Andrew Caulfield, June 25-War Command It was hardly surprising, then, that last week=s Royal PEDIGREE INSIGHTS Meeting proved very rewarding for stallions from the B Y A N D R E W C A U L F I E L D Danzig male line. The most successful was Danehill=s son Dansili, who enjoyed group success with Riposte, COVENTRY S.-G2, ,120,000, Royal Ascot, 6-18, 2yo, Thomas Chippendale and Remote. Danehill Dancer-- 6fT, 1:12.86, gd. another son of Danehill--also enjoyed a stakes treble, 1--#@WAR COMMAND, 127, c, 2, by War Front featuring group wins by Duntle and Hillstar, while 1st Dam: Wandering Star (GSW-Can, SW-Eng & Exceed and Excel supplied the Royal Hunt Cup winner GSP-US, $295,434), by Red Ransom Belgian Bill. The male line=s influence even stretched to 2nd Dam: Beautiful Bedouin, by His Majesty victories by two great-great-grandsons, thanks to 3rd Dam: Gris Vitesse, by Amerigo (GB) Dandy Man=s son Extortionist in the Windsor Castle S. O-Joseph Allen, Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor & and to Mount Nelson=s son Berkshire in the Chesham S. Derrick Smith; B-Joseph Allen; T-Aidan O=Brien; The Green Desert branch also got into the act via J-Seamus Heffernan; ,68,052. Lifetime Record: Oasis Dream, sire of the game Group 3 winner Gale 2-2-0-0, ,77,308. *1/2 to Naval Officer (Tale of the Force Ten and Opinion, and Cape Cross, sire of Elidor. Cat), GSW-Fr, $182,831. Werk Nick Rating: B+. All the stallions mentioned above are based in Britain Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. or Ireland, but it was great to see Claiborne Farm score a magnificent double via War Front. This Joseph Click for the Racing Post result, the brisnet.com PPs or Allen-bred son of Danzig is rapidly filling the void left at the free brisnet.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, the Paris stallion station when Danzig was pensioned in courtesy attheraces.com. 2004, at the age of 27. As War Front was conceived For nearly 30 years Royal Ascot=s top events have when his sire was 24, and is still only 11 years old, played their part in kindling Europe=s love of Danzig and there is a good chance that Danzig will be appearing as his descendants. His son Always Fair won the the grandsire of major winners some 50 years after his G2 Coventry S. back in 1987 and Danzig went on to birth--especially as his final crops also contained such enjoy further Royal Ascot success with the likes of good colts as Hard Spun, Mawatheeq, Astronomer Danehill (G3 Cork and Orrery S., now the Golden Royal and U S Ranger. Jubilee), Dayjur (G2 King=s Stand S.), Ad Valorem (G1 Queen Anne S.), Shaadi (G1 St James=s Palace S.) Click here for the latest posts on the TDN Blog and Soapy Danger (G3 Queen=s Vase). Caulfield cont. It is tempting to speculate about how War Front Now resident at WinStar Farm, U S Ranger was also would have fared had he followed the transatlantic path bred by Joseph Allen, from his Red Ransom mare My taken by so many sons of Danzig, such as the multiple Annette. Withdrawn from the September Yearling Sale, Group 1 winners Green Desert, Danehill, Dayjur, Polish the son of Danzig showed sufficient promise in winning Precedent, Anabaa and Agnes World. Most of these his three starts for Allen as a juvenile in France that he shone over the sprint distances which formed the basis came to the attention of Michael Tabor and it wasn=t of War Front=s career and they were, of course, on turf. long before the colt was racing for a collective Rather surprisingly, War Front was never tried on turf, consisting of the Coolmore partners and Allen. even though his dam Starry Dreamer had spent much Switched to Aidan O=Brien, the son of Danzig went very of her 31-race career contesting turf stakes. This close to landing the G1 July Cup in 2008. daughter of Rubiano had been good enough to finish The venture with U S Ranger has encouraged further second in four Grade II events on turf and her smart collaboration between Allen and the Coolmore partners. Pulpit colt Ecclesiastic also did most of his racing on Lines of Battle, winner of the G2 UAE Derby earlier this grass, notably winning two editions of the GIII Jaipur S. year, is another example and so too are the G1 Queen War Front=s stallion career has lent further support to Anne S. winner Declaration of War and the impressive the theory that he needn=t have been just a G2 Coventry S. hero War Command. conventional dirt horse. The Factor gained his Grade I As reported in the TDN of June 19, Allen retains a successes on dirt and all-weather, whereas Data Link, 40% interest in War Front, whose racing career was Summer Soiree, Declaration of War and the Hong Kong largely one of so near Group 1 winner Sweet Orange have all gained their best and yet so far. wins on turf. Although he won the War Front is now covering some spectacular books of GII Alfred G Vanderbilt mares, but this hasn=t always been so and his current H. over six furlongs, 3-year-olds, from his third crop, number only 43. That War Front also found hasn=t stopped him coming up with Lines of Battle one too good for him (G2 UAE Derby on Tapeta), Jack Milton (a Grade III in five other graded winner on turf) and Departing (GIII Illinois Derby on stakes as a 4-year-old, dirt), as well as War Dancer and Sustained, both beaten by the likes of graded-placed on turf. Silver Train, Pomeroy This crop also includes The Brothers War, a Joseph and Henny Hughes. He Allen homebred who was a listed winner over six War Front claibornefarm.com was a good, solid furlongs in France before being sold to Team Valor. performer without Bearing in mind that this 3-year-old has never been tried being a star, as witnessed by his seventh-place finish at over more than seven furlongs, even though he is out 16-1 in the GI Breeders= Cup Sprint. of a Group 2 winner over 1 9/16 miles, I briefly Retired to Claiborne, where he was foaled and raised, wondered whether War Front=s speed is proving War Front wasn=t an obvious contender to develop into dominant. Although speed was also the main asset of The a worthy heir to Danzig=s throne. After all, Claiborne Factor, several of War Front s best winners have shone had already tried several times to find a successor to = beyond a mile. Summer Soiree, Soldat and Data Link all the multiple champion sire, without hitting the jackpot. have good victories over a mile and an eighth, while The triple Grade I winner Polish Navy was the first Declaration of War has two wins, including one at listed son to stand alongside Danzig at Claiborne, but he was level, at around a mile and a quarter. Lines of Battle is sent to Japan in 1992 after a slow start. However, his another who may get a mile and a quarter. sale was quickly followed by victories by Ghazi in the There must also be a good chance that War GI Secretariat S. and by Sea Hero in the GI Champagne Command will stay a mile or more, which makes this S. Sea Hero went on to take the GI Kentucky Derby eye-catching Coventry S. winner all the more exciting. and GI Travers S. the following year. It is easy to guess why Allen decided to send War Claiborne then made a bold move to secure the Command=s dam Wandering Star to War Front. Like the Danzig succession with the arrival of Lure and Boundary dam of U S Ranger, Wandering Star is a daughter of in 1995. Sadly Lure proved sub-fertile and Boundary Red Ransom. Indeed she was a very good daughter of had to be pensioned at the age of 15 in 2005 because Red Ransom, as she showed in winning the GI E.P. of declining fertility. Like Polish Navy, Boundary also Taylor S. over a mile and a quarter. Of course, this is sired a Kentucky Derby winner when Big Brown the popular Danzig-Roberto cross, which has been developed into the dominant 3-year-old of 2008. responsible for such as War Chant, Furiously and Yashmak. More recent examples are the European “Quick Verrazano update. Group 1 winners Style Vendome and Temida, as well as He seems to have come out Lines of Battle, a War Front colt with a dam by Arch of the Pegasus VERY well. (which, incidentally, also produces 2x4 to Danzig). War Command follows Naval Officer, a very useful He's bright, energetic, and happy right now. Haskell son of Tale of the Cat, as the second above-average next.”--@LGSRacing winner out of Wandering Star. His second dam, Beautiful Bedouin, had the distinction of being a half-sister to Silver Hawk, a Classic performer who became a highly effective stallion. Add in the fact that his third dam Gris Vitesse won the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois and War Command has a pedigree which will have plenty of appeal to breeders. Also, add in the fact that he is a late-April foal, and here we have a colt who could make this year=s 2-year-old scene extremely interesting.