Iffraaj Leaving His Mark on the Antipodes

Rare are the horses that go to stud that actually prove their worth as stallions. Rarer still are those that make an impact in more than one racing jurisdiction. Darley's Iffraaj (GB) (Zafonic), is one such exemplary individual. With time called on his Southern Hemisphere service as his son Ribchester (Ire) takes the reins at Haunui Farm in New Zealand, it's worth taking a look at the elder's record in Australasia as he makes Darley's Dalham Hall Stud in Britain his permanent base.

Bred by Darley, and raced in the silks of Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid al Maktoum and later on Godolphin, the 2005/2006 G2 Park S. hero was a close head second in the G1 July Cup. Also a winner of the G2 Lennox S., Iffraaj stood at Darley's Kildangan Stud from 2007-2014 and moved to Dalham Hall in 2015, where he commands £30,000 this term. His annual Southern Hemisphere sojourns to Haunui began in 2008, with a 2019 asking price of NZ$25,000 in what became his final season.

The sire of G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere hero and Haras d'Etreham sire-on-the-rise Wootton Bassett (GB) from his first Northern Hemisphere crop in 2008, Iffraaj has sired 71 black-type winners worldwide with 35 group winners. Four of his 10 total Group 1 winners were bred on Southern Hemisphere time, with G1 Al Quoz Sprint victor and young Telemon Thoroughbreds stallion Jungle Cat (Ire) also successful in the G1 Sir Rupert Clarke S. in Australia. From his 697 Southern Hemisphere foals, 26 black-type winners (12 at group level) have appeared.

When his first Southern Hemisphere juveniles hit the racecourses in the 2011/2012 season, there were five winners from 19 runners in Australia and New Zealand highlighted by the G2 Matamata Breeders' Cup S. runner-up Liberating (NZ). His Twilight Granita (NZ) also placed twice at the listed level in her native land.

Once that cohort turned three, the latter became Iffraaj's first SH black-type winner in the Listed Fordell O'Leary Fillies S., and later that season reported home second in the G1 New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders' S. in April of 2013. After placing third in the G1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas, Fix (NZ) went on to take the G2 Eight Carat Classic, the first of three consecutive Group 2 contests prior to a runner-up performance in the 2013 2400m G1 New Zealand Derby. She was named the NZB Filly of the Year for the '12/'13 season. A win in the G3 Mr. Tiz Trophy by So Wotif (NZ) and two more listed winners-one of them NZB Southern Filly of the Year If I Can I Can (NZ)–helped vault Iffraaj way up the New Zealand Sires' List to 10th by the end of the racing year. The versatile bay was also named champion second-crop sire.

Although the 2013/2014 racing season yielded only listed winner Kisses (NZ), who had scored at that level the year prior, Iffraaj still finished 16th in the sires' standings and was the leading sire of 2-year-old winners. Franzac (NZ) was only a half-length shy of Group 1 glory in the G1 Levin Classic. Riding Shotgun (NZ) just missed when runner-up in the lucrative Listed Karaka Million and Iffwedance (NZ) completed the trifecta in the G3 Manuatu Classic.

With his oldest progeny only 5-year-olds, Iffraaj took fourth at the end of the season in the NZ sire standings on the back of five black-type winners and was also the leading sire of 3-year-olds. His sire's best runner in the Southern Hemisphere, New Zealand Champion Sprinter/Middle Distance horse Turn Me Loose (NZ) captured the G2 Hawke's Bay Guineas in October of 2014, before becoming his sire's first Southern Hemisphere Classic scorer in the Nov. 8 one-mile G1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas. It would not be Iffraaj's only Classic winner that season, as the aforementioned Iffwedance struck in the Listed New Zealand St. Leger. On the distaff side, Iffraaj's Serena Miss (NZ) saluted in the G2 Matamata Breeders' S., while MSW Belle Miraaj (NZ) ran third in the G1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas and Sardaaj (NZ) was second by just a head in the G1 Levin Classic.

As a 3-year-old, Serena Miss took third in the New Zealand 2000 Guineas after a Group 2 win in October, the same position as her sire in the sires' standings by the end of the 2015/16 season. Kisses further boosted Iffraaj's group winners, taking the G3 Taranaki Breeders' S. The juveniles Wyndspelle (NZ) and Xiong Feng (NZ) completed the exacta in the G1 Sistema Diamond S. and won the Karaka Million, respectively, while granting their patriarch the title of leading sire of 2-year-olds. There would also be new ground broken for Iffraaj in Australia.

Turn Me Loose added the G2 Crystal Mile across the Tasman in October of 2015, prior to Group 1 scores in the G1 Emirates S. a month later and in the G1 Futurity S. in February of 2016. Also in Australia, listed winner Who Dat Singa (NZ) would run second in the G2 WATC Derby.

The 2016/17 racing season resulted in the first of consecutive New Zealand Sires' Championship silver medals for Iffraaj. The Soultaker (NZ) (Bulb Elite in Hong Kong), won the G3 Bonecrusher S. in mid-September, one of seven stakes winners that season and  Order Again (NZ) saluted in the G3 Grand Prix S. The G2 Waikato Guineas and G2 Avondale Guineas went to the colt Wyndspelle and gelding Gingernuts (NZ), respectively in February, sandwiching a runner-up performance by Turn Me Loose in the G1 C F Orr S. before a stud career began for that veteran at Windsor Park Stud.

The tangerine and blue Te Akau Racing silks were carried by Gingernuts to win the G1 New Zealand Derby in March of 2017, with Iffraaj also siring the third horse home-Jan. 14 G1 Levin Classic third Jon Snow (NZ), completing a NZ Triple Crown for the Haunui stalwart. However, this duo would add three group victories in Australia later in the season to their sire's resume-Gingernuts captured the G1 Rosehill Guineas on May 18, and first the Mar. 25 G2 Tulloch S. and then the Apr. 1 G1 ATC Derby went the way of Jon Snow, as Iffraaj's progeny scored 11 times at black-type level in Australasia that season.

During the SH autumn, Gingernuts added the G1 Windsor Park Plate to his haul in September of 2017 and was a nose second in October's G1 Livamol Classic before an injury derailed his racing career. Jon Snow's Australian raids continued with a win in the G3 JRA Cup and he ran with credit to be third in the G1 Caulfield S., while Wyndspelle was third in the G1 Cantala S. Back in New Zealand, juvenile filly Melt (NZ) claimed the G3 Eclipse S. on New Year's Day, while GSP Astor (NZ) became a listed winner that March.

Even though his later seasons have not brought out quite as many stakes winners, Iffraaj still finished a very good sixth in the sires' standings in the '18/'19 NZ racing year, as Melt added another Group 3 win, and rolled a pair of twos in the Oct. 6 G2 Hawke's Bay Guineas and Nov. 17 G1 Manuatu Sires Produce S. The consistent duo of Jon Snow (Makybe Diva S./Zabeel Classic)-now a stallion at Clearview Park Stud–and Wyndspelle (Windsor Park Plate/Harcourts Thorndon Mile/Haunui Farm WFA Group 1 Classic) were other top-flight placers that year. Deals in Heels (NZ) also captured the Listed Matamata Cup and was group placed, while Who Dares Wins (NZ) landed the G3 Canterbury Gold Cup and GSW Order Again added another Group 3 level in the Rough Habit Plate.

In this coronavirus-abbreviated season-New Zealand racing ceased on Mar. 24 and is due to begin on July 3–Iffraaj sired his fourth SH Group 1 winner when Wyndspelle took the Captain Cook S. in December. The entire was second in both the G1 Tarzino Trophy at the end of August in 2019 and also filled that position in the Jan. 18 G1 Harcourts Thorndon Mile before being retired with a stallion career in the cards. His sire currently sits in 14th position on the New Zealand Sires' List.

Although it is early days yet, Iffraaj's single black-type winner as a Southern Hemisphere broodmare sire is in the form of New Zealand Horse of the Year and 10-time Group 1 winner Melody Belle (Aus) (Commands {Aus}). Out of Iffraaj's winning daughter Meleka Belle (NZ), she was named the 2017 New Zealand Champion 2-year-old and the 2019 New Zealand Champion Sprinter the same year as her Horse of the Year accolade. He is also represented by another three stakes-placed runners, among them Centimental (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}), runner-up in the G3 Widden S.

Although his shuttling days are over, time is still on Iffraaj's side, as his progeny have plenty of years to burnish their sire's reputation in Australasia.