Prix du Moulin hero Baaeed provides poignant tribute to Hamdan Al Maktoum

Baaeed not only went a long way to justifying the hype his unbeaten run has generated when winning the Group 1 Prix du Moulin at Longchamp on Sunday, but he also paid a poignant tribute to one of the most significant breeders in turf history.

The William Haggas-trained colt is the first Group 1 winner in the famous Shadwell colours since the operation's founder, Hamdan Al Maktoum, died in March at the age of 75, and the fifth generation homebred was a fitting reminder of the skill and commitment the sheikh displayed over a four-decade long involvement in racing and breeding.

Baaeed is the fifth foal out of Aghareed, a daughter of another Prix du Moulin winner in Kingmambo who won twice while in training with John Hammond, most notably the Listed Prix de Liancourt.

Aghareed is the dam of three winners, with Baaeed joined by his brother Hukum, successful in the last two runnings of the Geoffrey Freer Stakes and the John Smith's Silver Cup, and his half-brother Kasbaan, a smart handicapper by Dansili.

The mare has a two-year-old Intello filly named Zaghaareed in training with Owen Burrows and colts by Nathaniel (yearling) and Night Of Thunder (foal) on the ground.

Baaeed lands the Prix du Moulin in impressive style to get off the mark in the Tote Ten To Follow competitionCredit: Quentin Bertrand (APRH)

In turn, Aghareed is a daughter of Lahudood, who began her career with Hammond before transferring to Kiaran McLaughlin in the US, for whom she won a brace of Grade 1s, namely the Flower Bowl Invitational and Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf in 2007.

Baaeed is the latest major talent to emerge from the Height Of Fashion dynasty, which traces its roots to Sheikh Hamdan's purchase of the daughter of Bustino as a three-year-old in 1982.

Height Of Fashion, who was bred and raced initially by the Queen, was bought for a reported £1.5 million but repaid that investment many times over by having provided Sheikh Hamdan with the likes of Nashwan, Unfuwain and Nayef, who all won major prizes before becoming Group 1 winner-producing sires for the Shadwell operation.

The blue hen also bred Sarayir, whose branch of the family not only yielded 1,000 Guineas heroine Ghanaati and Oaks third Rumoush but also the Australian Group 1 winner Shraaoh, who is by none other than Baaeed's sire Sea The Stars.

Sea The Stars: Gilltown Stud resident is the sire of 15 Group 1 winnersCredit: Patrick McCann

Baaeed became the 15th Group 1 winner sired by Sea The Stars, whose roll of honour includes the likes of Crystal Ocean, Harzand, Sea Of Class and Stradivarius. The champion son of Cape Cross, who stood the 2021 breeding season at the Aga Khan's Gilltown Stud at a fee of €150,000, is the sire of 139 black-type performers, including 50 Group winners and 33 Listed scorers.

Baaeed is the second Group 1 winner by Sea The Stars to have been bred by Shadwell, following the exploits of his first-crop daughter Taghrooda who won the Oaks and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

He is also the third Group 1 winner bred on the Sea The Stars - Kingmambo cross, joining Prix Ganay victor Cloth Of Stars and Prix Jean Prat winner Zelzal.

This lineage means Baaeed has three doses of Mr Prospector in his pedigree through his damsire Kingmambo, Miswaki, who is broodmare sire of Sea The Stars' blue hen dam Urban Sea, while his fourth dam Bashayer is also a daughter of the breed-shaping son of Raise A Native.

Sea The Stars, who sits in fifth on the European sire standings, has been in fine form of late as Stradivarius retained his Lonsdale Cup Stakes crown, Lavender's Blue claimed the Celebration Mile, while Raabihah, another Shadwell homebred out of a Kingmambo mare, ran away with the Prix de Pomone.

Sea The Stars is also responsible for the hugely exciting juvenile Reach For The Moon, who was last seen winning the Solario Stakes.

Another ace for Siyouni

Earlier on the Longchamp card there was a big result for another Aga Khan Studs stallion as Haras de Bonneval's most important resident Siyouni notched his 27th Group scorer when Acer Alley sprang a surprise in the Group 3 Prix la Rochette.

The British-bred filly carried the familiar colours of Merry Fox Stud and is the fourth foal out of Willow View, an unraced Lemon Drop Kid half-sister to Craig Bennett's Moyglare Stud Stakes heroine Cursory Glance.

Willow View has quickly made up into an important member of the Merry Fox broodmare band as she is now the dam of two Group/Graded winners.

As well as Acer Alley, her first foal is Digital Age, a 325,000gns graduate of Book 1 of Tattersalls' October Yearling Sale who went on to land the Grade 1 Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic Stakes for Klaravich Stables and Chad Brown. Acer Alley was also offered at Book 1 but was bought in at 180,000gns.

Willow View produced a colt by Dubawi on February 1 earlier this year and was among the book of mares who visited Kingman at Banstead Manor Stud in 2021.

Siyouni: leads the French sire standingsCredit: Aga Khan Studs

In turn Willow View is out of Bennett's Time Control, a daughter of Sadler's Wells who cost 1,200,000gns as a yearling and whose racing career was headlined by success in a Chester maiden, which she was awarded in the stewards' room. Time Control is a great granddaughter of Robert Barnett's champion mare Time Charter.

Acer Alley's success helped push Siyouni even further clear at the head of the French champion sire standings, while the son of Pivotal is currently in third, behind Frankel and Galileo, in the European stallion table.

Siyouni, who stood the latest breeding season at a career-high fee of €140,000, has been represented by three Group-winning juveniles in recent weeks, with Acer Alley joining Prestige Stakes victress Mise En Scene and Prix Francois Boutin scorer Who Knows.

He is also the sire of St Mark's Basilica, who is to the fore in the world rankings after victories in the Poule d'Essai des Poulains, Prix du Jockey Club and the Coral-Eclipse.

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