Astern (Aus) (Medaglia d'Oro–Essaouira {Aus}, by Exceed and Excel {Aus}), winner of five of his first six career trips to the post culminating with a victory in the G1 Golden Rose S. at Randwick last September, will stand the 2018 Northern Hemisphere breeding season at Darley USA's base at Jonabell Farm in Lexington. He is currently standing his first season at Darley Kelvinside in New South Wales.
Trained by John O'Shea, Astern annexed the G2 Silver Slipper S. after annexing his career debut and closed a successful freshman campaign by dead-heating with Winx (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire})'s half-brother, the 'TDN Rising Star' El Divino (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) in the G3 Kindergarten S. Resuming from a 4 1/2-month break with a victory in the G2 Runto Rose S., Astern ran out the 2 1/4-length winner of the Golden Rose, the Australian equivalent of the GI H. Allen Jerkens S., becoming the best-rated winner of that 1400-meter test. Astern was also a solid runer-up in the G1 Coolmore Stud S. and G2 Roman Consul S. He retired to the breeding shed with five wins from nine outings and earnings of A$1,179,550. His 126 Timeform rating makes him Medaglia d'Oro's top-rated son in either hemisphere.
“I just returned from seeing Astern in Australia, and I was blown away by his tremendous physique,” said Darren Fox, Darley's sales manager in the U.S. “I couldn't be more excited to get him to Kentucky. Medaglia d'Oro has been such an important stallion for us in both hemispheres, and as his best son, Astern has all the credentials to follow in his father's footsteps.”
Astern is a half-brother to Alizee (Aus) (Sepoy {Aus}), recent winner of the G1 Flight S. His stud fee has been set at $15,000, stands-and-nurses terms and he will serve a limited book of 120 mares.
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