Value Sires: Second- and Third-Crop Sires

In the fifth installment of our value sires series, we look at the second and third-crop sires of 2019-at last, horses with runners on the board that we can draw concrete evidence from. This exercise still involves some speculation in the case of the second-season sires who have just one season behind them, but nonetheless we'll examine their racetrack results, look at who is punching above their weight and also pick out a few who could jump up and surprise us this year.

SECOND-CROP SIRES OF 2019

We know all about the leader of this sire crop, No Nay Never, who sees his fee quadrupled to €100,000 this year after leading all first-season sires last year by earnings, stakes winners and stakes horses, group winners and group horses, winners, and wins. The current chief heir to Scat Daddy was also one of just two first-season sires to provide a Group 1 winner last year. This year's yearlings, like last year's, were bred on his lowest-ever fee of €17,500, so he just has to keep his momentum going for the breeders of the 123 mares who supported him in 2017 to really cash in.

In an article published in the TDN in late November, John Boyce calculated the leading sires of this crop based on the average Timeform ratings of their 10 top-rated runners. He states that, at this point in their careers, “any sire that can surpass the 100 mark is truly exceptional.” No Nay Never achieved that feat. So too did Kingman (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}).

Juddmonte's Kingman was 'just' fourth by earnings on the first-season sires' table, but it was the sheer quality of his winners that saw his fee bumped up by £20,000 to £75,000 for 2019. Like No Nay Never he sired two group winners (and five total stakes winners), and his G2 Coventry S. winner Calyx (GB) would likely have been challenging for the major juvenile Group 1s in the autumn had he not been knocked out by injury. The volume of his eye-catching early runners is best described in these pages by the fact that he had five TDN Rising Stars last year-No Nay Never had one, his Group 1 winner Ten Sovereigns (Ire). With so many of the top breeders having supported Kingman from the beginning-his five stakes winners were bred by Juddmonte (two), George Strawbridge, Lordship Stud and Dayton Investments-the verdict really looks to be in for him to develop into a top sire.

Beneath the 'elite' two, there are a handful of young sires still worth betting on. Alongside No Nay Never at Coolmore are Galileo's Derby winners Australia (GB) and Ruler of the World (GB). Australia, the son of the excellent mare Ouija Board (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}), sired one stakes winner, the dual French group winner Beyond Reason (Ire), but most interesting is the fact that his three stakes-placed horses were all placed in Group 1s, making him the leader of this crop by Group 1 horses. That trio was Broome (Ire), second in the Jean-Luc Lagardere, Sydney Opera House (Ire), runner-up in the G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud and Western Australia (Ire), third in the Vertem Futurity Trophy S. The Epsom and Irish Derby and Juddmonte International winner is available for €35,000 this year.

Ruler of the World was dealt a serious blow very early in his career when, soon into his initial season in 2015, he was injured and knocked out the rest of the covering season. As a result his first crop yielded just 32 named foals, but those included the G1 Fillies' Mile winner Iridessa (Ire) and the dual Italian stakes-placed The World Is Your (Ire). Ruler of the World's two black-type horses from 19 starters resulted in a ratio of 10.5%. Unfortunately, support for the horse hasn't increased greatly; his new crop of juveniles this year numbers 54 and he was visited by 54 and 47 mares the last two seasons; however, a young Group 1 sire, who is a Derby-winning half-brother to established sire Duke of Marmalade (Ire) and from the family of A.P. Indy, at €8,000 seems like a bet worth rolling the dice on. At that same fee at Coolmore this year is the G1 Dewhurst S. and G2 Coventry S. winner War Command (War Front). He sired 23 winners in his initial season including the Listed Pat Eddery S. winner Victory Command (Ire) and the French listed-placed Dancing Warrior (GB).

Charm Spirit (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) wound up second on the first-season sires' table, his 27 winners one shy of No Nay Never's tally. He provided the G3 Dick Poole S. winner Yourtimeisnow (GB), as well as the G2 July S. third Charming Kid (GB). The triple Group 1-winning miler has alternated his first five seasons between Tweenhills in Britain and Haras de Bonneval in France, and he returns to Tweenhills this year and gets a fee cut to £17,500-he was €20,000 last year in France and £20,000 last time he was in Britain.

As John Boyce pointed out in the aforementioned story, Dubawi (Ire), Dark Angel (Ire) and Pivotal (GB) each managed two stakes winners in their initial crops, so by that measure Anodin (Ire) (Anabaa), Bungle Inthejungle (Ire) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}), Sea The Moon (Ger) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) and Garswood (GB) (Dutch Art {GB}) are ticking along just fine. For the latter two, both of their black-type winners are group winners. The G1 Deutsches Derby winner Sea The Moon, who stands for £15,000 at Lanwades Stud, provided the Group 3 winners Noble Moon (Ger) and Quest The Moon (Ger) in his own country of birth, and he also had the Group 3-placed Man On The Moon (Ger) and the British listed-placed Three Comets (Ger). While Sea The Moon himself won his only 2-year-old outing impressively enough to be named a TDN Rising Star, everything about his own progression and his Classic German family suggest his progeny should progress with age.

Garswood (Dutch Art {GB}) did not have numbers on his side last year, his first crop numbering just 56, but the two group winners he returned actually resulted in a 5.6% group winners to starters (36) ratio that was best among this sire crop. Garswood was a listed winner at two and beaten a head by Bungle Inthejungle in the G3 Cornwallis S., and he trained on at three to win the G2 Lennox S. over seven furlongs and at four to win the G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest. Garswood's support has grown the last two seasons-he covered 81 mares in 2017 and 102 last year-and he has every right to progress as a sire. Best of all, he is available for £3,500 at Cheveley Park Stud.

Anodin (Ire) (Anabaa) was France's leading first-crop sire last year. He returned a total 21 winners, and his pair of stakes winners included the G3 Prix des Chenes victor and G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere third Anodor (Fr). He also had the listed winner Harmless (Fr) and the Chenes third Insandi (Fr).

Bungle Inthejungle (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}) shot out of the gates at the start of last year, leading the winners' tally early, and he wound up with 24 winners including the G3 Molecomb S. winner and G1 Middle Park S. third Rumble Inthejungle (Ire), as well as the Italian stakes winner Sopran Artemide (Ire). His fee more than doubles this year, jumping from €5,000 to €12,000 at Rathasker Stud.

This sire crop has another Group 1-winning sprinting son of Dutch Art who wasn't at his best until later, and that is Darley Kildangan's Slade Power (Ire), who won the G1 July Cup and G1 Diamond Jubilee at five. Nonetheless, he had 60 of his 83 first-crop foals make it to the races this year and they won at a 27% clip, with three black-type horses among them. He is down to €7,500 this year.

Haras de Bouquetot's Toronado (Ire) (High Chaparral {Ire}) really started to light up during the second half of the season last year, and wound up with 23 winners. While he didn't have a stakes winner he had five knocking on the door, including the G3 Acomb S. second Watan (GB) and the G3 Horris Hill S. third Almufti (GB). He was fifth in John Boyce's aforementioned rankings and stands for €12,000 this year. He stands alongside the four-time Group 1-winning miler Olympic Glory (Ire) (Choisir {Aus}) (€8,000), who turned out 20 winners and three black-type horses. He is a horse with a real shot, having been consistently good among the top-class milers for two campaigns.

Also without a stakes winner but with five stakes horses was the National Stud's Gregorian (Ire) (Clodovil {Ire}), who was himself a winner at two but really progressed with age. He was placed in the G1 St James's Palace S. and G1 Prix Jean Prat at three and won three group races at four and five. He stands for £8,000 this year.

THIRD-CROP SIRES OF 2019

Like the class that followed, this group has a clear leader that stands at Coolmore and that is Camelot (GB) (Montjeu {Ire}), who made a huge leap in 2018 after wrapping up 2017 fourth on the first-season sires' table. It could have been completely expected that the dual Derby winner's progeny would progress with age, and he delivered by adding 12 new stakes winners last year, headed by Group 1 winners Latrobe (Ire), Athena (Ire) and Wonderment (Ire). He also had the Royal Ascot winners Hunting Horn (GB) and Arthur Kitt (GB) among that group. Camelot led his sire crop last year by every measure: 12 stakes winners (double that of next-best Intello), 19 stakes horses, six group winners (again, double Intello), 14 group horses, three Group 1 winners and four Group 1 horses. Camelot is up to a career-high €40,000 this year, but for a horse that is tracking along like a potential breed-shaper that, in fact, looks like tremendous value.

As Camelot's leap up the ranks indicates, this is the time when we can truly start to separate the men-who are going to provide horses with class that train on-from the boys: those whose lights burn out after a handful of early winners. Intello (Ger) (Galileo {Ire}) may have taken a bit of a beating in the prior paragraph, but being second to Camelot is nothing to be ashamed of, and he himself came on a ton last year. The G1 Prix du Jockey Club winner has split his time between Cheveley Park Stud and Haras du Quesnay thus far, and he is at Cheveley Park this year for £20,000. After wrapping up his initial season in eighth among first-season sires with a single stakes winner, he posted six this year, including the G1 Prix Jean Prat winner Intellogent (Fr) and the very promising G3 Chester Vase and G3 Legacy Cup winner Young Rascal (Fr). Intello comes from the same Galileo over Danehill cross that has produced excellent sires Frankel (GB) and Teofilo (Ire), and he has a very high-class Wertheimer page.

Breeders may have been biting their nails at the end of 2017 when the 2-year-old champion Dawn Approach (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) returned just 12 winners and zero stakes winners with his first crop of racing age, but those who showed patience were rewarded this year when the horse sired five stakes winners. One of those is the G2 Golden Fleece S. winner and 2019 Classic hopeful Madhmoon (Ire), but some of the others, like the G3 Prix de la Grotte winner and G1 Prix de Diane second Musis Amica (Ire), and the listed winner and G1 Irish Oaks third Mary Tudor (Ire), appear to be more in the mould of the Dawn Approach that won the Guineas and St James's Palace S. at three. Dawn Approach jumped from 12th among first-crop sires to fourth among second-crop sires, and he is available for €15,000 at Darley's Kildangan Stud.

Darley has another promising member of this crop at Dalham Hall Stud in the G1 Lockinge S. and G1 Champion S. winner Farhh (GB) (Pivotal {GB}). Farhh was a seriously talented racehorse: he won his lone 2- and 3-year-old starts convincingly, and once he got a proper campaign underway at four he was Group 1-placed an agonizing five times behind Frankel, Nathaniel, So You Think and Moonlight Cloud. He got his redemption in those aforementioned Group 1s in his only two starts at five. Limited books have meant Farhh's numbers aren't as high as one would like, but there is no doubt he's turning out classy horses: his three stakes winners include the G2 Prix Hocquart winner Nocturnal Fox (Ire) and the dual Grade 3 winner Wells Farhh Go (Ire)–who trainer Tim Easterby was touting last year as a “proper stayer”–and Dee Ex Bee (GB) was placed last year in three Group 1s, including a second in the Epsom Derby. Farhh is priced at £10,000 this year.

The late Society Rock (Ire) (Rock of Gibraltar {Ire}) was the leading first-crop sire of 2017 by both winners and earnings, and his Group 1-winning son Unfortunately (Ire) enters stud this year at Cheveley Park. Although he has slipped to third in his sire crop this year, he has continued to do well, adding a pair of listed winners as well as the G1 Cheveley Park S. and G2 Lowther S. second The Mackem Bullet (Ire). Society Rock's final crop are two this year.

Havana Gold (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) showed enough promise with his first 2-year-olds in 2017 to warrant a huge book jump from 81 to 182, and both of his first-crop stakes winners added new black-type wins this year, headed by the G1 Flying Five S. winner Havana Grey (GB), who enters stud this year. He added three new listed winners last year including Headway (GB), who was second in the 2017 G2 Coventry S. and was considered a Classic contender after winning the Listed Spring Cup in March. He has since been sold to Hong Kong. Havana Gold stands at Tweenhills Stud for £15,000.

At the lower end of the fee scale, Overbury Stud's Cityscape (GB) (Selkirk) continues to tick along well at £5,000. Fairly unheralded at the end of 2017 after siring eight winners in his initial season, Cityscape made a huge jump this spring when his Dan's Dream (GB) won the G3 Fred Darling S. and Give And Take (GB) won the G3 Musidora S. He also had Irish listed winner The Broughie Man (GB).

In France, Style Vendome (Fr) (Anabaa) and Pedro The Great (Henrythenavigator) have made good accounts of themselves. Bouquetot's Style Vendome, who stands for €5,000 had zero stakes horses at the end of 2017, but the G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains winner corrected that in a big way this year with the G1 Prix Marcel Boussac winner Lily's Candle (Fr). She wasn't his only smart filly last year, though; he had the dual listed-placed Style Presa (Fr) and the G3 Prix Imprudence third Talbah (Fr).

Pedro The Great (Henrythenavigator) turned heads last year with two first-crop stakes-winning fillies and one of those, Fatale Bere (Fr), went on to win last year's GI Del Mar Oaks. He added two new stakes horses this year, the multiple French listed-placed Sens du Rythme (Fr) and the G2 Prix du Calvados second Lagrandecatherine (Fr). Pedro The Great stands at Haras de la Haie Neuve for €10,000. Also in France-with his fee halved to €15,000 after a big rise in 2018 at Haras de Grandcamp-is Dabirsim (Fr) (Hat Trick {Jpn}), who has slipped back in the rankings a bit after a very strong start with his first juveniles. Although he had just one stakes winner this year he had eight stakes horses, so perhaps there is more to come yet.

Value Sires Podium

Gold – Farhh (£10,000): a seriously good racehorse that has had some classy runners with limited opportunities.

Silver – Ruler of the World (€8,000): 10.5% black-type horses/starters, and a Group 1 winner, in his small first crop.

Bronze – Garswood (£3,500): a late bloomer himself who had two group winners in his first crop.