Hipodromos y caballos - Racetracks and horses BloodStockReview2013 | Page 34

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T W O-Y E A R-O L D S

donkey work in front to comfortably beat
Sudirman in the National Stakes at the
Curragh, after which he earned a Racing
Post Rating of 121, the highest posted by
a juvenile in 2013.
Step up

ABOVE War Command (green cap) gains a deserved top-flight win in the
Dewhurst Stakes BELOW No Nay Never leads the way in the Prix Morny
RIGHT Berkshire runs away with the Chesham Stakes at Royal Ascot

on his debut and bypassed Royal Ascot in
favour of the Vintage Stakes at Goodwood.
Held up in rear, his unfurnished frame
initially appeared to be struggling on the
rolling downs but he displayed a tremendous
finishing kick in the final furlong to wear
down the subsequent Champagne Stakes
and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf winner
Outstrip, Exceed And Excel’s highest-rated
juvenile in Europe this year.
Toormore became his sire’s second
top-tier winner when having to do the

FRANKEL

DABIRSIM

DAWN APPROACH

TOORMORE

126
125
124
123
122
121
120
119

ST NICHOLAS ABBEY

TOP TWO-YEAR-OLDS BY RPR
Racing Post Rating

bread and butter has always been bargainbasement two-year-olds and his ability to
transform them into superstars.
A case in point is this year’s unbeaten
juvenile Toormore, who was bought by
Hannon’s longstanding talent scouts Peter
and Ross Doyle for £36,000 at the DBS
Premier Yearling Sale. Hannon – who
recently announced he is to hand over the
trainer’s licence to his son Richard jnr on
January 1 – and the Doyles had to dig a
little deeper to secure Toormore’s Dark
Angel half-brother at this year’s renewal,
parting with £200,000 for the Redpender
Stud-consigned colt.
The rangy Toormore is by Ballyhane
Stud resident Arakan, a sire the stable has
grown particularly fond of, having nurtured
the careers of two other sons, dual Group 1
winner Dick Turpin and high-class miler
Trumpet Major.
Toormore did not set the world alight

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

Year

LEADING EUROPEAN TWO-YEAR-OLDs by rpr
HORSE PEDIGREE

BREEDER(S)

RPR

Toormore0
Kingston Hill0
War Command0
Karakontie0
No Nay Never0

Bec Bloodstock
Ridgecourt Stud
Joseph Allen
Flaxman Holdings Ltd
Jayne Doi Johnson/David Sparrow

121
119
118
117
117

Arakan-Danetime Out (Danetime)
Mastercraftsman-Audacieuse (Rainbow Quest)
War Front-Wandering Star (Red Ransom)
Bernstein-Sun Is Up (Sunday Silence)
Scat Daddy-Cat’s Eye Witness (Elusive Quality)

Toormore, who runs in the colours of a
Middleham Park Racing syndicate, will
surely improve physically at three and,
although his pedigree does not scream
Classic winner, it does suggest a step up in
trip will suit, as he descends from a family
that includes the useful Easaar, who
won over an extended mile.
Sudirman went into the
National Stakes fresh from
p r ov i d i n g h i s s o p h o m o re
sire Henrythenavigator with
back-to-back winners in the
Phoenix Stakes, following Pedro
The Great in 2012.
Although a cosy winner of the
Railway Stakes, the David Wachmantrained colt was not expected to beat the
short-priced favourite War Command at
the Curragh. Aidan O’Brien’s colt, who is
owned by the Coolmore partners and his
breeder Joseph Allen, was heavily backed
into 2-5 favouritism following a six-length
romp in the Coventry Stakes. However, he
failed to display the lightning change of pace
witnessed at Royal Ascot and connections
suggested he would improve for a step up in
trip. They were right. He quickened well to
land the Futurity Stakes before his deserved
top-flight win in the Dewhurst Stakes and
he goes into winter quarters as a leading
2,000 Guineas contender.
War Command is by US-based sire War
Front, who burst on to the European scene
this year with two other stakes winners – dual
Group 1 winner Declaration Of War and
Listed scorer and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile
Turf runner-up Giovanni Boldini. The
triumvirate were all sent out from Ballydoyle
under the ownership or co-ownership of
Coolmore, who have invested heavily in
War Front, Allen’s homebred son of Danzig.
War Command was one of two
Coolmore-owned juvenile winners at the
royal meeting, alongside US-bred colt
No Nay Never. However, the last-named
bulging brown specimen was not prepared K
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