Andrew Caulfield, January 18, 2005–Spanish Chestnut P EDIGREE INSIGHTS Horse Chestnut also created quite a stir in winning his first start in the U.S, the GIII Broward H. over 1 BY ANDREW CAULFIELD 1/16 miles on his dirt-track debut at the start of 2000. This impressive victory had raised realistic hopes that SAN RAFAEL S.-GII, $150,000, SAX, 1-15, 3yo, 1m, Horse Chestnut was going to prove just as brilliant in 1:36 3/5, ft. his new base as he had been in South Africa, but an 1--@#SPANISH CHESTNUT, 116, c, 3, by Horse Chestnut (SAf) injury in a workout ended his career just a couple of 1st Dam: Baby Rabbit (SW, $273,404), weeks later. by No Sale George There were also parallels between the two stallions’ 2nd Dam: Snuggle Bunny, by Wild Wind 3rd Dam: Winter Princess, by Abe's Hope pedigrees. Forli was by a son of Hyperion, a multiple ($500,000 2yo ‘04 OBSFEB). O-Derrick Smith & champion sire in Britain and Ireland, and was out of a Michael Tabor; B-Don Graham & Ocala Oaks (FL); mare with European bloodlines. The same applies to T-Patrick L Biancone; J-G Stevens; $90,000. Lifetime Horse Chestnut, except that his sire, the G1 Grand Prix Record: 5-3-2-0, $174,420. de Paris winner Fort Wood, is by Sadler’s Wells, the Click for the brisnet.com chart or the brisnet.com catalogue-style longest reigning champion sire in the history of British pedigree. For the video replay, click here. and Irish racing.

Forli, of course, left an indelible mark on the breed. Way back in 1968, Claiborne Farm added a new stallion to its impressive roster. Named Forli, the new Not only did he sire the magnificent Forego, a arrival had won nine of 10 starts after starting his three-time Horse of the Year, but he also sired a string career in the Southern Hemisphere. He had shown great of high-class European runners, such as Home Guard, versatility in Argentina, winning from seven furlongs to Thatch, Gay Fandango, Fordham, Formidable, Posse, 1 7/8 miles on his way to Horse of the Year honors. Asteroid Field and Sadeem. Perhaps his greatest Forli had then created quite a stir in winning his first achievement, though, was to sire Special, the two starts--both over 1 1/16 miles--in the U.S. Sadly, broodmare who ranks as the dam of Nureyev and the he suffered a fractured cannon bone when second in second dam of Sadler’s Wells. the Citation H. and was therefore denied any further chances of demonstrating his considerable talents But could Horse Chestnut be fairly expected to before an American audience. achieve similar success in a different era? Some 32 years later, Claiborne added another stallion Times have changed considerably since Forli to its roster. Named Horse Chestnut, this colt had also embarked on his stallion career in the 1960s. The Cold won nine of 10 starts after starting his career in the War is over; we’ve got Eminem instead of Dylan; and Southern Hemisphere. He too had shown great Motown and psychedelia have long faded out of versatility, this time in South Africa, winning from five fashion, as, generally, have stallions imported into the furlongs to 1 1/2 miles while earning a Horse of the USA. Year title.

www.coolmore.com So, whereas Forli started his career alongside More to the point, Spanish Chestnut’s first three Ambiorix, Herbager and several other imports at dams were respectively sired by No Sale George, Wild Claiborne, Horse Chestnut is the only foreigner among Wind and Abe’s Hope--none of them exactly a today’s Claiborne team. Forli started out at a time when household name. For the record, No Sale George was a the emphasis was firmly on quality rather than quantity twice-raced Raise A Native horse with earnings of (there were initially 32 nominations available to his $7,220 who stood cheaply in Florida; Wild Wind was influential shareholders, and his first four crops totalled another minor winner by a famous sire, Never Bend; 96 named foals). Horse Chestnut, though, would have and Abe’s Hope, a talented and durable son of Better to appeal to a much larger number of breeders to prove Bee, sired only 63 foals. competitive in an industry where weight of numbers is It says plenty for Horse Chestnut that he has sired a now so important. colt as promising as Spanish Chestnut from this I suspect he would have been much harder to market run-of-the-mill background. It is also good news that had he not shown such potential on dirt in the Broward, the colt’s Grade-II success came on a fast dirt track. but that win, combined with a pair of correct forelegs Sadler’s Wells’s name isn’t normally associated with and a sensible fee of $10,000, has ensured plenty of success on the main track, but his son El Prado has interest in him. been busily showing that this male line has plenty to Despite being retired after most breeders had already offer American breeders. Maybe his grandson Horse made arrangements for their mares, Horse Chestnut Chestnut is also destined to help the Sadler’s Wells line covered 60 mares in 2000 and he has since attracted make the transition to dirt. 88 mares in 2001, 93 in 2002 and 97 in 2004. His total of 74 mares in 2003 would no doubt have been a good deal higher had he not undergone colic surgery during a crucial part of the covering season. The excellent news is that Horse Chestnut is justifying the faith placed in him, with a pair of graded winners from his first two crops--with both of these good winners being graduates of Florida two-year-old sales. First came that fine turf filly Lucifer’s Stone, who was scoring for the fifth time in 10 starts when she took the GI Garden City Breeders’ Cup H. last September. Horse Chestnut can take plenty of the credit for this filly’s talents, as she is out of a minor winner by Demons Begone and her second dam is an unraced mare without a stakes winner to her credit. Potentially even more important to Horse Chestnut’s future is Spanish Chestnut, who earned some rave reviews from his trainer Patrick Biancone after his victory in the GII San Rafael S. over a mile. Spanish Chestnut had achieved the second-highest price of last year’s OBS Calder Sale, when Demi O’Byrne went to $500,000 to secure him. The colt covered an eighth of a mile in :10.2, with O’Byrne commenting that he looked “to be very mature and very fast. His [work] was as good a performance as I’ve ever seen on this track. He did it very fast, very efficiently, and with lovely action. He has lovely balance.” You can get a good idea of the standard of Spanish Chestnut’s family from the fact that his dam Baby Rabbit made only $32,000, carrying this son of Horse Chestnut, at Keeneland three years ago. Although there is plenty of black type under his first three dams, most of it wasn’t earned at group or graded level, the exceptions being the two Grade-II successes of Apalachee Prince, a stamina-packed half brother to Spanish Chestnut’s second dam, Snuggle Bunny.