Bloodstock News

"Selkirk is the second Newmarket stallion this spring to have problems with fertility - the former Cheveley Park-based stallion Kingsgate Native failed to get a single mare in foal and has since returned to training. "

this is bl*** The Sun - style - isnt it? to name the old boy in the same breath as a 4-year-old fresh from the track is very bad journalism indeed. Guess old Selkirk deserves a break. And he got kicked in the penis .... poor sod !! Guess the blokes on here feel for him even more then us fillies do ;)
 
Such a dodgy horse to use - for owner-breeders, really. Saw a yearling colt by him on Sunday and he was an absolute horror story - but he may well be a racehorse. Simply can't tell with SELKIRKs. That colt won't be a sales horse, for sure!
 
Soviet Song had a colt foal by Oasis Dream too, on 28 Jan - looks a lot like his dad with a big white blaze right down to his lip. Will be interesting to see him go head to head with Speciosa's one day! SS's half sister Sister Act is also about to foal to Oasis Dream.
 
ALYSHEBA, who nearly fell before winning a dramatic Kentucky Derby in 1987, has been put down at the age of25.

Proclaimed ‘America's Horse' after winning the Breeders' Cup Classic as a four-year-old in 1988, the son of Alydar won nine Grade 1s altogether.

The former US Horse of the Year died in Lexingtonon Friday, having returned from stallion duties in Saudi Arabia only in October and retired to the Kentucky Horse Park.

A fall described as "sudden and nasty" left Alysheba unable to support weight on his injured leg.

"It's very much like an older person when they go down from a fall," said Kathy Hopkins, the park's director of equine operations. "He just took a bad step, got his legs crossed and, unfortunately, fell hard."

As the horse was in severe pain and did not respond to analgesic therapy, the decision was made to put him down.

Alysheba featured at No.42 in the Blood-Horse's Top 100 list of Thoroughbred Champions of the 20th Century.

Purchased for $500,000 by Dorothy and Pam Scharbauer at Keeneland, Alysheba was trained by Jack Van Berg.

"He stuck out like a diamond in a rock pile," said the Hall of Fame trainer. "He was so smart he knew what he was doing all the time."

In 1987, Alysheba gained the admiration of racing enthusiasts when picking himself virtually off the ground under Chris McCarron to win the 113th Kentucky Derby to beat Bet Twice, thereby establishing a famous rivalry.

"Falling didn't even enter my mind," said the rider. "I kept thinking there's only one horse left in front of us that was going to prevent us from getting the roses. He did just an incredible job of righting himself. I was focused on keeping my balance and trying to stay on his back."

"He was dependable," added McCarron. "People knew he would go out and run his best race.He wouldn't always win, but he always tried incredibly hard.

"He was a very determined athlete. He was a tremendous boost to my career and a real friend. He knew he was great."

Bet Twice was also beaten in the Preakness, but he got his revenge at the Belmont, when Alysheba was forced to race with without Lasix, not permitted at the time in New York.

Alysheba was then beaten a nose by 1986 Kentucky Derby winner Ferdinand in theBreeders' Cup Classic before being named US champion three-year-old, but it was as a four-year-old that he really made his reputation with a string of major victories.

He beat Ferdinand twice at level weights in California, snuffedout his Belmont demons in the Woodward Stakes, and then ended his racing career by beating one of the strongest fields ever assembled for the Classic at Churchill Downs.

Alysheba retired with earnings of nearly $6.68m, a world record at the time. Unsurprisingly, he was Horse of the Year for 1988, and inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1993.

His subsequent stud career did not compare with his exploits on the track and he was sold to Saudi Arabia in 1999 after standing at Lane's End.

Last year, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia returned Alysheba to his homeland as a gift to the American people.

The horse has been buried alongside John Henry at the Kentucky Horse Park's Hall of Champions.
 
Golden Silca the multiple Group-winning mare who gained a popular following while racing 44 times in seven countries, has died at Kingwood Stud in Lambourn due to complications from foaling a colt by Lawman, who also died. The 13-year-old daughter of Inchinor was booked to New Approach this year.
Racing as a homebred for Aldridge Racing Ltd, Golden Silca first ran as a two-year-old in April of 1998 at Newbury. She won, and although that contest had been "seldom a race of much significance" in the words of the Racing Post's analyst, he added: "but that should not detract from the authority with which Golden Silca won".
The small-framed chestnut with the bold white face continued her authoritative run through her two-year-old season, when shefive of nine starts, including the Group 2 Mill Reef Stakes and the Listed Rose Bowl Stakes, both at Newbury, and the Group 2 Raab Karcher Baustoffe-Cup at Baden-Baden. She was also third in the Group 1 Prix Morny.
Although she ended her season with an unplaced finish in the Group 1 Cheveley Park Stakes, Golden Silca bounced back into top-class company the next year, finishing a close second to Hula Angel in the Irish 1,000 Guineas and runner-up to Balisada in the CoronationStakes at Royal Ascot, her last race as a three-year-old.
Golden Silca subsequently took on the world, returning at four in the Dubai Duty Free at Nad Al Sheba, her first of five starts at the Dubai track. Although unplaced that day, she was fourth in the following year's Duty Free - at the time a Group 2 - and fourth again the next season, when the race was a Group 1 and she was a six-year-old. She also ran in Germany, the US and Italy, and won eight races in all, four of them black-type - including the Group 3 Desmond Stakes at the Curragh - and was placed 21 times.
Mick Channon, who trained Golden Silca throughout her career, said: " Golden Silca was one of the best fillies I’ve trained and she certainly got me going as a trainer. She gave both Eddie and Carmel Aldridge some of their happiest moments in racing, and also some agonising ones, when finishing a very close second in both the Irish 1,000Guineas and the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot.
"It was a credit to the mare’s toughness and consistency that she was to become champion two-year-old filly in Germany in 1998 andalso champion older mare in Ireland in 2000."
At stud Golden Silca produced the dual winner Silca Destination, by Dubai Destination, and she has a two-year-old filly by Shamardal bought by John Gosden for 170,000gns last year.
She did not have a foal in 2008. However, her dam, 20-year-old Silca Cisa, is still at Kingwood Stud, where Golden Silca was born and raised. Silca Cisa is also the dam of Silca's Sister, winner of the 2005 Prix Morny, of Group 1-placed Silca Chiave and of multiple black-type winner Green Manalishi. She produced a filly foal by Dansili this year and was bred back to Oasis Dream.
 
Cashman's decide the leading first-season sire by the number of individual winners sired through the turf Flat season in Britain and Ireland, March 27-November 27.
Leading First-Season Sire 2009
7/4 Shamardal
3 Oratorio
6 Azamour
6 Dubawi
7 Whipper
8 Footstepsinthesand
9 Antonius Pius
11 Pastoral Pursuits
12 Starcraft
12 Avonbridge
14 Motivator
16 Arakan
16 Chineur
25 Doyen
25 Le Vie Dei Colori
25 Trade Fair
25 Zafeen
33 Camacho
50 Rakti
66 Pearl Of Love
100 Firebreak

Others 500/1
Number of individual winners sired GB & Ireland turf season,
March 27-November 27th
 
Got to fancy Oratorio over Shamardal. Both seemed to be well supported in the sales, however, considering Sheikh Mohammed's new arrangement with Andre Fabre, surely most of the best progeny of Shamardal will do most of their racing in France?
 
Circumspect said:
Got to fancy Oratorio over Shamardal. Both seemed to be well supported in the sales, however, considering Sheikh Mohammed's new arrangement with Andre Fabre, surely most of the best progeny of Shamardal will do most of their racing in France?
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2 Shamardals entered up in the maiden on Sunday at The Curragh and Oratorio has one. It is decided by individual winners so these two stallions, and in particular Oratorio, might produce top class runners but perhaps horses that progress and do better next year. How often do the really big first season sires on paper win? I could see something like Antonius Pius do well in terms of numbers and he is likely to have runners out early and lots of them. I love Oratorio as a stallion prospect though.
 
TRIPLE Group 1-winning globe-trotting Doctor Dino has been retired due to a tendon problem, which became apparent after he returned home following his below-par run in the Dubai Sheema Classic at Nad Al Sheba last Saturday.

He was the favourite for Group 1 event but could manage only eighth position behind Eastern Anthem.

Richard Gibson trained the seven-year-old to land back to back wins in the Hong Kong Vase at Sha Tin, and to also win last year's Man O'War Stakes at Belmont Park, which came after a victory in the Grand Prix de Chantilly.

Gibson said on Wednesday: "Doctor Dino gave us everything and more and has taken us to a level of global racing that you could only dream about.

"We are very grateful to Dr Martinez Salmean for sending us Doctor Dino and we wish the horse a happy and successful stallion career."

The Northumberland-born trainer also praised the "dedication and precision" of his work-rider Eric Gandon, and Olivier Peslier, who was "superlative" as his big-race jockey.

Doctor Dino raced 30 times and was only out of the money on four occasions.

He picked up €2,768,628 in prize-money and visited the winner's enclosure nine times.

The horse was also placed in top events including the Prix Ganay, Singapore Airlines Cup, Arlington Million, Champion Stakes, Dubai Sheema Classic and Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud.

The son of Muhtathir proved a bargain, having been picked up by bloodstock agent Marc-Antoine Berghracht for €38,000 at the 2003 Arqana sales at Deauville.

There are no details yet as to where Doctor Dino will standas a stallion.
 
I haven't checked the no.s of foals but I'll go for avonbridge. Judging by Firebreaks no.s he mustn't have many foals but I'd like him too.
 
Have to smile at some of these stories...

By Martin Stevens5.05PM 1 APR 2009
JUST 24 hours after Cashmans opened its market on this year's leading first-season sire by number of individual winners,the firm has been forced to slash the odds for Footstepsinthesand after a rush of money came for the Coolm0re stallion.
The son of Giant's Causeway is now the 5-1 third favourite having initially been chalked up at 8-1. Cashmans spokesman Joseph Burke said: "The majority of money has been for Footstepsinthesand and he would definitely be the biggest loser for us at the moment."
At bigger odds, Zafeen has come in for some support. He now trades at 14-1, having opened up at 25-1 yesterday.
To balance those shortened odds, the market leaders have seen their odds lengthen a little. Shamardal is now 2-1 from 7-4 and Oratorio is 7-2 from 3-1.
Burke added that Cashmans had seen the busiest opening day of trading in this competition to date: "I was quite surprised by how many bets we have taken already – we have accepted three individual bets of €500 and a couple at €200 for this market."
 
THE Aga Khan's stud manager Pat Downes has confirmed that superstar filly Zarkava is in foal to Dalakhani.
Zarkava retired unbeaten to join her owner-breeder the Aga Khan's illustrious broodmare band at the end of last season. The four-year-old daughter of Zamindar won seven races in total, including five at the highest level and a Classic double in the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches and the Prix de Diane.
She signed off her glittering career with an impressive two-length victory in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, over a stellar field that included ten individual Group 1 winners.
Dalakhani also enjoyed a fruitful season in 2008, with his first crop yielding two Classic winnersin Irish Oaks heroine Moonstone and St. Leger and Breeders' Cup Turf winner Conduit.
The son of Darshaan stands at the Aga Khan's Gilltown Stud in County Kildare, Ireland, for a fee of €50,000.
 
Given the assured quality of mares that the Sheikh must have lined up for Dubawi, I'm amazed that he is not the favourite for first season champion sire. As the only group winning son of Dubai Millennium, he must have taken at least slight preference over Shamardal. As for the latter, superb, gutsy and talented racehorse that he was, was there not something amiss with him that meant he failed to sell at the yearling sales? Conformation problem? I can't remember - enlightenment anyone, please?
 
Shamardal was a fairly severe wobbler as a foal, Nefertiti. I haven't followed his career as a stallion to comment upon how much, if at all, it has affected his progeny's sales.
 
Thanks for that, Trackside.

I guess Shamardal's 'wobbling' was successfully treated. I don't know anything about this, but would have thought some breeders might have been put off by the condition. Think his record in last year's yearling sales was quite good, so I must assume they weren't. It will be interesting indeed to see the progress of his progeny this year and next.
 
Imagine having this crop of foals in one season....one or two things to look forward to!!

By Martin Stevens4.36PM 7 APR 2009
CHEVELEY Park Stud in Newmarket has welcomed a rash of seven impeccably-bred newborn foals in recent weeks.
On March 31 Chorist, a Cheveley Park-homebred daughter of Pivotal who won the Pretty Polly Stakes and finished second to Haafhd in the Champion Stakes, gave birthto her fourth foal.
The new arrival is a chestnut colt by Galileo. Chorist will return to Coolmore Stud this spring to be covered by Rock Of Gibraltar.
Another Cheveley Park mare visiting a Coolmore stallion this year is Fillies Mile heroine Red Bloom. The daughter of Selkirk produced a bay filly by Dansili on February 16 and has already visited Duke Of Marmalade.
Duke Of Marmalade's paternal half-brother and stablemate Danehill Dancer is the chosen mate for Cheveley Park Stakes winner Gay Gallanta this year. The Woodman filly produced her 12thfoal, a bay colt by Invincible Spirit, on March 28.
Her previous progeny include the dual Group 2 winner and sire Byron (by Invincible Spirit's sire Green Desert), and the black-type performers Gay Heroine and Gallant.
Another top-class two-year-old filly for Cheveley Park, the Lowther Stakes heroine Soar, gave birth to a bay son of Pivotal on March 25. The daughter of Danzero, who has a two-year-old colt by Medicean and a yearling son of Pivotal on the ground, stays at home to be covered by Medicean again in 2009.
Medicean's son Dutch Art, who also stands at Cheveley Park, will be visited by the stud's Listed winner Ice Palace this year. The daughter of Polar Falcon is a half-sister to the dam of last season's 1,000 Guineas runner-up, Spacious, and she produced a bay colt by Spacious's sire Nayef on March 14.
Irresistible produced a full-brother to Infallible – who wore the Cheveley Park second set of colours when two places behind stablemate Spacious in the 1,000 Guineas – on April 5.
The daughter of Cadeaux Genereux visits the siblings' sire Pivotal again this year.
Del Mar Oaks winner Dublino, who has three-year-old and two-year-old fillies by Pivotal on the ground, produced a bay colt by Montjeu on February 26. The Lear Fan mare has visited New Approach this year.
 
With that kind of business, it's no wonder Pivotal is one of the few outside stallions that Coolmore are buying into.
 
Apparently New Approach is struggling in his new role and they are having to palm off a few of his mares to other stallions - hardly suprising as he's got 180 to cover - no wonder his libido is suffering!
 
jinnyj said:
Apparently New Approach is struggling in his new role and they are having to palm off a few of his mares to other stallions - hardly suprising as he's got 180 to cover - no wonder his libido is suffering!
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Interesting news jinnyj thanks for that.
 
jinnyj said:
Apparently New Approach is struggling in his new role and they are having to palm off a few of his mares to other stallions - hardly suprising as he's got 180 to cover - no wonder his libido is suffering!
Click to expand...

Just wondering if it's just his libido that's affected or actually his fertility?
 
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