Comparing the class of 2004

Exceed And Excel and Lonhro started out their careers in separate camps with the latter beginning his time as a stallion at Woodlands Stud before Sheikh Mohammed purchased Woodlands and its various operations in 2008.

On a spending spree, Darley had purchased Exceed And Excel for a reported $22 million in March 2004, and then the next month went out and secured Reset, the unbeaten son of Zabeel (NZ) for a similar amount.

They would debut at Kelvinside later that year as well as the shuttle stallion Dubai Destination (USA).

Meanwhile, over at Arrowfield, Falbrav (Ire), an international superstar, was making his bow.

In the latest in our series, which examines the relative successes of the stallions at various important points of their careers, we take a look at the class of 2004.

Note: This article examines stallions who stood their first seasons in Australia in 2004 only. Data has been sourced from Arion and Studbook.

Stallion fees set

There was plenty of hype about the group of aspiring stallions ahead of the 2004 breeding season and the stallion fees certainly reflected that. Lonhro, an 11-time Group 1 winner, led the way in terms of price, standing for $66,000 (inc GST), while Exceed And Excel, a dual Group 1 winning sprinter against the older horses at three, stood for $55,000 (inc GST).

Falbrav, a winner of Group 1 races in five different countries, stood the first of his three seasons in Australia at $44,000 (inc GST), while Reset was priced at $33,000 (inc GST) alongside of Dubai Destination at $22,000 (inc GST).

Hawk Wing (Ire) began his career at Coolmore Australia at $22,000, while Hong Kong star Lucky Owners (NZ) debuted at Widden Stud at that same price.

Big books

It was a lower profile first season Darley sire in Untouchable who would attract the biggest book of the 2004 freshmen, with 192 mares in all on a $7700 service fee. The son of Danehill (USA) was not a stakes winner, but was only narrowly beaten by Exceed And Excel in the G2 Todman S. as a 2-year-old.

That number of services was behind only Encosta De Lago and Redoute's Choice in Australia that year.

Table: Season 1 books

Reset was also very popular with 152 mares in his first year, while Exceed And Excel had 144 and Dubai Destination 139.

Others to have had 120 mares or more that season were Lonhro, Half Hennessy and Pure Theatre. As was Arrowfield's policy, Falbrav served a more select 98 mares in his first year in Australia.

To market, to market

The first serious test of the market's interest in a stallion's progeny comes when their first crops hit the yearling market some two and a half years after they first head to stud.

The two stallions who would prove the dominant ones from the class, Exceed And Excel and Lonhro put their markers down early with their first crops.

The 69 yearlings from Exceed And Excel's first crop sold in the 2007 sales season averaged a very tidy $226,702, or around four times his service fee from that first year. The highlight was the $1.2 million colt out of Group 1 winner Skating (At Talaq {USA}), which was offered by Coolmore and sold to John Ferguson at the Inglis Easter Sale on behalf of Darley.

Table: First crop sales averages

Lonhro also had a $1 million colt from his first crop, with $NZ1.05 million (AU$945,946) paid for the colt out of Palme D'Or (Royal Academy {USA}) at the NZB Sale at Karaka. All in all, his 40 yearlings sold through the sales in 2007 averaged $220,490. Lonhro's median price ($177,500) was higher than Exceed And Excel ($150,000).

The highest price for a yearling by Falbrav was $550,000 and he was third on the yearling averages on $111,693, while Reset had 63 sell for an average of $89,083.

In terms of the most yearlings sold, unsurprisingly given his numbers of foals from his first crop, Untouchable led the way with 74 sold for an average of $48,896, a six-time return on his service fee.

Hitting the track

Precocity is such a desirable asset in the Australian market, and how a stallion's progeny perform in their 2-year-old season is always closely scrutinised.

In the case of the class of 2004, it became apparent very early on that Exceed And Excel was going to be awfully hard to match, with his first stakes winner coming in one of the first juvenile races of the 2007/08 season, the Listed Maribyrnong Plate with Exceedingly Good.

All in all, he had 13 winners from 43 runners in his first season, including five stakes winners, to easily win the title as Champion First Season Sire, with his progeny earning just over $1.1 million.

Falbrav finished second, with his progeny winning $780,447, highlighted by WA star Brave Fortuna, a winner of both the G2 Karrakatta Plate and the G3 WATC Sires' Produce S., while Fravashi won the G2 QTC Sires' Produce S. He had three winners in all that season.

Lonhro finished third, with six winners highlighted by his first stakes winner in Black Minx, while Eilza Park's Statue Of Liberty (USA), Darley's Reset and Coolmore's Catcher In The Rye (Ire) as well as NZ-based Danroad were other first season sires to get Australian stakes winners that season.

Ongoing book support

The fifth season book of a stallion at stud is an interesting point to measure the trajectory of a career as it comes after their first 2-year-olds hit the track and with the market having seen a substantial portion of their early stock go through the sales.

Again we see Lonhro and Exceed And Excel at the top of the pile at this point. Lonhro served 154 mares on a $55,000 service fee in his fifth season, while Exceed And Excel's fee had jumped to $110,000 and he still served a big book of 148 mares.

Reset continued to attract good support with 133 mares, while there was a revival in Victorian-based imported stallion Estambul (Arg), whose numbers rocketed to 130 off his $7700 service fee compared to 86 mares in his first season.

It is worth noting that the EI crisis the previous years had prevented a lot of shuttle stallions coming to Australia and the flow on from that put them at a considerable disadvantage, with several not returning to Australia.

Second Season Results

Exceed And Excel didn't have to wait too long for his first Group 1 winner, with Reward For Effort, a colt from his second crop, claiming the G1 Blue Diamond S. in 2009, the highlight of a year which saw the rising Darley star sire eight stakes winners for the season and an impressive 65 winners in all.

The son of Danehill easily claimed the honour of Champion Second Season Sire, with his progeny earning nearly $3.4 million.

Lonhro continued to increase his reputation as a prolific producer of winners, 54 in all for the season, including two stakes winners, as he finished a clear second.

Reset was the first of his class to secure a Group 1 winner when Rebel Raider won the 2008 Victoria Derby, and then backed that up by winning the G1 South Australian Derby six months later.

Statue Of Liberty, who didn't travel to Australia in either 2007 or 2008, had three stakes winners in his second season, including Tempest Tost, who won the rich Magic Millions 3YO race, while other stallions from that class to have Australian stakes winners that season were Helenus, Falbrav, Catcher In The Rye (Ire), Tough Speed (USA) and the NZ-based duo Thorn Park and Danroad.

Ongoing market support

As success on the track flows, so too does success in the ring and it’s always an interesting point to look at how a stallion is faring in the market when their fifth crops hit the sales.

Table: First season sires table

It won't surprise to see Exceed And Excel at the top of the table, although it was a much more austere market in 2011 than it was when his first progeny hit the sales in 2007. He had 36 go through the ring in 2011 at an average of $136,477, with a top price of $460,000.

Lonhro continued to produce very strong numbers at the sales, with 61 sold in all in 2011 at an average of $98,201, while his Darley barnmate Reset was again third, with 26 sold at an average of $30,969. None of the other stallions from the class of 2004 had their progeny average more than $20,000.

The numbers of stallions still active in Australia from that group had also declined, with Falbrav only serving three seasons and Catcher In the Rye two, mainly due to the disruption caused by EI, while the overall numbers for the likes of Untouchable had declined markedly.

As it stands in 2020

As we have seen in the last week, where Exceed And Excel had three yearlings sell for over $1 million on the Gold Coast and also had a Group 1 winner in South Africa, the Darley stallion still remains a star, even at age 19.

Table: Class of 2004 - current stats for selected stallions *Australian-bred produce only

He has had phenomenal success in Australia, including the winners of the two premier 3-year-old sprints this season in Bivouac and Exceedance. He has every right to be known as the best reverse shuttler Australia has produced. His remarkable record stands at 1425 winners, including 165 stakes winners, featuring 15 Group 1 winners.

His bloodlines are highly influential, with 12 sons at stud in Australia, including last year's Champion First Season Sire Sidestep.

Similarly Lonhro seems ageless, producing 897 winners, 88 at stakes-level with 12 at Group 1 level. He has also built an imposing record as a sire of sires, with seven of his sons at stud in Australia headed by Pierro, who is currently leading the Australian Sires' Table.

Reset is now retired with his last crop of foals having arrived last spring. His overall record stands up well to the majority of successful stallions in Australia, with 460 winners, 33 stakes winners and five Group 1 winners.

While they are renowned for producing the world's best stallions, Darley couldn't have expected such success from the two stallions they purchased in Reset and Exceed And Excel for a reported $40 million, and the one they secured as part of the Woodlands deal. They are clearly the dominant trifecta of their generation.

Not only that, they have shown true longevity, especially when you consider that there are only eight stallions left from the class of 2004 still serving in Australia.