The most successful son of the great Danehill to stand his stud career in South Africa, Toreador of Bush Hill Stud will have his first crop of KZN-bred yearlings available this year at auction.
As Warwick Render of Bush Hill Stud put it so aptly at the Bush Hill Stud annual stallion day, hardly a race meeting does not go by where a Toreador will always pop up and earn a cheque for their connections, and from a breeders perspective his progeny are always enthusiastically received at sales for good prices.
Last year he attracted attention with the likes of Gr1 placed Prospect Strike (a three parts brother to sire Way West), he also had another Graded Stakes win with the brilliantly fast Lazer Star, as well as Thrust who has won five of his seven starts and yet to be out of the money.
Olympic swimming champion Chad Le Clos looks to have a talented colt on his hands with the likes of Unbelievable Chad, who placed in the Gr3 Graham Beck Stakes.
In the first 17 days of this year, Toreador has accumulated six winners – four of them in three days over four different racecourses around the country.
Desert Fighter bred by Scott Bros won second time out for the stable of Dennis Drier, the three year old gelding out of Mogok mare Sahara sold for R180 000 at the 2014 National Yearling Sale.
The other is Fashion Scout, who from his last five starts has won three and placed twice over 1000m – 1200m. Sean Tarry’s tongue-twisting son of Toreador, Rikitikitana owned by Dr Bakos, Mr Bakos and Clyde Basel collected his second win, having previously placed amongst others – second behind Exit Here in the KZN Guineas Trial Listed.
News recently has come in that his son based in Dubai named Matadore De Toros, a full brother to Gr1 Gold Medallion winner Link Man, placed second on the weekend over 1600m at Al Alain Racecourse in the Thoroughbred Handicap.
As a successful racehorse plagued with severe injuries to his pelvis as a young horse which resulted in him not quite fulfilling his full potential on the race track, Toreador still bravely achieved becoming a four-time winner who placed in six Group races, two of them Gr1, and he has gone on to achieve much at stud.
Standing at Bush Hill Stud, his service fee in 2015 was R15 000.