Classic Double
Leading Australian sire, Fastnet Rock, completed a rare double this season when his son, , won the New Zealand 2000 Guineas and daughter Planet Rock took out the fillies equivalent, the 1000 Guineas.
So how often this feat of siring two Guineas winner in one crop been achieved previously in other countries?
Danehill Dancer pulled it off back in 2009, when son Mastercraftsman won the Irish 2000 Guineas, and daughter, Again, won the Irish 1000 Guineas the very next day. Galileo sired the same feat in 2011, when Roderic O’Connor landed the Irish 2000 Guineas and Misty For Me the 1000 Guineas.
The great stallion, Nureyev, sired the 1987 winners of both the French 1000 and 2000 Guineas – in Miesque and Soviet Star respectively. His sire, Northern Dancer, was represented by winners of the 2000 Guineas and Irish 2000 Guineas back in 1984, when El Gran Senor and Sadler’s Wells, respectively, won their classics.
The mighty Fairway pulled off a rare double, back in 1936, when his son Pay Up and daughter Tide Way achieved the double.
There have been fewer greater stallions in history than the undefeated champion, St Simon. Champion sire on occasions, St Simon had the 1000/2000 Guineas double back in 1900 when his Diamond Jubilee landed the first colts classic on the way to becoming a Triple Crown winner. St Simon daughter, Winifreda, took the 1000 Guineas while yet another daughter La Roche won the Epsom Oaks to give their sire a remarkable clean sweep of all five English classic races.
Another great stallion to achieve a Guineas double was Danehill. He achieved this feat on two occasions in the Northern Hemisphere. In 2002, sons Rock of Gibraltar and Landseer won the English and French 2000 Guineas respectively. Just four years, two more Danehill colts, George Washington and Aussie Rules, pulled the same double!
One of the world’s best sires, the late, great Sunday Silence, had winners of the Japan 1000/2000 Guineas in all of 2000, 2003 and 2004. It is hard to think of another stallion who achieved this.
In South Africa, Royal Prerogative’s foal crop of 1984 produced two major Guineas winners in the form of Royal Chalice (SA Guineas) and Young England (Cape Guineas).
Former Champion SA sire, Fort Wood, remarkably enough produced three crops with important Guineas winners. His first crop included Fort Defiance (Gauteng Guineas) and Horse Chestnut (Cape Guineas), while his 2001 crop contained the ill-fated Dunsinane (KZN Guineas) and Shadow Dancing (Cape Fillies Guineas). In 2002, a son and daughter of Fort Wood (Hunting Tower and Remembrance) respectively won the Gauteng Guineas and Gauteng Fillies Guineas.
Private Jet’s US debut
Former G1 Computaform Sprint winner, Private Jet (Orpen), was scheduled to make his US debut on Sunday. The gelding lined up in the Gulfstream Park Turf Sprint. He is now being trained by leading US conditioner, Kiaran McLaughlin. He duly scored an impressive victory in the five furlong sprint – despite making his first start since September 2010!. Formerly with Geoff Woodruff, Private Jet (a half-brother to Horse of the Year Coray) has now won six of his seven starts to date. Back in second place was Great Attack – who had previously finished second in this race last year, while Tiger Ridge’s multiple stakes winning son, Little Nick, was back in third. Interestingly, both Private Jet and his half-brother, Coray, have enjoyed US campaigns.
The Clash of Three Champions
Every South Africa racing enthusiast is waiting with bated breath to watch Saturday’s G1 Cape Flying Championship, where champions J J The Jet Plane and Val de Ra take on the superb sprinter What A Winter.
It is rare for one race to attract three champions, but it is not unprecedented. Some of the world’s finest horses have competed against each other in races which will not be forgotten by anyone lucky enough to witness the spectacle. The 1957 Trenton Handicap, in North America, attracted three of the greatest racehorses of the 20th century in Bold Ruler, Round Table and Gallant Man. Bold Ruler won comfortably from Gallant Man, to claim Horse of the Year honours. Just a few years later, North America again saw three of their finest champions go head to head in the Woodward Stakes of 1967. Damascus, winner of two legs of the US Triple Crown, defeated older rival Buckpasser by a whopping ten lengths, with another legendary racehorse, Dr Fager, well beaten. Another legendary race was the Eclipse Stakes of 1903 where the great mare Sceptre, winner of four English classics, took on Triple Crown winner Rock Sand and the year older, Epsom Derby victor Ard Patrick. It was the latter who took the laurels in that race, getting the best of a titanic struggle with Sceptre, with the 3yo finishing a well beaten third.
South African interest at Magic Millions Sale
There was plenty of South African interest at last week’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale. Lot 67, a colt by Dubawi out of the stakes placed mare, La Willow, was purchased by Mark Tarry for $40,000. Unfortunately the colt, by Redoute’s Choice, out of former South African G1 winner Sydney’s Dream was withdrawn. Lot 191, was a brown son of Perfect Promise, the first South African bred to win a G1 race in Australia. A son of the red hot sire, Fastnet Rock, the colt was knocked down for $150,000. (As a side note Fastnet Rock (Danehill) has had five representatives in South Africa to run, thus far. Four have won, one (Curved Ball) won the G2 Dingaans, while another colt is currently one of country’s top 3yos (Liancourt Rock)). It is interesting to note that while Perfect Promise has had a winner (Vredefort) in Japan, her full sister, the international G1 performer Irridescence, was recently represented by an impressive debut winner in the USA (a son of Empire Maker, Exothermic). Former Broodmare of the Year, Meretricious, dam of Irridescence and Perfect Promise, is clearly making her presence felt throughout the world! Perfect Promise is currently in foal to Magnus, a G1 winning son of Flying Spur, who is closely related to Australia’s unbeaten superstar, Black Caviar (Bel Esprit). Another brilliant South African bred filly based in Australia, is former Horse of the Year National Colour. The brilliant grey daughter of National Assembly is the dam of a yearling filly by champion 2yo Sebring (More Than Ready). She is currently in foal to the great Australian sire, Redoute’s Choice (Danehill). Another former star South African based (and Zimbabwean bred) mare at stud in Australasia is Battle Maiden. Conqueror of the mighty Ilha da Vitoria in the G1 Garden Province Stakes of 2004, Battle Maiden (who is yet to a have a winner) is currently in foal to the G1 Blue Diamond Stakes winner Star Witness (Starcraft).
