ROGER-YVES, Valerie and Nicolas Simon bred the final winner on the opening day of this year’s Cheltenham Festival when Haiti Couleurs (Dragon Dancer) landed the Princess Royal National Hunt Chase.
Bought by Luke Cummins through George Mullins for €7,000 at Arqana at two, Haiti Couleurs was reoffered at the Tattersalls May Sale the following year, the sale held in August due to the pandemic, but he was unsold at just €2,800. He found plenty of fans when he was consigned by Harley Dunne at Tattersalls Cheltenham in January 2022 after running second in a point-to-point, costing trainer Rebecca Curtis £68,000.
The horse he finished second to, Path D’Oroux, cost £105,000 at the same sale, and the race they met in was won in the two preceding years by none other than Bob Olinger and Grand Jury.
Haiti Couleurs is now a six-time winner, and he bettered his Cheltenham success with a smooth win in the valuable Grade 3 BoyleSports Irish Grand National on Easter Monday. He is the undoubted star of his family, and one of just a pair of blacktype winners in four generations. He is the last of eight progeny from his dam, Inchala, a daughter of Argument (Kautokeino).
Inchala won over a mile and a half at Nancy on her second start as a three-year-old, ran second at Saint-Cloud next time out, and showed nothing more in seven subsequent starts. She is the dam of just two winners, her second foal Suavamente (Johann Quatz) winning over jumps at four in France, while one of her two daughters, the unplaced Partie Time (Nononito), bred five winners. The family did not lack opportunities, and Inchala was one of three winners from eight foals, all of whom raced, out of Betty Royale (Royal Charter).
Betty Royale’s sole success was over 11 furlongs at three, on the second of just four times she faced the starter. Her three winning offspring included Hey Jude (Argument), a dual winner over jumps and a full-brother to Inchala. One of Betty Royale’s daughters, Mrs Jones (Saint Preuil), ended up in Ireland and bred Tothemoonandback (Dr Massini), a successful graduate of the point-to-point scene who went on to win three chases.
André Fabre
Haiti Couleurs’ fourth dam Danse Royale (Baraban) had a dozen foals, all but one of which raced, and three of them were winners. Best of these was Lady Royale (Laniste), the third dam of the Irish Grand National winner.
Lady Royale proved to be both a talented racemare and successful breeder. Six of her seven wins in France were over jumps, and she garnered blacktype when second on her debut in the Listed Prix Wild Monarch Hurdle at Auteuil in 1980. She was owned and trained by a young man by the name of André Fabre!
At stud, all six of Lady Royale’s offspring ran, four of them winning and the others being placed. She had one talented performer in Hidalgo Royal (Video Rock). He won his only start on the flat for the wife of Ghislain Drion, and went on to add five victories over jumps, his biggest success coming in the Listed Prix Lutteur III Chase at Auteuil.
Haiti Couleurs is the best winner sired by Dragon Dancer (Sadler’s Wells), and that 22-year-old is covering this year at Chris and Rachel Dawson’s Nunstainton Stud in Durham for an advertised fee of £2,000. He moved there from France in 2018, the year after Haiti Couleurs was foaled. He is a largely overlooked sire, and what a difference a short head made to his career.
A listed winner at four in a 15-race career, his only victory, Dragon Dancer was second to Sir Percy, with Dylan Thomas third, in a blanket finish to the 2006 Group 1 Derby at Epsom, after which he travelled to the Curragh and was fourth in the Irish equivalent. Last year Dragon Dancer covered just nine mares, but Haiti Couleurs’ win might help to boost that this season.
LOOKING to buy a good racemare? Why not give Mark O’Hare a call?
Mark is the man who gave €9,500 for Honeysuckle as a store in Part 2 of the Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale, but he had to give a little bit more, €11,000, at that same company’s May Store Sale in 2021 for a daughter of Policy Maker (Sadler’s Wells) out of the winning Alderbrook (Ardross) mare Sapphire Rouge. The latter purchase was later named Spindleberry.
Mark partnered Honeysuckle to victory in a Dromahane point-to-point on her only start between the flags, but he saddled Spindleberry to win her only run in a point-to-point, and it too came at the Co Cork venue. Transferred to Willie Mullins, Spindleberry was placed on her sole outing in a bumper, won one of her three starts over hurdles, and is now unbeaten in three runs over fences. She appears to have found her forte, and could be a mare to enjoy for some time to come.
Spindleberry was no slouch over hurdles, and was runner-up to Jade De Grugy in a Grade 1, ironically the Honeysuckle Mares Novice Hurdle at Fairyhouse. She won the Listed Colreevy Mares Novice Chase at Fairyhouse on her way to claiming the weekend’s Grade 1 WillowWarm Gold Cup from Firefox and Champ Kiely. Still lightly-raced, with only eight starts under her belt, we could yet have to see the best from this Dermot Day-bred mare.
Policy Maker, the sire of Spindleberry, shares the same sire as Dragon Dancer, responsible for the Irish Grand National winner, but the former was a more accomplished racehorse, and is a more successful sire. The Blackrath Stud sire has been at that Co Kildare base since 2016 and Spindleberry is from his second Irish-conceived crop.
During his time in France, Policy Maker sired the six-time Grade 1-winning chaser Chacun Pour Soi, the Grade 1 hurdle winner Roll On Has, while his first Irish crop includes Brookie, second to Kalif Du Berlais in a Grade 1 at Aintree recently.
The emergence of Chacun Pour Soi led to a boost in support for Policy Maker for a few seasons, but that fell away in the last two. Perhaps some smart breeders will see an opportunity to use him now before it is too late. Blackrath Stud is a farm long associated with famous jump stallions under the guidance of Frank Latham, Peter Maher’s late grandfather.
Wildenstein-bred
Policy Maker was bred and raced by the Wildenstein family and four of his seven wins, from 10 to 12 furlongs, were at Group 2 level, notably landing the Grand Prix de Chantilly twice. He chased Gamut home in the Group 1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud as a four-year-old, two years later occupying the same position behind Alkaased.
His first crop included the 10-furlong listed winner Polarena, but it was when his runners started to perform with some distinction over jumps that his name began to resonate more.
Spindleberry is the third and final foal out of the winning hurdler Sapphire Rouge. One of the others was named and placed over hurdles. Sapphire Rouge was the only runner from three foals out of the bumper-placed and hurdle-winning mare Emerald Express (Bigstone). While the recent family had few opportunities, but taken them well, the back pedigree is that of a prolific Aga Khan family.
As often happens with such families, it can throw up good winners over jumps. Under Spindleberry’s fourth dam you will see such as the Grade 1 Arkle Chase at Cheltenham winner Champleve (Kendor), and the Grade 1 Punchestown Champion 4-Y-O Hurdle winner Jumbo Rio (Captain Rio).