Darley's Golden Slipper winner Sepoy has made a blazing start to the UK flat season producing quality filly Dabyah to win the Group III Fred Darling Stakes at Newbury, while another of his three year-old fillies, Unforgetable Filly, was runner-up in the Group III Nell Gwyn Stakes at Newmarket last Wednesday.
Both will tackle Group I Guineas races at their next appearance.
Overnight at Navan in Ireland, Sepoy produced his fourth stakes-winner with three year-old colt Khukri taking out the Listed Power Stakes at Navan, his second win from four starts.
Khukri scored a stylish three-quarter length win in the six furlong sprint for the Jessica Harrington stable.
"He's a sprinter and I haven't really trained sprinters before," Harrington said.
"This was sort of the only place we could go, so we put him in here and hoped for the best. We really didn't know what to think, because he's just been working away at home and his homework probably wouldn't inspire you. It doesn't matter, as he put his head in front at the right place."
Sepoy's four stakes-winners to date have all come in the Northern Hemisphere, while his Australian results have yet to reflect that success.
Sepoy and So You Think started at the same service fee in 2012 of $66,000 and were clearly head and shoulders above their peers in terms of racetrack performance with So You Think the globe-trotting champion of 10 Group I wins and Sepoy a thoroughly dominant Champion 2YO Colt and Champion 3YO Sprinter with four Group I wins.
Their service fee fluctuations tell the story of their stud careers to date.
So You Think covered at Coolmore at $66,000 for his first two seasons before dropping to $55,000 and then $49,500 last year before rising back to $60,500 for 2017. He has covered 895 mares in five seasons.
Sepoy spent his first four seasons at $66,000 before dropping to $33,000 last year and has again been slashed to $16,500 for 2017. He has covered 635 mares in five seasons.
While So You Think has made little impact in the Northern Hemisphere with just four winners in France and Ireland and has not shuttled since 2014, Sepoy has sired 25 winners from 50 runners in Great Britain and is in the UK now for Darley standing at a fee of 15,000 pounds.
The contrasting performances of these young stallions is thought provoking stuff.
Why has So You Think proven uncommercial in Europe and why has Sepoy underperformed so badly here in Australia?
Both are doing a fine job albeit on opposite sides of the world with four stakes-winners apiece, although given two of So You Think's stakes-winners are Group I winners it's not hard to see why his fee has shot back up.
Breeders that supported Sepoy in his first season were rewarded with incredible riches when his first crop of yearlings sold for up to $1.6 million. They averaged $286,346 at Magic Millions and an astonishing $379,091 at Inglis Easter.
Whatever might be said of Sepoy, there are breeders out there who have done very well out of him one way or another and his UK success gives hope that he may yet find a horse to hang his hat on here in Australia.
Footnote: Sire table information is courtesy of Arion and accurate at April 24.
