Pedigree Insights
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Andrew Caulfield, June 24, 2003 – Choisir (Aus) P EDIGREE INSIGHTS Choisir, who is reportedly the result of a season which cost as little as AUS$4,500. BY ANDREW CAULFIELD Two of Danehill Dancer's Ascot earners were the two-year-olds Barbajuan (winner of his first two starts) Saturday, Royal Ascot, Britain and Fancy Foxtrot. These two, along with Rosina May, GOLDEN JUBILEE S.-G1, £250,000, Royal Ascot, 6-21, an unbeaten three-time winner, are members of a crop 3yo/up, 6fT, 1:12.23 (NTR), fm. which will show just how effective their sire is. They 1--CHOISIR (AUS), 133, c, 4, by Danehill Dancer (Ire) were conceived in 2000, not long after 46 weanlings 1st Dam: Great Selection (Aus), by Lunchtime (GB) from Danehill Dancer's first crop had achieved a sales 2nd Dam: Pensive Mood (Aus), by Biscay (Aus) average of only 8,146 guineas. With only two of the 46 3rd Dam: Staid (Aus), by Minor Portion (Ire) selling for over 20,000 guineas, his book in his third O-T W Wallace & Partners; B-R M Daisley; T-Paul season was notable more for its quantity than its Perry; J-Johnny Murtagh; £145,000. Lifetime Record: quality. G1SW-Aus, 22-7-4-6, £834,182. Certainly there was the occasional daughter of such Click for the racingpost.co.uk chart for the G1 Golden good broodmare sires as Persian Bold, Darshaan, Jubilee S.; the racingpost.co.uk chart for the G2 King’s Shareef Dancer, Bering and Alleged, but these were Stand S.; or the free brisnet.com catalogue-style considerably outnumbered by daughters of stallions pedigree. whose cumulative Average Earnings Indices stand at less than 1.00 - stallions like Rainbows for Life, Tirol, When I paid a visit to see Danehill Dancer three years Elbio, Cyrano de Bergerac, Maelstrom Lake, Waajib, ago, he was located at Kilsheelan Stud, a Coolmore Batshoof, Paris House, Masterclass, Interrex, Jareer, substation where his services were priced at only 3,500 Nordico, Roi Danzig, Astronef and Shalford. There are Irish guineas. When I saw him again at the end of last even a few broodmare sires, such as Baba Karam, Naiyli month, he was resident in Coolmore's main stallion and North Summit, which would test the knowledge of yard, close to Sadler's Wells, and his fee had risen to even the most enthusiastic of pedigree buffs. 30,000 euros, or roughly £20,000. At this stage it is worth pointing out that Danehill It has been a similar story in Australia. Having started Dancer's best Irish son, the G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. his Southern Hemisphere career at AUS$7,500, he will winner Where or When, is out of an inexpensive Super be available at AUS$27,500 when he returns to Concorde mare which won only four of her 59 starts. Coolmore's New South Wales branch later this summer. His other Northern Hemisphere group winners are Lady Last week's Royal Ascot meeting showed exactly Dominatrix, whose dam failed to win in 17 starts, and why Danehill Dancer has come so far in so short a time. Ziria, whose dam retired winless after four starts. Bright Represented only by offspring sired during his Edge, another of Danehill Dancer's stakes winners, is bargain-basement years, he finished second to out of a Beveled mare which gained the only win of her Kingmambo on the meeting's sires' table, with four of 18-race career as a four-year-old. Then there's his his progeny finishing in the money. They were, of talented son Monsieur Bond, a good second to Zafeen course, led by the sensational Australian sprinter in the G2 Mill Reef S., who is out of a non-winning www.coolmore.com mare and Lahinch, a head second in the G2 Rockfel S., seventh dam, Cohesion, was imported from Britain who is out of an unraced mare. many years ago. Choisir's bloodlines are therefore It's fair to say, then, that Danehill Dancer has had to predominantly European or American, but he still make his name the hard way. Perhaps it would have represents something of an outcross to many European been a slightly different story had his racing career mares, so it is hardly surprising that offers have ended after his first five starts. At that point his record reportedly been made for him to stay in Europe. stood at four wins, including the G1 Heinz 57 Phoenix S., G1 National S. and G3 Greenham S., and a second, to Alhaarth, in the G1 Dewhurst S. Unfortunately, the remainder of his career wasn't nearly as productive, yielding nothing better than a third in his last six starts. It looks now as though he should be judged on the first half of his career, rather than the second. Could it be that history is repeating itself, because his record isn't dissimilar to that of his broodmare sire, the excellent Sharpen Up? Sharpen Up was a G1-winning two-year-old, unbeaten in five starts at that age, but he failed to win at three. Handicapped by the fact that his sire, Atan, was a virtual unknown, Sharpen Up plied his trade at the lower end of the market in his early years as a stallion, with seasons selling for as little as £300. He did so well, though, that he ended up commanding a fee of $75,000 at Gainesway. Sharpen Up's rise to fame saw him sire performers of the calibre of Diesis, Kris, Trempolino, Pebbles, Sharpo, Selkirk and Sanglamore. It is going to be interesting to see whether Danehill Dancer can come close to accumulating such a star-studded collection, but he is going to have every chance now that he is covering quality mares at Coolmore. He is also bound to benefit from the tragic loss of his remarkable sire, Danehill. It is hardly surprising that five of Danehill Dancer's six Group winners – Choisir, Lady Dominatrix, Ziria, Private Steer and Jar Jar Binks – have all excelled at distances short of a mile. His third dam, Lianga, was one of the fastest fillies of her generation, as she showed as a four-year-old in 1975. Although this formidable daughter of Dancer's Image stayed a mile well enough to run away with the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois, she also won the Prix de l'Abbaye over five furlongs and the July Cup and the Vernons Sprint Cup over six. I doubt that it is just coincidence that Lianga ranks as the second dam of Mr. Greeley, another young stallion who has risen sharply through the ranks. Although Choisir carries the (Aus) suffix of an Australian bred, both his sire and his broodmare sire, Lunchtime, were trained in England. Lunchtime was an easy winner of all three of his starts at two, including the G1 Dewhurst S., but his second season was very much an anti-climax and he was sent to Australia after three failures. This grandson of Tom Fool left his mark, especially through his son Snippets, who took the title of champion three-year-old sprinter. Snippets has done well this year with the G1 winners Hasna and Snowland. Choisir's second dam, Pensive Mood, was by an Australian-bred sire in Biscay, an important stallion who created a flourishing branch of the Star Kingdom male line. However, Choisir's third, fourth, fifth and sixth dams were all by stallions imported from Britain and his.