Teofilo, the unbeaten galloper whose victories in the G1 National S. and the G1 Dewhurst S. earned him the title of Europe's Champion 2-Year-Old of 2006, Teofilo was in the news over the weekend with the impressive victory recorded by his son Character in the G2 Queensland Guineas.
Racing clear to his fourth win from 16 starts, the Godolphin homebred did a great job bouncing back from a 17l defeat in trying conditions when on the back up in the G1 ATC Derby, after winning the G2 Tulloch S. in dominant fashion just five days previously.
Character hails from Teofilo's most recent - and his final - Australian crop, one which is represented by just 39 foals.
Character, winner of the G2 Queensland Guineas | Image courtesy of Michael McInally
He is one of three very promising Teofilo 3-year-old stakes winners this autumn, the others being the runaway G3 Adrian Knox S. winner Honeycreeper who was far from disgraced after drifting back from a wide gate in the G1 ATC Oaks, and the last start Listed VRC St Leger winner Alegron who has shown his staying mettle with excellent efforts in the G1 ATC Derby (third after striking interference) and the G1 VRC Derby (a particularly brave second having found trouble whilst working out wide).
Vianello and Linas Legend also show promise, both are stakes placed with the latter in winning form a couple of weeks ago, while Canbya was impressive charging home from the rear at Sandown last week.
Unfortunately, this is the final Classic crop of Australian-bred Teofilo runners, with the 18-year-old - whose fertility has never been outstanding - having his share of health issues.
"He has to be carefully managed," Darley's Alastair Pulford explained. "He first missed an Australian season due to a hind leg injury and he has been prone to mild bouts of colic. Commercially he would still be a great shuttling prospect but we have to look after him."
"He (Teofilo) first missed an Australian season due to a hind leg injury and he has been prone to mild bouts of colic. Commercially he would still be a great shuttling prospect but we have to look after him." - Alastair Pulford
Pulford described Teofilo as a horse who, "has a lot of Danehill about him, he is a big, tough horse with good bone and a lovely walk. And a great temperament, very laid back and easy to do anything with."
Darley Victoria is fortunately still home to one of his sons in Kermadec (NZ), the G1 Doncaster H. and G1 George Main S. winner who, on the back of Group 1 success for Montefilia and Willowy this season, is proving popular.
"He is a beautiful horse with excellent fertility," Pulford said, "and he had demonstrated that he can get a really good one."
Teofilo (Ire) | Standing at Darley Europe
All about Character
Returning to Character, a horse with an interesting pedigree, bred on a 3 X 4 cross of Teofilo's famed grandsire Sadler's Wells (USA) by Northern Dancer (Can) with his dam Monogram being a great granddaughter via Medaglia D'Oro (USA) and El Prado (USA). He is one of his sire's eight stakes winners line-bred to that legendary stallion, the others including the Group 1 winners Subjectivist (GB), Tawkeel (GB) and Parish Hall (Ire).
The Teofilo/Sadler's Wells combination has a stakes winner strike rate of 4.2 per cent compared to Sadler's Wells overall record as a line-breeding subject of 2.6 per cent.
Character is also line-bred to the outstanding mare Flower Bowl (USA) (Alibhai {GB}) whose son His Majesty (USA) (Ribot {GB}) is the damsire of Teofilo's damsire Danehill (USA).
Character | Image courtesy of Michael McInally
Godolphin trainer James Cummings shared his delight after the Group 2 victory.
“Obviously, it didn’t pan out too well last start in a Derby,” Cummings said.
“Today I told Jimmy (Orman) to ride him very similar to what Tommy Berry did a couple of starts back at Newcastle.
“He was very dominant back then and was quite dominant again today.”
James Cummings | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
Despite being bred to win a Derby, Cummings didn’t think he handled the rise to 2400 metres during The Championships, placing question marks on the path to a G1 Queensland Derby.
“Probably the step up in distance last start probably got to the top of him. We didn’t think he would have handled it but back to a mile today he was very good.”
Record of consistency
Teofilo spent six of his Southern Hemisphere springs in Australia, not consecutively - first shuttling to Darley from 2009 to 2011. He again made his way Down Under in 2013, not reappearing until 2016 through to 2018.
From those trips Teofilo sired 334 live foals and despite having only 58 runners in his debut crop he was off and running with five stakes winners. His flagbearer being triple Group 1 winner Happy Clapper, followed by the G1 Queensland Derby winner Sonntag, the two times Listed ATC Cup winner Malice, the Listed Creswick S. winner Pyrrolic and the Listed Matchmaker Classic winner Resonates.
Happy Clapper when racing | Image courtesy of Bronwen Healy
Kermadec was his second crop (65 foals) star, one which also produced the Listed Taj Rossi Series Final winner Triple Gold and the South African Group 2 winner Tamaanee. And he enjoyed third crop success as well, this time with two multiple Group 1 winners - the G1 Australian Cup, G1 Makybe Diva S., G1 Memsie S. winner Humidor (NZ) who was placed in two of Winx's (Street Cry {Ire}) G1 W.S Cox Plates and the G1 Australian Guineas and G1 Makybe Diva S. winner Palentino.
Teofilo's next Australian crop of 68 foals produced two local Listed winners in Weather With You in the Geelong Classic and Ataraxia in the Dulcify Quality, as well as the South African Group 3 winner Yakeen. The following season (his current 4-year-olds) was a quiet one with only 41 foals, the best of those to date being last year's G3 Auraria S winner Tyche Goddess.
Teofilo has also enjoyed Australian success with his Northern Hemisphere-bred runners, headlined of course by his G1 Melbourne Cup-winning son Cross Counter (GB) who also won at Group level in England and Dubai.
Amralah (Ire) - also a Group 3 winner in the UK - easily won the G3 Herbert Power S. in 2015 whilst Aktau (GB) won the Listed Mornington Cup in 2020. Meanwhile, both St Jean (Ire) and Chance To Dance (Ire) won at Group 3 level in New Zealand.
Cross Counter (GB), winner of the G1 Melbourne Cup | Image courtesy of Bronwen Healy
A son of the Listed Leopardstown 1000 Guineas Trial winner Speirbhean (Ire) (Danehill {USA}), Teofilo is a half-brother to the dual Group 2 winner Poetic Charm (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) and the Group 3 filly Bean Feasa (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}). He is a descendant of the acclaimed matriarch Chelandry (GB) (Goldfinch {GB}) and he combines very well with her other descendants.
Such as Zeditave (The Judge) (Sonntag and Tyche Goddess), Anabaa (USA) (Danzig {USA}) (Honeycreeper, Tantheem and Roz), Zoffany (USA) (Our Native {USA}) (Tamaanee), Clarion (Fr) (Djebel {Fr}) (Trading Leather, Humidor, Loritania, Moi Meme and Malice), Tudor Melody (GB) (Tudor Minstrel {Ire}) (Trading Leather, Voleuse de Coeurs, Tyche Goddess, St Jean and Dynamic).
Another member of the Chelandry clan is High Chaparral (Ire), second dam sire of Teofilo's G1 Prix Saint Alary winner Tawkeel (GB) and grandsire of Senor Toba (Toronado {Ire}) who won at Group 3 level in Hong Kong on Sunday.
He is one of the 22 stakes winners produced by Teofilo's daughters with another being this weekend's G1 2000 Guineas winner Coroebus (Ire) (Dubwai {Ire}).
