Danehill Dancer, the sire of Lynward Park’s outstanding stallion prospect Alfred Nobel, has made a brilliant start to 2012.
His Australian-bred son, Atomic Force, overcame problems to win the Group 1 Railway Stakes, 1200m, at Ellerslie in New Zealand on New Year’s Day.
The win gave Atomic Force, trained at Newcastle in NSW by Darren Smith, his second Group 1 win following success in The Galaxy, 1100m, at Randwick last April.
Atomic Force was slow away in the Railway Stakes, settled back and was then forced to travel four-wide without cover for the entire race.
He was the widest on straightening but Nash Rawiller had not moved on the six-year-old and he hit the front with 200m to go before drawing clear to beat The Hombre and Twilight Savings.
“It was a bit average after the start but all honours to Nash,” Smith told NZ’s Trackside TV. “He didn’t panic.”
Atomic Force may now remain in New Zealand for the Group 1 Telegraph Handicap, 1200m, at Trentham on January 21.
Atomic Force was a $50,000 purchase by Dynamic Syndications from Raheen Stud’s draft at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale. Danehill Dancer will have seven yearlings on offer at Magic Millions next week from his last Australian-conceived crop.
Atomic Force has now won at 11 of 36 starts and earned $849,500.
His dam, Show Of Force, is by Luskin Star and his second dam is a half-sister to Encounter, head of the 1996/97 Australasian 2Y0 Classification and joint head of the 1997/98 Australian 3Y0 Classification.
Encounter won six times at Group 1 level taking the Caulfield Guineas, George Main Stakes, Chipping Norton Stakes, Champagne Stakes, AJC Sires Produce Stakes and Futurity Stakes.
Danehill Dancer, who stands for $A76,000 at Coolmore, Ireland, was champion Great Britain/Ireland sire in 2009, a dual Group 1 winning 2Y0, is the best sire son of the immortal Danehill and sired 27 European-bred Stakes winners in 2010/11 including the Group 1 winners Dancing Rain, Planteur, Ave and Lillie Langtry.
In all, Danehill Dancer has sired 1,982 named foals for 1,763 runners (87.6 per cent), 1,129 winners (65 per cent) and 133 stakes winners (7.7 per cent).
Alfred Nobel, who comes from one of Europe’s most distinguished maternal lines, won both the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes and Group 2 Railway Stakes and was Ireland’s champion 2Y0.
He represents the best chance for WA breeders to keep their mares locally but still go to a stallion who has both the highest class international racetrack performances
and pedigree.