KZN – Where Champion Sires Are Bred

KZN – Where Champion Sires Are Bred

KZN is developing a reputation for producing not only winning racehorses but racehorses that go on to be Champion sires – the most prolific being the late great Jet Master and the next being Klawervlei’s Rebel King, bred by the recently crowned National Champion Breeders Summerhill Stud – a title they have retained for the ninth year in a row.

Standing at Klawervlei Stud in the Cape, Sarah Whitelaw writes that the exciting young stallion Rebel King has ended the 2012-2013 as South Africa’s joint leading first crop sire by winners.

The former champion sprinter ends his first season as the sire of eight first crop winners in South Africa.

Rebel King is tied only with Judpot, a multiple Gr 1 winner producer who has also sired eight winners from his crop of juveniles including Backworth Stud’s Gr 2 winner Colour Of Courage.

Rebel King’s good start was not surprising, as not only was he himself an exceptional and unbeaten juvenile, but he is a son of former champion juvenile sire National Emblem. The latter also began his career at Summerhill Stud before relocating to Klawervlei, siring Gold Medallion winners as well as superstar sprinters as Shea Shea and Summerhill-bred Nhlavini.

Rebel King’s first juvenile runners earned over R690 000 – a total which made their sire South Africa’s fourth leading first crop sire by prize money. He headed the likes of Western Winter, Tiger Ridge and Count Dubois on the winning sires of juveniles list, and is clearly a very talented young stallion.

A brilliant and tough performer, Rebel King won over R2 000 000 on the track. He was South Africa’s Equus Champion Sprinter in 2009, and won or placed in 13 graded races.

He is a half-sister to Summerhill-breds Rebel Queen and Uncle Tommy (both by Kahal).

Rebel Queen is a winner of the Nkosazana Stakes Listed over 1450m in dominating fashion by five lengths from Formation. A six-time winner, she has also placed nine times. Her full-brother Uncle Tommy sold for R2.4 million as a yearling, and won the Flamingo Mile over the past weekend. He is now a 9-time winner, having placed 15 times including the Gr 2 Senor Santa Handicap and the Riverside Handicap Listed. Showing an eager preference for sand going, Uncle Tommy looks to be aimed at the upcoming Gr 2 Emerald Cup.

The dam-line of Rebel King continues with a KZN-influence – being out of Badger Land Cousin Linda in turn out of Cousin Lucy by Scott Bros’ mulitiple Champion sire Foveros.

KZN-bred Jet Master has had a profound influence on breeding in South Africa, and his fairy-tale story is well known – bred in by Hugh Jonsson in 1994 and purchased by Patrica Divine at a Mare and Weanling sale in Pietermaritzburg, for just R15 000 after she pushed her husband’s arm up to get the bid in and won.

Initally sent into training with Tony Millard, he was sent on to Geoff Woodruff took over after Tony left for Hong Kong. From 24 starts, Jet Master had 17 wins – eight of those being Grade 1 races, including winning the Queen’s Plate twice and was Horse-Of-The-Year twice.

From the great horses’ first crop came Starlit, Floatyourboat, She’s On Fire, Stratos, Soft Landing and of course the great Pocket Power. The second crop contained Grade 1 winners River Jetez, Ravishing and Mythical Flight.

His globetrotting progeny include JJ The Jet Plane, River Jetez, and Mythical Flight.

However his most outstanding son to date is the unforgettable gelding who was retired earlier this year – Pocket Power won 20 times with nine Grade 1 titles – one better than his father. Among those were four Queen’s Plates, three Mets and a Durban July, a R190 000 yearling, he earned more then R10 Million in stakes earnings. Another recent Durban July winner includes Pomodora.

Pocket Power’s full-sister River Jetez also has a Met trophy among her 12 victories, seven with black type and she followed this with an impressive overseas performance, placing in Graded Stakes races in Dubai, America and Singapore. JJ The Jet Plane who has retired to Marc and Nicola Coppez’ pre-training establishment Balmoral Stud in Mooi River – won 14 times in four different countries.

An entire that should follow in the footsteps above and provide an exciting future at stud to breeders may be The Apache, but it remains to be seen where he will be sent to stud after his racing career. Bred by the Scott Bros, the dual-South African Gr 1 winner has won a Gr 2 in Dubai and placed in two Gr 1’s in Dubai including the Dubai Duty Free, and placed in a Gr 2 in his first start on British soil.

By a stallion that is a half-brother to the great Machiavellian (sire of the likes of Medicean, Street Cry and Kahal) and by one of the world’s best sires in Storm Cat – in turn The Apache is out of a Sadlers Wells broodmare sire (Dolpour), he has an international pedigree that could stand its place anywhere in the world.

In the meantime we will continue to watch his international racing career with great interest as he does KZN and South Africa proud!

– Extract Sarah Whitelaw