Varsfontein Stud has knocked back an offer for its boom first-season sire Judpot from Three Chimneys Farm in Kentucky.

Judpot (USA) is a blueblood through and through.  He’s by champion sire of sires A P Indy while his dam Miesque won 10 Group 1 events and was the first horse to win consecutive runnings of a Breeders’ Cup event.

Miesque (Nureyev) was equally successful as a broodmare.  She foaled influential sire Kingmambo and French champion East of the Moon plus the G2 winners Mingun and Miesque’s Son.

Judpot is a homebred for the Niarchos family and, due to injury, was sent to South Africa as an unraced four year-old.  “We consulted the Niarchos family – they retained 50% and we own the other half – and they asked us what we wanted to do,” Varsfontein manager Carl de Vos revealed.  “When we said Judpot is the sort of stallion we dream about, they replied he is not going anywhere and that he’s not for sale.”

Judpot achieved the rare feat of siring two Group1 winning juveniles – Forest Indigo (Golden Horseshoe) and Along Came Polly (Thekwini Stakes) – from his first crop in 2012-13.  He was also represented by G2 winner Colour of Courage (Umkhomazi Stakes) and the stakes performed Juddering Angel.

Without doubt the most exciting young stallion currently standing in South Africa, his second-crop yearlings were in demand earlier this year fetching top price at the Klawervlei Farm Sale and dominating the leader-board at the Emperors Palace National Yearling Sale.

Varsfontein Stud is situated north-east of Cape Town at Paarl and is also home to More Than Ready’s Australian bred Group 1 winner Gimmethegreenlight.

– Karl Patterson

JUDPOT