Written by Kristen Manning for TTR Australia New Zealand
Following Almanzor's remarkable Sydney Cup quinella, The Thoroughbred Report reminisces on another Cambridge Stud luminary, the legendary Zabeel (NZ), whose lineage consistently graced the winner's circle, shaping a rich heritage of racing success.
A G1 Sydney Cup quinella puts Almanzor (Fr) in the spotlight, bringing back memories of another Cambridge Stud star who provided more than his fair share of big race first/second finishes.
We are of course talking about the mighty Zabeel (NZ) who was represented not only by a number of feature race quinellas but also by trifectas including a particularly memorable G1 Caulfield Cup - the 1999 edition which saw Sky Heights (NZ) digging deep to hold off Laebeel (NZ) and Inaflury (NZ).
He replicated that feat as a broodmare sire in the 2013 G1 Underwood S. in which Dundeel (NZ) defeated Atlantic Jewel (Fastnet Rock) and Dear Demi (Dehere {USA}) - all out of Zabeel mares.
Almanzor (Fr) has a long way to go but with his achievement last Saturday, it is timely to have a look to how he compares with Zabeel.
Zabeel retired to stud in August 1991, and assessing a comparable timeframe in his career to Almanzor’s current date, takes us back to April 1997.
At that time, Zabeel had 198 runners for two Group 1 winners - Octagonal (NZ) and Mouawad (NZ) - both out of the legendary Eight Carat (GB) (Pieces of Eight {Ire}); one in his first crop and one in his second, and 12 stakes winners.
Almanzor served his first book of New Zealand mares in 2018, and to date from his 361 runners (globally) has also produced two Group 1 winners - Circle of Fire (Fr) and Manzoice (NZ), with 15 stakes winners in total.
Zabeel's progeny would continue to get better with time, a disctinctive trait of the sire, and his first crop would ultimately add Jezabeel (NZ) and Cronus (NZ) to his Group 1 produce tally.
When comparing staying-type stallions it is the bigger picture that matters - the long term. And with Almanzor's first overseas crop five and his New Zealand-born only four we have a few crops to analyze and compare.
As a dual hemipshere stallion, Almanzor has the advantage of numbers - 361 runners so far whilst at the same stage of his career Zabeel had been represented by 198. His winners-to-runners strike rate was 56.5 per cent; Almanzor's is 51.2 per cent.
Almanzor has sired 15 stakes winners (4.1 per cent), three more than Zabeel at the same stage.
Worthy of comparison to a four-time Grosvenor Award (NZ earnings) winner and a 15-time Dewar Award (NZ & Australian earnings) winner, from these statistics Almanzor appears to be a stallion of considerable promise.
On the radar of the best
But this has not passed the eye of many top judges, with his New Zealand Bloodstock Yearling Sale 2024 yearlings selling for up to $400,000 to the likes of Ciaron Maher, Kris Lees, Te Akau Racing, Phill Cataldo, Annabel Neasham, Roger James & Robert Wellwood, Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, Bjorn Baker and John Foote.
Cambridge Stud's Henry Plumptre was delighted with the reception Almanzor enjoyed at those sales... “the fact that the market is still supporting him, that trainers are paying good money for them is a most encouraging sign,” he said.
Whilst Almanzor is clearly capable of siring a nice sprinter, including Te Akau's unbeaten Nucleozor (NZ), they are, Plumptre noted, at best over middle distances and up.
“He has a few quick ones but not many,” he said, something which makes his sales results all the more satisfying; the knowledge that there are still plenty of owners and trainers out there keen to chase the big 2000-metre and up races.
“We know that the Australian currency is 1000-metre to 1600-metre races, but we still have some great staying events worth a lot of money.”
And Almanzor is shaping as a horse able to provide horses for those races. His progeny are doing nicely at three, but as the Sydney Cup quinella show, they are all the better at four and five.
Several lightly-raced Almanzors are showing ability, with Plumptre noting: “they just need to covert that promise into results, and he is home and hosed.”
“Almanzor's results over the past year have been strong,” Plumptre said, “and we feel that he is teetering on the edge of becoming a very good stallion.”
Positivity (NZ) is G1 Queensland Oaks-bound on the back of her G1 New Zealand Oaks second, and Nucleozor's sister Qali Al Farrasha (NZ) - the New Zealand Oaks third placegetter, is being aimed towards the Adelaide classic contests.
Cambridge Stud's own Holymanz (NZ), a four-time winner, was a game G2 Blamey S. second to Atishu (NZ) (Savabeel) in early March. The Liam Howley stable has El Poder Del Sol (NZ) who impressively broke his maiden over 2200 metres at Geelong just recently.
Henderson a self-confessed fan
One supporter of the Almanzor breed is OTI Racing's Terry Henderson, whose imported galloper Athabascan (Fr) was the second part of his sire's Sydney Cup quinella, game and tough behind Circle Of Fire (GB).
Buying another four Almanzors over the past year, Henderson is impressed by their looks, conformation and talent.
“They are better as geldings,” he said, “and they are not fast maturers - they just need that bit of time. But they are lovely looking types and we are definitely Almanzor fans.”
Athabascan was recommended to OTI by his original trainer Andre Fabre who prepared the handsome bay for his breeder Haras D'Etreham, who also bred Almanzor.
He was just the sort of horse OTI look for overseas: “we buy athletes who look like they will be suited to our middle distance and staying races,” Henderson said.
“They have to have a turn of foot as well as good conformation,” he said, noting that their physical judgement criteria takes particular notice of hoof structure.
“Horses are shod differently in Europe, they are racing on softer tracks and they don't worry as much about having a bit of heel. The biggest challenge we've always had with our imported horses has been in this regard so we like to see good, strong, healthy feet.”
OTI study the form and type of the horse first and pedigree later, but Henderson has noted that it is so often the same stallions popping up; the likes of Teofilo (Ire) and Sea The Stars (Ire) doing well in Australia.
The syndicators have also enjoyed success with a number of New Zealand-based stallions such as Savabeel and Shocking and Henderson is confident that Almanzor is the next horse to do good things for them.
“We have Almanzors showing promise both here and in Europe,” he said, placing recent purchases by the stallion with Annabel Neasham, Ciaron Maher and Kris Lees.
A local solution to breeding staying prowess
It is from Haras D'Etreham that Almanzor shuttles to New Zealand and it was there that his Sydney Cup quinella were conceived. As were another six of his stakes winners, leaving seven in New Zealand.
This poses the questions: are the mares he has enjoyed success with different types of mare in the Southern Hemisphere to the Northern Hemisphere? And is he producing different profiles with said mares?
None of his Northern Hemisphere-bred stakes winners are sprinters and overall they come out of stouter mares and families.
“I'd say that there is more speed in the mares he serves in New Zealand,” Plumptre said, noting that “a few of our good ones have been out of quick mares.”
Eight of Almanzor's first 15 stakes winners are out of Danehill (USA)-line mares; four in each hemisphere.
“Danehill works with everything!” Plumptre said, but it is interesting to note that Almanzor likes other Danzig (USA) strains as well, notably Green Desert (USA).
He is also picking up well with stamina influence with five of his stakes winners line-bred to the legendary Mill Reef (USA) whose son Doyoun (Ire) is Almanzor's third dam sire.
Though he is another horse who cannot be pigeon-holed into any distance category, Plumptre fondly remembers seeing Mill Reef before he had even raced, in a school excursion to the Balding yard!
“Mill Reef won over trips but I think it was more a case of him just being the best horse at the time, he was a champion.”
It is always nice for a stud when the genes of two of their stallions combine well and the Almanzor/Zabeel combination is looking good so far; the four stakes winners coming from 61 runners.
It is early days to compare Almanzor to Zabeel, and not really fair to him, but there is no doubt that Cambridge Stud have another exciting sire of middle distance and staying-types gracing the paddocks once trod by legends.
“He has enough around showing talent to suggest that he is really going to make it and we can't wait to welcome him back this spring,” Plumptre said.
“He has a great syndicate behind him, people who have supported him and who have been well rewarded by doing so - which has led them into involvement with our other horses like Sword Of State and Hello Youmzain.”
