The forthcoming season is looking very promising for Authorized, with the first two-year-olds of the 2007 Derby winner seemingly making a big impression on their trainers even at this early stage of the spring.
Authorized himself, of course, was a Group One-winning two-year-old, even if the bulk of his reputation was built on his magnificent Classic campaign which included impressive victories in the Dante, Derby and Juddmonte International. On this basis, it is very pleasing that his two-year-olds have gone to trainers proven in their ability to prepare youngsters both for rewarding two-year-old campaigns and for second-season glory. When a stallion has his stock in the stables of such as Henry Cecil, Luca Cumani, Andre Fabre, John Gosden, Richard Hannon, John Oxx, Jean-Claude Rouget, Sir Michael Stoute and Dermot Weld, one can be sure that he will have every chance of success.
Perhaps the trainer happiest to greet some of Authorized’s stock, though, has been Peter Chapple-Hyam – for the simple reason that he was the man who had the pleasure of training Authorized throughout his career. Amongst the myriad Group One winners which Chapple-Hyam has trained in the couple of decades since sending out Dr Devious to win the Derby and Rodrigo De Triano to win the 2,000 Guineas in the same season, Authorized holds a particular place in the trainer’s affections; and it is easy to discern the excitement in his voice when he discusses the prospects of the Authorized youngsters in his care. Starting already to plan the careers of these two youngsters, Chapple-Hyam recently gave the opinion that, “I have two Authorized two-year-olds in my yard. Both are fillies. One filly is quite sharp and I really like her. She should be out and running quite early. The other filly will be for later in the year. She has plenty of class and is doing everything right so far”.
Such thoughts seem to typify the general feeling among the trainers about the Authorized juveniles – which is no surprise, as most of them have the advantage of being from a high-class mare, as well as being sired by a champion. Among those set potentially to make their debuts this year, there are half-siblings to the Group One winners Scintillo, Count Dubois, Soldier Hollow, Zanzibar and Mus-If, as well as a colt from the Group One-winning filly Valley Of Gold, who is already the dam of the Group Three winner Splendid Era, successful in the Joel Stakes over a mile at Newmarket.
Looking farther ahead, the exciting thought is that, unlike all too many stallions who are well patronised in their first season at stud but overlooked once the novelty has worn off, Authorized actually covered his biggest and best book to date in 2010, so the forthcoming season really should be only the beginning of a very successful stud career.
This is, of course, just what one would have expected ever since Authorized broke through into the big time as a two-year-old with his four-length victory in the Racing Post Trophy. Although merely a precursor to his even greater glories at three, this victory confirmed that Authorized would be the top-class horse which his pedigree and magnificent physique suggested. From the immediate family of the top-class stallions Green Dancer and Alhaarth, Authorized is also very closely related to the proven Group One performers Okawango, Quijano, Prospect Wells and Prospect Park – while more recently his family received a further boost from the tremendous campaign enjoyed in 2010 by Dubawi's 2,000 Guineas-winning son Makfi, whose grand-dam Irish Valley is a half-sister to Authorized’s grand-dam Vallee Dansante.
It is thus little wonder that the forthcoming season is so eagerly awaited by Authorized’s many admirers.
