Pedigree Insights: G Force (Ire)

Classifying Mr Prospector’s son Gulch as a champion sprinter may be essentially accurate, but this description certainly doesn’t tell the whole story. The fact that his dam Jameela had flourished over a mile and a quarter, winning the GI Ladies H. and GI Delaware H., persuaded Gulch’s connections that he was worth trying in the Triple Crown events of 1987. This bold attitude was rewarded with sixth place in the GI Kentucky Derby, fourth place in the GI Preakness and a remote third in the GI Belmont S. and Gulch was even asked to end his sophomore season in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. 
However, the writers of “Principal Racehorses of 1987” weren’t fooled. They made a telling point about Gulch’s record in the 21 races he packed into his 2- and 3-year-old seasons. 

“People who look at the 1987 past performances of Gulch will conclude that he was a plodder who couldn’t beat top-class competition. The impression couldn’t be more deceptive. Gulch was a natural sprinter or miler. His career record at a mile or less was 7-for-10; beyond a mile he was 1-for-11, and his lone victory at 9f, in the Wood Memorial S., came at the expense of Gone West, another son of Mr Prospector who couldn’t go the distance.” 

These comments were thoroughly vindicated during the 1988 season, when Gulch added another 11 starts to his extensive resume. Although he was beaten in all four of his races over nine furlongs as a 4-year-old, Gulch won five of his seven starts at a mile or less, ending his career on a very high note at the Breeders’ Cup, this time winning the Sprint. 

This durable horse also landed the GI Metropolitan H. for a second time. His first victory illustrated his toughness, as it came in the midst of his Triple Crown ventures, nine days after the Preakness. 

It therefore seemed safe to neatly pigeon-hole Gulch as a sprinter-miler, but then he proceeded to confuse the issue as a stallion. Five of his six Grade I winners won over nine furlongs or more, and among them were Thunder Gulch, winner of the Kentucky Derby and Belmont S., and the European star Nayef. 

Although Nayef’s finest performances arguably came over a mile and a quarter (in winning the Champion S., Juddmonte International and Prince of Wales’s S.), he also stayed a mile and a half well enough to win the 
G1 Dubai Sheema Classic and to finish a head second in the G2 King George. His half-brothers Unfuwain and Nashwan had also tackled the King George, with Unfuwain finishing second in 1988 and Nashwan winning a year later. Clearly there were no issues about stamina in this Height of Fashion family. 

However, perhaps thanks to Gulch’s influence, Nayef’s stallion career certainly hasn’t been dominated by stayers (though one of his sons, Snow Sky, is among the leading contenders for the G1 St Leger later this week). For example, Nayef’s Royal Ascot winners Mustajeeb and Spacious were respectively successful in the G3 Jersey S. over seven furlongs at three and the G2 Windsor Forest S. over a mile at four. 

His best winner, Tamayuz, also showed plenty of speed in a career spent exclusively over a mile. He tracked the leaders until moving ahead approaching the final quarter mile when he gained both his Group 1 successes, beating the future GI Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Raven’s Pass in the Prix Jean Prat and the G1 1,000 Guineas winner Natagora in the Prix Jacques le Marois. 

Tamayuz’s speed was perhaps all the more surprising in view of his female line. His second dam, Allez Les Trois, stayed well enough to win the G3 Prix de Flore over 1 5/16 miles on very soft ground. Mated to the champion sprinter Anabaa, Allez Les Trois produced Anabaa Blue, winner of the G1 Prix du Jockey-Club in the days when it was still over a mile and a half. Moreover, Allez Les Trois had the distinction of being a half-sister to the great Urban Sea, who imparted plenty of stamina to her famous sons Galileo and Sea The Stars. 

The possibility, therefore, existed that Tamayuz would sire plenty of individuals which would display more stamina than he had a chance to. In fact, the reverse has been true with his best progeny, as his progressive son G Force demonstrated with his victory in the G1 Betfred Sprint Cup over six furlongs three days ago, 
To Tamayuz’s considerable credit, G Force is the fifth group winner to emerge from the 125 foals in the stallion’s first two crops. He follows Sir Prancealot (G2 Flying Childers S. over five furlongs as a 2-year-old), the filly Thawaany (recently a close second in the G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest after winning a G3 over six furlongs), Brown Sugar (G3 Molecomb S. over five furlongs and the G3 Sirenia S. over six) and Meiner Eternel (a G3 winner over six furlongs in Japan as a 2-year-old). Other talented sprinters by him include Taayel and Best Regards. 

It may well be relevant that Tamayuz’s broodmare sire is the brilliant Nureyev. In addition to siring mile-and-a-half performers of the calibre of Theatrical and Peintre Celebre, this very versatile stallion also sired plenty of fast European performers. Think Soviet Star, Stravinsky, Fasliyev, Polar Falcon and Wolfhound. So, with Gulch and Nureyev as his grandsires, it isn’t so surprising that Tamayuz’s career has taken this turn. 

This trend towards speed in Tamayuz’s progeny should help endear him to Ireland’s commercial breeders, who were somewhat lukewarm about him, judging by the number of mares he covered in his first four years. Perhaps Tamayuz didn’t help himself by finishing a disappointing fourth in the G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. in his only appearance outside France. Whatever the reason, he covered 87 mares in his first season, 79 in his second, 26 in his third and 57 in his fourth. It is arguably a measure of his talent and potential that his small third crop has already produced two group-placed 2-year-olds in Tupi and Quinta Verde. 

Of course, some of the credit for the speed being displayed by Tamayuz’s progeny must go to the bottom half of their pedigrees. G Force is a perfect example. His dam Flanders raced exclusively over five and six furlongs during a 19-race career. She proved best at five furlongs, winning the Windsor Castle S. and the valuable Weatherbys Super Sprint at two and finishing a short-head second in the G2 King’s Stand S. at three. 

Flanders has since proved a wonderfully consistent winner producer and G Force’s G1 victory is her just reward. Her Grade III-winning daughter Louvain had beaten her to the distinction of producing a Grade I winner, as her Mizzen Mast filly was Flotilla, winner of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf and Poule d’Essai des Pouliches. 
Flanders’ half-sister Land Army has also produced a top-class performer in Lethal Force, who established himself as last year’s best sprinter in Britain with his Grade 1 victories in the Diamond Jubilee and the July Cup. 
These three Group 1 winners show that great oaks can indeed grow from little acorns. Family At War, the Florida-bred daughter of Explodent who produced Flanders and Land Army, had only one opponent when she gained her solitary success, in a five-furlong maiden race at Pontefract at two.