THIS has been a red-letter year for Dubawi, and last weekend was one of his best since he entered stud 12 years ago. In a couple of hours on Sunday he sired a pair of Group 1 winners, bringing his tally at that level to 37, and a Group 2 winner, in addition to a few other horses placed in group races.

His 36th Group 1 winner was clocked up when the Godolphin-owned filly Kitesurf won the Prix Vermeille at ParisLongchamp, trained by Andre Fabre. The four-year-old raced in last place for much of the mile and a half contest, but once she entered the home straight she began to make headway and scorched down the final furlong to get up close to the line and win by a head.

Previously Kitesurf won the Group 2 Prix de Pomone, Group 3 Prix du Royaumont and Group 3 Prix Allez France. She was bred by Peter Winkworth and is the first foal to race out of the group-winning Danehill Dancer (Danehill) mare Shimmering Surf. Kitestuf is the third consecutive winner of the Prix Vermeille for Dubawi.

Also on the same card at ParisLongchamp, Dubawi’s three-year-old son Brundtland, trained by Charlie Appleby, made it three wins in as many starts and staked his Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe claim when practically making all to win the Group 2 Prix Niel. Brundtland was bred at Ballyhimikin Stud by James Hanly and is out of the group-winning Hurricane Run mare Future Generation.

Crowning a memorable day for the stallion at the Curragh, the unbeaten two-year-old colt Quorto emulated his sire when running out the gutsy winner of the Group 1 Goffs Vincent O’Brien National Stakes. He looks an outstanding prospect for his owner-breeder Sheikh Mohammed’s Godolphin and had the highly-rated Anthony Van Dyck a length and a quarter back in second.

Quorto is the first foal out of the Listed Swettenham Stud Fillies’ Trial Stakes winner and Group 1 Oaks and Irish Oaks third Volume. That daughter of the now Boardsmill Stud-based sire Mount Nelson (Rock Of Gibraltar) was sold for 700,000gns to John Ferguson for Sheikh Mohammed at the end of her three-year-old season. She raced for her owner-breeder Stuart Stuckey.

Volume is easily the best of the five winners to date for the winning Victoire Finale (Peintre Celebre). One of her sons Velox (Zamindar), currently racing in Australia, was group-placed there.

Victoire Finale is a half-sister to Vertical Speed (Bering), a Group 2 winner in France who ran third in the Group 1 St Leger at Doncaster.

The next dam was Victoire Bleue (Legend Of France) and this leading stayer won four times in France, all victories gained at the ages of four and five, and her finest moment came in the Group 1 Prix du Cadran at Longchamp. She won by six lengths carrying the colours of her breeder Daniel Wildenstein. She in turn is a daughter of the Group 1 Prix Vermeille-third Vosges (Youth).