We haven’t done one of these stories for a while, but the Australian Studbook offers a wealth of information and if you know what to look for the pointers for future success are often red flagged.
When stallions retire to stud, they get their best shot at success with their first crop and what happens after that can be a series of ups and downs rather than a straight forward upward trajectory.
A look at the leading 3YO Sires List shows Arrowfield Stud’s Dundeel sitting at the top of the table, ahead of Zoustar, I Am Invincible and Snitzel, but is that really a surprise?
A Champion 3YO that won six Group I races among his 10 career wins, Dundeel was top class on every level and his current crop of three year-olds were conceived when his fee was lifted to $66,000 for the first time and broodmare owners collectively decided he was in fact a good sire and jumped on board in numbers.
As a result, Dundeel has his best and biggest foal crop running this season at three and they are delivering the goods with headline colts Celestial Legend and Militarize, plus a new Group winning gelding last Saturday in Tannhauser.
His following crop of two year-olds is similar in quality albeit slightly smaller and has already produced a stakes-winner in Epimeles with every reason to believe this cohort will deliver another big burst of success for their sire.
Dundeel stands for a slightly higher fee of $88,000 this spring at Arrowfield Stud.
