EIGHT individual Grade 1 winners retire to the stallion ranks across Japan for the impending 2016 breeding season.

The most notable addition on race performance alone must be Gold Ship, winner of six races at the highest level ranging from 10-16f and further bolstered by five other graded wins in a stellar racing career that spanned five seasons and 28 races. A stakes winner at two, he went on to win at least one Grade 1 in each of his remaining four seasons.

The durable seven-year-old son of recently deceased Japanese stalwart Stay Gold achieved in 2012 a Racing Post rating of 128,which for that year ranked him as the highest rated three-year-old worldwide, two pounds superior to that of his closest pursuer, Camelot.

Gold Ship will stand at Big Red Farm and commands a fee of three million yen (€23,500).

Dominant within Japanese racing and breeding, Shadai welcomes five Grade 1 winners to its already abundant stallion roster.

Epiphaneia is unique in being the only retiring Grade 1 winning freshman sire of 2016 who is not by a son of Sunday Silence. However, being out of a Special Week mare, Epiphaneia is nevertheless third generation Sunday Silence on his dam’s side. He was lightly raced with six wins from just 14 starts including victory in the Japanese St Ledger and the Japan Cup where he defeated Just A Way, the world’s highest rated horse that year.

A dual Grade 1 winning son of Symboli Kris S, Epipheneia has had his already lofty profile raised further by the exploits of his half-brother Leontes, who was named champion two-year-old colt of 2015 after winning the Grade 1 Asahi Hai Futurity stakes, the only top tier race for two-year-old colts in the Japanese racing calendar. Epipheneia will stand for a fee of 2.5 million yen (€19,500).

Kizuna, who is by Deep Impact out of the Storm Cat mare Catequil, is a half-brother to 1998 Japanese champion three-year-old filly Phalaenopsis. Winner of the 2013 Japanese Derby and placed fourth in the Arc de Triomphe that year, he will stand for 2.5 million yen (€19,500).

SPIELBERG

Spielberg, by Deep Impact, winner of the 2014 Autumn Group 1 Tenno Sho when beating Japanese super-mare Gentildonna, will stand at 1.5 million yen (€11,500).

Real Impact, also by Deep Impact, won the 2011 Group 1 Yasuda Kinen and travelled down under in 2015 to add the ATC George Ryder Stakes to his tally. He will stand at a fee of 800,000 yen (€6,000).

Fenomeno, by Stay Gold out of a Danehill mare, is a two-time winner of the Group 1 Spring Tenno Sho and retires to stud for a fee of 800,000 yen (€6,000).

ON THE CUSP

2015 signalled the emergence of Daiwa Major as a stallion verging on the cusp of the top echelons. He dethroned Deep Impact as the leading producer of two-year-olds which he held for the previous five seasons, helped in no small part by champion two-year-old filly Major Emblem. In 2016 Daiwa Major sees his only Grade 1 winning sons, Black Curren Hill and Copano Richard, retire to stud.

Black Curran Hill, earned his place at Yushun stallion station by winning the 2012 Group 1 NHK Mile and the dark bay will stand for 700,000 yen (€5,500).

Copano Richard winner of the 2014 Group 1 Takamatsunomyia Kinen retires to Lex Stud and will stand for a fee of 500,000 yen (€4,000).