THERE are now three French Derby winners covering at Ballylinch with the arrival of New Bay, a very good looking and high-class son of Dubawi who defeated Highland Reel in the 2015 running of that classic. New Bay was champion three-year-old in France that year.

Trained by Andre Fabre, New Bay was second in his only race at two, but he made a winning reappearance early the next spring over a mile at Longchamp. This earned him a step up to Group 1 company in a large field of 18 for the Poule d’Essai des Poulains, in which he finished very fast from the back of the field, but could not catch his stablemate Make Believe, with the favourite Highland Reel over two lengths behind him. The form was confirmed a month later in the Group 1 Prix du Jockey-Club at Chantilly, with New Bay quickening well to defeat Highland Reel by half a length.

New Bay went on to add the Group 2 Prix Guillaume d’Ornano at Deauville in August, with a length and a half to spare, and then the Group 2 Prix Niel at Longchamp, beating Silverwave by two and a half lengths.

This made him the second favourite for the Group 1 Prix de l’ Arc de Triomphe, in which he ran an excellent race to be third to Golden Horn and Flintshire. New Bay was beaten only a neck for second place and behind him were Group 1 stars Treve (the winner in the two previous years), Erupt and Free Eagle. At the end of the year he was crowned champion three-year-old in France over 10 furlongs and he was rated 128 by Timeform.

Last year New Bay won the Group 3 Prix Gontaut-Biron at Deauville and was fourth to Almanzor in the Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes, once again ahead of Highland Reel, before ending an illustrious racing career with a close seventh in the Arc de Triomphe won by Found, with the Epsom and Irish Derby hero Harzand behind him.

One of the very best sons of the outstanding sire Dubawi, New Bay is out of Cinnamon Bay, a daughter of Zamindar who won the Listed Prix d’Angerville at Chantilly and is dam of four winners. She is a half-sister to Bellamy Cay, whose wins included the Group 2 Prix Maurice de Nieuil, while their dam is a half-sister by Sadler’s Wells to champion Wemyss Bight, dam of Beat Hollow, and also to Hope, dam of Oasis Dream and grandam of Kingman.

Top rated 3yr old in France in 2015 (9.5-10.5f.). Won five races, £1,523,281, from 1 mile to 1½ miles, at 3 and 4 years including, Prix du Jockey Club, Chantilly, Gr.1, Prix Guillaume d’Ornano-Logis St Germain, Deauville, Gr.2, Qatar Prix Niel, Longchamp, Gr.2, Prix Gontaut-Biron-Hong Kong Jockey Club, Deauville, Gr.3, also placed second in Poule d’Essai des Poulains P.le Parisien, Longchamp, Gr.1, and third in Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, Longchamp, Gr.1.

Retires to stud in 2017

Stands at: Ballylinch Stud, Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny, Ireland

Contact: John O’Connor, David Myerscough or Mark Byrne

Telephone: +353 (0) 56 7724217

Email: info@ballylinchstud.ie

Web: www.ballylinchstud.com

Fee: €20,000