WHAT do Contributor, Dundeel, Redwood, So You Think, Tivaci and Toronado have in common?

They are Group 1-winning sons of the dual Derby and dual Breeders’ Cup hero High Chaparral (Sadler’s Wells) who have sired at least one Group 1 winner at stud; their combined total currently stands at 17.

Free Eagle has not yet achieved their feat, but the Group 1-star got the Derby runner-up Khalifa Sat (dam by Tenby; first foals in 2023) in his first crop, so he has already proved that he can get a horse who can perform with credit at the highest level.

Six-figure earner Dancing King (dam by Big Shuffle) won the Group 3 March Stakes in England, whereas Justifier (dam by Invincible Spirit) was a pattern-placed juvenile stakes winner in Ireland before going on to further success in Hong Kong under the name Beauty Smile; his earnings are now around £520,000. Three others have been blacktype earners including Winds Of War (dam by Blu Air Force), who was a stakes-placed winner as a juvenile in Italy last season.

Free Eagle’s winners have been coming in all age groups and over a wide range of distances, his yearlings of 2021 include a 150,000gns Tattersalls Book 2 colt plus a couple that made 50,000gns at the same venue, and his stakes-winner tally should increase before long.

Might the 70,000gns Book 2 graduate Aratus (dam by Soviet Star) become one this coming season? The Clive Cox-trained four-year-old has won four of his five starts, by an aggregate margin of 11 and a half lengths, and his rating rose to 102 after his neck defeat of Escobar at Goodwood in August. The gelding’s sole defeat was when runner-up on his juvenile debut at Newbury, he was unbeaten at three and has raced only over seven furlongs so far.

Free Eagle, who raced as a Moyglare Stud homebred, short-headed classic star The Grey Gatsby in the Group 1 Prince of Wales’s Stakes, ran away with the Group 3 Enterprise Stakes over the same trip at Leopardstown, and was placed in both the Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes and Group 1 Champion Stakes from only eight starts.

He is out of their standout broodmare Polished Gem (Danehill), so he is a half-brother to the dual Group 1 Irish St Leger heroine Search For A Song (Galileo), Group 2-scorers Custom Cut (Notnowcato) and Sapphire (Medicean), Group 3-winner Valac (Dark Angel), pattern-placed stakes winners Amma Grace (Galileo) and Falcon Eight (Galileo), plus new sire for 2022 in Ireland, Rich History (Dubawi).

Polished Gem’s full-sister Dress To Thrill is a Grade 1-winning daughter of Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas winner Trusted Partner (Affirmed), while Free Eagle’s third dam Talking Picture (Speak John) won twice at the highest level.

FREE EAGLE (IRE), Bay 2011. Jt Champion older horse in Ireland in 2015. Jt Champion older horse in Europe in 2015 (9.5-10.5f.). Won three races, £592,524, from 1 mile to 1 mile 2 furlongs, 2 to 4 years including, Prince of Wales’s Stakes, Ascot, Gr.1, KPMG Enterprise Kilternan Stakes, Leopardstown, Gr.3, also placed second in ICON Juv.Turf Trial Golden Fleece Stakes, Leopardstown, Gr.3, and third in QIPCO Irish Champion Stakes, Leopardstown, Gr.1, Qipco Champion Stakes, Ascot, Gr.1.

Retired to Stud in 2016, and sire of the winners of 160 races, and £2,480,660, including DANCING KING (IRE), KHALIFA SAT (IRE), JUSTIFIER (IRE), Auxilia (IRE), Biarchi (AUS), Wings Of War (FR), and sire of the winners of 6 races, and £69,459 under N.H. Rules, including Perry Owens (IRE)

Stands at: Irish National Stud, Tully East, Kildare, Co Kildare, R51 DD56, Ireland.

Contact: Gary Swift or Conor Hyland

Telephone: +353 (0)45 521251 or +353 (0)86 6031979 (Gary) or +353 (0)85 1299236 (Conor)

Email: gswift@irishnationalstud.ie

Web: www.irishnationalstud.ie

Fee: €5,000