FRIDAY, 16 NOVEMBER 2018 QATAR=S PRIDE AS LION CARTIER DOMINANCE SEES GOSDEN LEGEND GROW COMES HOME By John Berry The unveiling of the Cartier Award winners for 2018 has highlighted the dominance of John Gosden, who has ended the 2018 season as Champion Trainer of Great Britain for the third time. It is not merely that Gosden has trained the Cartier Horse of the Year for the fourth time in the last five years, Roaring Lion (Kitten's Joy) following in the footsteps of Kingman (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), Golden Horn (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}) and Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}), who were the Cartier Horses of the Year in 2014, 2015 and 2017. This year, Roaring Lion (who also received the prize for Cartier 3-Year-Old Colt) was one of four Cartier winners handled by Gosden, also responsible for Enable, Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) and Too Darn Hot (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), recipients of the awards for Cartier Older Horse, Cartier Stayer and Cartier 2-Year-Old Colt, respectively. Cont. p4 Roaring Lion at Tweenhills Stud on Thursday | Alayna Cullen By Emma Berry IN TDN AMERICA TODAY HARTPURY, UK--The days may be darkening in the relentless TAKING STOCK: UNBRIDLED’S SONG’S STALLION SONS march towards winter but there was one last reminder, in the In his latest ‘Taking Stock’ column, Sid Fernando looks at the late autumn sun, of a golden summer for Qatar Racing's legacy of Unbridled’s Song and his sons at stud who might fill his champion 3-year-old Roaring Lion (Kitten's Joy) as he paraded at shoes. Click or tap here to go straight to TDN America. his new home on Thursday morning. As his connections were toasting his achievement in being named Cartier Horse of the Year at the Dorchester on Tuesday evening, the sleek grey was settling into his newly built stallion box at Tweenhills Farm & Stud, his lavish quarters facing another new recruit to the stallion roster at the Gloucestershire farm, the G1 Qatar Sussex S. winner Lightning Spear (GB) (Pivotal {GB}). He may have roared on the racecourse--louder and louder as the season wore on--but away from the heat of battle, the Lion's demeanour appears to have been quelled to a contented purr. Strolling calmly before the pack of assembled media, he gave an assured first public appearance in his new role. "He was an absolute pleasure to train and has a fabulous mind on him," confirmed John Gosden, who arrived by helicopter from Newmarket with his son Thady and Roaring Lion's owner Sheikh Fahad Al Thani just moments before the parade commenced. Cont. p2 THE NEXT IMPORTANT US-BASED INTERNATIONAL SIRE ROARING LION IS NAMED CARTIER HORSE OF THE YEAR KITTEN’S JOY IS THE LEADING TURF SIRE IN AMERICA FOR THE 6TH YEAR IN A ROW AND IS THE LEADING SIRE ON THE GENERAL SIRE LIST FOR THE SECOND TIME IN THE PAST 6 YEARS. 4-time Group 1 Winner Roaring Lion ($3,575,197) winning the Queen Elizabeth II on Champions Day. LGB, LLC 2018 / Photo: ©Cranhamphoto.com www.hillndalefarms.com TDN EUROPE • PAGE 2 OF 10 • THETDN.COM FRIDAY • 16 NOVEMBER 2018 Qatar’s Pride As Lion Comes Home cont. from p1 could have been him, they are so alike." Roaring Lion's four consecutive Group 1 victories this year Her husband added, "He's been a good friend to us for the have bestowed not just championship honours on his own past three years. He's taken us to all the right places and he's shoulders but a starting fee at stud of £40,000. never let us down. His Group 1 win was very poignant but we "There's barely a mare in Europe that this horse can't cover, were pleased for the horse more than anything. The fact that he and he's 16 hands on the dot, the perfect size," offered Qatar stayed sound and retained both his enthusiasm and his ability to Racing Manager David Redvers as he admired the stallion that the age of seven is a huge credit to him." he and his regular sales partners Hannah Wall and Peter Molony Sheikh Fahad also admitted to a soft spot for the statuesque plucked from the Keeneland September Sale for $160,000. chestnut, who has the distinction of having been the first "I'm extremely spoiled to be able to look out of my bedroom racehorse ever to be ridden by his owner, who is now a keen window and see him. It gives me extra reason to jump out of amateur rider. bed in the morning." "He missed most of his 3-year-old season after contracting a Sheikh Fahad, whose magical season culminated in shouting virus while in training which left him unable to absorb glucose. his own champion home on QIPCO British Champions Day--over He had almost a year off at the stud and when he went back to the shoulder of the Queen, no less, who appeared to be equally Robins Farm I was quite attached to him. His being my hack for delighted--added, "Having a six months might have changed horse like this is really having things for him," said the sheikh the horse of a lifetime. It's with a grin. going to be hard to match him. Joining the new boys on We all know that he's the best parade was another chestnut, mile-and-a-quarter horse but Hot Streak (GB) (Iffraaj {GB}), for him to have dropped back who will have his first runners to a mile in the QEII and show next season and has quite a his guts in that ground was record to uphold after fellow really sensational." Qatar stallions Havana Gold As the Tweenhills team (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) and Charm unveiled the fees for the stud's Spirit (Ire) (Invincible Spirit six stallions for 2019, Redvers {Ire}) have each been the also announced a new leading British first-season sire incentive for breeders which in the last two seasons. promises a free return to any Redvers is bullish about breeder who breeds a stakes Lightning Spear poses for his close-up | Alayna Cullen completing the hat-trick. winner by a Tweenhills stallion. "We've always been very "This may be used for that particular stallion, or to any of the sweet on this horse and his yearlings sold phenomenally well. If other Qatar stallions as a credit to the value of that nomination," you're backing anything to be first-season sire next year we're he explained. "Our success equals your success." pretty confident that this boy will follow hot on the heels of Also on parade on Thursday morning was Lightning Spear, who Charm Spirit and Havana Gold," he said. had arrived with Roaring Lion and was similarly relaxed in his Tweenhills will have one final new face to introduce to new, unfamiliar environment. He will commence stud duties at a breeders early in the new year with the arrival from Australia's fee of £8,500. Widden Stud of Zoustar (Aus). A son of Northern Meteor (Aus), The horse's trainer David Simcock had also made the trip from who died tragically early in his stud career, he will stand his first Newmarket and he stood no chance of leaving the house season in the Northern Hemisphere for £25,000. If Zoustar's without his wife Jennie, who, as his daily rider, played a vital role fledgling stud career in his homeland is anything to go by, his is a in Lightning Spear's success. name that European breeders should have in their notebooks. "Of course I'm biased," said Jennie Simcock, admitting that she The leading first-season sire in Australia last season, during will be heading to the breeding stock sales to find a mare to which term his top representatives included the Magic Millions send to Lightning Spear. "But in my view he's very hard to crib. Classic winner Sunlight (Aus), the 8-year-old has continued in He has such a wonderful temperament and was always such a impressive fashion this season. gentleman. I saw a photo of Pivotal's head the other day and it TDN EUROPE • PAGE 3 OF 10 • THETDN.COM FRIDAY • 16 NOVEMBER 2018 Qatar’s Pride As Lion Comes Home cont. Sunlight continues to be one of his leading lights and she led home a trifecta for her sire in the G1 Coolmore Stud S. at Flemington a fortnight ago. The same race was also won not just by Zoustar himself but also by Northern Meteor, and his sire Encosta De Lago (Aus). Sunlight clearly has no regard for primogeniture, as she refused to give way to Sheikh Fahad's Zousain (Aus) and Lean Mean Machine (Aus) all the way down the Flemington straight. Vice President, International Operations Gary King Twitter: @garykingTDN [email protected] + 1.732.320.0975 International Editor Kelsey Riley Twitter: @kelseynrileyTDN [email protected] European Editor Emma Berry Twitter: @collingsberry [email protected] Roaring Lion in his stable | Alayna Cullen Associate International Editor "We followed Zoustar through his racing career and Sheikh Heather Anderson Fahad was with me at Flemington the day he won the Coolmore Twitter: @HLAndersonTDN Stud Stakes," recalled Redvers. "We went to see him the next morning at Chris Waller's stable and he was such a stunning Marketing Manager individual we were determined that we weren't going to leave Alayna Cullen without buying a substantial chunk of him, which we did with Twitter: @AlaynaCullen Antony Thompson of Widden Stud.