Dazzling debut book sets the scene for Farrington's next chapter with Aclaim

For just about every horse entering the fiercely competitive and ruthlessly unforgiving stallion market, year one really is sink or swim. And with the breeding season wrapped up for another year it will soon become apparent who has found the early stages of life on covering duty plain sailing and who has lead in their boots.

Among those who has left his connections feeling buoyant is Aclaim, the Group 1-winning son of Acclamation who joined the burgeoning roster at the National Stud in Newmarket at fee of £12,500.

With 135 mares from his carefully selected debut book scanned safely in foal, Aclaim has begun penning the next chapter of what has already been a remarkable tale for Dermot Farrington, the bloodstock agent who not only co-bred the horse but retained a share during his racing career.

Aclaim wins the Group 2 Park StakesCredit: Alan Crowhurst

"It's ridiculous to think of what he's done really,” starts Farrington. "When he's trained by your father-in-law [Martyn Meade] - whose assistant is your brother-in-law [Freddie Meade] - it's great. Things like this just don't happen."

But on this occasion, they have.

The first step that took Farrington in Aclaim's direction came when he purchased the horse's dam, Aris, at Tattersalls back in 2009. Despite being a three-parts sister to Again, whose race record boasted wins in the Irish 1,000 Guineas and Moyglare Stud Stakes, a princely 75,000gns bid was all that was required to see the gavel come down in his favour.

"I bought the dam as a yearling in Newmarket," says Farrington. "She's by Danroad and nobody really knew much about him. But through my Australasian work I knew he was a good, tough horse - I actually saw him sell as a yearling - so I thought buying her when others weren't interested was a good opportunity."

With Aris, who is out of a half-sister to Montjeu, now looking like the goose that laid the golden egg, Farrington's assertion may seem like something of an understatement.

And even at the time it did not take long for his purchase to look a shrewd bit of business, as Aris gained valuable black type on just her second start.

"When she finished third in the Flame Of Tara Stakes we thought we had a right one on our hands and was sure someone would try and buy her for America," he says. "But no one ever came, and then she put in a couple of below par performances, so we dropped her in class to break her maiden and then we retired her."

Dermot FarringtonCredit: Laura Green/Tattersalls

There must have been a temptation to feel Aris had been retired prematurely when it emerged that the horse she beat in that maiden, Gordon Lord Byron, was well above average, but the sight of her first foal, Aclaim, soon put paid to that.

"When we bred her to Acclamation I thought it was a particularly nice mating - it was just one of those that physically I thought would work," he says before pausing for a moment. "But I never imagined the level he'd take us to."

That level is now a matter of record, with the upward trajectory of Aclaim's racing career taking in wins in the Challenge Stakes and the Park Stakes, before culminating with a memorable victory in the Group 1 Prix de la Foret that showcased all his class and guts.

But while owning a Group 1-winning colt may be a high-class problem, is it a problem nonetheless, and Farrington's involvement with Aclaim has not come without its share of sleepless nights.

"When he won the Challenge Stakes I turned down a ridiculous amount of money for him and was sick for the next few days thinking I was after making a mistake," he says.

"The stress started again when we were trying to place him at stud as we had all the big operations after him, so we needed to decide where was best for him and whether to sell all the equity in him or not.

"It was a big thing for me, and after we finally decided to keep him and turned down all the studs' offers I remember feeling a bit nauseous wondering if it was the right thing to do."

Aclaim (left) in full flightCredit: Alan Crowhurst

With a promising start under Aclaim's belt, Farrington can be sure he made the right call. However, he makes no secret of the fact it is the skill, hard work and faith of others that has paved the way during the early stage of Aclaim's stallion career.

"The National Stud have done a great job with him, the whole ship is run very well," he says. "And probably the best thing I've ever done is turning over the management of the horse to Mark McStay and John Ferguson.

"It's a big job, between organising and marketing and selling nominations and breeding rights. It's been a huge undertaking but I've known Mark for years and I know how good he is at selling nominations from his time at Darley. And obviously John is very well respected and as they're in partnership if you hire them you get the two of them. They've done a fantastic job and the whole thing is a great fit."

Those combined efforts have resulted in some heavy hitters from the world of breeding throwing their considerable weight behind Aclaim.

If not an exhaustive list, the fact that studs and breeders including Anita Wigan, Ballyhimikin, Bill Dwan, Littleton, Lordship, Mount Coote, New England, Paul Makin, Seamus Burns and Whitsbury Manor have all sent mares or bought breeding rights at least highlights the kind of people who have shown Aclaim their support.

Bill Dwan (left) and Paul Makin among the breeders who sent mares to AclaimCredit: Patrick McCann

Among the notable names on Aclaim's dance card include Quad's Melody, dam of Here Comes When; Queen Catrine's dam Kahira; Eurolink Artemis, dam of Euro Charline; Montjess, a half-sister to Classic winner Covert Love; and the the Classic-winning Zanzibar.

However, arguably the most significant participant in the horse's stud career is a complete newcomer to the breeding ranks, with rising power Phoenix Thoroughbreds having purchased a 50 per cent stake in the son of Acclamation in November.

"A lot of proper breeders have sent good mares to him and it's been great that Phoenix have got on board," says Farrington. "It certainly doesn't hurt having someone like Phoenix come in and make no secret of the fact they want to go and support him. I know I've bred to stallions in the past on the basis that the stallion owners are big purchasers of foals and yearlings."

The first example of Phoenix's support came during the recent Tattersalls July Sale, where, through Farrington, the big-spending operation signed for the first mare offered in foal to Aclaim at 80,000gns.

While such an encouraging start is clearly a source of satisfaction, such is Farrington's belief in Aclaim that it has not come as a surprise.

"There's so many horses going to stud nowadays but this horse has a list of attributes that breeders can hang their hat on," he says. "The market wants speed, they want Acclamation, they want a beautiful female line and a good-looking horse to boot, and that's what Aclaim offers."

While Farrington and Aclaim may have already come a long way together, with firm foundations in place for his second career, one could argue that the journey has only just begun.

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