Glen Avon Lodge based Unusual Suspect (USA) has a stunning selection of foals on the 2016 Breednet Foal Gallery and for those curious to learn more about their sire read on.
Colt Unusual Suspect (USA) x Actrice
Colt Unusual Suspect (USA) x Edge of the World - click here to see more of his foals.
Brian Russell writes - UNUSUAL SUSPECT, a Nureyev grandson with iron constitution now in his second season at the prominent Glen Avon Lodge Stud at Southbrook near Toowoomba in Queensland who contested Group1 races in America, Dubai and Australia, is unusual in breeding and versatility.
The unsuality of the breeding flows from the fact that this big near black was sired in America using one of Nureyev's best sire sons, Unusual Heat, and exported Penpoint, a New Zealand bred winner over six furlongs whose bottom line has been in that country for 12 generations.
In performance, it was Unusual Suspect's ability to win at equivalent of 1200m (Del Mar, Hollywood Park), 1600m (Del Mar, Santa Anita, Hollywood Park), 1700m (Hollywood Park, Bay Meadows, Golden State), 2400m (Hollywood Park, Del Mar) and 2600m (Werribee). In addition, he ran twice unplaced in the Melbourne Cup, but was a good third in the Sandown Cup over 3200m.
In winning ten races (six stakes), finishing second or third in 15, and earning $1.58million, Unusual Suspect highlighted his racing with victories in the Hollywood Turf Cup-G1 (2400m in the fast time of 2:25.83s), Hollywood Turf Express Handicap-G3 (1200m). He also finished sixth of 18 in the 2011 Caulfield Cup.
Unusual Heat, the sire of Unusual Suspect, has been responsible for 398 winners of 1364 races and US$52million. His 42 stakes winners include Group1 winners Acclamation (North American Champion Older Male, six Group1 wins), The Usual Q (two Group1 wins), Golden Doc A, Miss Adela (Mexico) and Unusual Suspect.
Unusual Heat is one of a long list of sires by Nureyev, a three-quarter brother by Northern Dancer to Sadler's Wells and Fairy King who has been a major influence in world breeding over the last thirty years. Used only in northern hemisphere seasons, he supplied 135 stakes winners, including 29 at Group1, and so far his dams have been represented by 219 stakes winners, including 22 successful in Group1 races.
Zabeel, a son of a Nureyev mare, is a phenomenal broodmare sire in this part of the world; Makybe Diva's sire Desert King and world wide respected Kingmambo are others from daughters of Nureyev.
He has also left his mark in this part of the world through his sire sons Stravinsky (USA) (nine Group1 winners) and Good Journey (USA) (sire of Happy Trails, Grand Journey) and paternal grandsons Thorn Park (sire of Jimmy Choux, Ocean Park) and Starcraft (sire of Blue Diamond winner Star Witness). There is much more.
After being test bred to two mares, Cabarita Miss (by Kingmambo sire Dubai Destination) and Hennessy Road (Dolphin Street), for a colt and filly, Unusual Suspect (2016 fee $5,500) went to stud at Glen Avon Lodge in 2015, looking after 81 mares, including daughters of More Than Ready (USA), Danzero, Rock of Gibraltar (Ire), Sebring, Hussonet (USA), Snippets, Mossman, Snaadee (USA), Grand Lodge (USA), Elvstroem, Xaar (GB), Bel Esprit, Reset, Celestial Dancer (Ire), Henrythenavigator (USA) and Maroof (USA).
He is again being solidly supported in 2016, patronage also spurred by the quality of the big batch of his foals in the paddocks at Glen Avon Lodge, a stud which earlier in the ownership of Fred Brown, an industry leader, bred good horses using resident sires No Faith (USA) (by Noholme), Sea Road (Whiskey Road), Double Century (Century) and Admiralty (USA) (by Strawberry Road).
Glen Avon Lodge, and also nearby Hazelwood, are both owned by Tony Gorring (phone 0427 581 270), a prominent racing identity. He conducts the stud in partnership with its manager Cameron Barnes (0402 717 849), an enthusiastic disciple of the prospects of Unusual Suspect's future as a sire.