AFRICAN ROSE PEDIGREE ANALYSIS
African Rose finds shortcut to success
Nancy Sexton
When a sizeable bet of £12,000 was placed on Twice Over in January for the Derby, it sparked a long-running debate over the colt’s capabilities to stay 1m4f.
After all, although he hailed from a family of useful 1m2f performers and had stayed the trip well when winning the Zetland Stakes as a two-year-old, he was a son of a leading miler OBSERVATORY, whose best performances had possessed their fair share of speed.
As it turns out, Twice Over’s optimum trip this year has been 1m2f. With that in mind, how easy would it have been to predict that African Rose, a daughter of OBSERVATORY out of a mare whose one-time objective was the Park Hill Stakes, would become a Group 1 winning sprinter?
African Rose, who is the first Group 1 winner for her sire, has never raced beyond 1m. Always highly regarded by trainer Criquette Head-Maarek, she finished second on her debut in the Listed Prix Yacowlef, before going one better at Clairefontaine and then finishing a credible third in the Prix d’Aumale and Prix des Reservoirs, both Group 3s run over 1m.
Contrary to what could be expected of a daughter of a Lancashire Oaks runner-up, African Rose has spent this season stepping down in trip rather than moving up. A win in the Listed Prix du Pont-Neuf over 7f was an improvement in form, as was a second place in the Group 1 Prix du Maurice Gheest.
Even then, Head-Maarek believed that her filly could be even better over shorter, and so it was proven when African Rose showed an impressive turn of foot to deny Assertive by a neck in Saturday’s rescheduled Sprint Cup over 6f.
There is nothing in African Rose’s profile to suggest that this will be the last we hear of her at Group 1 level. Tough as well as genuine, she is the product of two horses who improved with age and racing, and it may well be that the best is yet to come.
OBSERVATORY was one of two top class performers to emerge from the first crop of Juddmonte hombred Distant View, a top-class miler who spent the entirety of his relatively short stud career in Kentucky. Despite his US base, Distant View ended 1999 as the leading first crop sire by earnings in Britain and Ireland, courtesy of a Group 1 winning two-year-old in Distant Music. At that stage, Observatory was only a promising colt in the background, hindered byy headstrong tendencies that had contributed to a flop in the Mill Reef Stakes on his second start.
But efforts by John Gosden and his team to settle OBSERVATORY during the winter paid off, and such was his progress the following year that by the beginning of August he had added the Jersey and the Lennox Stakes to his résumé, during which time Distant Music was ona break following a below-par start to his campaign.
A second to Medicean in the Celebration Mile preceded OBSERVATORY’s defeat of Giant’s Causeway in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, a victory which at the time took many by surprise. With jockey Kevin Darley swooping wide and late to catch the Ballydoyle colt by surprise, many chose to believe that Observatory owed his win as much to tactics as to talent.
But his position among the leading colts of his generation was franked the following year when he fought off Hightori to win the Prix d’Ispahan, and he was not disgraced in fourth in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes despite suffering a hairline fracture of the pelvis that was to end his racing career.
As with most Juddmonte stallions, OBSERVATORY was well supported during the first year, and his initial crop, which included the fast pair Violette and Nidhall, gave hope for the future. But when those fillies did little the following year, and only one stakes performer, Mpumalunga, emerged from his second crop. 2008 has sparked a revival in fortunes – former Derby favourite and Group 2 winner Twice Over still remains as an interesting candidate to join African Rose at Group 1 level, while the Italian two-year-olds Sottone and Piperita have already won three Listed races between them.
What could have caused such a u-turn? In African Rose’s case, as well as hailing from an extremely accomplished family, she is bred on a seemingly successful pattern. Two of OBSERVATORY’s seven stakes winners are out of Pursuit Of Love mares - Violette and Piperita - and African Rose, as a daughter of a Quest For Fame mare, makes it three out of seven for the Blushing Groom cross.
Even before this nick was apparent, OBSERVATORY would have been a natural cross for New Orchid. He is a half-brother to a useful filly by Quest For Fame in High Praise, who was thought good enough to take her chance in the 2003 Oaks, while New Orchid’s half-brother is none other than Distant Music.
Distant Music’s sharp turn of foot was more reminiscent of Distant View than his dam, Musicanti, who needed all of the 1m5f to score. So, as a daughter of Derby winner Quest For Fame, it was reasonable to assume New Orchid was never going to be quick or precocious.
But she was talented during her brief career, breaking her maiden at the second attempt before securing blacktype in the Lancashire Oaks and Aphrodite Stakes. Unfortunately, she was never able to secure a blacktype success after a poor display in the Listed Galtres Stakes at York hastened her retirement.
Musicanti’s dam, Populi, passed into Juddmonte’s hands after selling for $2 million in foal to Northern Dancer to James Delahooke at the 1983 Keeneland November Sale.
The minor-winning daughter of Star Envoy was still young, but her first two foals had yielded the Grade 1 placed Jenkins Ferry and champion Vanlandingham, a multiple Grade 1 winner. In addition, she was also a half-sister to multiple Grade 1 winner Temperence Hill, who had then finished second season at Gainesway Farm.
As Populi never bred a stakes winner for Juddmonte, there were times when the money may not have looked well spent. But thanks to daughters Musicanti and Kamkova, the dam of Grade 2 winner and sire Kirkwall, and now granddaughter New Orchid, that perception is changing.
Date:
16 September 2008