Remarkable Danzig dominance in G1 feature
Saturday’s G1 Haydock Park Sprint Cup was dominated by Danzig line descendants. The first four home (Society Rock, Gordon Lord Byron, Bated Breath, Dandy Boy) in the prestigious 1200m sprint are all direct male line descendants of Danzig while beaten favourite, and G1 Nunthorpe Stakes winner, Ortensia (Testa Rossa) is another tracing back to the great sire. Two of the first four home in the Haydock feature (Society Rock and Bated Breath) are inbred to the late, legendary Claiborne stallion.
Danzig’s descendants have dominated the major British sprint races for over two decades. His descendants have won Britain’s top sprint race, the July Cup, on 12 occasions – with this year’s winner Mayson (Invincible Spirit) a grandson of the prolific Danzig sire Green Desert. Danzig himself sired six winners of the July Cup – including the three parts brothers, Hamas and Elnadim.
The male line descendants of Danzig have also claimed the G1 Nunthorpe Stakes six times, the G1 King’s Stand Stakes six times, and the G1 Diamond Jubilee Stakes on six occasions.
This is a remarkable legacy for a horse who himself raced just three times (and who never won a black type race!)
Danehill – better South or North?
Danzig’s greatest sire son, Danehill, was unquestionably one of the finest sires of all time. He achieved greatness as a sire, sire of sires, and broodmare sire. Danehill sired G1 winners from 1000m to 4000m, and his stock won many of the world’s great races, and included such champions as Rock of Gibraltar, George Washington, Duke of Marmalade and Peeping Fawn. Danehill got top colts and fillies, and there was no real gap on his superb stud record.
However was his stock more successful in one hemisphere than another?
As it turns out, Danehill’s consistency as a stallion of excellence was remarkable. In the Southern Hemisphere, he sired 175 stakes winners (from 1123 foals) and in the North he got 172 stakes winners from 1284 recorded foals.
Thus in Australia, Danehill was siring 16% stakes winners to foals, as opposed to the 13% in the Northern Hemisphere. His AEI was also slightly higher in Australia (3.76) than in Ireland where Danehill’s Average Earnings Index was 3.29.
However, interestingly, Danehill’s highest ever number of stakes winners produced in a single crop came in the Northern Hemisphere, when, in 1999, a single crop by the great stallion produced no fewer than 26 stakes winners. This, even taking into account the quality and quantity of mares covered by Danehill, is a phenomenally high number for a sire to get in a single crop.
Of Danehill’s 89 G1 winners, 42 came in the Southern Hemisphere, with the remaining 47 G1 winners scatted around the Northern Hemisphere. He won a remarkable 21 sires titles in Australia (including 2yo sires titles, and broodmare sires premierships). On the other side of the equator, the horse was champion sire in the UK four times, and also won the French premiership three times.
Clearly, Danehill’s greatness as a sire was evenly spread throughout the globe.
The Wonder of Roberto
With the modern thoroughbred inundated with the blood of Northern Dancer and Mr Prospector, the Roberto male line has proven a wonderful outcross, and a continuing success on international racetracks.
The Roberto horse Red Ransom has enjoyed a terrific year through his sire sons Intikhab, Red Clubs and Charge Forward. Red Ransom is also the broodmare sire of Oratorio’s G1 winning daughter, Termida.
Intikhab (also broodmare sire of champion SA filly Igugu) is the sire of the marvellous racemare, Snow Fairy. The latter captured her seventh G1 race on Saturday when she won the G1 Irish Champion Stakes.
Snow Fairy is one of the all time great bargains, costing just 1,800 euros! To date, she has earned over 4 million pounds with the promise of more to come.
The ill-fated Red Clubs sired just three crops (two of current racing age) prior to his untimely demise, but his current crop of 2yos include the G2 Queen Mary Stakes winner Ceiling Kitty and Sunday’s G1 Moyglare Stud Stakes heroine, Sky Lantern. Red Club’s first crop included three stakes winners.
The late Dynaformer, who died this year at the age of 27, is another son of Roberto whose progeny enjoyed an excellent year. Not only is he the sire of the multiple G1 winner Point of Entry, but his son, G2 winner Thought Worthy, is a contender for the St Leger. Dynaformer, to date, has sired over 130 stakes winners – 26 of whom have won G1 races.
The exciting new recruit to the South African stallion band, Philanthropist, is a grandson of Roberto – through his sire Kris S.
The latter’s son, Arch, is enjoying a magnificent year in the USA – and is represented by nine stakes winners this year, including the G1 winners Hymn Book (Donn Hcp) and Love Theway Youare (Vanity Hcp). To date, Arch is the sire of G1 winners, including champions Blame and Arravale.
Arch shows signs of becoming a great broodmare sire (like Kris S himself), and is also the damsire of the 2012 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner, I’’ll Have Another (Flower Alley).
The Roberto male line has been well represented in South Africa by Al Mufti and his sons – and it is interesting that two of Al Mufti’s sons were represented by Equus Award winners last season. Champion 2yo filly All is Secret is by Captain Al, and Princess Victoria by Victory Moon.
It is also worth noting that inbreeding to Roberto has produced a number of top-class G1 winners and performers. Among these are the great filly Snow Fairy, Prix Ganay hero Planteur (Danehill Dancer) and G1 Gold Cup hero Rite of Passage (Giant’s Causeway). This season’s brilliant US turf 3yo Silver Max (Badge of Silver) is another inbred to the 1972 Epsom Derby winner.
The Roberto male line is synomous with producing sound, tough, classy racehorses. Hopefully, Philanthropist can add to that history in South Africa.
