First season sire juveniles: Who has been named?

Cover image courtesy of Coolmore

It’s still over a month until the first 2-year-old trials in Australia, but that hasn’t stopped the team at The Thoroughbred Report from getting a little bit excited about who we might see out and about by the next group of first season sires. TTR AusNZ had a look at the upcoming crop of first season sires – stallions whose oldest foals have just turned two – and used the Australian and New Zealand Stud Books to count how many of their first crop have been named.

Naming horses early isn’t something that every owner does, but it does show a level of excitement by the ownership group that the racehorse is showing some precocity.

Last year, Bivouac led this group by volume at the point in time we wrote the story, and he went on to sire three stakes winners with his first crop. Hello Youmzain (Fr) was second and he was just crowned New Zealand’s Champion First Season Sire for 2024/25, with Wootton Bassett (GB) third and Anders in fourth. There is some level of correlation between having a reasonable number of first crop horses named early and the level of success during the season.

It’s not completely straightforward, as Champion First Season Sire Ole Kirk came in ninth by volume on last year’s list and he went on to sire four individual stakes winners during the season. Racing Australia approves, on average, 43 names per day of horses of all ages, so this list is ever-changing and only speaks to a moment in time.

For further context, approximately 20% of the annual foal crop in Australia will race as 2-year-olds with only 10% racing before the G1 Golden Slipper is run. Most juveniles will have their first outing in the last three months of the racing season as they prepare for their Classic season.

Home Affairs takes the early lead

Vying for both Australia and New Zealand’s Champion First Season Sire titles in 2025/26 are 27 stallions whose first crop were born in 2023. Leading the table is Home Affairs, who has made headlines at every stage of his life, from being an $875,000 yearling to winning the G2 Silver Slipper Stakes at his second start and going on to win the G1 Coolmore Stud Stakes at three.

His first yearlings were headlined by two $3 million lots, and he is the first First Season Sire to sell the sale topper at both Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale and Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale.

Of his first crop of 141 foals, conceived at a fee of $110,000 inc GST, 27 are named, which is 19% of his first crop. His Magic Millions Gold Coast sale topping filly from Sunlight (Zoustar) has been named Lia La La, and she is currently located in Japan.

“He’s a stallion with a huge set of credentials who covered outstanding mares from the start, so there are a lot of expectations around him. And rightly so, his first crop yearling sold for an aggregate of nearly $32 million and they are in the best stables. Lindsay Park have 10, Chris Waller has 10 of them, the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott stable have several, Ciaron Maher has quite a few too,” said Coolmore’s Tom Moore.

“All indications of them are extremely positive to date. He’s always been popular, and he covered more mares in his third season which is a testament to his stock on the ground. We educated a number of them here at the farm and they’ve all been perceived extremely well.

“He broke his maiden in the Silver Slipper, and was highly regarded by Waller and his team. He was naturally early and brilliantly fast with a great attitude, similar to I Am Invincible himself, who was a fast precious 2-year-old who improved later.

“I imagine they’ll be running early, as they are fast sharp looking horses, and should train on. At this early stage, we couldn’t be happier with the feedback we are getting.

“We will continue to support him this season. By the time we sell this year’s matings, he’ll have 4-year-olds and he has big crops from good mares, so there’s significant upside to having exposure to a horse like this. At this point in his career, he’s as good as educated gamble as you can take.”

The first Home Affairs 2-year-old to step out in public will trial at Te Rapa in New Zealand on Tuesday. Named Kinnaird, he is trained by Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson, and is a half-brother to Group 1 winner and sire Jon Snow, and Listed winner Princess Rahenys (Iffraaj {GB}). He was purchased by David Ellis for NZ$340,000 from Highview at the New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sale.

Shuttles take up the next three spots

The shift from locally bred stallions to shuttle horses would appear to be continuing the trend here with the second, third, and fourth most popular First Season Sires all fitting this bill.

Palace Pier (GB) comes in second on our list with 23 named foals, 35% of his first crop. Those 66 foals constitute his only crop in Australia, having shuttled for only 2022 and not returning. Unbeaten in two starts at two, Palace Pier won two Group 1 races at three, and another three Group 1 races at four, all at a mile.

His first Northern Hemisphere crop already counts seven winners including four 2-year-olds who are stakes-placed.

Coolmore’s St Mark’s Basilica (Fr) is third with 20 named 2-year-olds. He won the G1 Dewhurst at two and added four more Group 1 victories at three to be named European Horse Of The Year. He’s been popular each year at stud in Australia, covering over 100 mares each season and has 96 live foals in his first crop.

In fourth equal spot are shuttle stallion Pinatubo (Ire) and local G1 Golden Slipper winner Stay Inside with 17 named first crop foals each.

Pinatubo's oldest crop in the Northern Hemisphere are 3-year-olds, and he was supposed to shuttle here in 2021, but missed the season, making his first season in Australia in 2022. It puts him in a unique position, as he has two crops of racing age in the Northern Hemisphere while his Southern Hemisphere first crop has just turned two with 87 foals. He has three stakes winners from his first crop of European 3-year-olds.

Champion 2YO of 2020/21 and G1 Golden Slipper winner Stay Inside has 121 foals in his first crop and with 17 of them named, he may easily conclude this season in the same position as fellow G1 Golden Slipper winner Farnan did last year who had only 6 of his first crop named at this stage but has sired the most number of juvenile winners of all the first season sires of 2024/25.

A strong percentage representation

Of the 27 first season sires, there are eight who have 19% or more of the first crop named including a couple of sneaky surprises. Telemon Stud’s The Odyssey had only 26 foals in his first crop, and already five of them have been named (19%). A Listed winner at two by proven juvenile sire Better Than Ready, The Odyssey trained on to win at three and four.

New Zealand had just four First Season Sires retire to stud in 2022, and Group 1 winning juvenile Sword Of State’s yearlings impressed the judges this year with 28 of his first crop of 75 foals selling for an average of $202,000. He leads the New Zealand section with 15 named 2-year-olds, which is 20% of his first crop.

The surprise in New Zealand is Group 1 winner The Chosen One (NZ) who stood his first season at Highview Stud and sired 26 live foals before moving to The Oaks Stud where he’s been more popular with his next few books. Of those 26 foals, five have already been named, 19% of his first crop.

“I don’t think they will be before Christmas 2-year-olds, but there is no reason, from the ones I have seen, that they couldn’t pop up as autumn 2-year-olds. Good stallions can come from humble beginnings and he may fit that criteria. He is definitely a chance,” said The Oaks Stud’s Rick Williams.

Table: List of top 15 First Season Sires with named foals at August 4