WA Breeders Take Note - Half-Brother to City of Troy Standing at St Jude Farm

Media Release - Thursday November 2

"Unbelievable... I've never had a horse like him... he's got a jet engine... no doubt the best two-year-old I've trained." - Just some of the accolades Aidan O'Brien has for the exciting City Of Troy who remained undefeated winning the Group I Dewhurst Stakes in sensational style last month.

King of Athens (USA) is standing his third season at St Jude Farm.

And St Jude Farm is home to his exciting half-brother King Of Athens (USA).

Bred on the outstanding War Front/Sadler's Wells cross, he was chased up due to his Together Forever dam being a Group 1 winner at two - and a young mare with plenty of upside.

Upside which is becoming wildly apparent in the wake of City Of Troy's great form!

City of Troy is seen as something exceptional by the team at Ballydoyle and Coolmore. - image Coolmore

Advertisement

"He's just so natural, he has unbelievable rhythm and an unbelievable mind... he looks a very special horse," O'Brien said.

"And we don't know where the limit is - we usually push them but we can never find his limit, he just goes along with his ears pricked."

Jockey Ryan Moore is also impressed - "there is a massive engine there - he is as exciting a two-year-old as I have ever ridden."

Length of stride is one attribute City Of Troy has, something also noted about his dam - and in the first foals being sired by King Of Athens - and they have respected horsewoman Sue Benthien excited.

"I have never seen foals like these," she said. "They all come out looking like they are a week old - they don't have that usual gangliness and most of them are up and nursing within 30 to 45 minutes."

Sue is also impressed not only by this get up and go attitude being expressed by the King Of Athens foals, but also by their type - "they have very strong muscle development with great bone."

King of Athens stands at a fee of $3,300.

A horse who showed enough speed to break his maiden by five lengths over 1400m, King Of Athens was tried in good company - unlucky not to have won at stakes level, being only narrowly denied when only just beaten in the Listed Irish 2000 Guineas trial.

Described by O'Brien as "a lovely horse with a great temperament... a colt with lots of quality and plenty of ability," King Of Athens was "regarded highly" by the stable, looking set for a Classic campaign only to have stifle injury curtail his career.

King Of Athens' three times US Champion Sire War Front is proving his worth as a sire of sires with 28 of his sons siring stakes winners - 17 of whom have sired Gr.1 winners including Declaration Of War, sire of a Melbourne Cup and a VRC Derby winner!

With a half-brother like City Of Troy in the limelight, King Of Athens is a horse who is bound to attract increased attention.

Advertisment
More Reading...
Coolmore Announce Euro 2025 Fees
Coolmore have announced fees for their 20 strong European sire roster with three new additions City of Troy (Justify), Auguste Rodin (Deep Impact)and Henry Longfellow (Dubawi) and a significant increase for Wootton Bassett, who is currently in Australia.
Melbourne Cup Winner for Extreme Choice – Rare Slice of History
This year’s $8.5million Group I VRC Melbourne Cup (3200m) produced a genuinely amazing fairytale result for the connections of five year-old Extreme Choice gelding Knight’s Choice, but part of that fairytale is his sire Extreme Choice, who has carved out something seriously special as being only the second sire in history to produce the winner of a Golden Slipper and a Melbourne Cup.
Darley Announce European Fees 2025
Darley have announced fees on their roster off 22 sires standing in the UK, Ireland and France with Dubawi heading the list at a fee of £350,000 for the third year in a row.
Melbourne Cup Pedigree Analysis - Do It Yourself
Breednet has produced a great page with click through to five generation pedigrees for all the Melbourne Cup runners, so for amateur pedigree buffs looking to have a Cup flutter based pedigree here’s your chance  to DIY it!
Magic Nick Strikes Again – Fastnet Rock x Galileo
The Fastnet Rock x Galileo nick has been on fire in Melbourne this spring producing Cox Plate winner Via Sistina (IRE) and leading Melbourne Cup contender Buckaroo (GB) and it struck again overnight in the UK with a brand new stakes-winner in Military Academy, who captured the Listed Floodlit Stakes (1m4f) at Kempton.
Coolmore Set Justify Fee for 2025
Coolmore have announced the US fee for Justify in 2025 with the undefeated Triple Crown winner priced at $US250,000 to head  their roster of 16 stallions at Ashford Stud in Kentucky.
Knights Choice a True Underdog Story
Punters were left stunned when the Queenslander Knight's Choice and Japanese visitor Warp Speed (JPN) emerged from the pack to fight out a dramatic finish to the $8,560,000 Group 1 Lexus Melbourne Cup (3200m) at Flemington.
More Stakes Success for Air Assault
Group I placed last season in the SA Derby, talented gelding Air Assault kept the winning run going for Victoria Derby winning trainer Andrew Gluyas when taking out the Listed SAJC John Letts Cup (1800m) at Morphettville on Melbourne Cup Day.
Sires With Winners - Tuesday November 5
Here is the full list of 145 stallions which had winners throughout Australasia today with winners and result details.
El Vencedor wins G3 Balmerino Stakes
El Vencedor is making a habit of picking up major victories at Ellerslie, adding the Gr.3 Balmerino Stakes (2000m) to his burgeoning record at Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup Day meeting.