2025 Matings Plans: Norelands Stud

[Wandering Eyes]

Norelands Stud has been in the McCalmont family since 1912 and, in the past decade alone, the stud has been associated with Classic winners Power (Ire), Magna Graecia (Ire) and St Mark's Basilica (Fr), continuing its long-standing reputation as one of the finest nurseries of talent in Ireland. 

In a recent interview with TDN Europe, stud boss Harry McCalmont's son Hamish explained how he swapped a career in finance for working on the farm. 

In running through Norelands Stud's mating plans for 2025, Hamish explained how choosing the right stallion for a mare is often done collaboratively, given many mares are owned in partnerships, but explained how the outfit uses data and statistics in striving to produce the Classic winners of the future. 

He said, “A lot of the mares on the farm are owned in partnerships with other breeders and therefore the decisions are made together. But our philosophy has remained the same down through the years–we continue to want to use the proven middle-distance Classic-type stallions. That is what we have always concentrated on because a lot of the best racing across the globe is over the Classic distances and there is a big market at all levels worldwide for middle-distance horses if they are good enough and nice enough.

“We especially like to use proven middle distance stallions with younger mares to try and get black-type in the first couple of foals as a large proportion of black-type races are over longer distances and a lot of the time they can be smaller fields, too.”

McCalmont added, ” When choosing stallions, we look at nicks and back female family crosses but physical attributes are very important to us and how a stallion matches a mare. Our broodmare band is unusually young, partly by design, but also a lot of our older mares retired or died at the same time in the last few years. Hopefully a few of these young mares will come out in the next few years and prove themselves.”

Amenette (Ire), 10, (Power (GB)-Amenixa (FR), by Linamix (Fr). Covered by Camelot (GB).

She is the dam of the exciting Sir Dinadan (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), who has a Derby entry. She is barren but has been covered by Camelot. We raced this filly with Joseph O'Brien and she is from an old family of ours. She's a small, powerful filly so is suited to the Classic-type build of Camelot.

Atlantis (GB), 6, (Sea The Stars (Ire)-Alla Speranza (GB) by Sir Percy (GB). Goes to Too Darn Hot (GB).

She has just had a lovely New Bay (GB) filly and goes to Too Darn Hot (GB). That mating should add some precocity to what is already a wonderful family that features Alpinista (GB) (Frankel {GB}).

Cava (Ire), 9, (Acclamation (GB)-Royal Fizz (Ire), by Royal Academy. In foal to Sea The Stars (Ire). Goes to Auguste Rodin (Ire).

Another filly we raced with Joseph O'Brien, she reached a good rating of 100 over sprinting trips, and secured black-type as a two-year-old when third in a Group 3 at the Curragh. It's quite a good family that includes another smart sprinter we bred in Hitchens (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}). She has already produced the talented Caviar Heights (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) from her first foal and she's back in foal to Sea The Stars (Ire)-believed to be carrying a colt. We're really looking forward to sending her to Auguste Rodin (Ire). We absolutely loved him when we saw him at Coolmore Stud and he has one of the best pages in the book. We think he's exceptionally good value. Cava is a small, sprinter-type so Auguste Rodin should give her some leg and will suit her quite well.

Cercle D'Or (Ire), 11, (Acclamation (GB)-Fleche D'Or (GB), by Dubai Destination. Goes to Blue Point (Ire).

She has a Maurice yearling colt in the Inglis Easter Sale and a two-year-old Frankel (GB) filly that is in training with Gai Waterhouse. She has just had a lovely Lope De Vega (Ire) filly up here, who is a full-sister to Ozara (Ire), a winner of a couple of Stakes races in America. We will probably keep the Lope De Vega and put her in training with the partners involved with the mare. Cercle D'or will go to Blue Point (Ire) and the Shamardal line has worked well with the family. 

Climate (Ire), 7, (Australia (GB)-Frappe (Ire), by Inchinor (GB). Goes to Wootton Bassett (GB).

We had Climate in training with Jessica Harrington and she reached a rating of 106 without getting black-type. She's out of Frappe (Ire) (Inchinor (GB), who is one of the farm's best families and therefore is a sister to Power (GB) and Curvy (GB) (Galileo {Ire}). Both of those horses won Group 1 races. Climate was the final foal out of Frappe and she was a good race filly herself. She has a Lope De Vega colt yearling, is in foal to Blue Point and will go to Wootton Bassett. Curvy produced a good horse by Wootton Bassett called Angeal (Ire) and her close relation Emerald Green (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) produced Green Impact (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) who was actually born and raised on the farm here for Marc Chan. I remember when he was born-he was an absolute beast and he looks to have Derby credentials this year so that's very exciting. Wootton Bassett works with the family anyway!

Fleche D'Or (GB), 19, (Dubai Destination)-Nuryana (GB), by Nureyev). In foal to New Bay. Goes to Camelot.

Obviously Flèche D'Or is the dam of Golden Horn (GB) and Cercle D'or is the only daughter that we have out of the mare. We had a Sea The Stars filly called Chalice (Ire) out of Fleche D'Or but sadly she broke a leg on the gallops. We really want to get another filly out of the mare and we are sending her to Camelot. She has already produced a Derby winner and Camelot is a proper stallion who can produce Derby and Oaks winners. Camelot is one of the best stallions in the world and we think he's only really getting going. Personally, I've always been a massive fan of Camelot and, even at €75,000, we think he's still good value. I mean, there are a lot of very good stallions up there with him who are standing for twice his fee. 

Hint Of Pink (Ire), 13, (Teofilo (Ire)-Fragrancy (Ire), by Singspiel (Ire). Goes to New Bay. 

She has an I Am Invincible filly who goes to Inglis Easter and she also had a Wootton Bassett filly foal late in Australia so that's why we decided to ship her back here. She is going to New Bay. Her sister Choisya (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) has won two Group 2 races in Meydan recently. We think that the Dubawi (Ire) line will work well and, again, we'd love a filly out of her.

Crimean Queen (GB), 9, (Iffraaj (GB)-(Victoria Cross (Ire), by Mark Of Esteem (Ire). In foal to Sea The Stars and goes back to him. 

The dam of the exciting Seacruiser (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), who is in training with Ralph Beckett and is entered in the Derby. She is in foal to Sea The Stars and will go back to him. 

Destiny Unbound (Ire), 9, (Galileo (Ire)-Like A Dame (GB), by Danehill. Goes to Lucky Vega (Ire). 

This mare is quite interesting. We bought her quite late in the sale in Keeneland back in January. She is by Galileo (Ire) and her first foal was placed in a Grade 2. She is in foal to Jack Christopher and we actually managed to pick her up for $38,000, which we thought was great value. Jack Christopher was a champion sprinter in America and, although people might not be too familiar with him here in Europe, we thought the mare was great value. We're going to breed her back along the Storm Cat line so she goes to Lucky Vega. He has made a very good start in Australia and we booked a nomination to him last month. Obviously it's a bit of a punt but you need to take a punt every year on one or two stallions in order to help balance the books and we think Lucky Vega represents a good opportunity.

Moorside (GB), 12, Champs Elysees (GB)-Marching West, by Gone West. Goes to Night Of Thunder (Ire).

Moorside is from a lovely Juddmonte family and was second in the Cheshire Oaks. She is the dam of Ghostwriter (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}). She has an Australia (GB) two-year-old filly who we are going to race and has just been covered by Night Of Thunder (Ire). Australia is another sire who we think is just acceptional value.  

There's The Door (Ire), 5, (Starspangledbanner (Aus)-(Calisto Star (Ire), by Fastnet Rock (Aus). Goes to Wootton Bassett.

Just like Moorside, she was second in the Cheshire Oaks. She's not very big so she will suit Wootton Bassett. We find it really hard to get Danehill line mares in Europe now and we were really keen to buy her when she came up for sale at Tattersalls last year [cost 125,000gns]. Her dam is still quite young, too, and she is an exciting mare for the future.

Vedissa (Fr), 4, (Sea The Stars (Ire)-Vedouma (Fr), by Dalakhani (Ire). In foal to Galiway (GB). Goes to Charyn (Ire). 

Vedissa is based in Etreham and the plan for her is to go to Charyn (Ire). It wouldn't be our usual play but we were massive fans of Charyn as a racehorse and he was a miler, which we like. We're obviously big fans of Dark Angel (Ire), too, and held shares in Acclamation (GB) when he was standing at Rathbarry Stud. Sons of Acclamation–Mehmas (Ire) Dark Angel etc–have that will to win and Charyn had that as well so we were keen to use him. We love Sea The Stars as a broodmare sire and have collected a few mares by him over the past few years. It seems to work well with sons of Acclamation as well. 

Sans Voix (GB), 4, (Saxon Warrior (JPN)-Blarney Stone (Ire), by Peintre Celebre). Goes to Sea The Stars.

We bought her for €200,000 at Arqana back in December. She's a Stakes-winning filly by Saxon Warrior (Jpn) and the plan is to go to Sea The Stars with her. 

 

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