Will Desert Hero stay the Leger trip?

Pedigree guide to the Betfred St Leger at Doncaster on Saturday

By Laura Joy

Horse Racing

Sat September 16, 2023 · 1y ago

Our bloodstock expert Laura Joy takes an in-depth look at the pedigrees for the final field in the Betfred St Leger at Doncaster on Saturday.

Continuous (Heart’s Cry x Fluff by Galileo)

Continuous has an admirable constitution whereby even in defeat it’s impossible not to like him. The son of the late Heart’s Cry has won on good to firm and ‘very soft’ and finally got his consistent yet a fraction underwhelming season back on track in tremendous style in York’s Great Voltigeur Stakes, a key trial for the final Classic of the season. Ground should not be an issue with his trainer highlighting his slight knee action and his Japanese roots instilling confidence on a faster surface too.

Heart’s Cry was everything the Japanese pride themselves on producing. It was at four and five years old where he reached his peak, earning his first Graded black type in April as a 4yo. He was a nose away from G1 glory in the Japan Cup and finally rewarded his connections patience and belief in the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic as a five year old. 11 Grade/Group 1 winners to his name to date have excelled from a mile to beyond two miles and it won’t be Heart’s Cry who will be accountable if Continuous empties out at the two furlong pole.

Continuous boasts a truly international pedigree. His dam Fluff is a winning daughter of Galileo and Listed winner Sumora (Danehill). Not only does that combine the match made in heaven of Galileo and Danehill with our distinguished Japanese counterparts, but Fluff is a full sister to Champion Two Year Old Maybe. From a not too dissimilar trip to Japan, Maybe produced a Classic winner of her own in Saxon Warrior (Deep Impact). Furthermore, there are no less than two Epsom victors further back on the page in Dancing Rain (Danehill Dancer) and Dr Devious (Ahonoora). Armed with this information, it is difficult to make a case against Continuous and quite frankly, possibly a waste of words.

Gregory (Golden Horn x Gretchen by Galileo)

We’re all familiar with the old wives tale ‘Nothing sells better than a dead man’s stock’. Thankfully 2015 Derby winner Golden Horn is alive and kicking but in terms of his career as a flat sire, our relentless and unforgiving market has moved on. How many breeders who backed the talented Classic winner at £60,000 would be shouting ‘I told you so’ were he to unearth his first Classic winner and first at Group 1 level from his fourth crop to race?

On pedigree alone Gregory is a standout favourite and his form is not far behind. He is a half-brother to another Listed Cocked Hat winner Lionel (Lope de Vega) and the pair are the best of three foals of racing age to date produced by Gretchen (Galileo). Gretchen is out of Philippa Cooper’s high-class miler Dolores (Danehill) who is responsible for a trio of smart middle distance stakes horses. Irish St Leger winner Duncan (Dalakhani), Group 2 Doncaster Cup winner Samuel (Sakhee) and of course Gretchen herself who shone brightest in the Group 2 Park Hill Stakes over the St Leger track and trip; a race often considered the fillies equivalent of the St Leger.

We don’t need to go back any further in the family to prove Gregory’s St Leger credentials, but a quick glance ensures there is ample class throughout. Think the Royal family’s Derby third Carlton House (Street Cry) and Group 1 miler Lend A Hand (Great Commotion). Miler you say? In this case, given the stamina throughout his immediate pedigree, if anything it is another tick to add the vital blend of speed and stamina that it takes to win a Classic. If you’re looking for Gregory’s Achilles heel, his middle-distance supremo half-brothers both found their stride and earned their career highlights as six year olds.

The Potential

Desert Hero (Sea The Stars x Desert Breeze by Dubawi)

As is befitting of a colt carrying the Royal silks in a Classic, Desert Hero has a pedigree fit for a King. He is inbred to the matriarch and Queen of Classics Urban Sea being a son of Sea The Stars out of a granddaughter of Galileo and that’s only scratching the surface of William Haggas’ charge. He is the first foal out of the unraced Dubawi mare Desert Breeze, herself a full sister to Group 2 Royal Ascot winner Dartmouth who found his winning groove over trips beyond a mile and a half for the late Queen Elizabeth II. Desert Breeze is kin to another Group 2 winning stayer in Manatee (Monsun) as well as the dam of Grade 2 Belmont Gold Cup winner Siskany (Dubawi).

This is the Royal branch of a regally bred Wildenstein family that features 2002 Champion Older Female Stayer Aquarelliste amongst multiple other high class stakes winners. Add to that, Sea The Stars’ has enjoyed podium finishes as a sire in this race namely with Crystal Ocean who was one place shy of winning and household name Stradivarius who was third in the early stages of his stellar staying career.

Desert Hero is a colt on the up, both his performances and his pedigree adhere to that but there’s a suspicion in these courts that he may take after another talented son of Sea The Stars. Midsummer middle-distance titleholder Hukum could ‘only’ manage fifth in the 2020 renewal of this race and was found wanting in this grade as an early stage of his impressive career. Jaws will not drop if Desert Breeze follows suit here and finds his stride further down the line.

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Arrest (Frankel x Nisryna by Intikhab)

Reigning Champion Sire Frankel has already won this race as a sire with fan favourite Logician and Arrest aims to become a second Classic winner of 2023 for Juddmonte following Chaldean’s 2000 Guineas success. Arrest is the sixth foal to race out of his dam Nisriyna and the third to earn black type. His likeable half-brother Spring Loaded (Zebedee) was a fan favourite for his durability (he made 41 starts) but is an out and out sprinter.

Arrest’s dam is by the ultimately disappointing sire Intikhab and was purchased as a maiden for just €2000 in 2010. Intikhab has since proven a surprise as a broodmare sire despite covering small books at low fees – think Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner Found and admirably tough sprinter Gordon Lord Byron. In fact, from just three foals by Frankel out of daughters of Intikhab, two have won stakes and all three are winners. Although Nisriyna has earned back the initial outlay to obtain her for breeding in spades, her progeny take away rather than lend to the case that the St Leger might not be Arrest’s place to shine. However, it would be foolish to write off a son of our Champion Sire. The rain needs to fall for Arrest to show his best and in this case a blind leap of faith in Frankel and Frankie needs to follow if Arrest is your selection.

Middle Earth (Roaring Lion x Roheryn by Galileo)

Galileo famously announced his talents as a young sire in no uncertain terms with Nightime’s Irish 1000 Guineas success in his first crop. The very same season, Sixties Icon led home a 1-2-3 for the fledgling sire in the St Leger and with Middle Earth one of three set to line up out of mares by Galileo, there’s a live chance Galileo could pull off a similar, if not equally impressive feat.

Were it to be the supplemented Middle Earth who leads home the trio, the achievement would be made even more impressive given his own sire Roaring Lion’s tragically premature death after siring just one crop. The success of Dubai Mile (Roaring Lion) as a juvenile in the 10f G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud indicates that Roaring Lion would have been capable of passing on his great grandsire’s class and stamina and the colt in question is inbred 4x3 to the great sire himself, Sadler’s Wells. Stamina shouldn’t be a problem but his class is untested. A smart handicapper to date, Middle Earth’s dam struck at Listed level and her dam was a smart two year old winning the G3 Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot. It is back to the fifth dam to find a G1 winner and it will register as a surprise in the stud book if this lightly raced colt makes that giant leap on this stage.

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Alexandroupolis (Camelot x Jazz Cat by Tamayuz)

Alexandroupolis strikes as a colt whose reputation precedes him. A son of Camelot who came so close to landing a near impossible Triple Crown success in the modern era, could he avenge his sire’s controversial defeat?

His dam Jazz Cat is a daughter of Group 1 winning miler Tamayuz. She failed to win in four attempts over 7 furlongs as a three year old - that would not lend much encouragement at face value to Alexandroupolis’ Leger credentials. However, Jazz Cat is a daughter of Chelsea Rose (Desert King), a 12f Listed winner and Group 1 placed over a mile and a quarter who is best known as the dam of another St Leger winner in Kew Gardens (Galileo). Camelot is a source of class as much as he is a source of stamina and his progeny are not guaranteed stayers as is often misunderstood. Thus, it is on Alexandroupolis’ distaff pedigree where he is worth backing to stay. Let us get one thing straight, to date a disappointing third in a Derby Trial is his best form on offer so he will need Camelot’s class and Jazz Cat’s superior stamina genes to shine through if he is going to live up to his lofty reputation.

Chesspiece (Nathaniel x Royal Solitaire by Shamardal)

Arguably one of the most underutilized and underappreciated stallions around, Nathaniel is represented by a lightly raced and consistent colt here. Chesspiece has improvement to find on all known form but being by the sire who has gifted us supermare Enable, relentless galloper Quickthorn and the emphatic enigma Desert Crown amongst 20 Group winners to date, that is far from impossible. Not only is his dam Royal Solitaire by top damsire Shamardal but she was talented too. Champion Older Mare in Germany in 2016, Chesspiece is just her second foal and second winner. His second dam Reverie Solitaire (Nashwan) won at Listed level over a mile and a half and his third dam is shared with Champion Older Mare and Breeders’ Cup Heroine Queen’s Trust (her second dam).

Though Nathaniel has proven his progeny can blossom in time for their Classic season, there are others who have benefitted from patience. Given the progressive nature of Chesspiece’s family – he boasts no less than three Champions of the Older division in his first four dams – there is a distinct possibility he will find more improvement with time and racing.

Tower Of London (Galileo x Dialafara by Anabaa)

It doesn’t take a genius to highlight that Tower Of London is a full brother to 2017 St Leger winner Capri who also took in the Irish Derby on route to his second Classic. Whilst stamina is in abundance and his ability to get the trip is hardly in doubt, the Melbourne Cup has been nominated as his season end target. If he pitches up here, he is likely to be a few gallops shy of 100%.

Denmark (Camelot x Board Meeting by Anabaa)

Like Alexandroupolis, Denmark has thus far failed to live up to the buzz about him as a juvenile. His form is below what is required for a St Leger and his constitution even more so. The talent appears to be there but in no uncertain terms, it is not stamina that has prevented him winning his last two starts over 1m6f. He is lightly raced though and has a pedigree for middle distances and beyond. His half-brother Big Blue (Galileo) has been successful as far as two miles and over hurdles as well. One day soon Denmark will hopefully learn how to race and if that day is Saturday, he might be good enough. Nobody knows.

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