Lope De Vega (€60,000) and New Bay (€40,000) available at Ballylinch on SH time

Since his retiring from the racetrack, Ballylinch Stud in Co. Kilkenny, Ireland, has been home to Lope De Vega (Ire), one of Europe's truly elite stallions. The last three Northern Hemisphere breeding seasons have seen the son of Shamardal (USA) command a hefty €125,000 (AU$205,800) service fee, and with good reason.

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In total, Lope De Vega has sired 18 Group 1 winners and 112 individual stakes winners across 12 different countries. From 2011 to 2014, he shuttled to the now-defunct Patinack Farm, and left an indelible stamp on the Australian industry. The result was four elite-level winners of nine Group 1s, being Santa Ana Lane, Vega Magic, Gytrash and Vega One.

His progeny have earned a smidge over $126 million in all, and the greatest contributor, nation wise, has been Australia at close to $43 million. His potency when crossed with Fastnet Rock mares has certainly helped in accruing that total, with the mix firing at a rate of 21 per cent stakes winners to runners.

Both Santa Ana Lane and Gytrash fall into that category, with their exploits no doubt driving demand on the other side of the world, though Ballylinch can hardly be accused of acting greedily in pricing Lope De Vega at €60,000 - equivalent to around AU$98,600 - for Southern Hemisphere covers this year.

“It's a cross that seems to work very well, and it's definitely pushed an uptake up here in the last few years where we've covered a lot more Fastnet Rock mares,” Fives said.

“He's very easy to breed to. He's an outcross for over 90 per cent of the mare population in Europe, so, if you're buying a mare up here, he's very easy to breed to as there are very few things you have to avoid in a pedigree.”

Establishing himself from afar

Lope De Vega yearlings disappeared from Australian sales rings after the final locally bred crop came up for sale in 2017. Just one appeared in 2021, increasing to 17 across the last two years, and he’ll soon be kicking back into gear according to Fives.

Meanwhile, his sons have begun to establish themselves in his absence. Group 1-winning juvenile Belardo (Ire) has now sired a stakes winner in both New Zealand and Australia from his base at Haunui Farm, and Lucky Vega (Ire) has his first foals on the ground in Australia for Yulong Stud.

Mr Zhang’s organisation has been a big supporter of Lope De Vega in the past. After buying and racing Lucky Vega to become a Group 1-winning juvenile in Ireland, they sent a selection of mares to his own sire on Southern Hemisphere time. Six of those, all colts, were sold as yearlings in Australia last year, with Yulong retaining one filly to race.

Yulong’s Chief Operating Officer Sam Fairgray told TTR AusNZ that Lucky Vega’s position as a shuttler from the Irish National Stud means that, naturally, they now support him instead with any suitable mares in the Northern Hemisphere.

However, selling the six yearlings was part of Yulong’s vision to be both international in its outlook and an active player in the market. They did well, with one selling for $650,000, and it doesn’t mean that Yulong won’t end up with another son of Lope De Vega to stand at stud.

“With yearling sales and so forth, if we come across the right physical and pedigree we'd definitely consider buying another son of Lope De Vega,” Fairgray said.

“We've been able to keep a leg in a couple of the ones that we've sold, which is great. So, it's still going to serve the purpose if they do end up being successful on the track - we've still got that interest there, to be able to have access to those stallions.”

Whilst Lope De Vega “keeps on producing the goods,” Fairgray is excited with the start made by Lucky Vega.

“He's certainly stamping them,” Fairgray said. “He's got the physique that Australians like; that good-bodied, strong hindquarter, and he's throwing that into his progeny.

“He's got some really nice weanlings on the farm and the feedback that we've had from people that bred to him is that they're really happy with them.

“And, in the Northern Hemisphere, he's been really well-received - he served 149 mares this year. So, that's a good result and plenty of breeders are breeding back to him based on the foals that they've got on the ground.”

Young New Bay kicking goals

Whilst he covered half-a-dozen mares last year, 2023 is the first year in which the exciting young New Bay (GB) will be advertised officially for Southern Hemisphere-time covers.

Standing for €75,000 (AU$123,000) at Europe’s regular breeding time earlier this year, he will be available over the coming months for €40,000 (AU$65,600). Having entered stud in 2017, New Bay has four crops now running for him, and his ascent through the ranks has been fast.

That first crop contained two of his three Group 1 winners - Bay Bridge (GB) and Saffron Beach (GB) - with the third, Bayside Boy (Ire), beginning his own stud career on the Ballylinch roster earlier this year. His three runners to find the racecourse in Australia are all winners, and include 5-year-old New Mandate (Ire), who landed the G3 Hawkesbury Gold Cup for Chris Waller in April.

It’s a small sample, but he’s certainly done nothing wrong and, with sons of Dubawi (Ire) working well in Australia in the past, the Ballylinch team have every hope that he’ll receive plenty of support this year.

Fives reports that, “He’s getting more popular with Australian breeders,” and he also received the support of one of Australia’s top stables at the Goffs London Sale recently.

Landed on by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, the aptly named New Endeavour (GB) was a £260,000 (AU$499,000) purchase for the Tulloch Lodge team, who was previously co-owned by Ballylinch and Teme Valley. He will remain in training with Roger Varian in Newmarket before eventually making his way down to Australia.

Twice a handicap winner over 1400 metres, New Endeavour was sold in the lead up to Royal Ascot, and subsequently ran second in the high-class Britannia S., earning an official rating of 103, which puts him well in the mix at Listed level in the UK.

He appears to be on a neat upward curve and may yet be New Bay’s next stakes winner. Meanwhile, Fives reported a surge of interest following that solid Royal Ascot performance.

“Coming back from Ascot, more Australians were asking about him (New Bay) and curious about him,” he said. “We can probably see his profile increasing over the next few years, he's only a young sire.”

“His fee has increased every year since he's had runners. His first crop really dazzled, I suppose, and then the last season was just incredible.

“He had a Group 1 winner with Saffron Beach, and then he just totally stole the show on British Champions Day when he took the two feature races with Bayside Boy and Bay Bridge.”

The British Champions Day heroes were also top-class juveniles. Saffron Beach won the G3 Oh So Sharp S. to remain unbeaten in two starts as a late-season 2-year-old, whilst Bayside Boy was an impressive winner of the G2 Champagne S. - the same race won by Darley shuttler Too Darn Hot (GB).

Fives argues that it’s results like those which should see New Bay garner plenty of interest amongst Australian breeders.

“Even though he was a French Derby winner, he is a horse that transmits a lot of speed,” he said of the sire, who hails from the Juddmonte family of Champion Sprinter Oasis Dream (GB).

“He's similar to Lope De Vega in that case. One of his best horses is Jumby, who's a multiple Group winner over seven furlongs (1400 metres).

“So, it is really all about that turn of foot and that speed really which comes through.”

New Bay’s small but impeccable exposure in Australia is testament to that conclusion. Whilst he’s got a long way to go until he registers the same impact Down Under as Lope De Vega, he appears to have every chance.