. “Yasuo Tomomichi will train him and he was very keen for me to buy him,” Kondo said. “He thinks he is a typical top-class mile and a half colt so I hope he will be correct. It is a strong market, but the catalogue has a good spread of proven stallions that offer a bit more choice than in previous years.” 17-year-old Heart’s Cry has established himself as one of the top stallions in Japan through the exploits of this year’s G1 Osaki Hai winner Suave Richard (Jpn), among others and having an international stakes representative like recent GI Turf Classic S. winner Yoshida (Jpn) has raised his profile outside of his homeland. As a result his progeny were in demand and another to star on the day was lot 92. This colt had a reserve of ¥40 million, but when Danox beat off strong competition for the chestnut, the bid board displayed a price of ¥200 million, five times the reserve set by Northern Farm for the son of GI Spinaway S. winner So Many Ways (Sightseeing). Pharoah In Demand As Young Sires Make Their Mark… 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah’s first yearlings are likely to be much sought after in America in the coming months if the stallion’s sole offering at JRHA is anything to go by. Lot 72, a sturdy colt from Northern Farm out of GI Santa Anita Oaks winner Crisp (El Corredor) was the subject of a flurry of bids before the hammer came down at ¥180 million in favour of Masahiro Noda’s Danox Ltd. “He is a really nice individual,” said Noda. “Being honest we can’t yet say if American Paroah’s progeny will be particularly suited to racing in Japan, but with this colt’s pedigree he can probably race anywhere in the world.” Just A Way (Jpn) was the highest rated horse in the world in 2014 and he has made a good impression with his first 2-year-old runners in Japan this year. This gave confidence to Tatsuo Tanikake to purchase lot 109, a Just A Way sire colt out of G2 Prix de Royallieu winner Maria Royale (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}) for ¥125 million. Dalham Hall resident Golden Horn (GB) enjoyed a glorious season on the track in 2015 and breeders who supported him since will be encouraged when his first yearling offered at auction sold for ¥36 million. The filly, lot 60, was offered by Mishima Farm on behalf of Sheikh Fahad Al Thani out of his Irish stakes winner Pearl Of Africa (Ire) (Jeremy). Another stallion represented by his first yearlings was Kizuna (Jpn) and this son of Deep Impact’s 10 catalogued were headed by lot 169 which sold for ¥50 million to Thoroughbred Club Lion Ltd. The action continues at Northern Horse Park from 10 a.m. on Tuesday when the focus switches to foals. View the full article

Bon Aurum (Aus) (Bon Hoffa {Aus}–Goldsmobile {Aus}, by Promontory Gold), a winner of the G1 Yulong Park Sir Rupert Clarke S., will stand at Glen Eden in Victoria, Australia, the stud announced. The rising 6-year-old will command A$5,500 (inc. GST). Bred by Parador Park Thoroughbreds, the Ciaron Maher-trained chestnut also captured the G3 Beck Caulfield Guineas Prelude and sports a record of 16-5-1-2, $441,604. Under the third dam is English and German group winner Young Runaway (GB) (Young Generation {Ire}). View the full article

Harry Angel will not defend his crown at Newmarket July 14 after trainer Clive Cox said the star sprinter would need more time to recover from the cut leg he sustained when a beaten favorite in the Diamond Jubilee Stakes (G1). View the full article

G1 Coronation S. heroine Alpha Centauri (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) will take part in Friday’s G1 Falmouth S. at Newmarket. The ‘TDN Rising Star’ was also under consideration for the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois at Deauville on Aug. 12, but the Flaxman Stables’ runner pleased Jessica Harrington in a work on Monday morning. In May, the grey landed the G1 Irish 1000 Guineas. “We’ve given her the green light for the moment,” said Harrington. “She worked well this morning and everything was good. We’re very happy with her.” View the full article

West Point Thoroughbreds’ CEO and founder Terry Finley and Purple Haze Stable’s Wanda Polisseni will be honored at Equine Advocates’ 17th annual awards dinner, to be held at the Canfield Casino in Saratoga Springs Aug. 2, for making major contributions in the area of equine protection. Finley will be given the Safe Home Equine Protection Award, while Polisseni will be presented the Ellen and Herbert Moelis Equine Savior Award. Finley, a resident of Saratoga Springs, came to the rescue of Thoroughbreds stranded in Puerto Rico during Hurricane Maria, helping arrange a plane to deliver much-needed food and supplies. He also sits on the boards of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association and the Thoroughbred Charities of America. Polisseni was the largest contributor to the construction of Finger Lakes Thoroughbred Adoption Program’s Purple Haze Center, the first and only adoption center built on the grounds of a racetrack. Tickets for the event are $250 per person and include cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, dinner, live and silent auctions and dancing. All proceeds will benefit Equine Advocates Horse Rescue, Sanctuary and Human Education programs. For more information or to purchase tickets, please call (518) 392-0175 or email events@equineadvocates.org. View the full article

This year's star miler Alpha Centauri has solidified as the favorite for the July 13 group 1 Tattersalls Falmouth Stakes after connections revealed the filly will take on her elders at Newmarket. View the full article

Harry Angel (IRE) will not defend his crown at Newmarket July 14 after trainer Clive Cox said the star sprinter would need more time to recover from the cut leg he sustained when a beaten favorite in the Diamond Jubilee Stakes (G1). View the full article

The 2018 Rood and Riddle Breeders’ Cup Post Position Draw will be held at Equestricon Monday, Oct. 29, organizers behind the convention and festival announced Monday. The draw will be open to all Equestricon attendees and will be hosted inside the main hall of Louisville’s newly renovated Kentucky International Convention Center. “Breeders’ Cup and its Board are so pleased to share the excitement of the live drawing of post positions for the 14 Breeders’ Cup World Championship races with the many fans and industry participants attending Equestricon,” said Dora Delgado, Breeders’ Cup Senior Vice President of Racing and Nominations. “Participating owners, trainers and guests will enjoy a totally new experience combining the anticipation of the Post Position Draw with the enthusiasm of Thoroughbred racing’s biggest fans.” The draw will highlight day one of Equestricon, which continues at KICC Tuesday, Oct. 30. Events at Equestricon during Breeders’ Cup week will include dozens of panels, workshops, seminars, storytelling sessions and appearances by some of racing’s biggest names. “We’re so excited to partner with Breeders’ Cup to bring owners, trainers, horseplayers, fans and more all under one roof to celebrate a hallmark event of Breeders’ Cup Festival Week,” said Kathryn Sharp, co-founder of Equestricon. “The building will be buzzing with excitement and live reactions to the Draw. It’s going to be a party and anyone with an interest in racing won’t want to miss it.” View the full article

G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest hero Brando (GB) (Pivotal {GB}) is in good form ahead of an intended start in the July 14 G1 Darley July Cup at Newmarket. The Kevin Ryan trainee is unbeaten over the Rowley Mile, and was runner up in the G2 Duke of York S. on May 16. He was a last out fourth in the G2 Greenlands S. in Ireland behind the newly retired G1 Diamond Jubilee S. victor Merchant Navy (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) on May 26. “I have been training Brando especially for the Darley July Cup and he is in great form,” Ryan told the Newmarket notes team. “I don’t know what it is about Newmarket but he seems to love the place, he must like running downhill. He is a big heavy-topped horse yet is very well-balanced and seems to relish running down into the dip–he wasn’t beaten very far in this race last year. It was a difficult decision to skip Royal Ascot, but I wanted him to run in the Darley July Cup and then defend his Prix Maurice de Gheest title and I didn’t think it would be fair on him to go to Ascot as well. You can’t run in all these championship races.” View the full article

The winning Room To Improve (Ire) (Xtension {Ire}) has been added to the Tattersalls July Sale, which runs from July 11-13. Selling as lot 864A on the Friday of the sale from the draft of Ty-Derlwyn Farm, the David Evans trainee is rated 81p with Timeform. Her second dam is a half-sister to Group 3 winner Hazariya (Ire) (Xaar {GB}), the dam of G1 Epsom Derby hero Harzand (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}). View the full article

Precedent counts for an awful lot in the world of horse racing and breeding: if something has happened once, people are generally prepared to bet that it can happen again, and again. So, when Teofilo became Europe’s champion 2-year-old of 2006, thanks to Group 1 victories in the National S. and Dewhurst S., everyone took note that sending a daughter of Danehill to Galileo had produced a colt possessing much more precocity and juvenile speed than Galileo. Consequently, several more Danehill mares beat a path to Galileo’s door in 2007, with spectacular results. Frankel duly emulated Teofilo’s Dewhurst success and 2-year-old championship before becoming one of three Classic winners bred to this pattern in May 2011, the others being Golden Lilac (Poule d’Essai des Pouliches) and Roderic O’Connor (Irish 2000 Guineas). There are now no fewer than 12 Group 1 winners bred this way and the nick has produced 15% black-type winners, even though Galileo now had the staggering total of 285 foals of racing age out of Danehill’s daughters. Fortunately, Teofilo has also set a precedent that the Galileo-Danehill cross can produce very effective stallions. His first crop produced yet another Dewhurst S. winner in Parish Hall and it wasn’t long before Teofilo had racked up winners of the Irish 1000 Guineas, Irish Derby and Irish St Leger. Next to face the stallion test was Roderic O’Connor, but at a lower level in the market. He had his moments, with a pair of first-crop 2-year-old winners, and he has since had Group 1 success in Brazil. By the end of 2016 Frankel had also hit the floor running, with an eye-catching total of six 2-year-old group winners from his first crop. It was therefore fair to have high expectations of Intello–another representative of the famed Galileo/Danehill cross–when his first crop reached the races in 2017. Intello had done so well as a racehorse that–at £25,000–he was the highest-priced new stallion to retire to a British stud for the 2014 season, with only the Irish-based Declaration of War and Dawn Approach retiring at higher prices. Intello had carried the colours of the Wertheimer brothers with distinction, as had his first two dams Impressionnante and Occupandiste, members of Fall Aspen family which ranks as one of the world’s most successful female lines. Impressionnante was a smart miler, as she showed with her victory in the G2 Prix de Sandringham and by being placed in the Poule d’Essai des Pouliches. Occupandiste had done even better, developing into a dual Group 1 winner at four, in the Prix Maurice de Gheest and Prix de la Foret. Intello quickly confirmed that he wasn’t without speed. He lined up for the G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains unbeaten in three starts (two of then as a juvenile) and many considered him unlucky to lose his unbeaten record in finishing third, beaten a neck and a head, especially when he was badly drawn. The Racing Post’s analysis stated that “having had only a few behind turning in and briefly being stopped in his run when trying to switch outside, he fairly flew home to just be denied. Victory would have been his in another couple of strides and he must go down as an unfortunate loser.” The next question was how far would Intello stay. His dam Impressionnante had never been tried beyond a mile and Occupandiste had flourished at around seven furlongs. He quickly showed that stamina wasn’t a problem when he justified favouritism in the G1 Prix du Jockey-Club over an extended mile and a quarter. It was therefore rather surprising that he was dropped back to a mile for his next two starts. To his credit, his third behind Moonlight Cloud in the Prix Jacques le Marois represented form nearly as good as his Jockey-Club win, but his connections decided that he should end his career with a return to middle distances. He finished a creditable third behind Treve and Orfevre in the Arc, having warmed up with a win in the G3 Prix du Prince d’Orange. Consistent, versatile and sound, Intello appeared to have a lot to recommend him as a stallion. His pedigree also received a boost in 2015 and 2016 when Occupandiste’s Galileo colt Mondialiste won the GI Woodbine Mile and the GI Arlington Million. French-raced stallions can sometimes find it harder than the local product to win the affections of British and Irish breeders. Intello had no problems in his first year, when he covered129 mares for a crop of 100 but he is credited with just 66 foals in his second year. As arranged at the time of Intello’s retirement, Intello was transferred to France, to Haras du Quesnay, for his third and fourth seasons and French breeders welcomed him back with books of 128 in 2016 and 147 a year later. I will be interested to see Intello’s figures for the 2018 season back at Cheveley Park, where he was in direct competition with Ulysses, another of Galileo’s top sons. Cheveley Park, with a very substantial financial interest in Ulysses, sent 50 mares to the newcomer, with the usual quota of around seven going to Intello. I have championed Intello on a couple of occasions earlier this year, pointing out in the TDN in late-April that he appeared to be on the verge of a breakthrough. That breakthrough came in early May when Young Rascal won the G3 Chester Vase two days after Intellogent had become his first group winner, in the G3 Prix de Guiche. Then in June Intello’s sons Louis d’Or and Intellogent made a bold bid to follow in their sire’s footsteps in the G1 Prix du Jockey-Club, with the pair finishing hot on Study of Man’s heels in third and fourth places. Another stakes success followed soon afterwards when Native American landed the Prix Ridgway and now Intellogent has become Group 1 winner number one with a determined effort in the Qatar Prix Jean Prat over a mile. With Teofilo, Frankel and Intello now all sires of Group 1 winners (as are Roderic O’Connor and Cima de Triomphe in South America), it is going to be interesting to see whether their fellow Group 1 winners Noble Mission and Highland Reel can follow their example. Intello now has five black-type winners from his 100-strong first crop, plus another four black-type earners. The question is whether the upturn in his fortunes came earlier enough to make a significant difference to demand for his 2018 services. The fact that Intellogent’s Group 1 success was gained over a mile will surely help Intello. The Jean Prat winner appears to have inherited some of Intello’s versatility. The bottom half of the colt’s pedigree is also a blend of speed and stamina, the speed represented by his broodmare sire Kheleyf, whose visits to Royal Ascot yielded a second in the G3 Norfolk S. and a victory in the G3 Jersey S. Intellogent’s dam Nuit Polaire scored over seven and a half furlongs as a 3-year-old but later showed that she stayed a mile and a quarter. This is hardly surprising, as Nuit Polaire is a half-sister to Neele, the group-placed Peintre Celebre mare who produced the G1 Grosser Preis von Berlin winner Nymphea and the G1 Deutsches Derby winner Nutan. Each of these Group 1 winners was sired by a son of Danehill, the broodmare sire of Intello. Neele’s sister Night of Magic won the G2 Oaks d’Italia before becoming the dam of Nightflower, a two-time Preis von Europa winner also sired by a son of Danehill. Intellogent’s second dam Night Teeny was a winning half-sister to Night Petticoat, a G2 Preis der Diana winner who added to her Classic achievement by becoming the dam of the Deutsches Derby winner Next Desert and Preis der Diana winner Next Gina. This is also the family of the Hong Kong Group 1 winner Pakistan Star. View the full article

While Weltstar (Ger) on Sunday became the second winner of the G1 Deutsches Derby for his sire Soldier Hollow (GB), rather more remarkable was the fact that he was also the second winner of Germany’s premier contest for his young dam Wellenspiel (Ger) (Sternkoenig {Ire}) from her first two foals. During a tour of German studs last year it was heartening to find that the majority of breeders in the country still have one aim uppermost in their minds: to produce a Derby winner. Gestut Rottgen, owner-breeder of Weltstar and his year-older half-brother Windstoss (Ger), is upholding this principle in fine style but the operation went a long time between drinks, having won its first German Derby in 1932, eight years after the Cologne-based farm was founded by Peter Paul Muhlens. Until last year Rottgen’s most recent Derby victory had come in 1959. The farm’s bloodlines have hardly been idle in between, however, and internationally campaigned runners to trace back to Rottgen include Team Valor’s Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom (Leroidesanimaux {BRZ}), whose grandam Dynamis (Ire) (Dancing Brave) was a bred at the farm, and G2 Park Hill S. Wild Coco (Ger) (Shirocco {Ger}), a rare runner in the stud’s colours outside Germany when trained by Sir Henry Cecil. Gestut Rottgen is these days run by a trust which was established by the founder’s daughter Maria Mehl-Mulhens prior to her death in 1985. It was her express wish that the breeding operation should continue and that the trust—which included funding for the family name to be carried by the German 2,000 Guineas, the Mehl-Mulhens-Rennen—maintain the ethos to improve the standard of racing and breeding in Germany. In many ways, the German breeding industry has fallen victim to the success internationally of its own bloodlines, with many breeders unable to turn down lucrative offers for some of the country’s better mares to be exported. A downturn in the domestic racing programme has also led to a dwindling in numbers of the German broodmare band but there remains a core of farms committed to the pursuit of breeding top-class middle-distance performers. Maria Mehl-Mulhens’s posthumous influence is felt still, with 10-year-old Wellenspiel, a half-sister to the G1 Preis von Europa winner Well Made (Ger) (Mondrian {Ger}), now a jewel among Rottgen’s 30-strong broodmare band. Her first mating with the Deutsches Derby winner Shirocco produced Windstoss and after visiting Germany’s most sought-after sire Soldier Hollow, she was then mated exclusively with residents of the Rottgen stallion wing in Reliable Man (GB) (subsequently relocated to Haras du Thenney), another Deutsches Derby winner Kamsin (Ger), and Melbourne Cup winner Protectionist (Ger) in his first season at stud. Earlier this year she left Germany to be covered by Dubawi (Ire). To embellish further the tale of homegrown success, Rottgen’s homebreds are trained by Markus Klug in tranquil seclusion within the walled splendour of the 820-acre estate. On a memorable Sunday for the team, Klug not only saddled the first two home in the Derby but also won the listed Hamburger Stuten Cup with Rottgen’s Alicante (Ger) (Lando {Ger}). Anna Paola’s Great Legacy Gestut Rottgen can rightly lay vicarious claim to at least two other Group winners within the last week. Back in 1982, the private purchase by Sheikh Mohammed of German Group 2 winner Anna Paola (Ger) (Prince Ippi {Ger}) saw her transferred from Rottgen to the Darley broodmare band. Her female-line descendants have brought widespread success, not just for the sheikh but for a number of other breeders. Most notably this season the family has been responsible for 1,000 Guineas winner Billesdon Brook (GB) (Champs Elysees {GB}), a grand-daughter of Anna Paola’s daughter Anna Oleanda (Ire) (Old Vic {GB}) who was bought by Bob McCreery for 45,000gns. Anna Oleanda also supplied this season’s listed European Free Handicap winner Anna Nerium (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who races in the colours of McCreery’s widow Jeanette. Within the last seven days the family has been to the fore once more with Indian Blessing (GB) continuing a good season for her trainer Ed Walker and returning, in effect, to her roots to win the G3 Sparkasse Holstein Cup in Hamburg on Wednesday. The daughter of Sepoy (Aus) was bred by Jocelyn Targett from the Halling mare Alpen Glen (GB), a great grand-daughter of Anna Paola picked up from the Darley draft at Doncaster in 2010 for just £12,000. Alpen Glen’s first three foals have all earned black type. Furthermore, Saturday’s G2 Lancashire Oaks winner, Cliveden Stud’s Horseplay (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}), also emanates from the same family. Horseplay’s fourth dam A Priori (Ger) is a full-sister to Anna Paola and her acquisition by the Freedman family has spawned some notable winners for Cliveden Stud, not least her grand-daughter, the GI EP Taylor S. winner Fraulein (GB) (Acatenango {Ger}). Power To The Jumpers The fearless former jump jockey Ian Watkinson, sometime rider of the great Tingle Creek, wandered into our yard on Monday morning and for no apparent reason decided to recount the tale of when he was accosted by Jean Hislop in the car park at Newbury. Hislop expressed in no uncertain terms her dismay that Watkinson had dared to ride a son of the great Brigadier Gerard, whom Hislop owned and bred with her husband John, in a hurdles race. It is hoped that the many distinguished Flat breeders who have followed or been involved in the exploits of the Anna Paola family over the years were not too dismayed when her grand-daughter Annie Power (Ire) (Shirocco {Ger}) became one of the most beloved stars of the jumps brigade in recent years. The statuesque mare, out of Anno Luce (GB) (Old Vic {GB}), did indeed start her career in a Flat yard and made two winning appearances in bumpers for Jim Bolger before being transferred to the care of Willie Mullins. The Champion Hurdler of 2016 has been purchased by Coolmore and is now in foal to Galileo (Ire), with her former racing owner Rich Ricci, a devoted jumps fan with the odd Flat interest, retaining a share in her first foal. Whichever way her connections decide to point Anie Power’s future offspring, they are unlikely to be put off by the current strength of the National Hunt market in Britain, Ireland and France, where there have been record-breaking returns for store horses at the Goffs Land Rover Sale, Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale and last week’s Arqana Summer Sale. Following top lots of €325,000 and €365,000 at Goffs and Tattersalls Ireland, a Poliglote (GB) half-brother to the classy AQPS steeplechaser Silviniaco Conti (Fr) led the way among the French stores when selling to leading trainer Guillaume Macaire for €180,000 last Tuesday. While Arqana’s mixed summer sale is more usually dominated by jumping stock, this year’s edition saw a pair of Flat horses, Esteve (Ire) and Masterpiece (Ire), both by Mastercraftsman (Ire), break new ground when selling for €445,000 and €345,000 respectively. The 3-year-olds were both bought by Gerard Larrieu to continue their racing careers in Qatar. Arqana’s record-breaking Summer Sale will have put a smile on the faces of Eric Hoyeau’s team, who will be in Newmarket this week to launch the company’s flagship August Yearling Sale with its sponsorship of the G2 Arqana July S. on Thursday. The catalogue of 345 lots contains the first two yearlings by Triple Crown winner American Pharoah to be offered for sale in Europe. Sophomore Success Arqana will also have been boosted by a breakthrough first Group 1 winner for Intello (Ger), who has split his time between Cheveley Park Stud and Haras du Quesnay. Intellogent (Ire), bred by the August Sale’s perennial leading vendor Ecurie des Monceaux, was a €320,000 yearling bought by Amanda Skiffington for Fiona Carmichael. With victory in the G1 Prix Jean Prat on his CV, it’s fair to assume that the Fabrice Chappet-trained colt is now very much on the radar of stud masters, extending Carmichael’s extraordinary involvement with future stallion prospects as an owner to four, after Havana Gold (Ire), Toronado (Ire) and Ivawood (Ire). Among the 35-strong draft from Monceaux this August is Intellogent’s half-sister by Gleneagles (Ire), another first-crop sire and son of Galileo (Ire). The filly will sell early on the Saturday evening of the sale as lot 8. Intellogent’s success on Sunday means that Intello is now in second position on the second-crop sires’ list in Europe but the runaway leader remains Camelot, whose dominance was increased further by the GI Belmont Oaks victrix Athena (Ire). We hear plenty about Urban Sea’s sons Galileo and Sea The Stars (Ire) but her four daughters Melikah (Ire), All Too Beautiful (Ire), My Typhoon (Ire) and Cherry Hinton (GB) are accomplished in their own right. It is Urban Sea’s youngest daughter Cherry Hinton, by Green Desert, who produced Athena, in addition to her G1 Irish Oaks heroine Bracelet (Ire) and G2 Rockfel S. winner Wading (Ire), both daughters of Camelot’s sire Montjeu (Ire). Following a Royal Ascot victory for Hunting Horn (Ire), who went on to be third in the G1 Belmont Derby, Athena’s win also reiterates a pleasing theme of Camelot’s name being blended with families of other notable Coolmore stallions. While Athena’s dam is a half-sister to Galileo, Hunting Horn’s dam Mora Bai (Ire) is an Indian Ridge (GB) half-sister to High Chaparral (Ire). Sadler’s Wells and the Derby link all three. View the full article

Crown Walk (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who was successful once in three starts for Charlie Appleby before transferring to Alex Pantall, annexed a May 14 conditions heat at Saint-Cloud for her new trainer and lined up for Monday’s G3 Prix Chloe returning off a second in the June 3 G2 Prix de Sandringham going one mile at the same Chantilly track last time. Stalking the pace in second until gaining a slender advantage going well with 300 metres remaining, she was shaken up entering the final eighth and kept on gamely under forceful urging out to hold the late surge of My Sister Nat (Fr) (Acclamation {GB}) by a nose for a career high. Crown Walk is one of nine winners produced by Dunnes River (Danzig), herself a winning daughter of GSP G1 Coronation S. runner-up Elizabeth Bay (Mr. Prospector), and the homebred chestnut is kin to a trio of stakes scorers which features G1 Prix Ganay hero Cutlass Bay (UAE) (Halling), G2 King Edward VII S. winner Boscobel (GB) (Halling) and MGSP Listed Cotton Fitzsimmons Mile victor Crested (GB) (Fantastic Light). She is also half to a yearling colt by Dawn Approach (Ire). Monday, Chantilly, France PRIX CHLOE-G3, €80,000, Chantilly, 7-9, 3yo, f, 9fT, 1:52.14, gd. 1–CROWN WALK (GB), 123, f, 3, by Dubawi (Ire) 1st Dam: Dunnes River, by Danzig 2nd Dam: Elizabeth Bay, by Mr. Prospector 3rd Dam: Life At The Top, by Seattle Slew 1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN. O-Godolphin SNC; B-Godolphin (GB); T-Henri-Alex Pantall; J-William Buick. €40,000. Lifetime Record: 6-3-2-0, €94,914. *1/2 to Cutlass Bay (UAE) (Halling), G1SW-Fr & SP-Tur, $533,172; Boscobel (GB) (Halling), GSW-Eng, $359,504; and Crested (GB) (Fantastic Light), SW & MGSP-US, $475,349. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. 2–My Sister Nat (Fr), 123, f, 3, Acclamation (GB)–Starlet’s Sister (Ire), by Galileo (Ire). (€20,000 Ylg ’16 ARQFEB). O-Gemini Stud; B-Ecurie des Monceaux (FR); T-Francis-Henri Graffard. €16,000. 3–Flowrider, 123, f, 3, Street Cry (Ire)–Wavering (Ire), by Refuse to Bend (Ire). O-Godolphin SNC; B-Godolphin (KY); T-Andre Fabre. €12,000. Margins: NO, 1HF, SNK. Odds: 5.40, 2.60, 1.00. Also Ran: Kodiak West (Ire), Beagling (Fr), Estijlaa (GB). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton. View the full article