Earlier this month, Haras de Montfort & Preaux announced it had been chosen by The Queen to stand her homebred Group 3 winner Recorder (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) at stud. The TDN caught up with John Warren, The Queen's racing manager, to get his thoughts on the son of the G2 Cherry Hinton S. winner Memory (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), and find out why Her Majesty chose to stand the horse in France.
TDN: Recorder had an abbreviated career, but showed enough talent during that time to win the G3 Acomb S. on his third start. Can you talk about how the team rated him while he was in training?
JW: Recorder showed great signs of maturity right from when he was born to being sent into training early, as he was so forward. I received a telephone call from his trainer William Haggas in the February saying he wanted to push on with him and he thought he could be aimed towards the Chesham S. at Royal Ascot. His dam, Memory, was a top-class 2-year-old who ran her first race the first week of May, so it did not surprise us that the feedback was so positive. Unfortunately, a minor setback prevented him from getting to Ascot, but he was on the course in July when we were getting quite excited about his prospects.
TDN: Why did Her Majesty decide to stand Recorder in France, and specifically at Montfort & Preaux?
JW: France is doing so well with their very good stallions. We have been following the great success of the people at Haras de Montfort & Preaux, and when I suggested to Her Majesty that they were very good professional people, she was keen to send her horse to them. We hope the French breeders find in Recorder an opportunity to use a precocious but classically-bred stallion, where there are not too many bred on those lines currently standing in France.
TDN: Will Recorder be syndicated, and will Her Majesty support him with her own mares?
JW: Her Majesty will certainly be sending mares to Recorder, as we believe that the horse could have been top-class. The Queen inspected Recorder at Sandringham last week and we stood there saying, 'for all we know we might be looking at the winner of the 2000 Guineas.'
TDN: We know that Her Majesty is incredibly passionate about racing, but is standing stallions something she enjoys being involved in too?
JW: Horse racing is The Queen's only release from all of her duties and like everything she does in her life, she puts 100% effort into it. Many people have said to me that The Queen's long interest and dedication to racing and breeding has inspired owners and breeders to participate in our wonderful industry all over the world.
TDN: What can you tell us about Recorder's pedigree and physique?
JW: As breeders will see when they go to inspect him, he will suit any shape mare. Not all stallions do that; he is a pretty faultless individual with tremendous strength and power with great movement, and he is a beautiful specimen.
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