Joorabchian ‘Aware of the Opportunity of Dullingham Park’

[Wandering Eyes]

Uncertainty surrounds the future ownership of Steve Parkin's Dullingham Park, with several owner-breeder operations having been linked to its potential purchase in recent weeks.

Kia Joorabchian's Amo Racing is the latest name to be tied to the 110-acre stallion stud just outside Newmarket, which is currently home to Shaquille (GB) and Soldier's Call (GB).

Contacted by the TDN, Joorabchian said that he was “aware of the opportunity of Dullingham Park”.

Joorabchian and his associates, which include Nottingham Forest FC owner Evangelos Marinakis, made a splash at last year's bloodstock sales, primarily in Britain, where they spent approximately £36 million on yearlings, foals and broodmares. Around $11.7 million was spent in Kentucky at Keeneland and Fasig-Tipton, while Amo Racing also bought Angelo Buonarroti (Justify) for €1 million at last year's Arqana Breeze-up Sale. 

Furthermore, Joorabchian is close to completing his multi-million-pound purchase of Sir Michael Stoute's historic Freemason Lodge stable on Newmarket's prestigious Bury Road. He has plans to instal Brazilian-born trainer Raphael Freire, who is currently based in Lambourn and has also previously trained in Norway.

“It's not a secret that we are looking at all the stud farms – we have been looking actually for about seven months,” he said. “We haven't decided where we are going to start our operation and it's a little bit immature because, obviously buying a stud farm now when we have put our stallions in Tally-Ho [Stud] and other places, we can't move them. So we'll probably aim to do something towards mid-year, but we do know that Dullingham is an opportunity at the minute. 

“If a stud farm comes up, everyone knows that we are going to be interested, but we don't know whether that's going to be in Britain or Ireland. I've seen a few farms in Ireland and I've got to go to see Dullingham.”

Parkin, who operates under the racing name of his former business Clipper Logistics, bought Dullingham Park from retired trainer Mark Tompkins in 2023. The purchase of Shaquille, in whom original owner Martin Hughes has retained a significant share, swiftly followed and the champion sprinter retired ahead of the start of the 2024 breeding season, with Soldier's Call joining him from his previous base at Ballyhane Stud. 

With the start of the breeding season now only three weeks away, the management at Dullingham Park has been approached by TDN regarding plans for the stallions but is unable to comment at this time.

Eddie O'Leary, who is one of around 20 breeders to have bought a breeding right in Shaquille, said, “There has been no contact whatsoever. We are planning to send mares over to England for him but I don't know if he is going to be at Dullingham or not.”

In a TDN interview in September 2023 Parkin spoke of his ambitions for Dullingham Park. He has however subsequently sold off a notable number of horses in training, including his homebred Irish 1,000 Guineas winner Fallen Angel (GB) (Too Darn Hot {GB}), who is now owned by Wathnan Racing. The Qatari operation also now owns the broodmares Dramatised (Ire) (Showcasing {GB}) and Romantic Proposal (Ire) (Raven's Pass), both of whom won Group races for Clipper Logistics. 

Parkin's Irish-based Rathbride Farm was offered at auction last October with a guide price of €4.7 million but was unsold. His main base is the 300-acre Branton Court Stud in Yorkshire. 

Parkin is currently engaged in a legal case with his former bloodstock advisor Joe Foley of Ballyhane Stud over the disputed ownership of the Ballyhane-based stallion Sands Of Mali (Fr). The case will resume in the Irish High Court on Thursday (January 23).

Amo Racing has a burgeoning stallion roster of its own, currently spread across three farms in Ireland. King Of Steel and Bucanero Fuerte (GB) have recently been retired to the O'Callaghan family's Tally-Ho Stud in Ireland, which is also the base of Persian Force (Ire). Another of Amo's star performers on the track, Go Bears Go (Ire), has been retired to Oak Lodge Stud and Derby runner-up Mojo Star (Ire) is at Whytemount Stud. 

 

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