Considering the difficult economic climate Baerami Thoroughbreds has scored quite a coup in securing the Rock of Gibraltar horse Mount Nelson (GB), who won the Saint-Cloud Criterium International-Gr.1 at two and the Sandown Eclipse Stakes-Gr.1 at four.
   In the first of two parts Stallions, Graeme Kelly, spoke to Baerami’s Paul Higgins about how the arrangement to stand Mount Nelson and how this has opened a connection with internationally renowned businessman Andreas Jacobs and his Newsells Park Stud Ltd.

Q.: You must be excited about standing Mount Nelson
A.: It is a great opportunity to have a horse like him and one that we felt could not be ignored so, naturally, we are very excited about it. I have often been critical of the shuttle system . . . not for shuttling’s sake but because stallion prospects that offer nothing to the local racing environment and have no suitability here are brought in to offset huge northern hemisphere values placed on them or to boost the egos of participants. We have bred or sold some wonderful horses by shuttle stallions at Baerami such as Private Steer, Bel Esprit, Highrollin’ Woman and so on. We even pinhooked the only southern hemisphere stakes winner by Minardi in Malaysian multiple Gr.1 winner Kiko’s Return so we are not opposed to the shuttle . . . we simply feel there has to be compatibility on genotype and phenotype. If you don’t think that way and you do feel you can improve on what we already have available in this country then what’s the point? Australia has already proven that we can raise and breed superior horses up to any distance so imports must offer something better than that. What we have in Mount Nelson is a horse capable of doing this.

Q.: What do you think are the horse’s greatest assets
A.: It is a dreadful cliché and I sound like a football coach but he does tick every box. He is a bigger horse than many Danehill line stallions, more of a Flying Spur type, and he showed great soundness and toughness going from a 28-runner maiden win to a Gr.1 victory the next week. That was in track record time as a two-year-old which we have placed enormous stock in as it shows he could go home and eat after a tough initial win as well as handling a hard track, back-up and still perform at the optimum level. A foot injury robbed him of his three-year-old career yet that did not stop him coming back at four to win another Group 1. That sort of performance takes courage and a strong mind to work through nagging pain. That all points to a phenotype that can handle the unique training and racing conditions experienced in Australia. Added to that having a weight-for-age winning son of Danehill is the single most successful pointer to sire success in Australia at present.
The genetic make up is proven here also. His sire has the second best apex a runner rating of all active stallions in Australia with 100 runners and he has almost identical statistics up north. Mount Nelson is bred on the same cross as Danehill Dancer, who needs little amplification and there is a super first book of mares working for the stallion in England – arguably the best served there for some time by a first year horse. The genetics make sense.

Q.: Mount Nelson was secured relatively late in proceedings – how did that come about
A.: We were first quoted the horse at Easter time and our initial concerns centred around the fact that he is, in our opinion, a 25k horse and we felt that our client base and the market in general would find that hard this year. To the absolute credit of his owners they generously agreed to stand him at $16,500 which simply made Mount Nelson irresistible. There is a real gap in the market in that price range as there are only two first season sires in the Hunter Valley that are priced over 10k but less than 20k and we obviously think we have the better one.

Q.: Under what type of arrangement will Mount Nelson be standing
A.: We are taking a little “suck it and see” approach. Just because all of our analysis suggests this horse is a laydown misere does not mean, especially in this financial climate, that mare owners will be able to see the value in the horse over the likes of foal shares, huge discounted inferior options or the cheaper non-commercial stallions. The intention is to do four seasons then reassess but we are trusting that more breeders, who have been badly burnt in the last few years, will do more homework. If they do Mount Nelson will be the answer.

Q.: Have you had previous dealings with Andreas Jacobs or his Newsells Park Stud Ltd
A.: No this is our first dealing both with Andreas and Newsells Park, although I do have several mutual friends of Newswells general manager Julian Dollar, which does add a degree of comfort for both parties.

Q.: Do you think there is a possibility Andreas will become more involved “down under”
A.: Andreas already has studs in England, Germany and South Africa so we are hoping that this is a tentative toe in the water that will expand further. Andreas’s family company owners Toblerone and Jacobs Coffee amongst other interests so he could be a wonderful investor in Australia. Having said that he is also renowned as a very level headed operator who does not simply throw money at any business. If he is well supported there is a track record of showing faith in return, so if Mount Nelson is a success and well supported I am sure we could see another major player emerge in the Australian racing and breeding industry.

Permalink| Aug 31, 2009

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