One of Britain’s leading sires for many years, Pivotal, whose relative, Always In Charge (Captain Al) ran third in Saturday’s Gr2 World Sports Betting Merchants, has enjoyed a steady stream of success in 2017.
The son of Polar Falcon has not only enjoyed Gr1 success in 2017 as a sire, but also as a broodmare sire and sire of sires.
Like another top sire of recent years, Oasis Dream, Pivotal won the Gr1 Nunthorpe Stakes. He had, however, just a brief racing career winning four of only six starts. Oasis Dream and Pivotal not only won the Nunthorpe but both Northern Dancer line sires have also each sired a winner of the race, in Jwala and Kyllachy respectively, and Kyllachy in turn sired dual Nunthorpe Stakes winner, Sole Power.
Always In Charge
Polar Charge (Polar Falcon) is dam of the above mentioned Equus Champion, Always In Charge, and Pivotal has also enjoyed plenty of success as a stallion, from a small number of runners in South Africa. The sire’s top SA runners include dual Guineas winner, Noordhoek Flyer and the Gr1 Thekwini Stakes/Gr2 Fillies Guineas winner, Amanee.
Pivotal remains active at the Cheveley Park Stud, where his son, Kyllachy, now resides in retirement, and has consistently enjoyed success as a sire of Gr1 winners over the years. He currently has a total of 26 top flight winners, with his runners having captured races as diverse as the Dubai World Cup, Epsom Oaks, Irish 1000 Guineas and Champion Stakes.
Pivotal
Best known as a sire of sprinter-milers, Pivotal has been represented by classic winners in all of Britain (Sariska), Ireland (Halfway To Heaven, Sariska, Saoire), Germany (Buzzword, Silvester Lady) and France (Falco). His Gr1 winner in 2017 came in the form of Brando, who was victorious in the Gr1 Prix Maurice de Gheest.
It has, however, been as a broodmare sire that Pivotal has really excelled in during 2017. His daughters have been represented by 22 stakes winners this year, headed by Gr1 winners Cracksman (Champion Stakes), Precieuse (French 1000 Guineas), Rhododendron (Prix de l’Opera), Polarisation (Sydney Cup) and Hydrangea (Matron Stakes, Qipco British Champion Fillies & Mares Stakes). Rhododendron and Hydrangea are both by Galileo, while Cracksman is by Galileo’s outstanding son, Frankel. Both Rhododendron and Hydrangea are out of exceptional Pivotal mares. The former, a full-sister to KZN sire, Flying The Flag, is out of triple Gr1 winner and Irish classic heroine, Halfway To Heaven (a daughter of King’s Stand Stakes winner, Cassandra Go), while Hydrangea, a full-sister to Gr1 Ranvet Stakes winning Cape sire, The United States, is out of Pivotal’s French Gr3 winning daughter, Beauty Is Truth.
Flying The Flag
Halfway To Heaven is also the dam of exciting 2yo of 2017, and potential 2018 classic hope, Magical. The latter, a full-sister to Rhododendron and Flying The Flag, won the Gr2 Debutante Stakes and also finished second in this year’s Gr1 Moyglare Stud Stakes – remarkably, Rhododendron, also second in both the 1000 Guineas and Oaks this year, ran third in the Moyglare in 2016.
Cracksman, produced by the Pivotal mare, Rhadegunda, ended 2017 as the third top rated racehorse, according to LONGINES World’s Best Racehorse Rankings.
A triple Group winner in 2017, and runner up in the Gr1 Irish Derby, Cracksman was given a rating of 130 by LONGINES which puts him just behind Arrogate (134) and Winx (132). Pivotal, who stands alongside grandsons, Mayson and Twilight Son, also enjoyed notable success as a sire of sires this year. Already sire of successful, but pensioned sire, Kyllachy (sire of Twilight Son), Pivotal looks to have two exciting sire sons to his name in the form of Siyouni and Farhh. Already an established sire in 2017, former star 2yo, Siyouni (one of a growing number of top sires produced by a daughter of Danehill), went from strength to strength this year. His 8 black type winners included Gr1 Fillies Mile winner, Laurens, and Gr3 Jersey Stakes winner, Le Brivido. The latter also finished a close second in the Gr1 French 2000 Guineas. Well established in France, Siyouni has a number of bright looking classic hopes for next season and he looks on track to have another good year in 2018.
Farhh, winner of both the Gr1 Lockinge and Gr1 Champion Stakes, made a bright start with his first 2yos in 2017, with his early runners including Gr3 Acomb Stakes winner, Wells Farhh Go, and he is a sire who could well build on this bright start in 2018. A colt by Farhh topped the first session of the Tattersalls December Foal Sale when fetching 160 000 guineas.
Pivotal’s retired son, Kyllachy, also got into the act this year, with Kyllachy’s notable representatives in 2017 including Gr2 Queen Mary Stakes/Gr2 Flying Childers winner, Heartache, and Gr3 Oh So Sharp Stakes heroine, Altyn Orda.
