Ardad

We head towards a weekend featuring the final British Classic of 2021, the Arc Trials and Irish Champions Weekend with the last week having offered plenty of food for thought across Europe. Torquator Tasso (Ger) paid a posthumous tribute to his champion sire Adlerflug (Ger) by adding victory in the G1 Grosser Preis von Baden to his 2020 win in the G1 Grosser Preis von Berlin. Second in last year's Deutsches Derby to another son of Adlerflug, the recently retired In Swoop (Ire), the 4-year-old beat this year's Derby winner...

There are banners along the High Street of my home town of Newmarket saying 'Welcome back to racing'. Though we've been fortunate in England to have been able to allow crowds gradually to return to racecourses earlier than some other countries, it has only really been in the last few weeks that it has felt like the proper pre-pandemic experience. And where better to have the people back in force than at York, widely regarded by many to be the best racecourse in the country? Any amount of time spent...

A breeding right to leading first-season sire Ardad (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) has been added to the Tattersalls Online June 29th Sale. The Overbury Stud-based Ardad leads all first-season sires with 12 winners, headed by the G2 Norfolk S. winner Perfect Power (Ire), who is set to tackle the G1 Prix Morny next. Ardad's Vintage Clarets (GB) was third in the G2 Coventry S. also at the Royal meeting. The breeding right agreement and deed of novation are available by contacting Tattersalls.

ASCOT, UK--There's nothing quite like Royal Ascot to inject some interest into the first-season sires' championship and, with three days down and two to go, there will be several stallion masters with an extra spring in their step following the results of this week's juvenile contests. As Roger O'Callaghan of Tally-Ho Stud said on Thursday afternoon, "Royal Ascot is very important. This week can make the horses." And the O'Callaghan family has reason to be doubly pleased with the way the races have fallen so far this week. Their own...

In February, the inevitable announcement came that Pivotal (GB) was to be pensioned at Cheveley Park Stud at the age of 28. David and Patricia Thompson's homebred son of Polar Falcon has been one of the great British breeding stories of the last few decades and the sturdy chestnut has been a great friend to small and major breeders alike through his magnificent stud innings.  As he continues his retirement, so does his legacy gain momentum. A few months before Pivotal was retired, his son Siyouni (Fr) had been crowned...

It's Craven week, followed by Greenham weekend, both coming on the back of some interesting Classic trials in Ireland and France. It is, as some people prefer to say in midwinter, the most wonderful time of the year.  There's no doubt, however, that the biggest racing story of the year has already happened. However much she wants to play down the gender card, Rachael Blackmore winning the Grand National aboard Minella Times (Ire) (Oscar {Ire}) was huge. In fact, Saturday was a big day on both sides for the world...

Continuing our assessment of the prospects of first-season sires with runners in 2021, bloodstock agent and breeder Liam Norris shares his view on this year's crop. He says, "Ardad (Ire) was such a good 2-year-old. We sent mares to him and from what I saw of his stock at the sales, they looked forward and racy types. I'd be disappointed if they don't pop out of the traps with huge precocity.  "I was always a huge fan of Highland Reel (Ire) as a racehorse. It's important not to forget that...

Agent Matt Coleman of Stroud Coleman Bloodstock has had plenty of success buying decent 2-year-olds from the breeze-up sales, such as G1 QIPCO British Champions Sprint S. winner Sands Of Mali (Fr) (Panis) and G2 Norfolk S. winner Prince Of Lir (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}). He gave us his view on what we might expect from the first runners for this year's freshman sires. Coleman said, "I guess Churchill (Ire) is the headline act of the first-season sires and I have heard some good words on his stock from Ireland. He...

It's that time of year: with just weeks to go to the start of the turf season, thoughts are turning to which of this year's freshman sires will be making a splash with their first runners. With 26 European first-crop stallions to consider, we have asked the views of those who have seen a good range of young stock at the sales. First in the hot seat is bloodstock agent Ross Doyle. He says, "We have a system where we see every single horse at the foal sales and the...

Overbury Stud has announced reduced stud fees for three of its five stallions for 2021. Ardad (Ire), who will have his first runners next season, will stand at £4,000 having stood his first three seasons at £6,500. Cityscape (GB) will also stand at £4,000, while Irish Derby winner Jack Hobbs, another with first 2-year-olds in 2021, has also had his fee reduced by £1,000 and will stand at £3,000. The fee for Schiaparelli (Ger) will return to £2,000 after he stood last year at £1,500, while Frontiersman (GB), whose first...