The Queensland winter carnival reached a crescendo at Eagle Farm on Saturday with two newly minted Group I winners in War Machine (NZ) and Cool Archie, who had something very interesting in common that may well be a sign of the times and a pointer to the future.
The Danehill sireline has reshaped the Australian breeding and racing industry completely as we move through the 21st century, but very few things last forever and there are clear signs his dominance in terms of direct male sireline descendants is in decline.
There were two G1 events last week and the winners of both – War Machine and Cool Archie – are completely free of Danehill blood, which used to be a rarity, but is now on the rise.
The $3million BRC Stradbroke Handicap (1400m) was won by the Kiwi bred up and comer War Machine and while he was foaled in NZ, there is not a drop of Kiwi blood in his veins, read about him here.
He is the third G1 winner – all of them Australian - for Darley shuttler Harry Angel (IRE), a G1 winning sprinter by reigning 2024 Champion European Sire Dark Angel. He stood for $22,000 first season then for $16,500 at this next three before gradually creeping back up to a point where this year he’s at $66,000.
Make no mistake, Harry Angel has worked remarkably well here in comparison to Europe where he has actually sired more stakes-winners (13) than here (7), but those Euro stakes-winners have been of a lesser quality in comparison to his local G1 winners War Machine, Private Harry and Tom Kitten.
Overall, Harry Angel runs at 61% winners to runners and 5.9% SW to runner.
War Machine is from an Aussie bred mare in Caserta, who is by influential sire Hussonet (USA), who was plucked from Chile by Arrowfield Stud as an outcross partner for the Danehill line and has proven to be an outstanding broodmare sire.
War Machine is the 26th G1 winner for Hussonet as a broodmare sire and to date he has had just two runners by Harry Angel with War Machine the only winner.
His dam won a minor race over 1000m, his grand-dam Duchesse de Berri was placed and third dam Berry Berry Good was unraced, but she was a three-quarter sister to GI winning filly Leap Lively, who produced another G1 winning filly in Forest Flower, so there is some real class in this family when you get back a bit.
The Group I BRC JJ Atkins (!600m) was won by Cool Archie, who has been the find of the winter reeling off five successive wins through April , May and June rising in class and distance with every assignment, click to read about him here.
If Cool Archie was by I Am Invincible, Zoustar or Snitzel and trained by Waller or Maher, he’d be the hottest stallion prospect in the country, but he’s not.
He is trained by Chris and Corey Munce, who have done an exceptional job in nurturing his talent and he is from the first crop of Newhaven Park’s Cool Aza Beel.
A G1 winning 2YO by Savabeel, Cool Aza Beel is not the typical Savabeel as he was fast and precocious and comes from an iconic Australian female family tracing back to Melbourne Cup winner Rainbird, albeit a family known more for speed in the 21st century.
If any sire son of Cox Plate Savabeel was going to get a G1 winning 2YO it was always going to be Cool Aza Beel.
Cool Archie is also racing royalty down his direct female line with his dam Aware a winning daughter of G3 winner Media from SW Valourina with fourth dam Bravery, a superstar that won both the Queensland Oaks and Derby.
Cool Archie is the tenth G1 winner from a daughter of Tale of the Cat (USA), who shuttled from Kentucky for Coolmore for a good many years firstly to New Zealand then to Australia.
There are so many great elements in this pedigree and there will be many breeders looking at his sire Cool Aza Beel with fresh eyes this spring and at a fee of $16,500.
