WEDNESDAY, 2 JANUARY 2019 his Elmendorf Stud in Kentucky, a move which worked out very NOBLE MISSION: well as Sickle was US Champion Sire in 1936 and '38, and his sire-line yielded in turn Unbreakable, Polynesian, Native Dancer, STAKING HIS CLAIM Raise A Native and Mr. Prospector. Pharamond was sold to a syndicate headed by Hal Price Headley (who subsequently bought out his partners) to stand at Headley's Beaumont Farm in Kentucky, where he enjoyed great success; while Hunter's Moon was sold to South America, where he started his stud career in Argentina and ended it in Brazil and sired numerous champions. The late Lord Howard de Walden faced similar decisions regarding the placement of the progeny of his great mare Doubly Sure (GB) (Reliance {Fr}). He made sure that her two best sons stood on opposite sides of the Atlantic. He stood Kris (GB) (Sharpen Up) at his own Thornton Stud in Yorkshire while Diesis (GB) (Sharpen Up) went to Mill Ridge in Kentucky. Cont. p2 IN TDN AMERICA TODAY Noble Mission | Lee Thomas PEDIGREE INSIGHTS: BRIGHT START FOR CAIRO PRINCE Andrew Caulfield examines the racetrack performance of Cairo by John Berry Prince’s first runners, who debuted in 2018. Click or tap here to It's probably fair to call it a first-world problem, but one go straight to TDN America. dilemma which extremely successful owner/breeders can find themselves facing is what strategy to adopt when a top-class broodmare produces several prospective stallions, because it is asking a lot for them all to fulfil their potential if they are standing alongside (and essentially in competition with) each other. That is the position which Prince Khalid Abdullah has found himself in with Kind (Ire) (Danehill), dam of two winners of the G1 Champion S., i.e. the peerless Frankel (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) and his full-brother Noble Mission (GB). Few have played their cards better in such a situation than the 17th Earl of Derby, whose 1922 Park Hill S. victrix Selene (GB) (Chaucer {GB}) produced not only the 1933 Derby and St Leger hero Hyperion (GB) (Gainsborough {GB}) but also the high-class colts Sickle (GB) (Phalaris {GB}), Pharamond (GB) (Phalaris {GB}) and Hunter's Moon (GB) (Hurry On {GB}). Lord Derby stood Hyperion himself in Newmarket (mostly at Woodlands Stud but also at Plantation Stud for three seasons) which was a good move as the little chestnut turned out to be Great Britain's greatest stallion of the 20th century. He also stood Sickle for one season at Woodlands before the horse was leased to (and subsequently bought by) Joseph Widener who relocated him to TDN EUROPE • PAGE 2 OF 7 • THETDN.COM WEDNESDAY • 2 JANUARY 2019 Noble Mission Cont. from p1 that's no disgrace because no horse has been as good as Frankel. Their siblings Keen (GB) (Sharpen Up), Presidium (GB) (General But he was still a proper Group 1 performer in his own right. He Assembly), Doubletour (Lyphard) and Rudimentary (Nureyev) won three Group 1 races during his final year in training (2014) were dotted around the British Isles. and in the last of them he emulated his brother by bringing More recently, Prince Khalid down the curtain on a Abdullah has found himself in distinguished career by taking the same situation with the the G1 QIPCO Champion S. at offspring of Kind (Ire) (Danehill). Ascot. He too then topped it all Mirroring the movements of the off by collecting a Cartier Award top-class full-brothers Kris and (albeit >merely' as Champion Diesis, Frankel has settled at Older Horse, rather than Horse Banstead Manor Stud while of the Year). By this time Frankel Noble Mission calls Lane's End had completed two seasons at Farm in Kentucky home; while Banstead Manor, and Prince Bullet Train (GB) (Sadler's Wells) Khalid Abdullah took a leaf out is at Woodfield Farm Stud in of Lord Howard de Walden's Ireland after having spent seven book by selling a majority years in Kentucky, Morpheus interest in the horse to Lane's (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) is at Kind pictured with her Galileo filly of 2018 | Juddmonte Farms End. Haras de Chesnaie in France The similarities between after having spent four years at Tally Ho in Ireland, and Frankel and Noble Mission did not end with the way in which Proconsul (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) is about to start his third season at they concluded their racing careers. Frankel had got his stud Mickley Stud in England. career off to a perfect start when his first runner Cunco (Ire) Noble Mission wasn't as good a racehorse as Frankel, but won on debut at Newbury in May 2016. Cont. p3 TDN EUROPE • PAGE 3 OF 7 • THETDN.COM WEDNESDAY • 2 JANUARY 2019 Vice President, International Operations Gary King Twitter: @garykingTDN [email protected] On a Session | Scoop Dyga + 1.732.320.0975 International Editor Kelsey Riley Noble Mission Cont. Twitter: @kelseynrileyTDN [email protected] Noble Mission followed suit. Bred by Green Lantern Stables LLC, On A Session was bought at the Keeneland September Sale European Editor in 2017 for $50,000 by Amy Marnane and brought to Ireland. He Emma Berry was offered by Bansha House Stud at the Goffs UK Breeze-Up Twitter: @collingsberry Sale at Doncaster this spring but was retained by his vendors at [email protected] ,60,000. Put into training in France by the Marnanes with Associate International Editor Matthieu Palussiere, he made the perfect start for Noble Heather Anderson Mission by scoring on debut, taking the Prix des Hortensias at Twitter: @HLAndersonTDN Lyon Parilly by 4 1/2 lengths on May 10. Two weeks later he doubled his tally by landing the Prix De Puycharic at Angers. Marketing Manager While Noble Mission was a British racehorse and sired his first Alayna Cullen winner in France, the focus of his stud career, of course, is Twitter: @AlaynaCullen primarily in the USA. Cont. p4 [email protected] Contributing Editor Alan Carasso Twitter: @EquinealTDN Cafe Racing Sean Cronin Tom Frary [email protected] Irish Correspondent Daithi Harvey Regular Columnists Chris McGrath Andrew Caulfield John Berry Kevin Blake Tom Peacock Noble Mission=s first-crop star Code of Honor at Saratoga Sarah K. Andrew TDN EUROPE • PAGE 4 OF 7 • THETDN.COM WEDNESDAY • 2 JANUARY 2019 Noble Mission Cont. reserve. Consequently Will Farish put him into training with He ends 2018 in sixth place (judged on worldwide earnings) in Shug McGaughey and must now be very thankful that he didn't the American First-Season Sires= table, which is extremely sell him. creditable for a stallion whose Code Of Honor went from progeny, if they take after their winning a six-furlong maiden father, ought not to be special weight at Saratoga in particularly precocious, ought to August to contesting the G1 progress markedly as they Champagne S. over a mile at mature, and ought to show their Belmont seven weeks later and best form on turf. His progeny he coped with the rise in class have earned $676,575 in North and distance admirably, staying America and the equivalent of on strongly to finish second of $97,097 in Europe, putting him 10 behind the favourite just ahead of the MGSW Fed Biz Complexity (Maclean's Music). (Giant=s Causeway) and top-class An elevated temperature ruled dirt runners Verrazano (More Code Of Honor out of the GI Than Ready) and Mucho Macho Breeders' Cup Juvenile and he Man (Macho Uno) who lie in still wasn't ready for his fall-back seventh, eighth and ninth, option in the G2 Remsen S. at respectively. Aqueduct in December, so he is Noble Love winning at Ellis Park | Coady Photography The star of Noble Mission's now heading down to Florida to first crop at this early stage appears to be the Lane's End begin his preparation for the Triple Crown Series. He is currently home-bred Code Of Honor, who was offered as a yearling at ranked fourth in the TDN's Derby Top 12, and major honours Keeneland last September but failed to reach his $70,000 surely await. Cont. p5 TDN EUROPE • PAGE 5 OF 7 • THETDN.COM WEDNESDAY • 2 JANUARY 2019 Noble Mission Cont. All told, Noble Mission has started his stud career very Code Of Honor is not Noble Mission's only stakes performer. promisingly. Just as it worked so well sending Hyperion's Life Mission has recorded minor placings in listed company in half-brother Sickle and Kris's full-brother Diesis to the USA, so it the Kentucky Downs Juvenile Turf Sprint S. at Kentucky Downs, could turn out that the decision to settle Noble Mission at Lane's the Awad S. at Aqueduct and the Pulpit S. at Gulfstream Park. End has been a very good one. El Prado (Ire) (Sadler's Wells) and Other promising US-based juveniles for Noble Mission include his son Kitten's Joy have already demonstrated that the right the maiden special weight winners Noble Love and Surprise horse from the Sadler's Wells line can thrive at stud in Kentucky. Again, trained respectively by Bret Calhoun and Christophe In years to come we may well find ourselves putting Noble Clement. Wild as Elle is another maiden special winner to keep Mission in the same bracket. an eye on, as the filly streaked to a 2 1/2-length victory going a mile over the Gulfstream sod for trainer Brendan Walsh on Dec. 30. Understandably, several sons and daughters of Noble Mission have been brought to Europe.