Essential Quality and Maxfield to join Darley's Jonabell for 2022

Medaglia D’Oro and Street Sense lead the way at $100,000 and $75,000 as fees set

Essential Quality: Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and Belmont Stakes winner will retire after the Breeders' Cup ClassicCredit: Bobby Ellis

Darley America will welcome two exciting recruits to its roster, with Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and Belmont Stakes winner Essential Quality and fellow top-flight winner Maxfield set to join the roster, which includes Medaglia D’Oro, Street Sense and Nyquist.

Essential Quality, a son of Tapit who is set to be retired after his final start in the Breeders' Cup Classic, has won eight of his nine starts – including four at the highest level – and was named two-year-old Eclipse Champion of 2020 following victories in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and Breeders’ Futurity.

The three-year-old is the fourth foal out of a Grade 3-placed half-sister to Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Folklore.

Essential Quality will be joined by Maxfield, a son of Street Sense who is out of the Bernardini mare Velvety, a half-sister to top-level winner and successful sire Sky Mesa.

The four-year-old has never been out of the top three in ten starts and rounded off his juvenile career when an impressive winner of Keeneland’s Breeders’ Futurity. Maxfield’s six other victories include the Stephen Foster and Alysheba at Churchill Downs this year, while he was also Grade 1-placed in the Whitney and Woodward Stakes.

Darley sales manager Darren Fox said: “To have both Essential Quality and Maxfield coming to Jonabell is as exciting as it gets. And to have accomplished what they did as homebreds in the colours of Godolphin makes it even that much more meaningful.

Medaglia D'Oro: leads the Jonabell Farm rosterCredit: Darley

“They consistently performed at the highest level and if you add in their outstanding pedigrees and conformation, we feel very confident that their legacy will continue to grow through their future offspring.”

The duo will join a flourishing roster that includes Medaglia D’Oro, who will stand at a fee of $100,000. With more than 80 Group/Graded winners worldwide, including 26 at the highest level, Medaglia D’Oro’s current top-tier performers feature Golden Sixty, Hong Kong Horse of the Year.

Street Sense will stand for an increased fee of $75,000 for 2022. In addition to Maxfield, Street Sense’s top performers this year also include San Vicente winner Concert Tour and Mother Goose Stakes winner Zaajel.

Last season's leading first-crop sire Nyquist will stand for a reduced fee of $55,000 in 2022. His juveniles included Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Vequist and Summer Stakes scorer Gretzky The Great.

Hard Spun will remain at $35,000 for 2022. The son of Danzig will be represented in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile by Silver State, the winner of the Met Mile and Oaklawn Handicap. His other leading runners this year include Arkansas Derby runner-up Caddo River and Grade 3 winner Antoinette.

Frosted, the sire of Fair Grounds Oak winner Travel Column, has seen his fee trimmed to $20,000, while Astern and Midshipman are priced at $10,000 apiece.

The former, who shuttles from Australia, has sired eight first-crop winners this year including Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf runner Sail By, while Midshipman has had 11 stakes winners in America this year, including Grade 2 scorer Royal Ship.

Fox continued: “In addition to the excitement of two new stallions, we are hearing from breeders a great deal of optimism, especially with the strong sales results this year.

"It goes without saying that times were tough for the industry last year but ours is a resilient bunch and hope springs eternal for the coming year. All that said, we are still maintaining moderation when setting our fees with only one of our top-tier stallions returning from last year seeing an uptick in price at this time.”

Stallion	Fee
NEW Essential Quality	TBD
NEW Maxfield	TBD
Medaglia D’Oro	$100,000
Street Sense	$75,000
Nyquist	$55,000
Hard Spun	$35,000
Frosted	$20,000
Street Boss	$15,000
Astern	$10,000
Midshipman	$10,000
Enticed	$5,000