If there were any doubts about Galileo’s claim of being the greatest thoroughbred stallion of recent times, they were surely dampened further last weekend, when his three-year-old daughter, Peaceful, ran out an impressive winner of last Saturday’s Gr1 Tattersalls Irish 1000 Guineas, to become her sire’s 85th individual Gr1 winner.
Peaceful joins impressive Gr1 Qipco 1000 Guineas winner, Love, as early classic winners for Galileo this year, and, remarkably, Galileo daughters have now won both the English and Irish 1000 Guineas for the last two years (the Galileo sired Hermosa won both classics in 2019).
Galileo
Sarah Whitelaw writes that Galileo’s daughters have become increasingly dominant in the Newmarket based 1000 Guineas, and have won that classic in four of the past five years!
Following Peaceful’s Irish classic success, Galileo became the leading sire of G1 winners, surpassing the previous record of 84 set by Danehill. (It is perhaps not surprising that Danehill holds the previous record, with Galileo having fared exceptionally well when mated to daughters and granddaughters of the former Sprint Cup winner.)
Saturday was a particularly fruitful day for Galileo, champion sire in Britain and Ireland in 11 of the past 12 years, with the former Epsom/Irish Derby winner supplying four winners (three group winners) at the Curragh, and his son, New Approach (whose daughter New York Girl ran fourth in the Irish 1000 Guineas) siring the Curragh’s first race winner, Mutadaffeq. Galileo would enjoy more notable success on Sunday, this time as a broodmare sire, when his maternal grandson, Sottsass, out of the Galileo mare, Starlet’s Sister, captured the G1 Prix Ganay at Chantilly.
ROYAL ASCOT
Magic Wand, who became Galileo’s 84th G1 winner, when victorious in the G1 Seppelt Mackinnon Stakes last year, added to her sire’s fine afternoon when she won Saturday’s G2 Lanwades Stud Stakes, while the Galileo sired Lancaster House landed the G3 Coolmore Calyx Gladness Stakes on the same card.
In general, this past weekend has been an exceptional one of Galileo and his sons and grandsons. Not only did Galileo reach the milestone as the leading sire of G1 winners, but his son, Australia, enjoyed a big day at the Curragh on Friday, with the dual Derby winner supplying two winners at the Curragh, including eye catching G2 Coolmore Magna Grecia Irish EBF Mooresbridge Stakes winner, Leo De Fury. Australia would go on to have further success at Chantilly on Sunday when his son Mare Australis won the Listed Prix de l’Avre.
Frankel (photo: Juddmonte)
Galileo’s greatest son, Frankel, represented by classic winners, Ananpurna and Logician in 2019, also got into the news over the weekend. The unbeaten champion, and one of three 2000 Guineas winners sired by Galileo, has some very smart prospects again this season and his three-year-old daughter, Franconia, stamped herself an exciting future prospect when running out a facile three and a three-quarter length winner of the Listed British Stallion Studs EBF/MansionBet Abingdon Stakes at Newbury on Saturday. Franconia, one of four winners on Saturday for her sire, is out of a mare by multiple champion broodmare sire, Pivotal, whose daughters have built up an excellent record with both Galileo and Frankel.
Another unbeaten son of Galileo to enjoy a good weekend this past week is Teofilo, whose daughter, Tawkeel, won Sunday’s G1 Prix Saint-Alary at Chantilly. In the process, Tawkeel became her sire’s 17th G1 winner.
Galileo had gone close the previous day to reaching this milestone, with his regally bred son, Vatican City, a full-brother to 2015 Irish 2000 Guineas winner, Gleneagles, and out of a full-sister to 2000 Irish 2000 Guineas runner up, Giant’s Causeway, finishing second in the G1 Tattersalls Irish 2000 Guineas on Friday.
Gleneagles
The aforementioned Gleneagles is one of a growing number of Galileo sons making their names as stallions, with the dual Guineas winner’s first crop including group winners, Royal Dornoch and Royal Lytham, as well as unbeaten, Salsabil Stakes winner Silence Please.
Peaceful joins Nightime (2006), Misty For Me (2011), Marvellous (2014), Winter (2017) and Hermosa (2019) as Irish 1000 Guineas winners sired by Galileo (whose son, Teofilo, sired 2015 Irish 1000 Guineas winner, Pleascach), a record in Irish classics is unequalled in the modern era.
This is borne out by the fact that Galileo has supplied four Irish 2000 Guineas winners, five Irish Derby winners, and two Irish Oaks winners.
Added to the fact that he has sired winners of all the English and French classics, it is hard to deny the fact that Galileo is the world’s greatest active thoroughbred stallion, by some way!
