NATIONAL Hunt breeders are flocking in droves to Sageburg at Denis Hickey’s Garryrichard Stud, and the reasons are clear. In his first season in Wexford last year he covered 148 mares.

However, canny flat breeders who wish to find value and opportunity for their mares could do worse than consider the son of Johannesburg as a mate for their mares.

The 2016 flat season is still very young but Sageburg has made a storming start to the year in France with his two-year-olds, and has already seen three of them visit the winner’s enclosure. With more than 80 potential runners in that crop, he could be well placed for a high position on the juvenile table at the end of the year.

It should not be forgotten that he is already the sire of a pair of group winners from his first four crops of racing age, the Group 2 Prix de Sandringham winner and Group 1 placed Peace Burg (out of a Sadler’s Wells mare) and the Group 3 winner Si Sage, out of a daughter of Poliglote, himself a son of Sadler’s Wells. With plenty of mares around from the Sadler’s Wells sire line, Sageburg could be a really good cross to consider.

Over jumps Sageburg has also made an exceptionally promising start and his son Ch’tibello won the Grade 2 Scottish Champion Hurdle this year for Dan Skelton. While the trainer revealed that he couldn’t wait to go chasing with the five-year-old, he was now putting that plan on hold for next season at least.

Sageburg is also the sire of a pair of black type jump winners in France, Ange D’Amour and Fou Et Sage. The last named is also out of a mare by Poliglote.

Unraced at two years, Sageburg developed into a top-class performers over the next two years, the highlights including his victory in the Group 1 Prix d’Ispahan over nine furlongs and his placed efforts in the Group 1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp at a mile and the Prix Ganay over 10 and a half furlongs. His dam is a Group 2 winning full-sister to the Arc winner Sagamix and a half-sister to the Group 1 winning two-year-old Sagacity.

It should not be forgotten either that after Scat Daddy, the record-breaking sire and Ashford Stud resident, Sageburg is one of the very best racing sons of the world champion two-year-old Johannesburg. At that age the son of Hennessy won the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile in the USA, the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes in Ireland, the Group 1 Middle Park Stakes in England and the Group 1 Prix Morny in France.