Everybody loves a Frankel. He was magnificent on the track with a perfect record of 14-14 and he has developed into the leading Sire in the world in recent years. Blessed with a decent turn-of-foot and a relentless galloper, it is no surprise to see that his progeny often take on their fathers characteristics and he is the Sire most likely to inherit his fathers crown as the greatest influence on the thoroughbred breed. If you have a decent mare and the breeding allows, you send her to Frankel. A brief scan through the France-Galop registrations confirmed that he had 72 unrated 2 and 3-year-olds to hit the track this year, so I have taken a look through some of the pedigrees and highlighted a few that catch the eye.
KELINA
2-year-old Filly
Frankel x Incahoots (Oasis Dream)
Carlos Laffon-Parias
Her dam took her time to reach her peak, breaking her maiden tag at the fourth time of asking in a mile maiden at Compiegne in 2015. As a 4-year-old she won the Listed Prix Saonois at Cagnes-Sur-Mer and spent the rest of her 4-year-old season running respectably at Listed and Group 3 level. On that evidence Kelina may need some time before she is seen to best effect, but her half-sister Ansilia made a winning debut for the same connections as a 2-year-old when she won a Saint-Cloud debutantes race in 2020. She is related through her grand-dam to Prix de L’Opera winner WE ARE, Prix Rothschild winner WITH YOU and Prix du Cadran winner CALL THE WIND. Although she looks bred to be a miler, the additional stamina in the pedigree could suggest that she will stay further in time and she could be a nice prospect for middle distance races in 2023. She is unlikely to make an impact as a sprinter, so it may be into the latter half of the season before we see her and anything she achieves as a Juvenile will probably be a bonus, but with such an impressive page, she is of obvious interest for the Wertheimer and Carlos Laffon-Parias.
ZARIR
2-year-old Colt
Frankel x Zarshana (Sea the Stars)
Francis-Henri Graffard
This colt stood out a mile in the list of Frankel progeny. A son of Zarshana, a talented 49.5-kilo rated filly in her own right who won the G3 Prix Minerve at Deauville in 2014, he descends from the family of the legendary ZARKAVA and has a hosted of pattern winners in his pedigree. The Aga Khan Stud have done particularly well with this family pedigree in recent years, with diverse winners including Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud winner ZARAK, Triumph and French Champion hurdle winner ZARKANDAR and most interestingly ZARKAMIYA. She made a winning debut in 2018 and went on to finish 3rd in the Prix Vermeille that season and was a daughter of Frankel. With Frankel, Galileo and Sea the Stars in the immediate pedigree he isn’t likely to make much impact until the latter part of the season, but he looks a very exciting prospect for middle distances in time.
BARBATE
2-year-old Colt
Frankel x Castellar (American Post)
Carlos Laffon-Parias
His dam won 3 of her 7 starts, including the Group 2 Prix de la Nonette (10f) and is a half-sister to Prix d'Ispahan and Prix du Moulin winner RECOLETOS. There are plenty of other winners in the pedigree, including last years Prix de Thiberville winner RICLA and given that Castellar is a daughter of Jean-luc Lagardere winner American Post, there is plenty of reason to hope that Barbate will be relatively precocious as a juvenile. He is a first-foal, but there are enough maiden winners in the pedigree to suggest that he could develop into a nice classic hope for his connections in a year’s time.
DARKANIYA
3-year-old Filly
Frankel x Daryakana (Selkirk)
Francis-Henri Graffard
Her dam needs no introduction. Daryakana went unbeaten as a 3-year-old, with her season culminating with wins in the Prix de Royallieu and most famously the Hong Kong Vase at Sha Tin. She has already produced 4 winners, including the Prix Ganay winner DARIYAN and all of her progeny have hit the frame on their first start, suggesting that she passes on her calm demeanour and precocity to her progeny. The grand-dam, DARYABA, won the Prix de Diane and Prix Vermeille and with such a pedigree it is perhaps not a surprise that Darkaniya wasn’t seen as a juvenile and there will certainly be some 10-12 furlong maidens for her in the coming months. We shouldn’t entirely pigeon-hole her as a staying prospect however, as her dam-sire Selkirk does offer some hope that she will possess a turn-of-foot which is essential in middle-distance races in France.
KIND JULIET
3-year-old Filly
Frankel x The Juliet Rose (Monsun)
Andre Fabre
Her dam was one of my favourite horses in training in 2017. The Juliet Rose was hard working and honest and delivered some notable wins in the Prix de Royallieu and Prix de Royaumont. She won on debut over a mile at Saint-Cloud as a juvenile, on ground that was officially described as “very heavy” and that debut confirmed her liking for softer going. She is another Aga Khan bred horse who has clearly been saved for a 3-year-old campaign, but with Dubai Destination in the pedigree too there is some further evidence that she may possess the necessary blend of speed and stamina that are ideal for the French racing style.
The Progeny Series