Andrew Caulfield, August 15, 2006–Holy Roman Emperor (Ire) P EDIGREE INSIGHTS Another incentive for maintaining L'On Vite's relationship with Danehill was that this pairing was BY ANDREW CAULFIELD producing foals bred along similar lines to the Australian star Flying Spur. This Danehill colt, who won the highly Sunday, The Curragh, Ireland prestigious Golden Slipper S. and two other Group 1 INDEPENDENT WATERFORD WEDGWOOD PHOENIX events, is out of Fanfreluche's grand-daughter Rolls, S.- G1, i300,000, Curragh, 8-13, 2yo, 6fT, 1:11.0, whereas L'On Vite is herself a daughter of the gd/fm. celebrated Fanfreluche. Flying Spur had already become 1--sHOLY ROMAN EMPEROR (IRE), 127, c, 2, by Danehill Australia's leading first-crop sire in the 1999-2000 1st Dam: L'On Vite, by Secretariat season and his excellent Northern-Hemisphere pedigree, 2nd Dam: Fanfreluche, by Northern Dancer coupled with his impressive looks, had led to his 3rd Dam: Ciboulette, by Chop Chop shuttling to the Irish National Stud. Those fast O-Susan Magnier; B-Tower Bloodstock; T-Aidan performers Mister Links, Osterhase, Steenberg and O=Brien; J-Keiren Fallon; i177,600. Lifetime Record: Firebolt resulted from Flying Spur's time in Ireland. 4-3-0-0, i262,618. *1/2 to Heart of Oak L'On Vite duly traveled to Ireland to renew her (Woodman), SW-Swe & Ger; Big Viking (Theatrical acquaintance with Danehill in 2003, and her journey {Ire}), SW-Jpn, $986,363; Full to Milanova (Aus), was made all the more fortunate by the fact that GSW & MG1SP-Aus. Danehill was to die on May 13. Happily, L'On Vite Click for brisnet.com catalogue-style pedigree or Racing conceived a colt a few weeks before Danehill's death Post race chart. and that colt, Holy Roman Emperor, continued his rise to the top of the two-year-old division when he inflicted According to the proverb, "If the mountain will not the first defeat on the Coventry S. winner Hellvelyn in come to Mahomet, Mahomet must go to the the G1 Phoenix S. Sue Magnier's colt is now the winner mountain." of three of his four starts, and his below-par effort from It looks as though the owners of a moderate draw in the Coventry must now be Secretariat's much-traveled daughter forgotten. L'On Vite recalled this advice in 2002. That was the year Coolmore HOLY ROMAN EMPEROR (IRE), c, 2004 announced at the end of the Nearctic northern hemisphere breeding Northern Dancer Natalma Danzig Danehill coolmore.com season that Danehill--for the first Admiral's Voyage Pas de Nom time since 1990--would not be *Petitioner Danehill working a second shift in Australia. Giant's Causeway *Ribot His Majesty substituted for him. Flower Bowl Razyana This caused a problem for L'On Vite, who had been Buckpasser Spring Adieu virtually married to Danehill since she arrived in Natalma Australia at the age of nine, with a 1995 Jade Hunter *Nasrullah Bold Ruler filly foal at foot. The Danehill--L'On Vite partnership Miss Disco Secretariat didn't get off to a good start, as their first foal died, but *Princequillo L'On Vite Somethingroyal they then produced four daughters over the next five unraced Imperatrice years. The second of these daughters, Milanova, 12Fls, 2GSW, Nearctic Fanfreluche Northern Dancer showed Classic potential early in her three-year-old 2SW Horse of the Year- Natalma season, when she took the Lindsay Park Guineas in Can, 21-11-6-2 Ciboulette Chop Chop September 2002. 18Fls, 3Ch, 5SW 11Fls, 1Ch, 3SW Windy Answer www.coolmore.com L'On Vite wasn't to find a permanent home in Ireland. Her other produce included two other Canadian With Danehill dead, she was quickly returned to champions in L'Enjoleur (Horse of the Year) and La Australia, where she produced a colt by Danehill's son Voyageuse. There are numerous stakes winners Rock of Gibraltar in August 2005. She was then barren descending from Fanfreluche, who produced eight to Encosta de Lago, but this very successful son of daughters. Her grand-daughter Society Lady is the dam Fairy King is sire of a 2005 filly out of Holy Roman of two British Group winners by Green Desert (another Emperor's sister Milanova (with this mating producing son of Danehill's sire Danzig), one being the ill-fated 5x3 to Fanfreluche). champion two-year-old filly Bint Allayl. Two other sisters of the Phoenix S. winner are being Now this cross has come up with another potential given every chance as broodmares in Australia. champion in Holy Roman Emperor, who seems to Interestingly, both Egerszegi and Amies produced 2005 possess the powers of acceleration one hopes to see in fillies by Elusive Quality, the suspicion being that these a top-class juvenile. matings have been chosen partly because they create 4x3 inbreeding to Secretariat. They also produce 4x4x4 inbreeding to Northern Dancer, with four lines of Natalma in the fifth generation. Holy Roman Emperor, though, is inbred 3x3 to Northern Dancer (and 4x4x4 to Natalma) and 3x3 inbreeding also features in the pedigrees of eight of Danehill's other northern-hemisphere Group winners, including those of Rock of Gibraltar, Desert King and Horatio Nelson. Desert King and Horatio Nelson were both Group 1 winners at two who attempted some type of Derby glory over a mile and a half at three. Desert King won the Irish version, but does Holy Roman Emperor have any prospects of staying beyond a mile as a three-year-old? Aidan O'Brien says that six furlongs suits the colt well, adding that: "he won't mind going further later on." It is interesting that Holy Roman Emperor's sister Milanova gained both her stakes successes over a mile, including in the G3 Tokyo City Cup as a four-year-old. However, she was tried at up to 1 9/16 miles at Group 1 level, once being beaten only four lengths when sixth in the South Australian Oaks. While she might have found that distance a bit beyond her, there is no doubt that she stayed 13 miles, as she was second in a pair of Group 1 contests over that distance, once failing by only a neck to take the Kingston Town S. So, if Holy Roman Emperor is to target one of the Derbys, it will probably have to be the newly shortened French variety. L'On Vite headed for Australia after being bought for only $90,000 by Paul Shanahan at Keeneland's 1995 November Sales. She was carrying a Theatrical colt which was sent to Japan, where, as Big Viking, he won at Group 3 level over 13 miles and was third in a Group 2 over 1 9/16 miles. L'On Vite was a steal at less than $100,000. She could hardly have had a more impressive pedigree, with a brilliant Triple Crown winner as her sire and a Canadian Horse of the Year as her dam. The dam-- Fanfreluche--had also earned the title of champion three-year-old filly in the U.S., thanks to her victory in the Alabama S. over 13 miles. Fanfreluche's brother Night Shift has enjoyed considerable success as a stallion and she, too, did outstandingly well as a producer. Two of Fanfreluche's earlier foals by Secretariat were Medaille d'Or, a champion two-year-old in Canada, and D'Accord, winner of the GII Breeders' Futurity. .