Pedigree Insights
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Andrew Caulfield, September 13, 2005–Scorpion (Ire) P EDIGREE INSIGHTS This nine-year-old son of Sadler’s Wells has left absolutely no doubt that he is capable of dominating BY ANDREW CAULFIELD the middle-distance classic scene, in much the same way that his sire has been a wonderfully fertile source LADBROKES ST. LEGER S.-G1, £450,000, Doncaster, of Derby, Oaks and St Leger winners. 9-10, 3yo, c/f, 14f 132ydsT, 3:19.01, hy. Montjeu’s total of first-crop stakes winners now 1--SCORPION (IRE), 126, c, 3, by Montjeu (Ire) stands at 10, from 115 live foals, and one of his 1st Dam: Ardmelody (Ire), by Law Society non-stakes winners is the Derby runner-up Walk In The 2nd Dam: Thistlewood (Ire), by Kalamoun (GB) Park. Incidentally, he had only one stakes winner at this 3rd Dam: Le Melody (GB), by Levmoss (Ire) (i260,000 yrl ‘03 GOFORB). O-Susan Magnier & stage last year and we are still awaiting his first stakes Michael Tabor; B-Grangemore Stud; T-Aidan O’Brien; winner from his second crop, which is only two thirds J-Frankie Dettori; £261,000. Lifetime Record: G1SW- the size of its predecessor. Fr & G1SP-Ire, 6-3-2-0, £659,897. *1/2 to Memories It is hardly surprising that a son of Sadler’s Wells was (Ire) (Don't Forget Me {Ire}), MGSW-US, SW-Ire, selected for Scorpion’s dam Ardmelody, an unraced $560,341; Danish Rhapsody (Ire) (Danehill), MSW & daughter of the Irish Derby winner Law Society. MGSP-Eng, $287,584; Garuda (Ire) (Danehill), SW & Sadler’s Wells had sired the Prix Vermeille third MGSP-Eng, GSP-Fr, G1SP-Ger, $144,534. Larrocha from Ardmelody’s second dam Le Melody, Click for the racingpost.co.uk chart or the free plus the Group 2 winners Modhish and Russian Snows brisnet.com catalogue-style pedigree. from Le Melody’s Classic-winning half sister Arctique Royale. He also sired another Group 2 winner, Wareed, “The King Is Dead, Long Live The King!” from a daughter of Arctique Royale. Actually, he’s not dead, but hale and hearty...and no, Another incentive for selecting a Sadler’s Wells line I’m not referring to Elvis, but to Sadler’s Wells, the stallion was Ardmelody’s sire line. Mares by Law Society marvellous Coolmore stallion. While the son of Northern and his sire Alleged have struck up a successful Dancer is still going strong at the age of 24, the partnership with the Sadler’s Wells male line, notably perennial champion sire now looks certain to be producing the Group 1 winners Brian Boru, Dream Well dethroned as the King of the British and Irish stallions and Endless Hall. You’ll hardly need reminding that Brian after a reign lasting 13 consecutive years. Buru also won the St Leger, two years before Scorpion. There is still some doubt, though, as to which stallion Scorpion is one of two major winners of 2005 which will take his crown. The only certainty is that it will be have Le Melody as their third dam, the other being another Coolmore star (just as it was a Coolmore Electrocutionist, the Red Ransom colt who triumphed in stallion, Caerleon, who interrupted Sadler’s Wells’ long reign back in 1991). the Gran Premio di Milano and Juddmonte International. The hot favourite has to be Danehill, who went into Electrocutionist’s branch of the family is also the weekend holding an advantage of less than responsible for Royal Highness, who closed strongly to £200,000 over the rookie Montjeu. Bearing in mind that be a good second in the G1 Prix Vermeille two days Montjeu promptly collected his third classic of the ago. season, thanks to Scorpion’s decisive success in the St This family has also done very well with Danehill, the Leger, and then collected second prize, via Motivator, in sire of Ardmelody’s group-placed Listed winners Danish the rich Irish Champion S., he could have been Rhapsody and Garuda. Other representatives of this expected to make serious inroads into Danehill’s lead. cross are the smart German horses Eagle Rise (by However, Motivator’s conqueror was Danehill’s tough Danehill) and Elopa (by Danehill’s son Tiger Hill) and the son Oratorio and Danehill then collected another French 2000 Guineas second Catcher In The Rye. Even valuable prize when Dylan Thomas helped extend his so, Ardmelody’s best previous winner had nothing to sire’s unassailable lead on the juvenile table to more do with Sadler’s Wells or Danehill, this being her Don’t than £500,000. The end result was that Danehill (who Forget Me filly Memories, winner of the GII Orchid H. also struck with Luas Line in a Grade I at Belmont) Scorpion’s immediate female line therefore represents actually increased his advantage over Montjeu on the four generations of solid achievement at a high level. Anglo-Irish list. With such strength in depth among his For good measure, his fourth dam Arctic Melody was a sister to Modern Lady, the third dam of that top-notch juveniles, he seems unlikely to relinquish that lead over French filly Magic Night (Prix Vermeille and second in the next two months. the Arc). However, the purists will never forget that Montjeu, of course, also scored with another of his Arctic Melody and Modern Lady were sired by Arctic classic winners, the Arc contender Hurricane Run, in Slave, a versatile horse who won on the flat, over the G2 Prix Niel on Sunday, while his daughter Dash To hurdles and over fences before becoming one of the The Top ran creditably after a very slow start in the G1 dominant stallions in British and Irish jump racing. Prix Vermeille. Cont. This link to the jumping world has since been considerably strengthened by the progeny of Le Melody’s outstanding son Ardross (twice a winner of the Ascot Gold Cup) and her accomplished grandson Alflora. The latter now ranks as one of the most popular sires of jumpers in Britain. One can only speculate about the effect these links will eventually have on Scorpion’s prospects as a stallion. Sue Magnier’s last two winners of the St Leger--the Sadler’s Wells colts Milan and Brian Boru-- both retired directly to the jumping sector of Coolmore’s Irish operation. It is hard to envision Scorpion escaping a similar fate, as his best efforts have come over 1 1/2 miles and 1 3/4 miles. The fact that Kieren Fallon--who needs only the St Leger to complete his set of British Classics --was drafted to partner Oratorio in the Irish Champion S. rather than the odds-on Scorpion in the St Leger shows where Coolmore’s priorities lie. They fully understand that further Group 1 glory for Oratorio--who also scored at Group 1 level over seven furlongs as a two-year-old--is going to make him a very attractive stallion proposition. Scorpion, on the other hand, faces an uphill struggle if he’s to earn a chance of passing on his considerable talents to the flat sector. He is going to have to match some of Montjeu’s achievements, such as his victories in the Arc and King George, and he would also benefit from a victory in a major 10-furlong event. I, for one, would like to see him do it. Nearctic Northern Dancer Natalma Sadler’s Wells Bold Reason Fairy Bridge Special Montjeu (Ire) High Top (Ire) Top Ville (Ire) Sega Ville (Fr) Floripedes (Fr) Tennyson (Fr) Toute Cy (Fr) Adele Toumignon (Ire) Hoist the Flag Alleged Princess Pout Law Society Boldnesian Ardmelody (Ire) Bold Bikini Unraced Ran-Tan 9Fls, 1G1SW, Zeddaan (GB) Kalamoun (Ire) 1GSW, 2SW Thistlewood (Ire) Khairunissa (Ire) Unraced 13Fls, 1SW Le Melody (Ire) 14Fls, Levmoss (Ire) 1G1SW, 1GSW, 1SW Arctic Melody (GB) .