Three-time Group 1 hero Circus Maximus to retire to Coolmore for 2021 at £20,000

Circus Maximus will retire to Coolmore for 2021, it was confimed on Thursday, when his 2021 fee was revealed to be £20,000.

The superbly consistent triple Group 1-winning colt was a fast-diminishing neck second to stablemate Order Of Australia in last Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup Mile, in which trainer Aidan O'Brien saddled the first three home at Keeneland as he broke his duck in the race.

The son of Galileo was bred by the Niarchos family, being the only foal out of Duntle, their dual winner over the straight mile at Royal Ascot.

Like his dam, Circus Maximus scored twice at the royal meeting, defeating King of Comedy and Too Darn Hot to win the sire-making Group 1 St James’s Palace Stakes, and adding the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes earlier this season.

As a three-year-old he also won a strong renewal of the Group 1 Prix de Moulin de Longchamp, in which he beat Classic-winning milers Romanised, Olmedo and Phoenix Of Spain along with the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf winner Line Of Duty.

Circus Maximus also showed a high level of form as a two-year-old and was beaten only a length in the Group 1 Vertem Futurity Trophy Stakes.

“Circus Maximus is very tough and travels with a lot of speed,” said O’Brien. “He’s that type of horse that can often make very good stallions. We’ll definitely be breeding to him.”

Circus Maximus hails from the family of the Coolmore America-based stallion Munnings, whose consistency in upgrading his mares has seen his fee increase fourfold since he initially retired to stud.

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