'It shows you what an eternal dreamer can do' - patience is a virtue for Mickley's Richard Kent as Tokaido rewards with Group 3 breakthrough

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It can take years for a breeder's faith in a family to be rewarded. That was the case for Mickley Stud, whose persistence was vindicated by Tokaido, the homebred gelding who advertised the operation's long-term approach with victory in the Group 3 Prix du Bois at Deauville last weekend.

Trained by Amy Murphy, the second-crop son of Mickley's resident stallion Ubettabelieveit has improved from a debut second at Saint-Cloud in March to win all three of his subsequent starts. 

He followed up a four-length victory in a Chantilly conditions event with a first stakes success in the Listed Prix la Fleche over the same course and distance. 

His recent Group 3 win was yet another step up the ladder and a further boost to the profile of his sire, as well as a landmark success for expat trainer Murphy, who suggested that the Group 2 Prix Robert Papin could be next on the agenda.

Tokaido was bred by Richard Kent’s Shropshire operation alongside Tim and Miranda Johnson out of the Dark Angel mare Dora's Sister. He is the 11th foal out of the Catterick winner, but the first black-type scorer or performer for the mare, who was bought by Kent for £9,000 at the 2012 DBS August Sale. 

Kent said of Tokaido: "He was a smashing foal. When I bought his mother from John Quinn, she'd got injured, but he told me she had a lot of ability. He was her 11th foal, so it shows you what an eternal dreamer can do because most people wouldn't keep going for 11 foals to get the black-type horse.

"She'd bred a couple of early horses who looked really good, including Dorney Lake, who John Gosden had, but he had colic surgery and a few simple things went wrong for him. 

"This horse was beautiful as a foal, but we knew if we took him to the foal sales, with the mare not producing a black-type horse, we would get no money. So we took him to the yearling sales."

Tokaido followed up his Listed win at Chantilly with success in the Group 3 Prix du BoisCredit: Racing Post/Burton

Tokaido was bought by Stroud Coleman and Murphy for £58,000 at the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale and is owned by Daniel MacAuliffe and Anoj Don. His new connections received advance notice as far as his potential was concerned.

Kent said: "We have a very good Romanian horseman working here and he used to call the horse Ferrari every day. He told Amy Murphy and Matt Coleman he was our Ferrari, so that's the joke that's gone on all year; the horse they named Ferrari has turned out to be a Ferrari."

Ubettabelieveit has supplied two black-type winners this year, the other being Listed Spring Cup Stakes scorer Hilitany. That first-crop son was a dual winner at two for George Boughey, while he was also fourth in the Group 2 Blue Point Sprint at Meydan in January before his stakes success at Lingfield. 

Winner of the Group 2 Flying Childers Stakes during his own racing career, Ubettabelieveit has thrown stock who have proved popular with trainers due to their genuine and hardy natures. 

His other winners have included American victor and Grade 3-placed Iriseach, Tricky Tel, a four-time winner from only nine starts, and Brandenburg, a last-time-out juvenile winner at Beverley in May. 

He has made a strong start with his runners in Britain and Ireland this term, with 16 winners emerging from his 55 runners, which gives a respectable strike-rate of 29 per cent. 

His two-year-old winner haul sits at five and it could receive a further boost at Sandown on Friday, with two of his progeny, the Richard Hughes-trained Bint Archange and Nigel Tinkler's Ronson, heading the market for the Listed Coral Dragon Stakes.

"The trainers who have bought one always want to come back and buy another because they're very easy to train," said Kent. "They're lovely, kind horses. These sons of Kodiac just seem to have fantastic temperament and the will to win."

A new addition to the Mickley roster this year is Soldier's Call, likewise a winner of the Flying Childers as a two-year-old, and also Group 1-placed behind Blue Point and Battaash in the King's Stand Stakes and Nunthorpe at three. 

Soldier's Call: new recruit to Mickley Stud this yearCredit: Dullingham Park

The son of Showcasing, who previously stood at Ballyhane Stud before relocating to Dullingham Park in Newmarket and then Ace Stud, has had his two-year-olds this year advertise him to good effect. 

Among their number is last Saturday's Italian Listed winner Battito and the unbeaten Adonius, a three-time winner for Rebecca Menzies whose targets for the year include the Breeders' Cup and Molecomb Stakes at Goodwood. All told this term, his European juvenile winner count stands at nine. 

Kent said of Soldier's Call: "He's doing great. He covered only 11 mares last year in Newmarket and we sent five of those to him. It's been a fantastic year to have him because we've covered about 55 with him, including about 30 of our own mares."

Massaat completes the Flat roster at Mickley, having come up with a Group 1 winner courtesy of Docklands. 

The popular Harry Eustace-trained six-year-old won the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot last year, while he landed the Listed Doncaster Mile in March and finished a close third in the Group 1 Champions Mile at Sha Tin in April. 

Also the sire of Group 3 winners Coco Jamboo and Queues Likely, the Group 2 winner and 2,000 Guineas runner-up is the type of stallion who can be a very useful ally to smaller owners and breeders in the UK. 

Kent said: "He's a good horse, but the only problem is when you're trying to put [progeny] into the sales. It's not always as easy because the companies are all trying to look for high-end, big commission horses.

"We've had trouble trying to get them into the sales because the companies all want these 50 to 100 grand-type horses. The trouble is we haven't that many people in this country who can afford that type of horse."

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