Broodmare owners have a lot to consider at this time of year and when it comes to finalising mating plans you need to feel like you’re getting value for money and giving your mare the best chance to succeed and sometimes the blindingly obvious is in fact the best choice.
The second season sire table for 2023/2024 produced a clear case of real quality rising to the top when the four best horses to retire to stud in 2019 finished one, two, three and four, all of them not just good horses, but champions on the track.
Widden Stud’s Trapeze Artist was the Champion 3YO Colt of 2017/2018 and Arrowfield Stud’s The Autumn Sun was Champion 3YO Colt of 2018/2019, while Justify (USA) never raced at two, but sailed through an undefeated 3YO season to take the US Triple Crown to be Champion US 3YO of 2018.
Darley shuttler Harry Angel (IRE) also cracked 2017 World Champion Sprinter status for his sprinting deeds at three in the UK when his Timeform rating hit a whopping 132.
Trapeze Artist and The Autumn Sun have been going head to head on the score of winners and finished the season tied on 45 winners apiece with the former producing Group I MRC Caulfield Guineas winner Griff plus two more Group winners in Ducasse and Facile, while the latter produced three Group I classic winning fillies in Autumn Angel, Vibrant Sun and Coco Sun.
Justify hasn’t had a Group I winner here although has gone close with Storm Boy and Learning to Fly and his efforts in the Northern Hemisphere with the likes of City of Troy and Opera Singer mean he’s sadly not coming back.
Trapeze Artist is the only one of the top trio available this spring with The Autumn Sun now ruled out through injury. He is priced at $55,000 as he has been for the past two seasons.
He’s covered 750 mares in his first five seasons at stud and his biggest foal crop to date are yearlings for the 2025 sales so there is every reason to think onwards and upwards for the champion son of Snitzel.
Also keep a close on his stakes-placed juvenile from last season Spywire, who trials at Randwick on Monday and looks ready to go for the early spring stakes races.
