November 9th, 2008

A filly from the first crop of Bernardini was knocked down for US$1,475,000 (A$2,137,734) during Keeneland’s November breeding stock sale. Her grandam Better Than Honour was the star attraction at Fasig-Tipton’s November Sale recently when she sold for US$14m (A$20.3m) and this filly, out of three-time winner Teeming, who is a half-sister to the Belmont winners Rags To Riches and Jazil, was always likely to prove popular.

She was bred by John Sikura of Hill ‘n’ Dale Equine Holdings and his father-in-law Ed McGhee and sold to Chesapeake Partners. 

Other weanlings by the young sire to do well at the sale include a colt out of Banshee Winds (hip 275), who sold for US$360,000 (A$521,439). A colt from Castanea (hip 584), a half-sister to Tale Of The Cat and Minardi, fetched US$300,0000 (A$434,581) while Pilfer’s March-foaled colt (hip 135) made US$250,000 (A$362,151). Six of seven Bernardini weanlings offered sold for an average of US$456,666 (A$673,271).

Bernardini stands at a fee of $55,000 (inc gst) at Darley's New South Wales property.

July 8th, 2007

STALLIONS continue a series of profiles on horses beginning stud duties this spring, and this week Alan Porter writes our profile on Bernardini.

While the advent of shuttling has given Australia breeders access to horses of a standard which might once have been undreamt of, it also provides challenges. This is particularly so with regard to sire prospects whose pedigrees have precedent to guide how they might best be employed with local sire lines. This circumstance may get somewhat easier as more mares by shuttle stallions enter the system, but a horse like the stellar Bernardini (A.P. Indy – Cara Rafaela by Quiet American) who will shuttle to Darley, still takes some thinking about. 

The Champion Three-Year-Old Colt of 2006 in the U.S., Bernardini stormed through six straight wins including the Withers Stakes (G3), Preakness Stakes (G1), Jim Dandy Stakes (G2), Travers Stakes (G1) and Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1).

A son of two-time Leading U.S. sire, A.P. Indy, he’s out of the two-year-old grade one winner, Cara Rafaela. The sire line – A.P. Indy is by U.S. Triple Crown hero Seattle Slew – is not one which has had a lot of opportunity in the Australia, and probably its best-known representatives would be Seattle Slew’s son, Air de France, sire of group one winners Bomber Bill and Air Seattle, and Seattle Slew’s grandson (by Slew o’ Gold), the sire of sprint star Spark of Life.

Bernardini is a product of the excellent A.P. Indy/Mr. Prospector cross. His strain of Mr. Prospector comes through that horse’s very untypical son, Fappiano, and the means that Bernardini should cross well with Mr. Prospector through other branches. A.P. Indy and his sons already have stakes winners out of mares descending from Mr. Prospector through Conquistador Cielo (sire of El Moxie), Forty Niner (represented in Australia by Distorted Humor), Seeking the Gold (sire of Secret Savings and Lujain), Machiavellian (sire of Vettori and Street Cry), Afleet, Silver Ghost and Distinctive Pro. Crafty Prospector, who combines Mr. Prospector and In Reality might also be good, and it could well be worth experimenting with mares by horses which combine Fappiano and In Reality, such as Unbridled (sire of one-time shuttler Unbridled’s Song), Pentelicus and Rubiano. Woodman could work well here, and his sons who have stood in Australia or New Zealand include Way of Light, Timber Country, Woodborough, Bahhare and Dr. Johnson. Bred on the same cross as Woodman and Seeking the Gold is Miswaki, who is sire in Australia of Umatilla.

A.P. Indy has also done extremely well over mares descending from the other great sire line of the current era, that of Northern Dancer (Bernardini has a third dam by Northern Dancer, but is otherwise free of that strain). The A.P. Indy/Northern Dancer cross has produced at least 50 stakes winners including out of mares descending from Northern Dancer through Deputy Minister (sire in Australia of Dehere), Nijinsky II (who could be particularly easily brought in through Royal Academy), Danzig (who obviously has many representatives in Australia, notably Danehill and his legion of sons), Lyphard, Dixieland Band, Nureyev, El Gran Senor and Storm Bird and his sons Storm Cat (who has Hennessy, Tale of the Cat and High Yield among horses who shuttled to the Southern Hemisphere) and Summer Squall. Sadler’s Wells (with Scenic looking interesting) and Last Tycoon appear a particularly good fit with Bernardini’s grandam, Northern Fable.

Quiet American, the broodmare sire of Bernardini, is inbred to Dr. Fager, and the excellent foundation mare, Cequillo. This would work well with In Reality, through Valid Appeal (whose son, Southern Appeal, stood in Australia), Relaunch (whose son, Honour and Glory, is from the Cequillo family, and shuttled), Believe It, Known Fact and Smile. Great Above is out of Dr. Fager’s half-sister, Champion Ta Wee, and he could be brought in through Holy Bull and Housebuster (who shuttled to New Zealand), while Housebuster’s sire, Mt. Livermore, could also fit well here. Ogygian, from the Cequillo family, could also do well here. 

A. P. Indy and his sons have not been prolific with Turn-to/Hail to Reason line mare, but the cross has produced some top-class horses. A. P. Indy has a grade one winner out of a mare by Cure the Blues (who brings in another cross of Dr. Fager), a son of the Hail to Reason horse, Stop the Music (who had sons Sackford and Squill in Australia). There are A.P. Indy line stakes winners descending from Hail to Reason through Roberto and his son, Kris S. There are also A.P. Indy line graded stakes winners descending from Hail to Reason’s son, Halo, via Jolie’s Halo, Southern Halo and Parfaitement. Bernardini’s dam is half-sister to the very fast Abaginone, who is out of a mare by Halo’s son, Devil’s Bag, a brother to Saint Ballado. In Australia, the Halo line might work well through Don’t Say Halo.

A.P. Indy has sired graded stakes winners out of mares by Pleasant Colony and his son, Pleasant Tap. Pleasant Colony is by the Ribot stallion, His Majesty, and A.P. Indy has also sired a grade one winner out of a mare by Ribot’s grandson, Hoist the Flag (by Tom Rolfe). Other broodmare sire lines which have worked with A.P. Indy are Buckpasser and Grey Dawn II.

Standing at a fee of $82,500 (inc gst) and embracing a payment on live foal, Bernardini shares the roster with Cape Cross, Carnegie, Dubawi, E Dubai, Elusive Quality, Exceed and Excel, Fantastic Light, Grandera, Henny Hughes, Librettist, Noverre, Refuse to Bend, Shamardal, Tiger Hill, Tobougg and Untouchable at Darley's New South Wales property.