American Pharoah to shuttle for 2017 southern hemisphere covering season

Coolmore have made the surprising announcement that Triple Crown winner American Pharoah is to shuttle from his US base at Ashford Stud in Kentucky to their Australian wing in the Hunter Valley for the 2017 southern hemisphere breeding season, which begins on September 1.

It is rare for a horse of American Pharoah's stature and lofty position in the stallion market to shuttle. A more common scenario for a horse of his calibre would be to stay at home and cover mares to southern hemisphere time.

“We have been overwhelmed by interest from Australasian breeders in American Pharoah ever since he retired to stud in Kentucky,” said Coolmore Australia’s Tom Magnier. “It’s well recognised that he is a once-in-a-lifetime horse and the opportunity to bring him to Australia is an irresistible one.

“He’s a faultless physical specimen and free of Danehill blood, so is a perfect complement to our own band of Fastnet Rock and Danehill mares. We will be supporting him with our own quality mares and we have already had a number of top breeders approach us with the intention of supporting him heavily.”

The bold move will see American Pharoah stand alongside the familiar names of Fastnet Rock, Starspangledbanner and So You Think, as well as five-time Group 1-winning champion two-year-old Pierro and fellow shuttlers Vancouver and Declaration Of War.

He is due to be introduced at a fee of A$66,000 (£41,000/€47,835).

The son of Pioneerof The Nile, who retired from racing at the end of his three-year-old campaign in 2015, became the first horse in 37 years to land the US Triple Crown of the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes.

“He excelled in everything he was ever asked to do,” added Magnier. “He won a Grade 1 over 1400m on his second start [Futurity Stakes] and was nothing short of a phenomenon from that point onwards. I couldn’t be more excited at the prospect of offering him to Australian breeders and can’t wait for people to have the opportunity to see him in the spring.”