BALLYHANE Stud has become synonymous with the production of speed and precocity, and one of their roster who typifies this is Sands Of Mali.

His first foals last year averaged nearly four times his stud fee, and buyers included many astute pinhookers.

Sands Of Mali is, like the typical Ballyhane stallion, all about speed. He is a horse who will likely sire plenty of two-year-old winners and sprinters, while also getting some who are effective at seven furlongs and a mile.

In terms of bloodlines, he is free of Danehill (Danzig), Green Desert (Danzig), Galileo (Sadler’s Wells), Dubawi (Dubai Millennium), and many of the other major names that appear somewhere in so many pedigrees.

He is a great-grandson of Mr Prospector (Raise A Native) and of Indian Ridge (Ahonoora), and also of the noted French speed source Sicyos (Lyphard), while the noted speed influences Mummy’s Pet (Sing Sing) and Habitat (Sir Gaylord) appear in the fourth and fifth generations of his chart, on the distaff side.

Outcross

Indeed, in what is arguably a big plus for him, his is an actual outcross pedigree. The word outcross is too often misused to mean something akin to ‘representing a sire line different from my mare’s one’, but that is incorrect.

Being an outcross means having zero duplicated ancestors within the first five generations of the pedigree.

Sands Of Mali is the best son of Panis (Miswaki), successful from six to nine furlongs and who has mostly sired sprinters. The Ballyhane sire is out of an unraced daughter of the speedy Indian Rocket (Indian Ridge), with blacktype earners as both his grandam and third dam. Sands Of Mali’s winning half-sister Flawless Jewel (Kheleyf) bred last year’s stakes-winning juvenile Pillow Talk (Kodiac).

Crowned

Sands Of Mali was Timeform-rated 116 at two after he beat Invincible Army easily in the Group 2 Gimcrack Stakes, and that figure rose to 125 at three.

He won a Group 3 sprint in France, beat Invincible Army again in the Group 2 Sandy Lane Stakes, was a half-length runner-up to Eqtidaar in the Group 1 Commonwealth Cup, and crowned a great season when he defeated the brilliant Harry Angel by a length in the Group 1 Sprint Cup at Haydock.

Sands Of Mali was trained by Richard Fahey, won on everything from good to heavy, was Group 1-placed on fast ground when runner-up to Eqtidaar at Royal Ascot, and his progeny look sure to be very popular with trainers this autumn looking for precocity.

The exceptionally good-looking Sands Of Mali was described by his trainer as “a brilliant sprinter, a true Group 1 horse”.

Sands Of Mali stands alongside the established Group 1 sire Dandy Man, another Group 1 sire in Elzaam, sprint sire Prince Of Lir, Showcasing’s son Soldier’s Call, and the new sire Space Traveller.

Race record

SANDS OF MALI (FR), Bay 2015. Won five races, £726,876, over 6 furlongs, at 2 and 3 years including, Qipco British Champions Sprint Stakes, Ascot, Gr.1, Al Basti Equiworld Gimcrack Stakes, York, Gr.2, Armstrong Aggregates Sandy Lane Stakes, Haydock Park, Gr.2, Prix Sigy, Chantilly, Gr.3, also placed second in Commonwealth Cup, Ascot, Gr.1.

At stud

Retired to Stud in 2021. First crop are yearlings.

Information

Stands at: Ballyhane Stud, Leighlinbridge, Co Carlow, R93 K095 Ireland.

Contact: Joe Foley or Jane Foley

Telephone: +353 59 972 2068, Joe Foley +353 86 252 4135, Jane +353 86 806 6000

Email: info@ballyhane.com

Web: www.ballyhane.com.

Fee: €6,500