THERE will be few more important pedigree additions at the upcoming yearling sales than that which was provided by the winner of the Grade 2 Del Mar Derby at the weekend.

The three-year-old The Padre is the second Group/Grade 2 winner for his Kildangan Stud-based sire Ghaiyyath (Dubawi), and is one of the more progressive colts in the USA. Bred by veterinary surgeon John Halley, The Padre failed to sell at 60,000gns as a yearling and the breeder put him with his son Josh. In January, the colt won a 10 and a half-furlong maiden on his debut at Dundalk at 33/1.

In mid-June The Padre made his first start for trainer Philip d’Amato over a mile on the turf at Santa Anita, in an allowance optional claiming race, and finished second, beaten half a length. Connections clearly thought highly of the colt, as his next outing was six weeks later in the Listed La Jolla Handicap over an extended mile, which he won and took home the winner’s purse of $60,000. The quality of that win might have been questionable, but The Padre showed at the weekend that he is indeed a young horse going places.

The Padre had just four opponents for the nine-furlong Grade 2 Del Mar Derby, but he was best at the finish to boost his earnings by $180,000, and take his record to three wins and a second in four outings. D’Amato described the winner as “a real racehorse”, and his main aim for this year is likely to be the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby. The trainer indicated that The Padre is set to stay in training at four.

Sale prospects

All of this is a boost to the sale prospects of Lot 1193 on the final day of Book 2 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale. Through Galbertstown Stables, John Halley is offering a full-brother to The Padre. The dam is Shalanaya (Lomitas), and she was purchased as a 13-year-old from the Aga Khan Studs in 2019 for €55,000 through Peter Doyle Bloodstock. She was carrying the dual winner Shazam (Almanzor) who sold as a yearling at Goffs for €140,000.

The Padre is the best of eight winners and a placed horse from nine runners for their dam Shalanaya. You will likely recall the mare as she was one of the best fillies of her generation in Europe having won the Group 1 Prix de l’Opera.

She was runner-up in the Group 1 Prix Ganay and had another top-flight placing when third in the Grade 1 E P Taylor Stakes at Woodbine. Shalanaya is dam of the group-placed Shalamba (Zoffany) in addition to The Padre.

The Padre’s first four dams have the distinction of breeding a group/graded stakes winner. Shalanaya is half-sister to Group 2 winner Shankardeh (Azamour), and she had Group 1 form in the Prix Royal-Oak.

Third dam Sharamana (Darshaan), a Group 3 winner, bred a German Group 2 winner, and her unraced daughter Sharafanya (Zafonic) is establishing a very successful branch of this family. It includes last year’s Group 1 National Stakes winner Scorthy Champ (Mehmas), this year’s smart three-year-old Merchant (Teofilo), and Group 2 winner Malavath (Mehmas) who was runner-up in both the Group 1 Prix de la Foret and in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.

Aga Khan

This is one of the best Aga Khan families. The Padre’s fourth dam Sharmeen (Val De Loir) bred the unforgettable Shergar (Great Nephew) and Shernazar (Busted), and is ancestress of Australian Group 1 winner Brazilian Pulse (Captain Rio), Italian Group 1 winner Shamdala (Grand Lodge), US Grade 1 winner Shamdinan (Dr Fong) and the Canadian Grade 1 winner Choc Ice (Kahyasi).

Ghaiyyath is enjoying a fine year with his first two crops. The Padre is from the same crop as Mandanaba who won the Group 3 Prix Vanteaux and placed in the Group 1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches-French 1000 Guineas. Excitingly, the sire’s second crop is headed by the talented My Highness, winner a fortnight ago of the Group 2 Prix du Calvados. There will be no shortage of opportunities for astute buyers to acquire a son or daughter of Ghaiyyath in the coming weeks.

Irish-breds on a roll in the USA

BELLEZZA joined The Padre on the Grade 2 roll of honour last weekend, as the four-year-old Moyglare Stud homebred daughter of Siyouni (Pivotal) won the Flower Bowl Stakes at Saratoga. This was an emotional win for connections as the filly is trained by Miguel Clement, son of the late Christophe for whom she won a Grade 3 just before he died.

Bellezza was placed on both of her starts before the weekend win, running third in the Grade 1 New York Stakes at Saratoga in June. Prior to her transfer to the USA, Bellezza won her only start at two for Ger Lyons, and concluded her sophomore season with a victory in the Listed Diamond Stakes at Dundalk. How wonderful it would be for Moyglare if Clement was to get a Grade 1 win out of her before Bellezza is added to the broodmare band.

Eva Maria Haefner is never afraid to spend big when it comes to acquiring a quality broodmare or broodmare prospect. She paid $1.9 million at Keeneland for Bellezza’s dam Terrific (Galileo), carrying her first foal.

He was Tranchee (War Front), but this was not an immediate success story as it took him until the age of four to win, though the gelding then went on to add three more wins. Lilli Milena (Dansili) was next and she won one of her four starts.

Lilli Milena was sold in foal to Palace Pier (Kingman) for €190,000 and the resulting yearling colt is part of the Baroda Stud draft in Book 1 of the Goffs Orby Sale later this month.

Palace Pier has made an exceptional start to his stud career and his first crop of two-year-olds has, at the time of writing, seven winners, three of them stakes winners (Group 2, Group 3 and listed) and a stakes-placed horse. Moyglare’s team are clearly fans, and they have a yearling filly by him out of Bellezza’s dam.

Terrific’s fourth produce was Tough Talk (Kingman), a multiple winner who never reached the heights that were held for him after he beat Little Big Bear and Shartash on his debut in a Curragh maiden. He ran second at two to Blackbeard in the Group 3 Marble Hill Stakes. Tough Talk is now in training in Saudi Arabia. After Bellezza is an unraced three-year-old filly Favolosa (Sea The Stars).

Good runner

It is appropriate that Terrific should come up with a good runner. She was a 1,300,00gns yearling, and no wonder. Her full-sister Together (Galileo) won the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Keeneland and finished second in five top-flight contests, including both the English and Irish 1000 Guineas. She was born a year after her half-brother Jan Vermeer (Montjeu), a Group 1 juvenile winner and classic-placed.

Standing at Haras de Bonneval, French sire sensation Siyouni is again having a fine year. His daughter Zarigana won the Group 1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches-French 1000 Guineas and was runner-up to Cercene at Royal Ascot, Shin Emperor took his winnings to almost €3.5 million with a Group 2 wins, while Flight was runner-up in the Group 1 1000 Guineas. Siyouni has sired 11 blacktype winners in 2025.