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I was going to direct you to the terrific Stonerside website, with interactive links for all their mares and comprehensive lists of horses-in-training, but I find that the website has been taken down (within the last 48 hours, I looked at it on Tuesday).
The McNairs are mostly keeping their stallions, so it seems to be all about the HITs and the mares. They have a fabulous broodmare band – Karen’s Caper, Argentina, Ajina, the dams of Raven’s Pass, Congaree and Bob And John….
The Darley influx into the States has been slowly growing for a while now, the aim seems to be to have a solid racing and breeding base in every major racing nation.
For the last 20 years, DNA samples have been necessary for registering every thoroughbred – either through hair or, more recently, blood samples. There is a record of each horse, so that their offspring could be confirmed to a 98+% accuracy.
But I would be very doubtful that the samples sent in would be sufficient genetic information to be able to accurately clone – I also don’t know if the actual material is preserved or just the record of the genetic markers. As far as I know, actual cells are needed to start the process.
I’m fairly certain (but don’t have time to check!) that they have been racing cloned mules in Idaho.
As Ven says, clones would not be currently accepted into the GSB. Cloning would also open up all sorts of new scientific issues for the sport – athletics has already seen dangers of blood doping and DNA modification; would it be cheating to race a horse that has genetic modification during the cloning process? How would cloning be policed?
My instinct is to not fiddle too much with the laws of nature – and it does sound as though the cloning process would not be a financially viable method of breeding for a long while. But it is always interesting to have options.
Very sad I missed their glorious victory – actually more sad that I missed an evening out in the pub…..
I would think that Montmatres actual trip would probably be in excess of 1m4f (I’d say hes bred for 2m+)
I think you’d be alone in saying he’s bred for 2m+. His dam won twice over 15f, but that’s the furthest that the family has shown at – Montmartre’s half sister has been performing well over 11 and 12f, and the dam’s full sister won at 9 and 10f, as well as being placed in a Group race over 7f at 4!
Montmartre has a very strong profile to suggest that 1m4f is his ideal trip, so I’d agree that the Prix du Jockey Club may not have been optimum – but I also can’t believe he gave his true running that day. Other Montjeu progeny, and other animals from Montmartre’s pedigree, prove that 10f is not unrealistic for these bloodlines, so I would never put his poor show at Chantilly down to an excess of stamina.
Bit taxing for a Sunday morning, this!
Buccaneer indeed won the Royal Hunt Cup in 1861, from Pretendant and Baron Munchausen. It was part of a Royal Ascot double for him that year – he had already won the opening Trial Stakes on the first day.
Kaffir Chief took a bit more finding (someone’s nicked my Lincoln Handicap book). He was foaled in 1902, by Raeburn out of Ingonda (foaled 1886) by Charibert.
Hope that helps!
There’s Three Valleys, who won the Middle Park and was subsequently chucked out, but that wasn’t until months later (banned substance).
Storming Home got binned from the Arlington Million for interference, but being US I don’t think that helps either!
Just a case of trainers and owners thinking about damaging a horses potential as a stallion after retirement.
Bunkum. Are there a large amount of colts out there who have won over 10f, have the potential to win over 12f, and are swerving the King George because if they win it their stallion value will go down??
The heavy burden of winning over 12f does not seem to affect the lure of the Arc as a stallion-making race, and, although an ideal stallion will have won over both 10 and 12f, the current fees of King George winners Dylan Thomas (50,000 euro), Montjeu (125,000 euro), Hurricane Run (30,000 euro), Azamour (25,000 euro) and Galileo (off the scale) suggest that the King George is not a death knell to a successful career after retirement.
lol @ md – not many 3yos in that race either!
DB, not far wrong! 1966, when the race was won by the great Aunt Edith. I could probably find other examples from other eras too. It does go in circles, to some extent, as races fall in and out of fashion with certain groups.
The quality of winners since the turn of the century hasn’t been below average, in general, and older horses have always been strongly represented. The King George was listed as on the agenda for New Approach before his injury, and O’Brien’s domination of Gr.1s this year has meant the other obvious 3yo candidates would mostly have been his anyway, so I don’t believe that the race is terminally out of favour with 3yos.
It sounds a bit like you are lumping the Aga Khan and the UAE Sheikhs all in together under the ‘Arab’ title. You do know that the Aga Khan is not affiliated to Godolphin in any way, don’t you?
Sheikh Mohammed’s decision to boycott Coolmore progeny at the sales seems to have come with the realisation (some time after the rest of us!) that he was only helping Coolmore by getting into bidding wars with them.
Because Coolmore strongly support their own sires’ progeny at the yearling sales, trying to take them on head-to-head in public auction means ending up a) paying an inflated price, b) handing money direct to Coolmore and c) boosting the profile and value of their sires.
Refusing to join in bidding wars for Coolmore progeny means not playing Coolmore’s game, and by supporting Darley stallions at auction they can try to build up their own sires’ profiles in the same way that Coolmore do.
However, this logic does not apply to private sales, where prices are not revealed, Coolmore does not dictate the values and Sheikh Mohammed can negotiate his own terms. Darley have always had animals with Coolmore related pedigrees, and to cut a whole section of bloodlines out of one’s breeding operation would be foolish – hence the private sales and getting involved in SW lines through New Approach and Authorized (I’ll pretend you didn’t say Motivator, as he has bog all to do with Darley) as they are friendly or neutral sources.
This does not bring comfort for commercial breeders though – most are breeding for a quick return at the yearling sales and don’t want to have to wait until the end of their animal’s two year old career, hoping for an approach from Godolphin.
I wouldn’t be any more confident this year than last that a Coolmore-sired yearling would be purchased by Sheikh Mohammed’s operation at the sales. Was that your assertion? I couldn’t quite tell.
"The signs are…that this race is losing its appeal. …Created in 1951 the race fitted the bill as a rich event that would attact the best European 3 and 4yos over the …classic trip. Since then time has been catching up on the race, and the present proximity of other valuable middle-distance events in England, Ireland and France…has affected the status of the King George. As well as showing a fall in quantity, the race is declining in quality".
A quote from Timeform. Any guesses to the year?
