Champion Darley shuttler Elusive Quality has been put down due to the infirmities of old age in Kentucky.  He was 25.

Elusive Quality spent most of his stallion career under the Darley banner at Jonabell Farm and Dan Pride, chief operating officer of Godolphin in America, said the sire “represented so many things to so many people”.  “He was one of Sheikh Mohammed’s early racing successes in the USA,” Pride added.  “He was just a pleasure to be around and he’s going to be greatly missed.”

Elusive Quality was trained by Bill Mott and raced for Sheikh Mohammed breaking his maiden impressively at Belmont Park by 11 lengths.   He broke the world record for a mile in the G3 Poker Handicap and also broke a track record at Gulfstream Park.

Starting out at stud at a fee of just $10,000, his first crop yielded Prix Morny winner Elusive City – later a Classic sire himself – and his second crop contained Kentucky Derby / Preakness Stakes winner Smarty Jones.

He was Champion North American sire in 2004, and his covering fee hit a high of $100,000 in 2005 to 2007.  That had dropped to $30,000 before he was pensioned last year.

Shuttling to Australia from 2003 until 2008, he left the Champion colt Sepoy and Inglis Sires’ Produce Stakes winner Camarilla.  His daughters have produced international top-level winners Guelph – out of Camarilla – as well as Shooting To Win.

In all, Elusive Quality has sired a total of 130 stakes winners worldwide – 14 of them have been victorious at the highest level.  The son of Gone West leaves a significant imprint on the breed having supplied successful sires Elusive City, Evasive, Quality Road, Raven’s Pass and Sepoy.

ELUSIVE QUALITY