Nashville: Pedigree of the Week

With his oldest progeny four, Darci Brahma has made a very encouraging start to his stallion career, however as his recent Karaka results atest, until a sire can produce a genuine group one performer under Australasian conditions and preferably at WFA level, their sale results will suffer. That missing piece of his resume was completed in emphatic fashion on Saturday when Nashville (Darci Brahma-Royal Kiss by Royal Academy), beat a small but select field of our best WFA talent, including Cox Plate winner Ocean Park, in the Group One Haunui Farm WFA Classic over 1600m at Otaki, an hours drive north of Wellington.

Ever since his outstanding win in a competitive Group Two Couplands Mile last year Nashville had looked a group one winner in waiting. But for missing the start badly in the Group One Thorndon Mile and running into more dead ends than the Kahui twins murder enquiry in the Group One Telegraph Handicap, that goal would have been achieved. However both those contests at the recent Wellington Cup Carnival were handicaps and WFA racing is a significant transition; one that many group one handicap winners find beyond them.

On Saturday, rider Kelly Myers allowed the long striding four-year-old to settle last in the clear as Veyron set an even tempo in front. As they rounded the final turn Myers understandably rode for luck, looking for a gap on the inside of Ocean Park, before realising that her mount was travelling considerably better than last year's Cox Plate winner she hooked him outside the Thorn Park four-year-old, where once gathered, he unleashed a strong finishing burst to pick-up Veyron and former Singapore Champion Better Than Ever.

In fact it was some afternoon for Darci Brahma. Earlier on the Otaki card his son Deliciano won the St Leger trial and half an hour before Nashville's success, Recite (Darci Brahma-Chant by Traditionally) had ran down a gallant Bounding (Lohnro-Believe N Succeed by Exceed and Excel) to win the prestigious Group Two Matamata Breeders Stakes and remain unbeaten in three starts.

Nashville becomes the second group one winner for his sire following Artistic's win in last year's New Zealand Oaks. Darci Brahma's six other individual stakeswinners include Champion Singaporean sprinter/miler Super Easy and recent Group Two Avondale Guineas winner Valbuena.

Typical of his sires stock, Nashville is a well balanced individual with an attractive head and eye. Significantly he has a little more width and strength through the chest and girth than one tends to associate with the Darci Brahma progeny.

Royal Kiss, the dam of Nashville, is an Irish bred placed daughter of Royal Academy, a fine racehorse and stallion whose status downunder is forever assured thanks to his group one winning son Bel Esprit siring Black Caviar and his daughter Piccadilly Circus leaving Fastnet Rock.

Nashville is Royal Kiss's fifth foal and her first stakeswinner. Her first four foals were to Australian sires and resulted in $100,000 earner China Causeway and an Al Maher gelding who won twice in Hong Kong.

The mare was then offered at the 2006 Sydney Broodmare Sale where she was bought by former Olympic gold medalist Blyth Tait, who bred Nashville selling him at the 2010 Karaka Ready To Run Sale for $40,000 to Paul Beamish acting on behalf of Hunterville owner/trainer Adrian Bull. Royal Kiss then produced a Pins colt for Tait, which is now in Hong Kong but unraced, after which he sold the mare in foal to Stravinsky at the 2010 Sydney Broodmare Sale to Masterton bloodstock agent Bruce Perry on behalf of Wellington breeder Lib Petagna.

Little Avondale Stud offered the Stravinsky filly on behalf of Petagna at last years Karaka Premier Yearling Sale. A lovely, well balanced filly with plenty of leg, she was bought for $110,000 by the Block Partnership of Wellington, owners of the high class racemare Xanadu. Named Coco Chanel, she ran a close third at her only trial back last spring and is set to debut before the end of her two-year-old season.

Royal Kiss has not had a foal since Coco Chanel but is back in foal to Darci Brahma.

Features of Nashville's female family are the presence of leading broodmare stallions Royal Academy, Kris and Mill Reef. His second dam by Kris won at group two level and was placed in both the Irish and English Oaks while his third dam by Mill Reef placed in the important Group One Chevely Park Stud Stakes as a two-year-old. Both dams have left Northern Hemisphere winners however of note is the number of their daughters that have found their way to Australia and left stakeswinners - at last count three stakeswinners and two stakesplaced performers.

Nashville's latest performance should have silenced a lot of his sires local critics. It remains to be seen whether Australian and Hong Kong buyers will be convinced of the form, although beating Ocean Park will have meant they will have given the race a good deal more than their usual cursory glance. At least it is a big step in the right direction for Darci.