A New Emperor Is Crowned

A New Emperor Is Crowned 20 August, 2012 – Lisa Barrett

In his regular column for the Thoroughbred Daily News (August 15th), pedigree guru Bill Oppenheim reveals a stunning, but not totally unsurprising fact. There is a new Emperor on the scene. For the first time in nearly a decade, the “emperor” of American stallions, A.P.Indy has been toppled from his perch as a leading sire of top class runners by a son of Sunday Silence’s, Deep Impact.

This index measures the frequency with which sires get runners among the top 2% of earners wherever they race, and is seen as a reliable indicator of which sires are having the biggest impact on the racing landscape today. What makes Deep Impact’s achievement even more notable and impressive is that his first foals only hit the ground in 2008, and they only started running in 2010, hence his 533 runners, against the 1,047 of A.P.Indy, who was pensioned in 2011. In the space of two years, Deep Impact has managed to do what few other sires have, topple one of the best sires of American racing and breeding history, A.P.Indy.

Deep Impact is undoubtedly one of Sunday Silence’s best sons at stud presently, and tops their list, with ¥3,224,913,500 in earnings. Out of his 244 starters, he had 114 winners (46%), 12 of them were Stakes winners, his top earner being the outstanding colt, Deep Brilliante with ¥1,639,883,000.

However another son of Sunday Silence is keeping Deep Impact on his toes, Agnes Tachyon (who died prematurely in 2009) and who still features prominently on many of the sires lists, especially that of flat racing turf sires, where he comes in at 10th place with ¥1,060,351,000 in total earnings, and a healthy 82(29.60%) of winners of stakes. Agnes Tachyon has the distinction of usurping his illustrious sire in 2008, and becoming Japan’s leading sire for that season. One wonders he been alive today, would he have had the distinction of toppling the American emperor from his perch?

Of particular interest and pride to South Africans will be the addition of the Drakenstein Stud stallion, Trippi, who makes the list at 42. The American-bred grandson of the Japanese-based super sire Forty Niner, has gotten off to a roaring start in South Africa being the third highest sire of 2YO by stakes for the past season.

KZN is fortunate to have the blood of Sunday Silence here in the province in the form of Admire Main who stands at Mick Goss’ Summerhill Stud. Admire Main was a precocious winner at 2 and 3 years of age. He first caught the attention of the racing public when he won his first race by a “restrained” seven lengths, thereafter he blew the field away by winning the Japanese Derby trial Hai Aoba Sho (Gr.2) over 2400m by four lengths. Admire Main followed that up with a victory in the Japanese Mainchi Hi (Gr.3) over 2000. Ironically it was his second place by a head in the Tokoyo Yushun or Japanese Derby over 2400m that was his finest and most gallant performance.

Sadly though his herculean efforts aggravated an old injury, and after his third place in the Kikuka Sho (Japanese St Leger) Gr.1 over 3000m, it was decided to retire him to stud.

Thanks to Mick Goss’ relationship with the Yoshida family, it was decided to send Admire Main to Africa, more specifically to Summerhill Stud here in KZN. The blood of Sunday Silence has been a welcome boost to not only the South Africa breeding and racing landscape, but that of KZN as well.

Admire Main’s first yearlings hit the scene earlier this year, the first going under the hammer, bred and consigned by Backworth Stud, a lovely filly named Too Much Fun who sold for R140 000. Admire Main’s next lot went under the hammer at the Suncoast KZN Yearling Sale, where the top priced was the Clifton Stud filly Barefoot Lady out of Democracy who went for R120 000.

Summerhill Stud, pioneers of the Ready To Run Sale, have 9 Admire Main two year olds in their draft this year, and there will be great anticipation as to the markets reaction, especially now that their grandsire, Sunday Silence has achieved what few thought was possible. What’s even more exciting is the prospect that some of these progeny could turn out to be stayers, something this country is in dire need of.

If the performances of Sunday Silence’s sons, the new “emperor” Deep Impact, and the late Agnes Tachyon are anything to go by, then we are in for some exciting times indeed. Long live the new emperor!