A RECENT trip to Britain brought me on a tour of a number of stud farms, one of which was Cheveley Park Stud. There Chris Richardson took me around the farm, the facilities and to have a look at the stallions.

King of the castle is Pivotal, an incredibly youthful looking 24-year-old who covered some 60 mares this year. He is fresh and well and hopefully will cover for a few more years yet.

In his time at Cheveley Park this son of Polar Falcon (Nureyev) has established himself as a hugely influential international sire. He is tremendously versatile and has sired the winners of more than €70 million in his career at stud. His leading earner is the Group 1 Dubai World Cup winner African Story, while classic winners include Saoire (Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas), Sariska (dual Group 1 Oaks winner), Halfway To Heaven (Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas), Falco (Group 1 French 2000 Guineas and sire), Buzzword (Group 1 German Derby and sire) and Silvester Lady (Group 1 German Oaks).

Add to that tally the likes of Kyllachy, champion sprinter and multiple Group 1 sire, Group 1 Lockinge and Champion Stakes winner and sire Farhh, the Group 1 Lockinge Stakes winners Virtual and Peeress, Group 1 winning juvenile and classic sire Siyouni, and the Group 1 winning sprinters Maarek, Regal Parade and Somnus, and you begin to get the sense of the breadth of his influence.

Oh yes, mention must be made that he is the broodmare sire of Mayson (Invincible Spirit), Group 1 St Leger winner Harbour Law (Lawman), Rhododendron (Galileo), Winsili (Dansili), The United States (Galileo) and the €2.5 million earner Main Sequence (Aldebaran).

At the weekend Brando became the stallion’s 27th winner at Group or Grade 1 level when he won the Prix Maurice de Gheest at Deauville, his first victory at that level and his seventh in a 20-race career. Produced from a mating suggested by Gary Haddon, Brando is a five-year-old son of the Silver Hawk (Roberto) mare Argent Du Bois who failed to win, being placed at two in France, but who has compiled a great record as a broodmare.

The ninth offspring of Argent Du Bois is a yearling colt by Cape Cross who will be offered for sale at Tattersalls in October. He is the first produce of the mare since Brando was foaled. All eight foals of racing age have run and all but one of them are winners. All were bred at Car Colston Hall Stud. The owners Nicholas and Jane Forman Hardy started breeding racehorses seriously in 1994 and the following year they went to Keeneland and bought the stud’s foundation mare Wiener Wald, carrying the dam of Brando.

The son of Pivotal is the fifth individual Group 1 winner produced by Car Colston Hall Stud, which includes his family members Crowded House (Rainbow Quest), Ticker Tape (Royal Applause) and Reckless Abandon (Exchange Rate). The fifth member of that group is Soldier Hollow (In The Wings).

Ticker Tape is Brando’s half-sister and she became a racing millionaire, with her eight victories including the Grade 1 American Oaks and the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes. She is the grandam of War Decree (War Front) who won the Group 2 Vintage Stakes last year and was fifth in this year’s French Derby.

Sant Elena (Efisio) is a stakes-placed half-sister to Ticker Tape and Brando and she has made a mark at stud, with her winning progeny headed by the dual Group 1 winning two-year-old Reckless Abandon, successful in the Prix Morny and the Middle Park Stakes. Their dam Argent Du Bois is a half-sister to nine winners, notably the Group 1 Racing Post Trophy winner Crowded House.

Breeders, stallion masters and readers are invited to contact Leo Powell at leopowell@theirishfield.ie with news and updates for the column, and to visit our website www.theirishfield.ie for daily breeding news