Results from the past weekend have highlighted a fact we probably already knew, but there’s no harm in heaping praise on a stallion that’s deserving.
Both the New Zealand Oaks (Amarelinha) and Hong Kong Derby (Sky Darci) were won by horses bred from daughters of O’Reilly, the former by Savabeel and the latter by Darci Brahma, their success prompting us to look a little closer at the mighty stallion O’Reilly.
A four time champion New Zealand sire, O’Reilly died in 2014 after a long and productive stud career at Waikato Stud.
By champion shuttle sire Last Tycoon (IRE) from Golden Slipper winner Courtza, O’Reilly was a dual Group I winning sprinter miler, whose class and brilliance has proven a perfect foil for the stamina rich New Zealand bloodlines.
O’Reilly sired 96 stakes-winners highlighted by 15 Group I winners with his stakes-winner to runner rate coming in at 6.8%.
Remarkably, as a broodmare sire his stats are very similar.
His daughters have produced 92 stakes-winners including 16 Group I winners at 6.6% stakes-winners to runners!
Working massively in O’Reilly’s favour has been his affinity with both Zabeel and Danehill blood with 11 of his 16 Group I winners as a broodmare sire fitting that profile being sired by stallions from those two lines.
Investors currently perusing the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling catalogue will see there are 10 entries from O’Reilly mares (click to see them) including five by Savabeel, that highly successful nick running at 14% stakes-winners to runners.
O’Reilly has had several sons go to stud in New Zealand in Shamexpress, Alamosa and the ill-fated Sacred Falls, but the real future for his male sireline rests in Australia with Yulong based Grunt and Newgate Farm’s Brutal.
Grunt produced over 140 foals last spring and covered another 162 mares in 2020, while Brutal covered 177 mares in his first season at stud.
Both stallions are completely free of Danehill blood and were top class Group I sprinter milers so don’t be surprised to see them excel in a genetic landscape that looks highly compatible to their talents.
