It’s what is ultimately expected of a stallion: to sire top-class racehorses. Any sire that cannot get championship racehorses can’t really be considered an outright success at stud.
But that’s easier said than done. Some of the very best sires are lucky to get two or three horses capable of a 130 rating. Galileo (Ire), the best in Europe, has so far amassed only seven 130-plus horses in a long and distinguished career – that’s how hard it is to do. Knowing how good a stallion’s best ten runners are at each stage of his career can say a lot about his ability.
The top ten sires in the past 25 years in Australia and New Zealand have recorded an average Timeform rating of 108.1 for their best ten runners in their first season with runners. That rises to 114.3 by the end of season two and continues to climb all the way to 123.2 by season ten and levels off thereafter at 123.4.
It is these benchmarks that provide context for all sires included in the accompanying table, regardless of where they are in their careers. Yes, it’s a high bar and shouldn’t be used to denigrate sires that just fail to match it. After all many stallions in Australia and New Zealand start out covering poorer mares which will inevitably curtail their ability to produced high scores. They can easily catch up when their better-bred crops reach the races.
| Redoute's Choice | Danehill | 2000 | 16 | 1,284 | 153 | 11.9 | 111.5 | 124.6 | 1.2 |
| Fastnet Rock | Danehill | 2005 | 11 | 1,256 | 110 | 8.8 | 112.5 | 124.3 | 0.9 |
| Lonhro | Octagonal | 2004 | 12 | 1,002 | 74 | 7.4 | 111.0 | 123.9 | 0.5 |
| Commands | Danehill | 2000 | 16 | 1,216 | 78 | 6.4 | 111.6 | 122.3 | -1.1 |
| Snitzel | Redoute's Choice | 2006 | 10 | 897 | 89 | 9.9 | 110.3 | 122.1 | -1.1 |
| Pierro | Lonhro | 2013 | 3 | 245 | 17 | 6.9 | 109.8 | 115.9 | -1.1 |
| More Than Ready | Southern Halo | 2001 | 15 | 1,178 | 85 | 7.2 | 109.4 | 121.6 | -1.8 |
| Zoustar | Northern Meteor | 2014 | 2 | 129 | 7 | 5.4 | 112.1 | 112.1 | -2.2 |
| I Am Invincible | Invincible Spirit | 2010 | 6 | 537 | 47 | 8.8 | 109.0 | 118.6 | -2.6 |
| Exceed And Excel | Danehill | 2004 | 12 | 974 | 90 | 9.2 | 108.5 | 120.6 | -2.8 |
| Sebring | More Than Ready | 2009 | 7 | 740 | 53 | 7.2 | 107.9 | 119.0 | -2.9 |
| Choisir | Danehill Dancer | 2003 | 13 | 1,155 | 63 | 5.5 | 109.8 | 120.3 | -3.1 |
| Mossman | Success Express | 2000 | 16 | 674 | 39 | 5.8 | 112.0 | 120.2 | -3.2 |
| Thorn Park | Spinning World | 2004 | 12 | 434 | 29 | 6.7 | 108.5 | 119.9 | -3.5 |
| Not A Single Doubt | Redoute's Choice | 2005 | 11 | 836 | 65 | 7.8 | 109.1 | 119.8 | -3.6 |
| Written Tycoon | Iglesia | 2007 | 9 | 609 | 28 | 4.6 | 109.6 | 119.2 | -3.7 |
| Stratum | Redoute's Choice | 2006 | 10 | 713 | 41 | 5.8 | 108.0 | 119.4 | -3.8 |
Table: ANZ sires retired 2000-15 ranked closest to the top 10 average timeform benchmark for their seasons at stud
Setting the standard
The recently deceased Redoute’s Choice tops our ranking, which is confined to sires that retired to stud in 2000 or later. This season was his 16th with runners and the top ten benchmark for a season-16 sire is 123.4, which Redoute’s Choice beats by 1.2 points.
The former Arrowfield stallion sets the modern-day standards in Australia. His 11.9% Stakes winners to runners is unsurpassed by any sire in recent times. Only Dubawi (Ire)– who spent three seasons in the Hunter Valley – gets close with 11.7%. And in New Zealand, Savabeel scores 10.6%. But there’s no getting away from the fact that the quality of Redoute’s Choice’s Stakes winners is of the highest order.
Redoute's Choice sets the modern-day standards in Australia
Of course Danehill didn’t just leave one good sire son. Fastnet Rock’s best horses are very good. His top ten average of 124.3 puts him among the top tier, although his 110 Stakes winners are produced at a lower rate than those by Redoute’s Choice.
Commands is another with a similar profile: he has a decent strike rate with his Stakes winners but his top ten propel him towards the top of our ranking. And it’s the same story for Exceed and Excel, who added a seventh Group 1 winner to his resume as a broodmare sire recently when Anthony Van Dyck (Ire) won the Epsom Derby. He’s also among the top sires by top ten average Timeform rating, and would be a good deal higher had this ranking been confined to two-year-olds.
Third place on our list is the outstanding Lonhro, who enjoyed a banner season with six Group winners. His score of 123.9 puts him firmly among the greats and he’s one of only three sires to beat the benchmark for his career.
Lonhro has enjoyed a banner season with six Group winners
One of the highest ranking young sires is Pierro, who is already up to 115.9 at the end of his third season with runners. That’s an excellent effort as he’s only 1.1 off the pace at this stage of his career. It’s a significant score in that only five sires in the past 25 years had a higher top-ten average at the same stage of his career.
Champion sire Snitzel is another just off the pace, but he’s closing in fast: at the end of his fourth season he was over 4 points adrift, but his recent exploits leave him just 1.1 short of joining the leaders and with excellent crops coming through you wouldn’t bet against him making it to the top.
The highest ranked second-season sire is Zoustar, whose 112.1 has him 2.2 off the pace but only six sires that retired in 2000 or later have beaten this score at the same stage of their career.
Another rags-to-riches stallion who will see outstanding improvement in the quality of his top ten runners in the coming years is Champion sire I Am Invincible. He is sure to propel himself forward as his best-bred crops start to compete in the coming seasons.
Zoustar is the highest ranked second-season sire
