Based at Ballylinch in Ireland, Lope De Vega - a son of Shamardal (USA) - will be available to breeders in the Southern Hemisphere at a fee of €65,000 (AU$96,800).
Progeny of the stallion are a familiar sight on racecourses and sale rings throughout Australia with the stallion having shuttled to Patinack Farm for four years between 2011 and 2014.
Despite only travelling to the country for a short time, Lope De Vega made an immediate impact and his statistics during his shuttling years Down Under make for impressive reading.
The stallion’s Southern Hemisphere-bred winners stand at 174 from 244 starters and they are headed by 16 stakes winners and four elite-level scorers; Santa Ana Lane, Vega Magic, Gytrash and Vega One.
Gytrash winning the G1 Black Caviar Lightning S. in 2020 | Image courtesy of Bronwen Healy
Great success in Australia
Since 2018, he has been steadily covering a few mares on Southern Hemisphere time, 30 in total, with his busiest year being 2018 when he served 14 and Ballylinch’s Managing Director, John O’Connor told TDN AusNZ that the decision to make him available to Australasian-based mares has evolved since he stopped shuttling back in 2014.
“He obviously shuttled to Patinack Farm for four years and when he was there he generated some high-class racehorses, including Santa Ana Lane, Vega Magic, Gytrash and Vega One, who are all Group 1 sprinters,” said O’Connor.
John O'Connor is managing director of Ballylinch Stud | Image courtesy of Ballylinch Stud
“He did very well down there and we had a number of requests from Australian breeders to see if we would shuttle him, but he won’t shuttle again. So, in response to the breeders who want access to him, we thought we would make a number of nominations available to him on Southern Hemisphere time.
“It is something that has evolved over the last few years and it wasn’t something that we pushed and we did it in response to requests from breeders from the Southern Hemisphere and now we have decided to put a maximum number on it and that’s how we will go about it this year.”
Sale ring success
Worldwide, Lope De Vega’s total stakes-winning tally is an impressive 96. The group is led by 15 top-flight winners and his fee in Europe last season was €125,000 (AU$186,200).
Australasian breeders who have been lucky enough to gain access to the stallion over the past few years were well-rewarded at the sales in 2022 when nine yearlings by the sire sold for an aggregate of $3,340,000 at an average of $371,111.
This year’s offerings at the sales included the Willow Park Stud-bred colt who was purchased by Ciaron Maher Bloodstock for $700,000 at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, while TFI Thoroughbreds snapped up a Yulong Stud-bred son of the stallion for $650,000 at the same sale.
Lope De Vega (Ire) x Acqume (colt) sold as Lot 719 at the 2022 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale for $700,000 to Ciaron Maher Bloodstock | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
“He has been covering a few Southern Hemisphere times over the last few years and we are starting to see that come to fruition with his results in the sales ring in Australia,” O’Connor explained.
“Obviously, last year he had great results and they are starting to make an impact at the yearling sales down there now and we are looking forward to seeing what they do going forward in the next year or two.”
Rare offering
O’Connor said they want to limit the book of mares to Lope De Vega so they continue to be rare offerings if they are put through a ring in the Southern Hemisphere.
“We will limit him to a maximum of 25 mares Southern Hemisphere time because he is a busy horse in Europe and we want to protect his stallion career worldwide. He is an extremely fertile horse, so it won’t be difficult for him to do that little bit of extra work, it won’t be an issue in that respect,” said O’Connor.
Lope De Vega (Ire) | Standing at Ballylinch Stud, Ireland
“We think 25 is fair to the stallion, because he is a very top-level sire worldwide and at the same time it gives Australian breeders an opportunity to have something a little bit unique where they won’t be competing with many dozens of other horses at the sales by Lope De Vega, so it is a bit of a rare opportunity.
“While he is obviously very commercial, there seems to be a lot of interest from breeders who want to breed to race knowing they are using a proven sire.”
Proven sire
Lope De Vega has good success with Northern Hemisphere-bred horses who have been imported into the country and his exploits as a stallion were advertised by Arapaho (Fr) who landed the Listed Grafton Cup.
“He was one of a few European imports by Lope De Vega in Australia who are doing well at the moment. He has Arapaho and Surf Dancer, who won a nice race for Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott - there are a small number of those European imports who are doing well in Australia,” said O’Connor.
“I think the Australians like the fact that Lope De Vega is proven in Australian conditions and at the very top level as well. The Australian breeders know he has the aptitude to sire top-level runners in Australian conditions, they are not venturing into the unknown by using him Southern Hemisphere time, he is proven there already.”
