Encosta de Lago is looking for new fields to conquer after winning the last two Australian sires’ premierships.
The Coolmore champion sired 132 winners of $10.44 million in 2007-08 and successfully defended that title with 147 winners of $9.92 million in 2008-09.
With nearly five months of the current season completed, Encosta de Lago is in second spot behind Darley sire Street Cry who leap-frogged the field when Shocking won the Melbourne Cup.
The first northern hemisphere bred Encosta de Lago two year-olds will race in Europe and North America next year. Coolmore reverse shuttled him to Ireland in 2007 and the results of that season changed hands at the major yearling sales this year.
His first northern bred yearling sold for US$500,000 to leading trainer Bob Baffert at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale in August. Offered by Darby Dan Farm, the bay colt is out of the Machiavellian mare Nicole And Krista and is a close relation of French G1 winners Agent Double (Prix Royal-Oak) and Air De Cour (Prix du Cadran).
The Encosta yearlings were up against entrenched opinion in Europe. His sire Fairy King only started once but, being a brother to Sadler’s Wells, was given a chance at stud.
Fairy King did extra well and was Champion 2yo sire in UK-Ireland in 1991, 1993 and 1997. He also claimed French titles in 1996 and 2002-03 thanks to champion gallopers Helissio and Falbrav.
Nevertheless, Fairy King was seen as the poor relation as a sire of sires because the likes of Helissio, Second Empire, Falbrav, Turtle Island, Oath, Revoque, Victory Note and Beckett didn’t make the grade at stud in either hemisphere.
Encosta de Lago wasn’t going to turn the prevailing tide without runs on the board, however, his Tattersalls October yearlings presented and sold extra well.
His fillies made a lot more than the colts. Hugo Lascelles bought one from Model Queen (Kingmambo) for 280,000 gns (AUD 534,650), Sir Robert Ogden purchased a filly out of Fig Tree Drive (Miswaki) for 130,000 gns (AUD 248,230) and BBA Ireland selected a filly from Dedicated Lady (Pennine Walk) for 125,000 gns (AUD 238,680).
Overall, Encosta de Lago sold 28 yearlings at Tattersalls, Goffs, Doncaster and Arqana for an average of AUD 111,000. Coolmore did not publicise his northern service fee but it was in the region of 40,000 euros.
The Irish trip could have led to him reversing on a regular basis . Unfortunately, he was one of the first sires to contract E.I. in quarantine on returning to Australia in 2007.
The whole industry, from top to bottom, was on tenterhooks as the Eastern Creek debacle dragged on and the industry leader won’t risk letting him leave Australia again.
Encosta de Lago grosses $40 million every year and, at 16 years of age, will hopefully have another five good years left in him as the alpha-male at Coolmore.
Sacred Ground
Encosta de Lago’s international earnings went through the roof when Sacred Kingdom won the G1 Hong Kong Sprint on December 13. The Sha Tin prizemoney boosted his bank to HK$32.41 million (AUD 4.69 million).
Sacred Kingdom (6g Encosta de Lago – Courtroom Sweetie by Zeditave) is the highest rated sprinter in the world today. He was bred in Victoria by Kornong Stud owner Noel Calvert and sold for $200,000 at the 2005 Melbourne Inglis Premier Sale.
Encosta de Lago has also been targeted by overseas buyers at the Inglis and Magic Millions sales. A week before Sacred Kingdom did the honours in the Hong Kong Sprint, his Aussie exports Dan de Lago and Maureen de Lago scored promising wins in South Africa.
Dan De Lago (4c Encosta de Lago – The Golden Dane by Danehill) won the G2 Gold Circle Derby (2400m) in June and he returned to racing on December 5 with a first-up win over a mile at Turffontein. It improved his record to 5 wins from 9 starts.
Dan De Lago was a $480,000 buy from the Coolmore draft at the 2007 Gold Coast Magic Millions. His dam The Golden Dane was a Listed winner of the Darby Munro Stakes at Rosehill and the Reginald Allen Hcp at Randwick. She was also a G1 runner-up to Unworldly in the 2000 Group 1 Flight Stakes.
Trained by Charles Laird for major clients Marcus and Ingrid Jooste, his main missions during the Cape summer season are the G1 Queen’s Plate on January 9 and the J&B Met on January 30.
Maureen De Lago (2f Encosta De Lago – Seeking A Way by Seeking The Gold) was a brilliant winner on debut at Kenilworth. She was among 10 first starters in the Var Juvenile Plate (800m) on December 5 and justified a 15-10 quote to score by over a length.
Prepared by Justin Snaith, for owner Hassen Adams, she was the third juvenile winner by Encosta de Lago this season following De Lago Bloom (Eagle Farm) and Encosta Diablo (Riccarton). Her dam Seeking A Way was a Newmarket winner for trainer John Gosden in October 2003.
Gifted Stallion
Encosta De Lago is a one-off on both sides of his pedigree. He’s is the only successful son of Fairy King at stud and he is also the only winner from his dam Shoal Creek who has been covered every year since 1993.
Shoal Creek (Star Way) was a Lindsay Park filly that won at Morphettville and Murray Bridge. Not long after retiring, her younger half-brother Flying Spur came out and won a Golden Slipper for Lee Freedman.
Encosta de Lago was her first foal in 1993 but she’s a very shy breeder and has only had three foals in 15 years. The latest is 3yo Emirates Park filly named Zyoon (Al Maher) who is ready to debut for Chris Waller.
Encosta de Lago was named after a Portuguese golf resort in the Algarve and was raced by Joe Throsby, Lee Freedman and Coolmore’s John Magnier, Eddie Irwin, Ken Barry and Duncan Grimley.
He was top-class three year-old winning the G1 VicHealth Cup plus the G2 VRC Ascot Vale Stakes and MVRC Bill Stutt Stakes.
“He’s one of the most gifted horses I have trained,” Freedman recalled. “It’s no surprise that he has become a champion stallion. He was an imposing colt with a magnificent action and turn of foot, traits he has passed on to his offspring. His win in the VicHealth Cup was miraculous. Injury curtailed his racing career, but it probably helped him as a stallion.”
Freedman trained G3 winner Chong Tong out of his first crop and champion filly Alinghi who arrived three years later.
Alinghi was a G1 winner at two (MRC Blue Diamond) and three (VRC Newmarket) before travelling to North America where she was a G3 winner of the Ballston Spa Breeders Cup at Saratoga.
The G1 winners continued with Racing To Win, Princess Coup, Sirmione, Delago Brom, Delzao and Mnemosyne among a total 64 stakes winners. His most recent black-type winner is Palacio De Cristal in the G2 AJC Villiers at Randwick on Saturday.
Encosta de Lago has sired 590 individual winners at a 66% strike-rate. He had to make his own way at stud starting out at $8,500 a cover at Blue Gum in Victoria in 2007. The fee had risen to $38,500 in 2003 when he relocated to the owners’ headquarters in the Hunter Valley.
Commensurate with his standing as our champion sire, Encosta de Lago now stands for a $220,000 fee at Coolmore and his books average in the vicinity of 220.