Yeomanstown Stud

It was fitting that Dark Angel's 100th stakes winner should have come in the Dick Hern S. at Haydock, a milestone which the ultra-reliable Yeomanstown Stud-based stallion reached thanks to the victory of the St. Albans Bloodstock home-bred filly Heredia (GB). Dick Hern, who sent out 16 British Classic winners including three winners of the Derby as well as his best horse Brigadier Gerard (GB), would have thoroughly approved of Dark Angel. Hern was an archetypal 'old-school' trainer who excelled with every type of horse. Late in his career he...

Marc Chan's 2021 G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere and G1 Criterium International hero Angel Bleu (Fr) (Dark Angel {Ire}--Cercle De La Vie {Ire}, by Galileo {Ire}) had been in and out of form in eight outings since registering those career highlights as a juvenile and backed up a fourth in last month's G2 Summer Mile with a last-gasp win in Saturday's G2 William Hill Celebration Mile at Goodwood. Fourth through halfway and scrubbed along approaching the quarter-mile marker, the 9-2 chance was afforded a dream seam underneath the stands' side rail...

Shadwell's ultra-consistent Alflaila (GB) (Dark Angel {Ire}--Adhwaa {GB}, by Oasis Dream {GB}) had not been sighted since annexing October's G3 Darley S. at Newmarket, but was ready, willing and able to deliver a decisive burst for a career best in Saturday's G2 Sky Bet York S. on the Knavesmire. The Owen Burrows trainee, who also saluted in last term's G3 Strensall S. at this venue, employed patient tactics from flagfall and settled into a smooth rhythm with just one rival behind until turning for home. Taking closer order in the...

Last year's G3 Prix de Cabourg victor The Antarctic (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}--Anna Law {Ire}, by Lawman {Fr}) opened this term with a third in Navan's Listed Committed S. and led from pillar to post in Sunday's G3 Goffs Lacken S. at Naas. His eight-race juvenile campaign included three encounters with Blackbeard (Ire) (No Nay Never), hitting the board behind that now-retired former stablemate in the G2 Prix Robert Papin, G1 Prix Morny and G1 Middle Park. The Antarctic broke sharply and led along the far-side rail from flagfall. In...

Karl Burke notched an exacta in last term's Listed Clipper EBF Marygate Fillies' S. at York and repeated the dose when once-raced winner Got To Love A Grey (GB) (Dark Angel {Ire}--Regatta {Fr}, by Layman) outlasted stablemate Dorothy Lawrence (GB) (Soldier's Call) in this year's renewal of the straight five-furlong dash. Got To Love A Grey went postward as the 5-2 second choice,  coming back off a six-length tally at Nottingham last month, and broke sharply from the far-side stall to seize an immediate lead. Unflustered on the front end...

DEAUVILLE, France--It would seem that Arqana has pulled off the impossible. Ask ten different people at the sales a certain question and you'd usually end up with ten different opinions. But there is one thing on which everyone patrolling the sales grounds in Deauville can apparently agree, and that is that a pretty stellar line-up of horses has been assembled for the Arqana Breeze-up Sale. The only thing they can't agree on is which horse is likely to top the sale. We'll know that by Saturday evening, and it is...

Yeomanstown Stud's Invincible Army (Ire) (by Invincible Spirit {Ire}) added his name to the growing list of winner-represented first-season sires on Sunday as his son Love Billy Boy (Ire) scored on debut at Musselburgh. Sent off the 9-4 favourite for the five-furlong Race To A Cure For MND EBF Novice S., the £90,000 Goffs UK Premier purchase who races in the famous Roldvale Ltd silks travelled strongly for Sean Levey held up behind the leading pair. Making smooth progress to hit the front 1 1/2 furlongs down, the Richard Hannon-trained...

Out and about on the opening day of the Irish Thoroughbred Stallion Trail One of the early highlights of the year for pedigree buffs and casual observers, the Irish Thoroughbred Stallion Trail, got underway with a bang on Friday with heavy footfall reported at over 30 of the stallion farms taking part in the two-day extravaganza.  The TDN Europe team were out and about in the Kildare area on Friday and visited Kildangan Stud, The Irish National Stud, Yeomanstown Stud and Derrinstown Stud before venturing further south on Saturday.  Don't...

The G1 Middle Park S. winner Supremacy (Ire) sired his first reported foal on January 4 at Yeomanstown Stud. The dark bay colt is out of Majestic Endeavour (GB) (Shamardal). Also a winner of the G2 Richmond S., Supremacy, from the first crop of Mehmas (Ire), covered a book of 187 mares in 2022, which included 75 stakes performers or producers. He stands for €10,000 at Yeomanstown Stud this year.      

Dark Angel (Ire) and Invincible Army (Ire) may not be the only exciting stallions at Yeomanstown Stud with David O'Callaghan outlining his hopes that Shaman (Ire) can lay down a marker at Goffs this week when some of the Group 2-winning son of Shamardal's first foals go through the ring. A colt foal by Shaman fetched €22,000 at the inaugural Tattersalls Ireland Sapphire Sale on Saturday and O'Callaghan thinks the best is yet to come from a sire who is due to have 22 foals go through the ring over...

Leading sire Dark Angel (Ire) will remain at €60,000 for 2023 as Yeomanstown Stud released fee details on Friday.  Battaash (Ire) and Harry Angel (Ire) flew the flag for Dark Angel at the highest level in recent seasons and the 17-year-old broke new ground with French Classic scorer Mangoustine (Fr) this term.  First-season sire Invincible Army (Ire) remains at €7,500 while Supremacy (Ire) has been dropped to €10,000 from €12,500. Shaman's (Ire) first foals sell this autumn and he remains at €5,000. Gay O'Callaghan said, "Dark Angel has had another...

Nurlan Bizakov's 250,000gns Tattersalls October Book 2 yearling Charyn (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}--Futoon {Ire}, by Kodiac {GB}) ran third to Roger Varian-trained stablemate Sakheer (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) in last month's G2 Mill Reef S. and continued his progression with a career high in Saturday's G2 Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte at Chantilly. He had earlier followed up an Aug. 7 debut triumph at Haydock with a narrow defeat at Newmarket in his penultimate start later that month. The eventual winner was sent forward from an early fifth to track the leaders in...