There are few people better placed to assess the progeny of Mapperley Stud stallion Contributer (Ire) than O'Shea, who guided the former Godolphin galloper to dual Group 1 success in Australia in the Chipping Norton S. and the Ranvet S.
So when the stallion's first-crop representatives were offered at the 2019 New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sale at Karaka, O’Shea did not hesitate to recommend his close allies at Champion Thoroughbreds take a chance on the as yet unproven stallion.
O'Shea was most taken by a colt from Wellfield Lodge and Champion Thoroughbreds' Jason Abrahams signed the ticket at NZ$65,000. Now named Lion’s Roar (NZ), the gelding tackles Saturday's Group 1 race at just his fifth start, having won three of his first four.
“He had a nice pedigree and he was the one that I saw that looked most like his father so that’s why he was the one we wanted to buy,” O’Shea said.
“He’s a spitting image to his father, but it’s very early days to suggest he’s got all the racing traits of Contributer. We’ll wait and see on that, but he’s won three from four and should be unbeaten so he’s going all right so far.”
Lion's Roar (NZ) as a yearling
Abrahams said the resemblance between father and son was there for all to see, but O'Shea's insight into aspects such as manner and temperament proved crucial.
"There were two Contributer colts that we picked out and one of them made NZ$240,000, which was a bit much for us, but this guy was physically and on pedigree, close to as good, and cost us just NZ$65,000," he said.
"He's definitely his father's son. There is no doubt about it. He's got a good pedigree and so he's really just growing into what his pedigree and looks have always suggested.
"He was always an impressive type and we didn’t pay that much for him. He had a bit of spirit about him, but was strong enough and a neat horse and when you look at him now, he's just a bigger version of what he was back then."
"He had a bit of spirit about him, but was strong enough and a neat horse and when you look at him now, he's just a bigger version of what he was back then." - John O'Shea
Lion’s Roar is out of Minnaleo (NZ) (Black Minnaloushe {USA}), who was successful four times up to 1800 metres and a half-sister to the G3 Tibbie S. winner and G1 Queensland Oaks placegetter Vaquera (High Chaparral {Ire}). His granddam, The Mighty Lions (NZ) (Grosvenor {NZ}), won the G1 Avondale Gold Cup.
The winner of his only 2-year-old start, Lion’s Roar was runner-up in his first outing this season behind the highly rated Mo’unga (NZ) (Savabeel) before he won at Kembla Grange. He then missed a planned start in the G3 Gloaming S., before bouncing back with a victory over 1870 metres against older opposition at Newcastle last weekend.
"He's just a tough horse that keeps on jumping every hurdle we put in front of him. We wanted to have him in the Gloaming the other week, but his bloods weren't quite right," Abrahams said.
"He got the job done under circumstances that weren't ideal, but he keeps doing everything we have asked of him. He only lost 1kg from the race at Newcastle, which was run on a warm day, so you would have to think that he is right at his peak now."
Watch: Lion's Roar (NZ) winning at Newcastle
Win, lose or draw on Saturday, Lion’s Roar will be headed for an immediate break .
“He’ll be in the paddock on Monday and he’s done a great job. He’s a horse that will train on beautifully over the next couple of years and we’re very happy to have him,” O’Shea said.
Abrahams indicated races like the Randwick and Rosehill Guineas would be ideal races for Lion's Roar in the autumn.
Momentum back in Contributer's favour
Contributer has had a stop-start career at Mapperley due to an injury, but is now back to full health.
“He’s been really unlucky and had a good book in his first season and then halfway through his second season he got a nasty kick in the breeding shed and got a cut inside his penis so we had to shut him down,” studmaster Simms Davison said.
“We didn’t do the surgery straight away and we took a conservative approach and just rested him.
“His third season started off fine, but then the blood came back in his semen so it hadn’t healed properly and we had to do the surgery. We flew out a top vet from the States to do a new technique and since then he’s been really good.
“The support is great this year and he’s got a really good syndicate behind him. He’s got a lot of nice horses in Australia and we’re racing a few 3-year-olds ourselves.
“We haven’t got stuck into them yet because of the tracks, but they will be trialling soon and be out over Christmas.”
Contributer (Ire) | Standing at Mapperly Stud
Contributer has had 16 raceday representatives to date for four winners while Miss Dixie (NZ) placed in the Listed Wanganui Guineas.
His latest success story is Follow Your Dreams (NZ), a recent debut 2-year-old winner at Riccarton over 800 metres and a performance that didn’t come as any surprise to Davison.
“When you look at the stallion, he almost looks like a sprinter with a big, powerful build. John O’Shea said to me when he saw his yearlings at the start that his progeny will go early,” he said. "I thought they would all be up and going early as well."
“When you look at the stallion, he almost looks like a sprinter with a big, powerful build." - Simms Davison
Abrahams said Champion Thoroughbreds are often willing to take a punt on a yearling by a young stallion like Contributer, if it meant they could access a higher quality athlete.
"I think at our level there is an element of willing to take a risk with stallions. Going to the proven top-level stallions means you can get beyond your price bracket. You need to zig and zag and find a niche that allows you to get a good-looking animal at a price that no-one gets a nosebleed from," he said.
"We never want to compromise on type, so if you have to look for value, it may lead you to take a risk on an up and coming stallion as opposed to compromising on the quality of the horse."
Socrates starting to fulfil potential
O'Shea and Champion are also represented in the Spring Champion by another New Zealand-bred 3-year-old in Socrates (NZ) (Tavistock {NZ}), who broke his maiden last start at Kembla Grange at start number three.
"He's still on his first prep, so is well behind Lion's Roar from a maturity point of view. We put the blinkers on him last time after a bit of a nothing run at his second start and there was a 11l turnaround compared with the Godolphin horse who ran in both races," Abrahams said.
"He is still a preparation away, but he does have a deep pedigree, which looks made for 2400 metres. He's a much leaner type than Lion's Roar."
Socrates (NZ) as a yearling
Bred by Sir Patrick and Lady Hogan, Socrates is a three-quarter brother to G1 Australian Derby winner Tavago (NZ) (Tavistock {NZ}), from a family that includes Grosvenor (NZ) and Lankan Rupee (Redoute's Choice).
Not surprisingly with that pedigree, he cost Champion Thoroughbreds $300,000 when offered through the Maluka Thoroughbreds draft at the 2019 Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale.
"When you pay that kind of money, you have to deal with high expectations. We had bid on a couple of Tavistocks in New Zealand, but we missed out and he stood out in Melbourne as head and shoulders above anything by that stallion we had seen all year. We realised what we had to pay to get him, and we made sure we got him," Abrahams said.
After some nervous moments, especially when he was well beaten at his second start at Kembla Grange, O'Shea and Abrahams are now seeing the potential he has, especially as a possible Australian Derby horse in the autumn.
“He’s going to be a really nice horse next season and he’s another one who will be going to the paddock after Saturday,” O’Shea said.
Mixing it with the big boys
For a syndication company like Champion to just have two runners in a Group 1 and be represented alongside some of the biggest owners in the industry such as Godolphin and Arrowfield is an achievement in itself.
"It’s enormous for us. I'm very proud of the team and it’s taken us a while to get the quality of horses around us, but we seem to be getting there now from small numbers, which is really, really good," Abrahams said.
"It’s a good feeling to have them all starting to hit their straps and realise the potential that you hope for when you buy them. There are a lot of owners in them that have never been owners in a Group 1 runner before.
"They are all very excited just to be there and anything above just being there and competing will be a bonus for those people."
John O'Shea and Jason Abrahams
The past six months have presented a fair share of challenges for most in the industry, especially syndicators, who rely on smaller owners to power their businesses. Abrahams said Champion has taken a more conservative approach to its purchases, with a view to securing the right horses.
"We've got to be very careful with what we do and we have to have conviction in the ones we purchase. We are buying fewer horses than we used to and where once we used to buy eight a year, now we are at around six," he said.
"We bought two weanlings already, and so we will probably have four purchases at the yearling sales next year.
"With the prices continuing to go up in Australia, we are trying to play a bit more of a conservative game. A sale like Magic Millions is getting top end for us, and so we are just trying to target one horse at that sale every year. It’s all about trying to find value and find the right horses," he said.
