Celebrating the best of breeding with the Racing Post Bloodstock Awards

Sire of the year

It took something special to snatch the prize away from Galileo in the year he gained his 11th British and Irish sires' championship by a margin of nearly £8 million and supplied another slew of big-race winners headed by Anthony Van Dyck, Circus Maximus, Hermosa, Japan, Magical, Sovereign and Waldgeist.

But the achievements of Shamardal in 2019 really were quite extraordinary, and so he narrowly gets the vote.

The Kildangan Stud stalwart was represented by three unbeaten Group 1-winning two-year-olds in champion-elect Pinatubo, Earthlight and Victor Ludorum, as well as Blue Point, who won the King's Stand and Diamond Jubilee Stakes in the space of five days at Royal Ascot.

For good measure, in the past 12 months he also delivered the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches winner Castle Lady as well as Skardu and Shaman, who reached the podium in the 2,000 Guineas and Poule d'Essai des Poulains respectively.

Breakthrough sire of the year

It took former Ballylinch Stud resident Dream Ahead five seasons with progeny of racing age to become an overnight success.

The son of Diktat entered 2019 with one Group 1 winner to his name: the Prix Jacques le Marois hero Al Wukair. But by the end of the year he had trebled that tally as first-crop son Donjuan Triumphant took the British Champions Sprint on his swansong aged six and three-year-old filly Glass Slippers, from his penultimate Irish-conceived crop, ran away with the Prix de l'Abbaye.

Dream Ahead: established himself as a solid source of classy sprintersCredit: Ballylinch Stud

Dream Ahead had another two top-class sprinters besides those in Dream Of Dreams, who flashed home to finish a head second to Blue Point in the Diamond Jubilee Stakes, and Forever In Dreams, who ran second in the Commonwealth Cup and third behind Donjuan Triumphant in the British Champions Sprint.

About to embark on his fourth covering season at Haras de Grandcamp in France, he now looks a solid source of speedy performers.

Jumps sire of the year

A posthumous honour for late Haras de Cercy stallion Voix Du Nord, a dual Group 1-winning son of Valanour.

His imports from the French racing scene included an uncannily high number of jumps superstars in Britain and Ireland in the past 12 months, including Defi Du Seuil, Espoir D'Allen, Kemboy and Voix Du Reve, as well as useful sorts such as Destrier, Djingle and Duca De Thaix.

Voix Du Nord succumbed to a heart attack aged only 12 in 2013, leaving 295 foals over eight years at stud – an average of only 37 offspring per crop. It boggles the mind to think what he might have achieved with stronger support and more time.

Broodmare of the year

If a stallion delivered a Classic winner and a multiple top-level scorer in the same year they would be placed on a pedestal, even though they have fathered dozens of progeny per crop; so when a broodmare manages the same feat in spite of being able to produce just one foal each season, she deserves our utmost respect.

Sottsass: one of three Pattern winners from as many runners for Starlet's SisterCredit: Alan Crowhurst

Ecurie des Monceaux's exceptional young mare Starlet's Sister did just that in 2019, with her three-year-old son Sottsass landing the Prix du Jockey Club by two lengths and running a creditable third in the Arc, and her five-year-old daughter Sistercharlie notching victories in the Diana, Beverly D and Flower Bowl Stakes to take her Grade 1 tally since being switched to the US to seven.

What makes the accomplishments of Starlet's Sister all the more laudable is that her third racecourse representative, the four-year-old filly My Sister Nat, is also a Pattern winner and those aforementioned offspring were not the result of outlandishly expensive coverings.

Sistercharlie is by Myboycharlie (stood at a €6,500 fee when the mare was conceived), My Sister Nat is by Acclamation (€35,000) and Sottsass is a son of Siyouni (€20,000).

Breeder of the year

Arc hero Waldgeist and fellow multiple Group 1 winner Japan hail from the same nursery, renowned for its select band of blue-chip mares, judicious matings and meticulous nurture of young stock: Newsells Park Stud in Hertfordshire.

As if those two outstanding talents (the first bred in partnership with Gestüt Ammerland) were not enough to justify the operation receiving the accolade, there were plenty of other graduates who won Pattern races in 2019 besides.

Japan's year-younger brother Mogul took Group 2 honours at Leopardstown and Soffia announced herself one of the best sprinters around, while US Grade 3 winner Demarchelier and German St Leger victor Ispolini advertised Newsells Park bloodlines on the world stage.

Consignor of the year

With only its second draft at Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale, and only five lots sent through the ring that week, Hazelwood Bloodstock sold the 3,600,000gns top lot – the Dubawi half-brother to Barney Roy – to Godolphin as well as another seven-figure colt, the son of Kingman and Australian Group 3 winner One Last Dance, to Coolmore for 1,800,000gns.

Adrian O'Brien: his Hazelwood Bloodstock has quickly become a leading vendorCredit: Laura Green

Adrian and Philippa O'Brien's Newmarket operation, established only in 2016, also sold the dearest yearling at Tattersalls in December, when the Dubawi colt out of Voleuse De Coeurs was knocked down to Sun Bloodstock for 200,000gns.

Graduates sold by Hazelwood Bloodstock for clients in its short existence include this year's Listed scorer Festive Star and exciting novice stakes winners King Leonidas and Look Closely.

Bargains of the year

It might seem odd to call 300,000gns a bargain sum, but it is when it is given for a filly by Galileo – whose covering fee is reputed to be much more – out of Group 1 heroine Chachamaidee, and the lot in question goes on to win the Lancashire Oaks and confirm herself a breeding prospect of immense value.

So, even with that six-figure outlay, Cathy Grassick's purchase of Klassique for client Yvonne Jacques at Book 1 in 2016 was cheap at twice the price.

At the other end of the price spectrum is Mild Illusion, a daughter of Requinto bought by Jonathan Portman for just 1,000gns at Book 3 who won three races for the trainer at two this season, including the Listed Bosra Sham Fillies' Stakes, and earned £66,000 in prize-money thanks largely to finishing second in a sales race.

Few people could say they have made 160,000-times their initial expenditure on a horse trade but Portman can, as he sold Mild Illusion on to Tally-Ho Stud for that six-figure amount at the Tattersalls December Breeding-Stock Sale this month.

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