Coolmore fees released, Home Affairs debuts at $110,000

Cover image courtesy of Bronwen Healy

The superb rise of Home Affairs took a notable leap this week, with Coolmore Australia announcing on Wednesday its roster for the upcoming spring. Among its 17-strong stallions that will stand in the Hunter Valley, the top colt of three outstanding additions is Home Affairs, who will debut at $110,000 (inc GST).

It propels the young horse into exclusive company because, in recent history in Australia, no horse has retired to stud at a fee remotely close to that.

Stay Inside will emerge this season at $77,000 (inc GST), while fellow Slipper winner Farnan debuted at $55,000 (inc GST) last season. In 2019, Trapeze Artist served his first season at $88,000 (inc GST) at Widden Stud, while The Autumn Sun debuted for Arrowfield at $77,000 (inc GST).

It’s a strong show of faith by Coolmore in Home Affairs, who still has Royal Ascot to come and who has done most things right on his way to Jerrys Plains.

The horse won the G2 Silver Slipper S. as a juvenile, then at three, the sire-making G1 Coolmore Stud S. into the G1 Lightning S. against older horses at Flemington. He won the Listed Heritage S. in the middle, putting away a smart field that included Paulele (Dawn Approach {Ire}), King Of Sparta (I Am Invincible) and Sword Of State (Snitzel).

“It’s with the utmost excitement that we welcome Home Affairs to Coolmore for the upcoming season,” said Tom Moore of Coolmore Australia. “His perfect blend of speed, pedigree and physique have seen him become one of the best stallion prospects to retire to stud in Australia for many years.”

The stuff of dreams

Home Affairs belongs to an important family in the modern Australian Stud Book.

By I Am Invincible, he was the second foal from the Torryburn mare Miss Interiors (Flying Spur), who is a half-sister to both exciting young sire Russian Revolution and the Group 3 winner Turbo Miss (Sebring).

As a yearling, he was a strong and strapping colt with character and definition, and, with a pedigree proving very contemporary, he was bought from Torryburn by Tom Magnier at the 2020 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale. Magnier paid $875,000.

“He was a magnificent-looking individual,” Moore said. “He was a big, strong and imposing colt with immense quality, very much in the mould of his own sire.

“I Am Invincible is the most commercial stallion in Australia, and it’s a sireline that is known for producing good-looking stock. Home Affairs is certain to impress everyone that inspects him at the farm.”

Moore said that the colt throws right back to the great family of Fanfreluche (Can) (Northern Dancer {Can}), which down its line has produced stallions of the calibre of Encosta De Lago and Flying Spur, not to mention the emerging Russian Revolution.

“We see Home Affairs as a vitally important stallion for the future of the Australian breeding industry, and he’ll be supported accordingly,” he said.

At the time of his purchase, Home Affairs was a 'must-have’ for Coolmore. At $875,000, he was widely admired by leading judges around the complex, and it was no surprise that he paid himself off, and then some, on the racecourse.

Through nine starts for four wins and two placings, Home Affairs has raced for trainer Chris Waller to $2.3 million in prizemoney. At the time of his remarkable G1 Lightning S. victory, when he became the first colt to complete the Coolmore Stud S.-Lightning S. double since Zeditave in 1988/89, Coolmore’s Racing Manager, Rob Archibald, said the horse was the stuff that dreams are made of.

“He really is everything you hope to have in a stallion, and it’s incredible,” he said. “It's what every stud dreams of, owning a horse like him.”

In the footsteps of history

Home Affairs will head to Royal Ascot next month for a tilt at the G1 Platinum Jubilee in June. Thereafter, he will return to Australia before letting down and settling in at Jerrys Plains.

It’s a path that Coolmore has tread with its colts before.

In 2018, Merchant Navy’s fee was set in the April before his departure to the European flat season. He subsequently won two Group races in the Northern Hemisphere, including the G1 Diamond Jubilee.

As such, Coolmore is laying down its faith in these prolific colts before any Northern Hemisphere results, and Moore said that already, there has been large enquiry about Home Affairs.

“It’s to be expected with a horse of his profile,” he said. “Already, we’ve had significant interest in him from leading breeders throughout Australasia. He became the first 3-year-old since Fastnet Rock to win the Lightning S., so he’s an extremely rare offering, a commercial breeder’s dream really, and he has everyone talking about him.”

In 2018, on his return from Royal Ascot, Merchant Navy served his first book of mares at $55,000 (inc GST), and they numbered 247 in an explosive debut at stud.

So You Think (NZ), retiring to Jerrys Plains in 2012 after his impressive European racing exploits added to a steller Australian record, covered 168 in his first book at $66,000 (inc GST).

Coolmore will shuttle Home Affairs to its Northern Hemisphere operation, with those details still to be worked out. Albeit the sireline is wildly successful in Australia, it has also been wildly successful in Europe through Invincible Spirit (Ire).

Moore said that so much of the success of Coolmore’s product has been based on that intercontinental mix of local and shuttle stallions, going right back to Danehill (USA) in the past, and now Invincible Spirit.

It bodes well for any success expected of the brilliant Home Affairs, and there is plenty.

The established brigade

Of the 17-strong stallion roster announced by Coolmore this week, Home Affairs sits behind only Fastnet Rock by fee. Fastnet, who is rising 21 years of age after a dazzling 17 years at stud, will command an unchanged service fee of $165,000 (inc GST) this spring.

The consistent Pierro will stand for $99,000 (inc GST), which is a reduction on his fees of the last two years. The son of Lonhro stood for $110,000 (inc GST) last year, and $137,500 (inc GST) in 2020.

Gallery: Leading sires standing at Coolmore in 2022

Thereafter, along comes So You Think, who has had an excellent a season as any stallion can deliver. On Day Two of The Championships at Randwick this month, he had three individual Group 1 winners, which in part propelled him to the top of the sires’ premiership in Australia, marginally ahead of I Am Invincible.

So You Think will stand the upcoming breeding season at $93,500 (inc GST), which is a justified lift on last year’s fee of $77,000 (inc GST). According to Colm Santry, Coolmore's nominations and sales manager, it was to be expected.

“He’s had yet another phenomenal season on the track,” Santry said. “He has long established himself as one of Australia’s elite sires and, as the current leader on the Australian general sires’ table, he’s well and truly earned a fee increase.”

Santry doesn’t believe that So You Think’s spike puts him out of range among value sires.

“We still see him as tremendous value for breeders who have been served so well by him over the years,” he said. “He’s such a consistent sire and we genuinely believe that the best is yet to come for So You Think, who has covered in excess of 200 mares for each of his last four seasons.”

With three months to go in the racing calendar, it remains to be seen if So You Think will clinch his first Champion Sire title. If he does, he’ll be the first New Zealand-bred horse since Zabeel (NZ) to do so.

He’s clear of I Am Invincible by about $250,000 on the sires’ table by earnings, with his best result to date in the premiership being his fifth-place finish last year to Written Tycoon.

Justify this

There were few surprises among the shuttle options when Coolmore announced its roster this week.

Magna Grecia (Ire) will return for his third book at an unchanged fee of $19,250 (inc GST), while his prolific half-brother, the accomplished five-time Group 1 winner St Mark’s Basilica (Fr), will bring the Siyouni (Fr) sireline to Jerrys Plains at a previously announced fee of $44,000 (inc GST).

Both of Coolmore’s Triple Crown winners, American Pharoah (USA) and Justify (USA), will return, with both fees respectively remaining unchanged. The former will stand his sixth Australian season at $49,500 (inc GST), while Justify will cover his fourth book, off the back of his first yearlings this year, for $55,000 (inc GST).

Gallery: Some of Coolmore's shuttle stallions to stand in Australia in 2022

“Justify was met with huge enthusiasm by local breeders when he first came to Australia,” Santry said. “He received a similar level of interest from buyers at the sales this year. They sold for top prices of $1 million, $950,000 and $900,000 to join all the leading stables throughout the country.”

Justify’s first-crop, million-dollar yearling was a colt from Maastricht (NZ) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) that sold to Hawkes Racing at the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale this month. He was a half-brother to the dual Group 1 winner Loving Gaby (I Am Invincible).

“The quality of mares that Justify covered in his first season is well-documented, but there’s been great continuity too,” Santry said. “His second-crop progeny is from the likes of Sunlight, Invincibella, Nakeeta Jane, Srikandi, Formality and Champagne Cuddles.”

Added to that list was Charmont (High Chaparral {Ire}), a Group 1 winner in New Zealand, and the dual Group 3 winner Tulip (Pierro).

“Forward-thinking breeders will recognise the significant upside in supporting Justify this season as his first and second crops will be three and four years of age when this season’s matings are sold as yearlings,” Santry said.

Justify is among the seven Northern Hemisphere-based stallions on the Coolmore roster this upcoming season, with Churchill (Ire), Saxon Warrior (Jpn) and the immensely popular Wootton Bassett (GB) all returning.

Wootton Bassett will stand at $71,500 (inc GST), unchanged from last year, while Churchill is only slightly down at $22,000 (inc GST) and Saxon Warrior, at $19,250 (inc GST), is up on last year's fee of $13,750 (inc GST).

Gallery: Some of Coolmore's Northern Hemisphere-based stallions on the Australian roster this season

Australian-based stallions make up the remaining 10 horses on the roster, among which are Acrobat, the son of Fastnet Rock, at a debut fee of $13,750 (inc GST), plus King’s Legacy unchanged at $33,000 (inc GST), while Merchant Navy has dropped slightly to $27,500 (inc GST).

Pride Of Dubai has dropped to $16,500 (inc GST), and The Everest winner Yes Yes Yes whips them in at an unchanged $38,500 (inc GST) ahead of his first yearlings selling next year.