TWO decades ago Sheikh Mohammed’s Godolphin bought into the ownership of the twice-raced Mysterial (Alleged), and little wonder that they would wish to own her.

A half-sister to Group 1 July Cup and Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp winner Agnes World (Danzig), and to Hishi Akebono (Woodman) who in 1995 was champion sprinter and miler in Japan, Mysterial had done well with her early foals. The first was Dubai Destination (Kingmambo), winner of the Group 2 Champagne Stakes for David Loder who went on to take the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot, the first year it was upgraded. By then he was trained by Saeed bin Suroor.

Dubai Destination would go on to become a Group/Grade 1 sire on the flat and over jumps, and was even more successful with his daughters, who have produced the likes of Golden Horn, Postponed, Thunder Snow and more.

Dubai Destination was bred by Calumet Farm, as was his half-brother Librettist (Danzig). The latter was trained by bin Suroor and he enjoyed a tremendous four-year-old season that saw him conquer Manduro in the Prix Jacques Le Marois and followed that with victory in the Group 1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp.

Librettist started his stud career at Dalham Hall, moved to France for a few seasons, spent a year in Italy, and finally had a couple of years at Yorton Farm Stud. Group 2 winner Libranno was his best flat runner. As a broodmare sire he was responsible for the Japanese Derby winner Roger Barows and the French classic winner Dream And Do. In the ownership of Godolphin, Mysterial’s best runner was the Group 2 winner Secret Number (Raven’s Pass).

As good as these were as racehorses, three of Mysterial’s daughters have gone on to make a mark at stud. Inner Secret (Singspiel) has three stakes winners, the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere winner Royal Marine (Raven’s Pass) being the best. Another placed daughter, Slovakia (Danzig), got the Australian Group 2 winner Tatra (Hussonet) who placed in three Group 1 races.

Made impact

Another of Mysterial’s daughters who has made an impact is Nafura (Dubawi). She raced for Saeed bin Suroor, never attempted blacktype, but she won a couple of times on the all-weather. Five of her seven foals raced and four won. One of her unraced progeny, Navette (Invincible Spirit), bred Group 3 winner Lady Of Spain (Phoenix Of Spain) who sold last year for 900,000gns, while her stakes-placed three-year-old First Legion (Mehmas) was a 500,000gns breezer in 2025.

Three of the four winners from Nafura earned large blacktype, though in the case of Leoncavallo (Cape Cross) it was in a listed hurdle race. His half-brother Real World (Dark Angel) came close to Group 1 glory, beaten on both occasions by none other than Baaeed, in the Queen Anne Stakes and Lockinge Stakes. His victories came worldwide, and included the Group 2 Prix Daniel Wildenstein in France, Group 2 Zabeel Mile in the UAE, the Royal Hunt Cup and Group 3 Strensall Stakes in England, in addition to his final victory in a listed race in Bahrain.

Born a year after Real World, his half-sister Dubai Fountain (Teofilo) joined Mark Johnston and showed smart form at two, notably beaten less than a length when second in the Group 2 May Hill Stakes and putting up a career-best performance to run fourth in the Group 1 Fillies’ Mile, denied third place by a neck. On her three-year-old debut, Dubai Fountain won a listed race at Chelmsford.

Smart racemare

With such a pedigree, and being a smart racemare, it was no surprise that Dubai Fountain would have an attractive first mating, and it resulted in a colt, Marasi Bay (Siyouni). There was no fairytale start, and the three-year-old was sold in July to the Irish trainer Anthony McCann for just 4,500gns. He has made a single unsuccessful start.

Next up was a filly, by Lope De Vega (Shamardal), and what a different story this is. That daughter is Musical Times, she is unbeaten in four starts, and the most recent two are races in which her own dam performed well – the May Hill Stakes and Fillies’ Mile. Good news for Godolphin is that they have a yearling full-sister at home.

Lope De Vega is agonisingly close to a landmark – he has racked up 99 group winners, and 28 have been successful in Group/Grade 1 races. Musical Times joins dual Group 1 winner Dreamloper as one of his top table winners out of a Teofilo (Galileo) mare. The same cross is responsible for recent Canadian Grade 3 winner Lupa, Irish Group 3 winner Elana Osario, English Group 3 winner Lady Boba, Group 3 juvenile winner King Vega, and two listed winners.

REMEMBER the 2021 Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe? It was expected the winner would emerge from the Charlie Appleby pair of Hurricane Lane and Adayar, Aidan O’Brien’s Snowfall or the Dermot Weld-trained Tarnawa. They all finished in the top six.

With Tarnawa looking like she had done enough to bring her Group/Grade 1 haul to four, the German challenger Torquator Tasso (Adlerflug) stayed on to take the lead 50 yards from the winning post. On his previous start he beat Sisfahan in the Group 1 Grosser Preis von Berlin, his second win in the race, and he had proven himself at the highest level in his home country. The good news was Torquator Tasso would stay in training as a five-year-old.

That decision did not look the wisest when Torquator Tasso disappointed on his seasonal debut, but he made amends in a Group 2 next time out. He was placed on his remaining three starts, and put up a couple of his best career performances. He beat Mishriff, Broome, Westover and Emily Upjohn in the Group 1 King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes, but had to settle for second place behind Pyledriver.

On his final star, Torquator Tasso again contested the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, and he was third to Alpinista and Vadeni, beaten half a length and a neck. Now it was time to head to stud, at Gestut Auenquelle, and he has completed four seasons there at a fee of €20,000. His first crop is now racing, and they have caught the eye of many.

Torquator Tasso did not race at two, but was one of the best of his generation after that, being beaten three-parts of a length by In Swoop in the Group 1 German Derby. He needed a mile and a half to show his best.

Sire to watch

The fact that Torquator Tasso has three juvenile winners to his credit suggests he is a sire to watch. His son Laveran won a mile maiden in late August and then was second in a listed race at Hannover. Eight days after Laveran gave the sire his first winner, another son Otonosama built on an earlier placed run to win over six furlongs in the French provinces. In the interim, Andrew Balding saddled Nakila Sun to win over a mile at Windsor. He brought the colt back to seven furlongs for the valuable British EBF Two-Year-Old Final at York, and the colt doubled up.

This win took Nakila Sun’s earnings to £69,000; some reward for the €8,000 Balding paid for him at the BBAG September Sale with bloodstock agent Richard Venn. The colt was bred by Marianne Pasler, and he is the first winner for his unraced dam Navarra Sun (Lope De Vega). She is a full-sister to a Group 3 juvenile winner in Germany, Navarra King.

Their dam Navarra Queen (Singspiel) was a group winner in Italy, and a listed winner in Germany. She sold for €44,000 at Goffs in 2021 in to Gaurav Rampal and headed to India where the foal she was carrying, Neutron (New Bay), has been placed a couple of times this year.