A number of sons of legendary sire Sadler’s Wells have left their mark on the South Africa racing industry and the male line made its presence felt again at Turffontein on Classic Day.
Dynasty – top on track and in the paddock
His son Fort Wood, both a champion sire and broodmare sire in South Africa, left behind 77 stakes winners – notably Horse Of The Year sons Celtic Grove, Dynasty and Horse Chestnut, with Fort Wood sire sons Dynasty, Horse Chestnut and Elusive Fort all going on to sire Gr1 winners in this country.
Sarah Whitelaw writes that Dynasty has since become an outstanding sire and a potential sire of sires, with his sons Act Of War, Futura, Horizon, Irish Flame, Jackson, and Legislate all now standing at stud. Dynasty is also responsible for Wonderous Climber, who claimed the Listed Aquanaut Handicap at Turffontein on Saturday.
Braashee and Casey Tibbs, while not in the same league as Fort Wood as stallions, both left behind Gr1 winners, with Casey Tibbs is also featuring as the broodmare sire of 2019 G1 L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate winner Do It Again, among others.
Igugu – champion
Sadler’s Wells’ greatest stallion son Galileo excelled with his handful of local gallopers headed by Horse Of The Year Igugu and Equus Champion Mahbooba, while Montjeu, also represented by just a handful of runners, was responsible for Gr2 Gold Bowl winner Gorongosa, Gr2 Gold Vase hero Wise Son, and Gr3 Chairman’s Cup winner Golden Parachute.
Yet another son of the incomparable Sadler’s Wells to make his mark on the local industry was the deceased High Chaparral, winner of both the Epsom and Irish Derbies in 2002.
The High Chaparral influence was felt on Saturday when his temperamental daughter High Seas Beauty – who shares her breeder with Winx – won the Gr3 Acacia Handicap, to stamp herself as a mightily appealing future broodmare prospect.
High Seas Beauty wins the Acacia Handicap on Saturday (Pic – JC Photos)
High Chaparral, whose daughter Being Fabulous ran fifth to High Seas Beauty in the Acacia, went close to enjoying a Turffontein graded double on Saturday, with his triple graded stakes winning daughter Cascapedia finishing a bang-up second in the Gr 2 Hawaii Stakes – beating stablemate and Equus Champion Soqrat in the process.
The now five time winning High Seas Beauty is the fourth stakes winner in South Africa for High Chaparral, whose previous local stakes winners included Equus Champion Enaad, the aforementioned, Cascapedia, and talented filly Chevauchee.
The dual Derby winner is also responsible for the hugely exciting young Australian based six time Gr 1 winning sire Dundeel –whose son Atyaab won the Gr1 Cape Derby recently.
Atyaab wins Gr1 Cape Derby (Pic – Chase Liebenberg Photography)
High Chaparral’s presence was also felt in Australia over the weekend, with his champion son So You Think responsible for Saturday’s Gr1 Surround Stakes winner Nakeeta Jane.
While not as prolific a sire of Gr1 winners in the Northern Hemisphere as were paternal half-brothers Galileo and Montjeu, High Chaparral’s death in 2014 was a sad loss to the thoroughbred industry.
To date, High Chaparral’s winners are headed by over 120 black type winners, with his tally of stakes winners including more than 20 individual Gr1 winners.
His top performers are headed by champion So You Think, Melbourne Cup winner Rekindling (a full-brother to KZN sire Golden Sword), star miler Toronado, Caulfield Cup victor Descarado, Breeders’ Cup hero Wrote, Prince Of Wales’s Stakes winning sire Free Eagle, and the Derby winners Ace High, Monaco Consul, Dundeel, and Shoot Out.
He is also having increasing success as both a sire of sires and broodmare sire. High Chaparral’s ten time Gr1 winning son So You Think, whose success at stud has come solely in Australasia, is already responsible for over 30 black type performers, including the Gr1 winners Inference, La Bella Diosa, Nakeeta Jane, Sopressa and D’Argento.
Dundeel is another son of the sire to have made a bright start, with his first crop of 3yos already including six stakes performers and his second crop headed by impressive Gr3 winner Yourdeel. Another two-year-old by Dundeel, Castelvecchio, ran third in Saturday’s Gr2 Skyline Stakes, and there should be plenty more to come from Dundeel as a sire.
High Chaparral (Sadler’s Wells – Kasora)
The High Chaparral sired top class miler Toronado has also made a pleasing start to his stud career, with the multiple Gr1 winner finishing 2018 as the fifth leading first crop sire, by prize money, in France. Toronado’s early runners include 29 winners, among them five black type performers, and he looks a promising sire in the making.
High Chaparral, who spent much of his career thought of as a better sire of colts than fillies, also promises to make a considerable mark as a broodmare sire. Despite still being relatively young, High Chaparral broodmares have already come up with Gr1 winners Suavito (Futurity Stakes, C F Orr Stakes), The Wow Signal (Prix Morny), A Raving Beauty (First Lady Stakes), Volatile Mix (South Australian Derby), Media Sensation (NZ 1000 Guineas), and Best Of Days (Cantala Stakes).
Given her pedigree and form, High Seas Beauty could well yet become the latest successful broodmare sired by High Chaparral.
