Images courtesy of Coolmore Stud
Coolmore Australia confirmed its service fees for the 2021 breeding season with the two new additions to the roster, which were announced earlier this year, now given their place in the market with a price next to their names.
The 2021 season sees the service fee for So You Think (NZ), Australia's busiest stallion in terms of book size in 2020, double to $77,000 (inc GST), while Churchill (Ire) also gets a slight rise to $22,000 (inc GST) after a strong reception to his first Australian crop during the 2021 yearling sales season.
As a proven success at Haras D'Etreham in France whose career is set to be supercharged by his acquisition last year by Coolmore, Wootton Bassett brings a very different profile from most shuttle stallions which come to Australia.
He stood his first season at Coolmore Ireland in 2021 at €100,000 (AU$155,754), with Australian breeders to get him at less than half that price in his first season at Jerrys Plains.
He already holds a substantial profile in this part of the world thanks to his first-crop son Almanzor (Fr), who stands at Cambridge Stud in New Zealand, and whose first crop of yearlings proved spectacularly popular at the 2021 Australasian yearling sales, averaging over $200,000 and selling for up to $800,000.
Wootton Bassett (GB) | Standing at Coolmore
His sire, Iffraaj (GB), also stood in New Zealand, in his case at Haunui Farm, from 2008 until 2019, producing four Group 1 winners.
As a racehorse, Wootton Bassett was unbeaten and crowned Champion 2-year-old colt of France, while as a sire he has had an amazing rise from that first crop of 23 foals. He stood at one stage for €4000 (AU$6177), but off the back of producing 17 stakes winners, including three Group 1 winners, has become one of the rising stars of global breeding, and one of only four stallions to stand for an advertised six-figure amount in Ireland.
Of those Australian stallions announced to date, at $71,500, Wootton Bassett is the highest priced first-season offering in 2021.
Legacy set to begin
King's Legacy also brings much expectation into the breeding barn as a $1.4 million Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale graduate who was able to win both the G1 Inglis Sires' and the G1 Champagne S. for Peter and Paul Snowden in the colours of managing owner James Harron.
He is the only son of Redoute's Choice to win multiple Group 1 races at two and carries a mighty pedigree page, being closely related to now pensioned Arrowfield Stud stallion Not A Single Doubt as well as Group 1-winning filly Oohood (I Am Invincible), from the family of highly influential stallion Snippets.
He is one of three Group 1-winning 2-year-olds from 2020 to retire to stand in Australia in 2021 and the first multiple Group 1-winning 2-year-old to retire to stud in Australia since Coolmore's Pride Of Dubai, who began his breeding career in 2016.
“We are very excited to welcome Wootton Bassett, a Group 1-winning Champion two-year-old on the track and one of the most exciting sires in Europe, to our roster,” said Coolmore Australia’s Sales & Nominations Manager, Colm Santry.
“He will join Redoute’s Choice’s dual Group 1-winning son King’s Legacy, in a lineup headed by multiple Champion sire Fastnet Rock, who is coming off one of the most successful seasons of his illustrious career."
King's Legacy as a yearling
Fastnet Rock leads the way again
Champion stallion Fastnet Rock remains the highest-priced stallion on Coolmore's roster at $165,000 (inc GST) and is enjoying a brilliant 2020/21 season with his progeny, with 11 stakes winners in Australia led by Group 1 winner Personal, and five stakes winners in New Zealand, headlined by multiple Group 1 victress Avantage and G1 New Zealand Derby winner Rocket Spade.
Fastnet Rock will stand at $165,00 (inc GST), remaining the highest-priced stallion on the Coolmore Roster
So You Think is another Coolmore stallion who has enjoyed a brilliant year on the track, backing up his enormous popularity in the breeding barn.
He has had 11 stakes winners to date in 2020/21, including G1 George Ryder S. winner Think It Over, while his latest crop of yearlings have averaged $167,910, including a $1-million colt at the recent Inglis Easter Yearling Sale.
So You Think served by far his biggest book, and the most mares of any Australian stallion, at 261 in 2020. It was his third straight book of over 200, and Coolmore has backed him as strongly as breeders with his fee, lifting to $77,000 (inc GST) in 2021.
That's a higher price than he started out at with Coolmore in 2012 ($66,000), when he arrived to much fanfare after a brilliant international racing career which yielded 10 Group 1 wins across Australia, Ireland and Great Britain.
The other stallion to jump in price, albeit only by a small amount, is Churchill, who returns to where he stood at in 2019, $22,000 (inc GST). It is rare for a stallion let alone a shuttle stallion, to jump in price in his fourth year, the year which coincides with their first runners hitting the track, but Coolmore clearly has confidence in him based upon the yearling sales results this season.
His progeny have averaged $106,531 across the yearling sales in Australia this year including a top price of $250,000.
Softly, softly
Coolmore Australia has taken a cautious approach to setting its stallion fees despite such a hot yearling market, and most of its stallions have had a fee reduction.
That includes Pierro, who drops to $110,000 (inc GST) from last year's price of $137,500 (inc GST), while US Triple Crown winners American Pharoah (USA) and Justify (USA) will stand at $49,500 (inc GST) and $55,000 (inc GST) respectively.
Merchant Navy's service fee is reduced from $44,000 (inc GST) to $33,000 (inc GST), while the prices of both Magna Grecia (Ire) ($19,250 inc GST) and Calyx (GB) ($13,750 inc GST) have dropped in their second seasons, as has Saxon Warrior (Jpn) ($13,750 inc GST) in his third season.
Champion first-season sire of 2019/20, Pride Of Dubai, will stand at $22,000 (inc GST), the same price as contemporary Vancouver, both significantly less than they stood for in 2020.
G1 Cox Plate winner Adelaide (Ire), who has produced the G1 Flight S. winner Funstar, will stand his seventh season at $5500 (inc GST).
Yes Yes Yes, who served a book of 205 mares in 2020, the most of any first-season stallion, stays at his initial fee of $38,500 (inc GST).
Yes Yes Yes will remain at $38,500 (inc GST).
His sire, Rubick, will not feature on the Coolmore Australia roster for 2021, with confirmation he is headed to Swettenham Stud in Victoria to continue his career.
The other absentee from the 2020 roster is Choisir, who was pensioned from stud duties after 17 seasons.
| Adelaide | Galileo | $5,500 | $8,800 |
| American Pharoah | Pioneerof The Nile | $49,500 | $55,000 |
| Calyx | Kingman | $13,750 | $17,600 |
| Churchill | Galileo | $22,000 | $19,250 |
| Fastnet Rock | Danehill | $165,000 | $165,000 |
| Justify | Scat Daddy | $55,000 | $66,000 |
| King's Legacy NEW | Redoute’s Choice | $33,000 | New |
| Magna Grecia | Invincible Spirit | $19,250 | $22,000 |
| Merchant Navy | Fastnet Rock | $33,000 | $44,000 |
| Pierro | Lonhro | $110,000 | $137,500 |
| Pride Of Dubai | Street Cry | $22,000 | $38,500 |
| Saxon Warrior | Deep Impact | $13,750 | $17,600 |
| So You Think | High Chaparral | $77,000 | $38,500 |
| Vancouver | Medaglia D’Oro | $22,000 | $30,250 |
| Wootton Bassett NEW | Iffraaj | $71,500 | New |
| Yes Yes Yes | Rubick | $38,500 | $38,500 |
*All prices inclusive of GST
* Rubick and Highland Reel will stand at Swettenham Stud in association with Coolmore.
