Darley

The opening Castle Star At Capital Stud Irish EBF Maiden at the Curragh on Sunday saw Darley's first-season sire Space Blues (Ire) get off the mark as Power Blue (Ire) ran out an emphatic three-and-three-quarter-length winner in the hands of David Egan. It was also a third consecutive win in the race for trainer Adrian Murray after those of Bucanero Fuerte (GB) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) in 2023 and Arizona Blaze (GB) (Sergei Prokofiev) last year. Representing the LNA Racing Syndicate, Power Blue was a £44,000 purchase at the Goffs UK...

Find out what trainer says their charge has been "prepared to perfection" for the Irish Lincolnshire The Irish Flat season kicks off at the Curragh on Sunday and boy are we ready for it. The opening two-year-old maiden has been won by some top-notchers down through the years, including Bucanero Fuerte (GB) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), who went on to bag a breakthrough Group 1 success for the Amo Racing team.  There is no shortage of intriguing runners in this year's race, with first-season sires Space Blues (Ire), Lucky Vega (Ire),...

Craig Bernick's Audubon Park (Fr) (Dubawi {Ire}--Right Hand {GB}, by Lope De Vega {Ire}) delivered a stunning late burst to notch a four-length debut score going 9 1/2 furlongs atop Chantilly's synthetic surface last month and repeated the dose upped to 10 furlongs on the turf with a perfect G1 Prix de Diane audition in Thursday's Listed Prix Rose de Mai at Saint-Cloud. The well-backed 3-5 favourite was smartly into stride from the inside stall and settled into a smooth rhythm behind the leaders in third until slipping to fourth...

Multiple Group 1-winning juvenile Native Trail (GB) has sired his first reported foals, Darley announced this week. The G1 Irish 2000 Guineas hero's first reported arrival was a colt out of Bourbonesque (GB) (Kingman {GB}) which arrived at Elevage de Tourgeville on Jan. 22. The mare is a half-sister to Group 1 winner Aqlaam (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) and her foal was described as "a magnificent colt" by her breeders. Native Trail's second arrival was a "lovely filly" out of Dealer's Choice (Ire) (Exchange Rate) for Tactful Finance, Ltd., born...

Darley nominations manager Eamon Moloney has shared the high opinion that Charlie Appleby has held Opera Ballo (Ire) (Ghaiyyath {Ire}) in all winter and revealed that the colt's impressive victory at Kempton on Wednesday has resulted in a slew of calls from breeders either side of the Irish Sea booking in mares to his sire.  Opera Ballo, who fetched €600,000 at the Arqana August Yearling Sale, won the same Kempton maiden that Appleby landed with subsequent 2,000 Guineas hero Notable Speech (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) last year.  The wide-margin win, which...

The Godolphin/Charlie Appleby axis has dominated recent renewals of Kempton's Unibet Supports Safer Gambling Maiden Stakes, winning last year's edition with subsequent G1 2000 Guineas and G1 Sussex Stakes hero Notable Speech (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}). The operation struck gold once again as Opera Ballo (Ire) (Ghaiyyath {Ire}--Dubai Opera {GB}, by Invincible Spirit {Ire}) emulated that stablemate in division one of Wednesday's one-mile contest and collected a 'TDN Rising Star' of his own with an impressive wide-margin success. He joins Chantilly maiden scorer Mandanaba (Fr) on Ghaiyyath's list of Rising Stars....

Tommy Sheridan, a former stallion man at Dalham Hall Stud, has died at the age of 77, the Racing Post reported on Thursday. The dual Group 1 winner Machiavellian was among the stallions Sheridan cared for in his time at Darley's Dalham Hall, having previously had spells working for trainer Noel Murless and at the National Stud. Sheridan remained at Dalham Hall until 2007 when he transferred to Limes Farm in Woodditton, the base for Sheikh Mohammed's endurance horses. "We're all deeply saddened here at Dalham Hall, and indeed at...

Stallion parades are scheduled for Dalham Hall Stud on Wednesday, Jan. 15 and Thursday, Jan. 16, at noon and 2 p.m., Darley announced. Among the stallions featured are returning shuttle stallions Harry Angel (Ire), second-crop sire Pinatubo (Ire) whose eldest foals are now 3-year-olds, and the popular Triple Time (Ire), who covered over 150 mares in 2024. Other stallions available to view are Palace Pier (GB), Too Darn Hot (GB), Cracksman (GB), Perfect Power (Ire) and Modern Games (Ire). If you are unable to attend the stallion parades, please reach...

The first foal of the G1 Queen Anne Stakes winner Triple Time (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) was born at Kirtlington Stud on January 7, Darley announced on Wednesday. The bay filly is a daughter of the two-time winner Lead Story (Ire) (New Bay {GB}) who, in turn, is out of the Listed scorer and G2 Queen Mary Stakes third Newsletter (Ire) (Sir Percy {GB}). Kirtlington Stud's Charlie Budgett described her as, "A good-sized filly with good bone--we are very happy with what we have got." Triple Time, who also won the...

A colt born at Ramiro Salazar's Phoenix Farm and Racing near Georgetown, Kentucky is the first reported foal for Horse of the Year and Darley stallion Cody's Wish (Curlin--Dance Card, by Tapit). Bred by Frederick & May Construction, the colt made his way into the world Monday, Jan. 6. He is out of three-time graded winner Hotshot Anna (Trappe Shot), a seven-time black-type winner who earned just over $975,000. Frederick & May Construction purchased the mare for $400,000 at the 2022 Keeneland November sale. Cody's Wish, winner of the GI...

In yesterday's edition of Value Sires for 2025, Chris McGrath profiled the stallions standing between $20,000 and $29,999, awarding the gold medal to Darley's Hard Spun (read more here). Here, we asked the breeders to hand out their top picks for this category. Carrie Brogden Gold: Hard Spun (Danzig x Turkish Tryst, by Turkoman), Darley, $25,000 My top value sire in this bracket is Hard Spun. Even though he doesn't always throw the most commercial physical horses, if you choose your mare wisely, you can get a sales horse that...

It may be the season to be jolly, but it's also a time of reflection, and there are many ways one can look back on a first-season sires' championship in Britain and Ireland that was ultimately dominated from start to finish by Whitsbury Manor Stud's Sergei Prokofiev.  The cool thing to say about this year's championship was that none of the new stallions seemed to be standing out from the crowd like Blue Point (Ire) and Havana Grey (GB) had done in previous years.  That may well be true, but...