Cover image courtesy of Bronwen Healy
Four times earning the crown of Australian Champion Sire, Snitzel has been one of the great achievers of the Danehill (USA) sireline.
Retired to Arrowfield Stud in 2006 with a fee of $33,000 (inc GST), Snitzel served 131 mares in his first season but was not immediately flavour of the month - in his second year his book dropping to 99 mares and 103 the following season.
His service fee dropped to $22,000 (inc GST) in 2009 but from thereon was on the steady increase until 2020 before returning to its $220,000 (inc GST) this year.
| 2010 | $27,500 |
| 2011 | $27,500 |
| 2012 | $33,000 |
| 2013 | $49,500 |
| 2014 | $71,500 |
| 2015 | $88,000 |
| 2016 | $110,000 |
| 2017 | $176,000 |
| 2018 | $220,000 |
| 2019 | $220,000 |
| 2020 | $165,000 |
| 2021 | $165,000 |
| 2022 | $220,000 |
Table: Snitzel's service fees over the years *all fees include GST
Snitzel was provided with his 128th stakes winner on Saturday courtesy of Zennella’s victory in the G2 Wakeful S. at Flemington. His stakes-winning haul is spearheaded by 18 Group 1 winners and the stallion boasts an outstanding winners to runners strike rate of 77.4 per cent with a 9.3 per cent stakes winner ratio.
A horse who found form early and his progeny follow a similar pattern; his 293 juvenile winners, the most recent being Empire Of Japan, giving him a 2-year-old strike rate of 37.6 per cent. But they are not merely early maturers; his 3-year-old strike rate is a healthy 58.7 per cent, while 64.2 per cent of his 4-year-olds have been winners.
| 1st | 81.90% |
| 2nd | 81.80% |
| 3rd | 78.50% |
| 4th | 74.60% |
| 5th | 79.60% |
| 6th | 74.40% |
| 7th | 79.60% |
| 8th | 70.70% |
| 9th | 79.50% |
| 10th | 84.10% |
| 11th | 85.10% |
| 12th | 82.40% |
| 13th | 81.10% |
| 14th | 71.60% |
| 15th | 44.40% |
| 16th | 100% |
Table: Snitzel's winners to runners broken down by crops
Hitting his straps
While Snitzel's strike rate has been impressive from day one, in regards to stakes horses it did take him a while to warm up. There were three in his debut crop, none in his second, under 10 in each of his next four. From the 2012/13 season he really started to get going - 10 stakes winners, then 18 and 21 during his best season of 2014/15.
Bred by Francois Naude and purchased by his trainer Gerald Ryan for $260,000 at the 2004 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, Snitzel was an odds-on favourite at his debut in the Listed Breeders’ Plate in September 2004; impressive enough to start at an ever shorter quote at his second outing - sharing the lead in a Wyong juvenile feature and getting clear late.
Snitzel | Standing at Arrowfield Stud
In his third pre-Christmas juvenile start, Snitzel was again odds-on in the Listed Tommy Smith Slipper and that 6l victory assured him R. Listed Magic Millions 2YO Classic favouritism. It was the first time he tasted defeat but he lost no fans with a tough close-up third off a wide run.
There would be no rest for the tough 2-year-old who returned to Sydney where he proved 2.3l too good for another Redoute's Choice colt in Stratum in the G3 Skyline S. before hitting his head coming out of the gates in the G1 Golden Slipper S.
Another outside gate saw Snitzel beaten at his first 3-year-old run but he was gutsy with a close-up third behind Media (Gilded Time {USA}) and Written Tycoon. He atoned with a win over Stratum in the G3 Up And Coming S. before enduring a tough run when finishing on the heels of the placegetters taking on the older horses in the G1 Manikato S.
Watch: Highlights of Snitzel's racing career
Five of Snitzel's last six runs came in Group 1 company and he maintained his excellent form with an all-the-way win over Virage De Fortune (Anabaa {USA}) and Takeover Target (Celtic Swing {GB}) in the G1 Oakleigh Plate, a close second to the latter in the G1 Newmarket H., a G2 Challenge S. victory and a G1 TJ Smith S. third.
In-form from his first to his final start, Snitzel retired to Arrowfield Stud as a millionaire who had been successful at seven of his 15 starts; finishing out of the first four on only three occasions.
Male strengths
Snitzel does a great job picking up on the male strengths of his pedigree, with the following broodmare sires sharing male patterns with him.
| Bel Esprit | 7/8 | 2 | - |
| Ekraar | 3/4 | 1 | 1 |
| Encosta De Lago | 57/77 | 6 | 3 |
| Exceed And Excel | 3/5 | 1 | - |
| Five Star Day | 3/3 | 1 | 1 |
| Forestry | 3/3 | 1 | - |
| Gold Fever | 2/3 | 2 | - |
| Marauding | 6/7 | 1 | - |
| Red Ransom | 25/34 | 4 | - |
| Rip Van Winkle | 1/2 | 1 | - |
| Rory�s Jester | 9/13 | 1 | - |
| Show A Heart | 6/8 | 1 | - |
| Starcraft | 8/9 | 2 | - |
| Stravinsky | 10/12 | 1 | 1 |
| Success Express | 5/6 | 1 | 1 |
| Thunder Gulch | 7/8 | 1 | - |
| Zabeel | 36/51 | 6 | - |
Table: Snitzel's record broodmare sires who share male patterns with him.
Snitzel is also a great horse for female line-breeding, one example being his ability to pick up on the influence of his own family with his fifth dam Scotch Verdict (USA) (Alsab {USA}) also grandam of Valid Appeal (USA), second damsire of Charge Forward. Eleven of the 15 Snitzel runners out of his daughters are stakes winners including the G1 Golden Slipper S. winner Estijaab.
Redoute's Choice's fourth dam, Best In Show (USA) (Traffic Judge {USA}), is another strong force with the following broodmare sires allowing for her duplication.
| Domesday | 4/4 | 1 | 1 |
| Last Tycoon | 11/11 | 2 | 1 |
| O'Reilly | 11/11 | 2 |
Table: Broodmare sires allowing for Best In Show's (USA) duplication
Halo (USA) and Machiavellian (USA) who hail from the same prolific Natalma (USA) (Native Dancer {USA})/Almahmoud (USA) (Mahmoud {Fr}) family as Northern Dancer (Can) and Danehill are also good horses for Snitzel.
| Fusaichi Pegasus | 14 / 167 | 2 |
| More Than Ready | 31 /33 | 3 |
| Street Cry | 9/11 | 3 |
| Zenno Rob Roy | 2/2 | 1 |
Danehill's damsire His Majesty (USA) picks up nicely on strains of his own family which can be found in.
| Elusive Quality | 15/17 | 5 |
| Narita Brian | 3/3 | 1 |
The influential Grey Flight (USA) (Mahmoud {Fr}) produced Snippets' second damsire Misty Day (USA) and she also makes her presence felt in.
| Lonhro | 4/8 | 3 |
| Tale Of The Cat | 10/14 | 2 |
Other broodmare sires of interest
Other broodmare sires of interest for Snitzel include General Nediym whose sire Nediym (Ire) has as his fourth dam Diableretta (GB) (Dante {GB}) whose son Coeur Volant (GB) is the second damsire of Redoute's Choice's damsire Canny Lad, while Canny Lad's third dam sire, Jambo (GB), is a half-brother to Diableretta. Of the 27 Snitzel runners out of General Nediym mares, 22 are winners - four of those being stakes winners including two Group 1 winners; Sizzling and I Am Excited.
Redoute's Choice, sire of Snitzel
Mr Greeley (USA) also boasts a good strike rate with Snitzel - all four runners being winners, two of those being stakes winners. He carries a strain of Hasty Road (USA) whose half-brother Traffic Judge (USA) is Redoute's Choice's fourth damsire.
Another American horse worthy of mention is Timber Country (USA) - 10 runners, seven winners - two being stakes winners, headed by the Group 1 winner Sweet Idea.
