Darci Brahma Progeny to the Fore

Excerpt from NZ Racing News:

Alibi has turned the spotlight on Danehill stallion Darci Brahma after winning the first two legs of the Singapore Four-Year-Old challenge.

The entire, bred by Terry and Vicki Pascoe, will attempt a clean sweep of the triple crown when he lines up in the S$1,150,000 Emirates Singapore Derby on July 9. It is the second richest domestic race for the Island nation, just S$200,000 behind the Singapore Gold Cup.

A win would also help Darci Brahma retain his crown as Singapore's champion sire. The Oaks Stud stallion has reigned supreme in recent years, winning the title in four of the last five seasons.

“He's got a fantastic record up there in Singapore,” The Oaks Stud general manager Rick Williams said. “They definitely have a great strike rate there.

“He's having a really good run in Hong Kong too. The Darci Brahmas suit the stable environment, but they tend to suit most environments. He's a really good all-round sire.”

The rising 15-year-old stallion is set to serve about 120 mares this coming season.

“He is perceived as an older stallion now. We don't expect to get more than 120, but that's a good number for him. He served that number last year and we are happy with that amount.”

Another horse flying the flag for Darci Brahma in Singapore is Darc Bounty. The gelding made it three wins in a row on Friday night at Kranji when he ran down Cadet to win by a length in the S$80,000 Kranji Stakes.

Two further progeny added additional international flavour to Darci Brahma's week. Lucky Wan Feng, known as Parallel Universe in New Zealand, scored a comfortable half-length victory at Happy Valley racecourse in Hong Kong on Wednesday, while former Hong Kong runner Riyadh won the David Bourke Provincial Plate at Flemington on Saturday.

Meanwhile, looking to the future, Williams said he has some of the best fillies he feels he has had coming on as late two-year-olds, including a daughter of Darci Brahma and the top race mare Seachange.

“I've got four or five Darci Brahma fillies, all rising three, that are some of the best fillies I've had in work,” he said. “So hopefully it will be a good spring for The Oaks racing team.”

Williams said the Seachange filly will likely trial at Te Teko next Tuesday and will then be aimed at the Gr. 1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas in November.

“Her dam won it and Darci Brahma won the 2000 Guineas, so there is a bit of genetics there that suggest she will be above average.”

Bought by Te Akau Principal David Ellis for $1.1 million at the 2004 NZB Premier Yearling Sale, Darci Brahma won 10 of his 19 starts for trainer Mark Walker, including five Group One races. He went on to be crowned champion New Zealand two and three-year-old as well as champion New Zealand sprinter.

He will stand his eighth season at stud and has sired seven individual Group One winners and 6.5 per cent stakes winners to runners.

Darci Brahma will stand at The Oaks Stud next season for an unchanged service fee of $15,000 plus GST.