Lion Heart broke new ground when his colt Home Straight won at Ovrevoll in Norway on Friday. The Coolmore stallion has shuttled from Kentucky to Australia since 2005 and his individual winner tally climbed past 130 after his first score in Scandinavia.
That’s an exceptional effort from just one southern and two northern crops to race and suggests Lion Heart will develop into a prolific sire of winners in years to come.
Home Straight (2c Lion Heart – Lone Peak by Wild Rush) is raced by Nick Bentley and had been placed at Ovrevoll and Taby in August and September. He was a US$50,000 buy from the Gainsborough draft at the 2008 Keeneland September yearling sale and is from an unraced half-sister to Jungle Prince (Sir Cat), a G3 winner of the Turf Express Hcp at Hollywood.
Home Straight’s victory capped off a great month for Lion Heart. He averaged nearly a winner a day after Catallion started the winning streak at Doomben on October 31.
Lion Heart’s total also included the black-type winners:
Thats Whatshesaid (2f Lion Heart-Strong Girl by Boundary) was a Listed winner of the Showtime Deb Stakes at Hawthorne (Oct 31).
Mayhaw (3c Lion Heart-Mary Sloan by Woodman) blitzed her older rivals by five lengths in the Listed Lookout Stakes at Delta Downs (Nov 6).
Carphonic (3f Lion Heart-Carsomatic, by Carson City) made it three black-type notches in the space of a fortnight when a three length winner of the Listed Joe O’Farrell Juvenile at Calder (Nov 14).
Lion Heart had already sired two G2 winners from his first Kentucky crop. Azul Leon won the 2008 Best Pal Stakes at Del Mar on protest and Soul Warrior defeated Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird in the 2009 West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Park.
A son of Tale Of The Cat and a G1 winner of the Hollywood Futurity and Haskell Invitational, Lion Heart has made an encouraging start with his first Australian bred crop. There are 19 individual winners to date headed by Brisbane stakes winner Double Heart.
Lion Heart is standing for an $11,000 fee at Coolmore this year.
Lion’s share of winners for Coolmore shuttler:
Doomben…31/10
CATALLION 3g Lion Heart – Miss Avion
Charles Town…31/10
LION HEART VICTORY 3g Lion Heart – Victory Moment
Hawthorne…31/10
LR-THATS WHATSHESAID 2f Lion Heart–Strong Girl
Mountaineer…31/10
LEXY MAY BLESSING 3f Lion Heart – Celestial Crown
Hawthorne…1/11
MOONLIGHT ESCAPADE 3f Lion Heart – Mooncola
Finger Lakes…5/11
AOJA 3g Lion Heart – Mandy Jud
Southwell…6/11
ANGIE’S NAP (USA) 2f Lion Heart – Magick Top
Kranji…6/11
A-POWER (Aus) 3g Lion Heart-Flapper
Aqueduct…6/11
BLAH BLAH BLAH 3f Lion Heart – Bugaloo
Delta Downs…6/11
LR-MAYHAW 3f Lion Heart – Mary Sloan
Laurel…7/11
EDGEWATER 3g Lion Heart – Life In Seattle
DARCI 3f Lion Heart – Teerrific Sue
Philadelphia…7/11
ALL HEART 3g Lion Heart – Impact Now
Penn National…10/11
LION KINGDOM 3g Lion Heart – Try N Sue
Doomben…14/11
CATALLION 3g Lion Heart – Miss Avion
Calder…14/11
LR-CARPHONIC 2f Lion Heart–Carsomatic
Mornington…14/11
LION DIVINE 3c Lion Heart – Queen The Divine
Mountaineer…15/11
CARDIOLOGIST 3g Lion Heart – Jolie Boutique
Aqueduct…18/11
GINO GREEN 3g Lion Heart – Wings of the Storm
Calder…19/11
LIONESS HEART 3f Lion Heart–Glowing Colors
Hawthorne…19/11
A. J.’S LOVE 3f Lion Heart–Bella Bella Bella
Remington…20/11
SOPHIE’S MEATBALL 3f Lion Heart–See Here
Beulah…24/11
GENERAL LAFAYETTE 3g Lion Heart – Eggs Binnedict
Calder…27/11
AMERIHEART 3c Lion Heart – Midway Squall
Penn National…27/11
REINE DES COEURS 3f Lion Heart – Queen Of Millbrook
Woodbine…27/11
GRAN PATRON 3c Lion Heart – Prosper
Øvrevoll (Norway)…27/11
HOME STRAIGHT (USA) 2c Lion Heart – Lone Peak
Ellerslie…28/11
LIGHTNING LEO 3c Lion Heart – Thursday Island
Mountaineer…29/11
TRANQUIL LIONESS 3f Lion Heart – Calming