Cover image courtesy of Canadian Horse Journal
Gai Waterhouse has achieved Group 1 success with horses from a variety of sirelines from the mainstream to the somewhat obscure. Not surprisingly she has enjoyed the most success with members of the Northern Dancer (Can) line with 55 of the 150 being members, 28 of those from the Danehill (USA) branch. And 10 of those are by Redoute's Choice or his sons.
Two Northern Dancer-line horses are of particular interest - Gai having had influence over two generations; cheering home Al Maher (Danehill {USA}) to a G1 Australian Guineas win and three of his progeny to elite-level success... Almalad, Diamond Drille and Fat Al.
She was also the conditioner of the G1 Coolmore Stud S. winner Northern Meteor whilst preparing three of his Group 1 winners - Cosmic Endeavour, Speak Fondly and Romantic Touch.
Northern Meteor - one of the breed-shaping sires produced by Gai Waterhouse
The Sadler's Wells (USA) branch has also been good to Gai with 10-big race winners over a variety of distances from the high-class juveniles Vancouver (Medaglia D'Oro {USA}) and Converge (Frankel {GB}) to the stayers Knights Order (Ire) (So You Think {NZ}), Glencadam Gold (Ire) (Refuse To Bend {Ire}), Descarado (NZ) (High Chaparral {Ire}) and The Offer (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}).
Nureyev (USA), Storm Cat (USA), Lyphard (USA) and Fairy King (USA) via Encosta De Lago are other Northern Dancer-line horses to have provided multiple Waterhouse Group 1 winners.
As a sign of the times she has had only two Star Kingdom (Ire)-line Group 1 winners (Excellerator {Marscay} and Iron Horse {Zephyr Zip {NZ}}) whilst her luckiest locals have been Zeditave with three Group 1 winners - Meurice (Strategic) and the siblings Assertive Lad and Assertive Lass (Zeditave)... and Snippets with Hasna and Snowland.
Sadler's Wells (USA) - his progeny have provided Gai Waterhouse with 10 Group 1 winners
Mr Prospector (USA) gave her another taste of two generation success with her G1 Doncaster H. winner Secret Savings (USA) siring her triple Group 1 winner Shamekha. As did the Halo (USA) line - the G1 AJC Oaks heroine Sunday Joy (Sunday Silence {USA}) producing the eight times Group 1 winner More Joyous (NZ) (More Than Ready {USA})... also sire of Gai's star juvenile Sebring.
And as did the Sir Tristram (Ire) line - one which has provided Gai with seven big-race winners including the horse she considers the best she has trained in Pierro and his G1 VRC Oaks winner Pinot.
The Roberto (USA) line has given her two Group 1 winners - Coco Cobanna (NZ) (Casual Lies {USA}) and Linesman (NZ) (Touching Wood {USA}) whilst two of her big staying successes were out of left field a bit - her first G1 Melbourne Cup winner Fiorente (Ire) being a son of the German Monsun (Ger) whilst Electronic (NZ) is probably as close as you get to the breed-shaping St Simon (GB) these days.
Country of origin
Fifty seven of Gai's Group 1 horses are locally bred, 18 carry the NZ suffix whilst seven were born in the Northern Hemisphere - four from Ireland; Fiorente (Monsun {Ger}), Glencadam Gold (Refuse To Bend {Ire}), Knights Order (So You Think {NZ}) and The Offer (Montjeu {Ire}) - two from the US; Con Te Partiro (USA) (Scat Daddy {US}) and Secret Savings (USA) (Seeking The Gold {USA}) - and one from France; Pornichet (Vespone {Ire}).
Con Te Partiro (USA) is one of the US-bred horses to have won a Group 1 for Gai Waterhouse | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
Stallions
Gai has trained 15 Group 1-winning entires who have subsequently made their way to stud in Australia or New Zealand. Making his debut at Kia Ora last spring, Farnan is the most recent of those. Of the other 14, 13 have sired stakes winners and eight have been represented by Group 1 winners with the most successful being Sebring with his 76 stakes winners (eight Group 1 winners), Al Maher with 36 and five, Pierro with 29 and six and Northern Meteor with 24 and six.
Farnan is the latest colt trained by Gai Waterhouse to stand at stud | Standing at Kia Ora Stud
Broodmares
Thirty two different mares have won Group 1 races for Waterhouse and of those who are old enough to have had runners, eight have produced stakes winners with the star of the show being Sunday Joy, dam of Tuesday Joy (Carnegie {Ire}).
Sunday Joy when racing | Image courtesy of Sportpix
Also a Group 1-winning dam of a Group 1 winner is Assertive Lass whose unbeaten son Reset proved his worth at stud. Meanwhile another two of her sons - So Assertive (NZ) (Zabeel {NZ}) and Dynamic Blitz (Elusive Quality {USA}) won at Group 3 level.
Aqua d'Amore (Danehill {USA}), Bollinger (Dehere {USA}), Fashions Afield (Redoute's Choice), Once Were Wild (Johannesburg {USA}) and Overreach (Exceed And Excel) have all produced Group winners.
Geldings
Thirty of Gai's Group 1-winning horse have been geldings, amongst them some of the most popular horses of recent times - such as All Our Mob (What A Guest {Ire}), Bentley Biscuit (Peintre Celebre {USA}), Dance Hero (Danzero), Desert War (Desert King {Ire}), Juggler (Jugah {USA}), Te Akau Nick (NZ) (Grosvenor {USA}) and Theseo (Danewin).
The yearling sales
Whilst many of Waterhouse's big wins have been with homebreds, private purchases or buys from overseas, 48 of them are graduates of yearling sales at Inglis Easter, New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka or Magic Millions, 21 of those signed for by Waterhouse herself.
Three of the stable's Group 1 winners were seven figure yearlings - Sunday Joy purchased by Waterhouse for $1 million at the 2001 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, Wandjina (Snitzel) by James Harron for $1 million at the 2013 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale and Shower Of Roses (NZ) (Zabeel {NZ}) by Gooree Stud for $1.45 million at the 2001 New Zealand Bloodstock Premier Yearling Sale.
Wandjina | Standing at Larneuk Stud
At the other end of the scale, 17 of the stable's Group 1 horses cost less than $100,000 with the cheapest being spied by the keen eye of Paul Moroney at the 1992 Wrightson Bloodstock Anniversary Yearling Sale; just NZ$16,000 securing Electronic (NZ) (First Norman {USA}). Meanwhile the cheapest Group 1 horse bought by Waterhouse herself was the G1 Epsom H. winner Fat Al who she picked up at the 2010 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale for just $27,000. For just $1000 more she also found Sprint By (NZ) (Kaapstad) and Zacheline (NZ) (Zabeel {NZ}).
The biggest earners
With his win in the 2013 G1 Melbourne Cup, Fiorente is the highest prizemoney earning member of the Waterhouse stable, retiring to stud with $6,265,611 in stakes. Grand Armee (Hennessy {USA}) won $5,328,065, More Joyous $4,572,450 and Pierro $4,536,650.
Fiorente (Ire) is the highest prizemoney earner for Gai Waterhouse | Standing at Widden Stud
Another six won triple millions - Assertive Lad (Zeditave), Tuesday Joy (NZ), Dance Hero (Danzero), Desert War, Theseo and English (Encosta De Lago) whilst Alligator Blood is the stable's 13th dual-million dollar earner. And another 29 retired as millionaires.
