A round up of all the action for the Darley stallions over the past week
The New Year starts with a bang for Iffraaj
Iffraaj wasted little time in notching his first Black Type winner of 2018, when his two-year-old daughter Melt landed the G3 Eclipse Stake at Ellerslie, New Zealand on New Year’s Day.
The hugely promising filly is now unbeaten in two starts (and also won her trial back in November) and will now have a short break before being aimed at the G1 Sistema Stakes on Saturday, 10 March.
Melt becomes the latest success story in the southern hemisphere for Iffraaj, also sire of NZ-bred G1 winners Gingernuts, Jon Snow and Turn Me Loose.
Poet’s Voice opens his 2018 Stakes account
Another Darley sire to get 2018 off to a successful start is Poet’s Voice, following the victory of his daughter Leaves of Grass in the Listed Jamaica Handicap at Kenilworth in South Africa.
Poet’s Voice enjoyed a superb European season in 2017, siring 29 juvenile winners – a figure that can only be bettered by his own sire Dubawi. He is also sire of last year’s British and Irish Champions Stakes second Poet’s Word, who is sure to figure once again in this year’s top-flight contests.
Success continues for young Darley sires
While the 2017 first-season sires’ contest drew to a close on 31 December, three young Darley stallions in Dawn Approach, Epaulette and Farhh continue to fire in the winners as their first runners turn three.
Dawn Approach recorded a brace of winners in the first few days of January, starting with Court House, who relished the step up in trip to a mile when running out the easy winner of the Novice at Kempton last Thursday.
Two days later, Dawn Approach’s daughter Morning Has Broken (pictured) put up a very impressive performance, making all to win by no fewer than six lengths over seven furlongs at Kempton. She certainly looks like one to follow this year.
Epaulette filly One More Chance became her sire’s first winner of 2018 with a comfortable victory over a mile at Southwell. Back in his native Australia, Epaulette rounded off last year with an exciting Group victory for two-year-old filly Meryl, who will line up in this Saturday’s valuable Magic Millions 2YO Classic.
Farhh, whose 2017 record of 15% Stakes winners to runners could not be beaten by any other first-season sire in the northern hemisphere, opened his 2018 winner’s account when the Marco Botti-trained Volevo Lui won at Chelmsford more easily than the three-quarter-length margin would suggest.
Dalham Hall and Kildangan Studs to open their doors
Both Dalham Hall Stud in Newmarket and Kildangan Stud in Co Kildare will hold open days this week.
Dalham Hall Stud will welcome breeders on Tuesday, 9 and Wednesday, 10 January, with the 14 UK-based stallions on show at 12 noon and 2pm each day.
Kildangan Stud takes part in the ITM Irish Stallion Trail on Friday, 12 and Saturday, 13 January, with their 14 resident stallions available to view from 11am to 3pm on both days.
