First winner for Wootton Bassett's Prix de l'Abbaye hero Wooded

Prix de l'Abbaye winner Wooded recorded his first success as a stallion on Wednesday when daughter New Way Baby won the Prix Freddy Head over six furlongs at Evreux for Edouard Monfort. 

The filly was making her second start having been fourth on her debut at Le Lion D'Angers in late March and was bred, in partnership with Scea Des Prairies, by Al Shaqab Racing, who raced and stand her Group 1-winning sire. 

She led home a 1-3 in the race for first-season sires who stand at Haras de Bouquetot as the third, Elenka, is a daughter of Irish 2,000 Guineas and Prix Jacques le Marois winner Romanised.

New Way Baby's broodmare sire is another resident of Haras de Bouquetot; Al Shaqab's quadruple Group 1 winner Olympic Glory.

She was sold by Haras de Castillon at Arqana's October Yearling Sale for €15,000 to Chauvigny Global Equine and is the second foal out of Nouvelle Voie, a juvenile winner for Al Shaqab.

Nouvelle Voie is a half-sister to the Grade 3 San Francisco Mile winner Tigah, by Dalakhani, and to Muhalif, a Listed winner in Germany last season by Lawman. She is also a half-sister to Practitioner, who was second in the Listed Washington Singer Stakes at Newbury and then, as Fat Choy Oohlala, added further lower case black type in Hong Kong.

She is also a half-sister to Royal Punch, dam of the Listed Rockingham Stakes winner Royal Rascal and second dam of Listed Churchill Stakes winner Sweet Gardenia. 

The half-sister to Wooded and Bucanero Fuerte in the ring at ArqanaCredit: Zuzanna Lupa

Second dam Macina was runner-up in the Listed Dortmunder Flieger Preis and Silberne Peitsche and third in the Group 3 Benazet-Rennen. The daughter of Platini is out of the Listed St Hugh's Stakes and Firth of Clyde Stakes winner Mamma's Too.

Wooded is a son of Wootton Bassett and was bred by Gestut Zur Kuste out of the Elusive City mare Frida La Blonde. He was sold by Haras d'Etreham for €90,000 to Al Shaqab Racing at the Arqana October Yearling Sale and won the Group 3 Prix Texanita as well as finishing his career with sprint glory at Longchamp.

His three-year-old full-brother, Bucanero Fuerte, won the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes last year and made a successful winning seasonal debut at Naas on Sunday in the Group 3 Lacken Stakes, with the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot very much on the agenda.

Their older full-brother Beat Le Bon was second in the Group 3 Sovereign Stakes for Richard Hannon and their two-year-old Dubawi half-sister topped the 2023 Arqana August Yearling Sale when making €2.4 million to Oliver St Lawrence on behalf of Fawzi Nass and Bahraini interests. She was sold, like her Group 1-winning half-siblings, by Haras d'Etreham.

Wooded stands for €10,000 at Haras de Bouquetot.

More to read

'There's lots of money out there, we just have to get it here' - meet the new sales director up for the challenge in a competitive world (€)