Glory is much better than reflected glory but I suppose there's some reward for the Royal Stud with the victory of Twilight Dreaming at Del Mar. The Wesley Ward filly was discussed on this thread when running at Royal Ascot. She's by the Irish National Stud stallion National Defense (Invincible Spirit) out of a Royal-bred mare Thames Pageant. She is a Dansili half-sister to both Chalk Stream and Reach for the Moon. Thames Pageant was sold as an unraced 3yo for 42,000g and looks cheap now. What would have made the Queen happier was the victory of Kings Lynn on the last day of the flat turf season. According to Balding this 4yo gelding recorded the fastest time he had clocked on the gallops this year. He's a pretty good sprinter but despite that has won only 3 races. No doubt he'll stay in training as a 5yo. Kings Lynn's dam was a reasonable filly called Kinematic. Her first three foals have won and the third, Spring is Sprung (Oasis Dream), looked a useful 2yo this Spring. He ran at Royal Ascot and was fancied, but was not competitive. He was taken out of training but now has returned to Bell. Kings Lynn's full-brother Collinsbay was sold at the end of his 2yo campaign. This year he has won a listed and Group 3 race in Italy as well as finishing 2nd in a G3 at Longchamp. Kinematic has a yearling colt by Recorder and a foal full-sister to Kings Lynn. She is beginning to look a useful mare and may get an upgrade in her matings.
Return of Mares clunks through the letter box and it's time to look at the Royal Stud's 2021 matings. Golden Stream (after Chalk Stream and Reach for the Moon: both by Sea the Stars) was sent to Sea the Moon. His dad may possibly get the call next year. This wasn't the only Sea the Moon Royal bride as their (soon to be) only Feola mare, Good Hope, was also sent to the Rausing stallion. Flavour of the '21 season seems to be Night of Thunder. He covered Sweet Idea (whose filly Companionship won a race last year), Momentary (who has produced the useful Wink of an Eye to NoT's sire Dubawi) and Daphne (a listed winner and close relative of Momentary: yet to have any offspring run). They have used Night of Thunder before, so does that indicate the 2020 foal by Night of Thunder impressed them. He is a colt out of Free Verse, the dam of the promising Yarralumla. Dubawi has covered three mares: two are maiden mares, Award Scheme (a Listed placed Siyouni mare out of a mare whose first three produce have won) and Desert Flyer ( a Darley Shamardal mare who ran 3 times, winning twice). The third is a new mare to the Royal Stud but one which must be highly prized. She is a mare called Castle Lady who in 2018 won the French 1000G. She produced a colt for the stud in 2021, also to Dubawi.Given the current issues with Sheikh Mohammed it will be instructive to see if these nominations to Dubawi continue. Despite Brexit, French based stallions are also to the fore. Le Havre was visited by 2 mares: Light Music (the dam of the useful Frankel filly Light Refrain) and Approximate (a Dubawi daughter of Estimate). Enticement (the dam of Diploma, in turn the dame of Profile and Educator) has visited Siyouni and, Star Value (so far disappointing) visited another son of Dubawi, Zarak. While her own-bred Recorder covered Hypoteneuse (a full-sister to Golden Stream) and Sequence (a half-sister to Sinndar who needs to do better). Two mares were intended for Galileo but both ended up being covered by other Coolmore stallions. They were Magnetic Charm who ended up with Wootton Bassett, and Craftiness who became the partner of Australia. The plan to send the latter mare (a maiden Al Kazeem mare) to Galileo bears review. She comes from an excellent French family that produced Soviet Lad and Green Dancer. Her first foal was a Recorder colt and there must have been something about him to make them then send him to Coolmore's champion. This Recorder colt, as yet unnamed, will be watched with interest as a 2yo next year. Diploma, who had a colt by Frankel in 2021, returned to him. Award Scheme's dam Queen's Prize visited another son of Dubawi in Too Darn Hot. While Tactical's dam, Make Fast, got the uprated sire I was anticipating in Dark Angel. Kinematic (dam of 3 winners including Kings Lynn) didn't, and visited Land Force. In all, it appears the Queen had 32 mares covered. We know 3 of these go to the December Sales, but this still leaves 29, and so probably in excess of 20 foals. As you can see she has a broad section of the cream of the sires, one would hope she gets some decent foals and ultimately racehorses. For info. the other sires used were Sea the Stars, Kingman, Showcasing, Cable Bay, Land Force (again), Calyx, Ulysses, Time Test, Magna Grecia, Masar, Lope de Vega and Fastnet Rock.
As if by magic most of The Royal Stud's names for their 2022 2yos suddenly appear. Recorder out of Craftiness colt is called Crosstitch Night of Thunder out of Free Verse is called Slipofthepen other interesting named horses are:- Gentle Light filly by Frankel out of Light Music (full-sister to Light Refrain) Theme Park colt by Lope de Vega out of Queen's Prize (half-sister to 3 winning foals) Keen Melody filly by Le Havre out of Set to Music (h-sister to 2 winners, dam won Galtres Stakes) 24 named so far; the two unnnamed include a Dubawi sister to both Chalk Stream and Reach for the Moon (so hope she is OK) More on these next year.
Clive Cox scores his first Royal victory with Silver Screen at Wolverhampton. Still looked a bit green but seemed to get the point in the last furlong. She is the penultimate foal of Silver Mirage who died this year. Silver Mirage (by Oasis Dream) was the last daughter of that productive mare Phantom Gold, who produced Oaks 2nd Flight of Fancy (Sadler's Wells). This filly should stay a good deal further next year. Actually the second Royal winner at Wolverhampton as Prince Of Wales/Camilla owned and bred Cygneture won her maiden too. A Kingman filly out of the now deceased Dark Swan, the mare has a Roaring Lion yearling filly called Pride of the Pack, who presumably will also be trained by Beckett. Park Street should on form have won too, but it appears he's lacking the necessary courage. An operation may soon be performed.
The Royal Stud had 10 mares and fillies down to be sold at the December Breeding Sales 2 weeks ago. One was withdrawn (Secret Haunt a Dubawi 3yo filly who's a sister to Diploma, the dam of 2 winners from her first 2 foals) and another was unsold (Eastern Dawn, an unraced Iffraaj filly). Of the others:- Dusty Dream, 180,000gns: a non-winning Dubawi 4yo half-sister to 3 black-type winners, in foal to Showcasing; Wakening 80,000gns: a winning Dark Angel 3yo filly from a Darley family; Geometrist 48,000gns: an unraced Kingman filly who's a half-sister to Sextant and Math's Prize; Vital Force 38,000gns: a once raced Invincible Spirit 3yo filly; Pack Together 9,000gns: a black-type Paco Boy mare who has been disappointing so far, in foal to Cable Bay; Key Point 7,000gns: a 13yo Galileo half-sister to Kalanisi whose best foal was Punctuation, in foal to Calyx; Well Spent 6,000gns: a 3yo Siyouni filly from a Darley family; Pineapple Ring 3,000gns: an unraced 3yo Kingman filly out a mare who's a half-sister to Dancing Brave. A good clear out and it's difficult to argue with those chosen for sale. They will be replaced by some 3yos from this year (more on those later). According to me The Royal Stud has 32 mares (plus the new 3yos). .
Of the 2yos The Queen had in training a few (but less than usual) are yet to run. They Are:- General Idea (a Galileo colt ) with Haggas; Transpire (a Frankel colt out of Estimate) with Stoute but currently out of training; Perfect Alibi ( a Le Havre filly out of the listed winner Daphne) with Haggas; Gold Belt (a Golden Horn half-sister to Sextant) with Bell but only entered training in October; Kiteflyer (an Iffraaj colt) with Stoute but currently out of training; Naval College (a Dartmouth gelding) with Stoute but currently out of training; Imminent ( a full-sister to Diploma) with Balding. There are a few others yet to be placed with trainers. Stoute did not have a Royal 2yo runner this year.
The initial entries for the 2023 Derby have been made. This was until relatively recently the only entry stage for the Derby, which explains why horses like Vaguely Noble didn't run in the Derby. Of course now entries can be made up to a week before. There are 3 Royal colts entered, and they are; Slipofthepen c Night of Thunder out of Free Verse Circle of Fire c Almanzor out of Fiery Sunset Desert Hero c Sea the Stars out of Desert Breeze All 3 are yet to be placed with a trainer.
I think the flat racing season is wrapped up for The Queen. She has had 36 winners, which is a record for her and I'd rate it a promising total (she did have a record number of horses in training). Her last winner was the brought-in Park Street who finally won an AW Nursery.
