Andrew Caulfield, September 17-Leading Light (Ire) At Doncaster, his determined son Leading Light PEDIGREE INSIGHTS improved his record to five wins from six starts when B Y A N D R E W C A U L F I E L D he provided Montjeu with his third victory in the St Leger--the race which last year narrowly denied Saturday, Doncaster, Britain Montjeu=s son Camelot of the most desirable of LADBROKES ST LEGER S.-G1, ,600,000, Doncaster, achievements, the Triple Crown. Leading Light=s win 9-14, 3yo, c/f, 14f 132ydsT, 3:09.20, gd/sf. helps cement Montjeu=s reputation as one of the most 1--sLEADING LIGHT (IRE), 126, c, 3, by Montjeu (Ire) effective Classic sires of the modern era. In the space 1st Dam: Dance Parade (MGSW-US & Eng, of nine years, his tally in the British Classics has risen $339,231), by Gone West to eight. In addition to Camelot=s successes in the 2nd Dam: River Jig, by Irish River (Fr) 2,000 Guineas and Derby, he has also enjoyed Derby 3rd Dam: Baranova, by Nijinsky II success with Motivator, Authorized and Pour Moi, while (520,000 gns yrl >11 TATOCT). O-Derrick Smith, Leading Light=s predecessors in the St Leger were Susan Magnier & Michael Tabor; B-Lynch-Bages Ltd; Scorpion and Masked Marvel. T-Aidan O=Brien; J-Joseph O=Brien; ,340,260. Montjeu also gave us three winners of the Irish Lifetime Record: GSW-Ire, 6-5-0-0, ,433,111. Derby, while another two sons won the Grand Prix de Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Paris, arguably France=s nearest equivalent to the Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Derby, and two more landed the AJC Australian Derby. Click for the Racing Post result, the brisnet.com PPs, or This year saw his quirky daughter Chicquita take the the free brisnet.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, Irish Oaks. courtesy attheraces.com. To put Montjeu=s British tally into context, the The European racing and breeding worlds received all-conquering Galileo has five English Classic victories two reminders over the weekend--not that any were to his name from eight crops of 3-year-olds (Sixties needed--regarding the severity of the body blow they Icon, New Approach, Frankel, Was and Ruler of the suffered with the death of Montjeu (Ire) (Sadler=s Wells) World). It is also worth remembering that Montjeu=s at the comparatively early age of 16 early last year. We crops were often a good deal smaller than those by his were also amply reminded of the potency of the paternal half-brother. Montjeu/Mr. Prospector combination. Leading Light has something in common with Other stakes winners from this Montjeu/Mr. Motivator in that both were sired by Montjeu from Prospector alliance include Pacifique, whose group daughters of Gone West. It was Motivator=s turn to success came over 1 7/8 miles; Jump For You, a listed shine the day after the St Leger, when his exciting winner over a similar distance; and Biographer, a listed daughter Treve did her Arc prospects no harm by winner over 1 3/4 miles. adding the G1 Prix Vermeille to her unbeaten run. This underlines the scale of Camelot=s achievement in Glance down Montjeu=s long list of important winners winning the 2,000 Guineas over a mile, before he took and you will see that many of them are out of the Derby much more impressively. Camelot, of course, daughters of major mile-and-a-half winners, such as Darshaan, Shirley Heights, Surumu, Saumarez and Law followed Motivator, Authorized and St Nicholas Abbey Society. Clearly he didn=t need a speedily bred mare to as Montjeu=s fourth winner of the Racing Post Trophy-- strike it rich, but in an industry where stamina is often a record which acts as a vivid reminder that the ability seriously undervalued--indeed scorned--breeders were to stay pretty well at three can still go hand in hand bound to try to inject an element of speed. with first-rate 2-year-old ability. The emergence of Motivator from Montjeu=s first crop Leading Light is an even more pronounced example of inevitably planted the seed that Montjeu would benefit the way Montjeu=s stamina tends to dominate. Aidan greatly from mares by sons of Mr. Prospector. And O=Brien wasn=t afraid to try this 520,000gns purchase indeed he has. He has now sired five Group 1 winners over two miles in the G3 Queen=s Vase in June and from mares by four sons of Mr. Prospector--Gone West Leading Light justified the gamble by staying on (Motivator and Leading Light), Kingmambo (Camelot), strongly to record his fourth successive victory. It will Woodman and Distant View. He also has group winners be interesting to see how he fares when his out of daughters of Forty Niner and Machiavellian, as connections try to prove that he also possesses enough well as listed winners out of mares by Miswaki and speed to be equally effective at around a mile and a Seeking The Gold. Pour Moi, another of his Derby winners, has a Conquistador Cielo mare as his second half. dam. Leading Light ought to be able to drop successfully It is also well worth highlighting Montjeu=s record down the distance scale. He is, after all, out of Dance with mares by Gone West=s outstanding 2,000 Guineas Parade, whose first notable triumph came in the Queen winner Zafonic. He has 15 foals out of Zafonic=s Mary S., Britain=s first major test for fast and daughters, of which 11 have started and nine have precocious juvenile fillies. Her speed was again evident won. Three of them--the top-class Papal Bull and the when she landed the G3 Fred Darling S. at three and fillies Maria Royal and Pacifique--all won at Group level. also when she was transferred across the Atlantic. Two For good measure the Irish Oaks winner Chicquita has a of her American graded stakes victories (all gained on second dam by Zafonic. turf) included two over 6 1/2 furlongs and the However, don=t be misled into thinking that these Mr. GII Buena Vista H. over a mile. Prospector mares have succeeded in producing a Dance Parade started her broodmare career in the speedier type of Montjeu. Motivator stayed well enough U.S. before being transferred back to England, where to win the Derby, as did Camelot, and Motivator=s very she realised 320,000gns at Tattersalls= 2005 December talented brother Macarthur won the G2 Hardwicke S. Sales. A previous visit to Montjeu resulted in Warwick over a mile and a half. The Group 1 winner with a Woodman dam was Frozen Fire, winner of the Irish Avenue, a fairly useful performer over a mile and a Derby, while Distant View=s contribution was Speed quarter. Leading Light=s second dam River Jig is also Gifted, a Group 1 winner over 1 5/8 miles in Australia. the second dam of Toylsome, whose finest win came in the G1 Prix de la Foret over seven furlongs. LEADING LIGHT (IRE), c, 2010 Leading Light=s family traces back to Monarchy, a sister to the remarkable Round Table, so there can be Northern Dancer Nearctic Natalma no complaints about the quality of his female line. Sadler’s Wells Bold Reason With St Nicholas Abbey, Chicquita and Leading Light Fairy Bridge Special all scoring at the highest level this year, there will Montjeu (Ire) surely be no shortage of interest in the sizeable team of Top Ville (Ire) High Top (Ire) Sega Ville (Fr) Montjeu yearlings which will shortly be coming under Floripedes (Fr) the hammer at Goffs and Tattersalls. They include colts Toute Cy (Fr) Tennyson (Fr) Adele Toumignon out of the classic winners Attraction and Finsceal Beo. Raise a Native I will also be keeping a close eye on some of the Mr. Prospector Montjeu 2-year-olds which have recently recorded their Dance Parade Gone West Gold Digger first victories, such as Andre Fabre=s Gallante, winner of MGSW-US & Eng, Secrettame Secretariat $356,120 Tamerett a usually hot newcomers= race at Longchamp; and 9 Fls, 6 Wnrs, River Jig Irish River (Fr) Riverman Aidan O=Brien=s Carlo Bugatti. Perhaps it=s not just 1 GSW SW & GSP-Ity Irish Star (Fr) coincidence that these two are out of grand-daughters 13 Fls, 2GSW Baronova Nijinsky II of Mr. Prospector, with Gallante having a dam by 1 SW 13 Fls, 2 SW, 2 Tsessebe Machiavellian and Carlo Bugatti a Kingmambo mare. GSP.