Lonhro supplies another jewel as Lyre lands Blue Diamond Stakes

Darley Australia stalwart Lonhro supplied his 12th elite winner when daughter Lyre came with a power-packed run to readily land the prestigious Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes at Caulfield on Saturday.

Bred and raced by Godolphin, Lyre is the second foal out of Erato, a placed daughter of Street Cry. Lonhro has already clicked with this family to good effect, as Erato is a half-sister to his son Impending, another Godolphin homebred who landed two top-flight events, the 2017 Stradbroke Handicap and the 2018 Kingsford-Smith Cup.

Lonhro, a 20-year-old son of Octagonal who stands at Darley's Kelvinside property in New South Wales, is due to begin his 15th breeding season later this year. Lyre becomes the sixth Group 1-winning offspring of Lonhro to be bred by Sheikh Mohammed's operation, following in the footsteps of Pierro, Impending, Kementari, Mental and Exosphere.

A further two of Lonhro's top-level winners, Beaded and Denman, were bred by Bob Ingham's Woodlands Stud, a racing and breeding empire that was purchased lock, stock and barrel by Sheikh Mohammed for a reported A$500 million in 2008.

Lonhro was among the 83 Group 1 winners bred and raced by Ingham, whose runners carried the distinctive all cerise silks.

Lonhro also shuttled to Darley's Jonabell Farm in Kentucky for three seasons from 2012 to 2014, from where he sired the likes of Belmont Stakes runner-up Gronkowski and July Stakes winner Cardsharp.

He has now begun making his mark from the second generation of pedigrees, most notably through Pierro, himself a five-time Group 1 winner. The Coolmore Australia resident has already sired three elite winners with Kingston Town Classic scorer Arcadia Queen, Australian Derby victor Levendi and Kennedy Oaks heroine Pinot.

The success of Lyre also paid tribute to the influence of another Darley stallion, the late Street Cry. The son of Machiavellian will forever be remembered as the sire of wondermare Winx, but he is also proving a force to be reckoned with in the maternal line of pedigrees too.

His daughters have supplied high-class talents such as Grade 1 winner Diversify, Prolific Grade 2 winner Are You Kidding Me, Rockfel Stakes scorer Lucida, Vintage Stakes winner War Decree and runaway Moyglare Stud Stakes heroine Skitter Scatter, who is among the leading fancies for the 1,000 Guineas.

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