Thunder Moon

Owner David Kelly does not profess to have all the answers. However, the results the chartered accountant has been enjoying on the racetrack in recent years suggest that he is asking all of the right questions. Or at least that he is looking in the right places in his pursuit of big-race riches. In an era where big-money owners dominate the top end of the yearling sale market, Kelly has quietly built up a team of horses to take on the powerhouse operations through his own judgment, sound advice from...

We're roughly at the halfway point of the Flat season now, with the July Festival in the rearview mirror and Goodwood soon to appear on the horizon, so it seems as good a time as any to assess how the class of 2026 is shaping up when it comes to the first-season sires. The first thing to say is that championship honours remain very much up for grabs, with the four young stallions at the top of the table currently being separated by just four winners. Persian Force leads the...

Castillon Stallions, Haras de Castillon's new stallion operation, has announced its fees for the 2026 breeding season, with the Group 1 winners Marhaba Ya Sanafi and Tribalist both being introduced at €6,000. Tribalist embarks on his first season at stud as a seven-time Group winner, a tally headlined by his pillar-to-post win in last year's Prix du Moulin de Longchamp, while fellow newcomer Marhaba Ya Sanafi gained his sole success at the top level in the 2023 running of the Poule d'Essai des Poulains. Shares remain available in the Classic-winning...

Group 1 winners Marhaba Ya Sanafi and Tribalist, both new to stud next year, will retire to Haras de Castillon's new stallion operation, Castillon Stallions for 2026. Fees for the duo will be announced at a later date. "Launching our own stallion station marks the realisation of a long-held ambition," said Benoit Jeffroy, who founded Haras de Castillon with Annabelle Aime in 2015. "I hope we can meet breeders' expectations with the stallion roster we're putting together. I want to sincerely thank all our partners for their trust and commitment....

A strong catalogue of 171 yearlings, including a Hello Youmzain half-brother to GIII Florida Oaks heroine Outburst (Outstrip), features in the Arqana v.2 catalogue. Selling as lot 347, he is joined by a Thunder Moon colt out of a half-sister to G2 Prix de la Nonette heroine and GI Diana Stakes second Dream Peace (Dansili) (lot 467); a Goken colt (lot 445) who is from the same family as G3 Prix Minerve winner Maroussies Wings (In The Wings); another colt by Thunder Moon (lot 312) who is out of the...

Trainer Joseph O'Brien, the denizen of picturesque Owning Hill in County Kilkenny, is still over a year away from his 30th birthday. During his six-plus years as a trainer, one could argue that great moments like the upset 2018 G1 Irish Derby win by Latrobe (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) or the 2020 G1 Melbourne Cup triumph by Twilight Payment (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) hold their very special places. However, the exploits of State Of Rest (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) last season were unusually brilliant. The now 4-year-old colt raced thrice last season after...

Joseph O'Brien has already collected an impressive haul of international trophies in less than seven years with a trainers' license, including two Melbourne Cups and a Breeders' Cup, and he will look to expand that collection when sending Baron Samedi (GB) (Harbour Watch {Ire}) and Thunder Moon (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) to next weekend's Saudi Cup card. LECH Racing Limited's 5-year-old Baron Samedi rose rapidly through the ranks after being gelded in 2020, with four straight handicap wins followed by victory in the G2 Prix du Conseil de Paris, and he...

Joseph O'Brien's Group 1-winning juveniles Thunder Moon (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) and Pretty Gorgeous (Ire) (Lawman {Fr}) will attempt to get back in the winner's enclosure at Royal Ascot next week. Chantal Regalado-Gonzalez's Thunder Moon stamped himself as a leader of his generation in the autumn with a victory in the G1 Goffs Vincent O'Brien National S. and a third in the G1 Dewhurst S., but disappointed when last of 14 in the May 1 G1 2000 Guineas. "Thunder Moon obviously disappointed at Newmarket, so we've put a line through that...

Entries were revealed on Wednesday for the G1 Qipco 2000 Guineas and G1 Qipco 1000 Guineas, with 72 colts signed on for the 2000 Guineas on May 1 and 63 fillies for the 1000 the following day. Aidan O'Brien has saddled 10 winners of the first Classic of the season and has 12 entries for the 2000 Guineas, including 2-year-old champion St Mark's Basilica (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) and G2 Vintage S. scorer Battleground (War Front). O'Brien's son Joseph, likewise, has Chantal Regalado-Gonzalez's G1 Goffs Vincent O'Brien National S. winner Thunder...

The Juveniles The dark clouds had gathered come Ireland's opening turf fixture of the year at Naas in March, with the meeting held behind closed doors and giving rise to now customary scenes. As the curtain was raised, an oft-repeated sketch unfolded with Jim Bolger homebred Poetic Flare (Ire) (Dawn Approach {Ire}) annexing the first juvenile event of the year, a feat which the trainer had previously achieved on multiple occasions including with Poetic Flare's sire in 2012. Normal service resumed but, then again, not. The global pandemic soon tightened...