With four runners in
this weekend's Kentucky Derby including the favourite Justify and top fancy
Mendelssohn, the late great Scat Daddy is on the cusp of possibly his finest achievement
putting the spotlight on his two Australian bound Group I sons Caravaggio (USA)
and No Nay Never (USA), who sired his first winner at Belmont in New York earlier
this morning.
His Irish-bred daughter Mae Never No made an impressive winning debut over
1000metres for the powerful stable of Wesley Ward, who also trained No Nay
Never.
Mae Never No races for the Ice Wine Stable, who also raced No Nay Never in
partnership with Coolmore.
Settled in third early, Mae Never No attacked the line with more vigour than
the favourite, outsprinting her inside the final half-furlong to win, going
away, by a length and a quarter.
She is also the first winner for her dam Sweet Shirley Mae, a Group I placed
daughter of Broken Vow.
Ward has enjoyed great success in recent years targeting the feature
two-year-old races at Royal Ascot and the suggestion post-race was that this
filly could be targeted towards that meeting.
No Nay Never won Royal Ascot's Group II Norfolk Stakes over 1000m as a
two-year-old for Ward having broken his maiden over 900m at Keeneland in late
April.
No Nay Never rounded out an unbeaten two-year-old season with a win in the Group
I Prix Morny over 1200m in France and has since made an eye-catching start at
stud with his first yearlings selling for up to 850,000gns (A$1,600,000 approx)
in 2017, prompting his fee in the Northern Hemisphere to jump to €25,000
(A$40,000 approx) for the 2018 season.
No Nay Never currently sits amongst the favourites to be champion first season
sire of Britain and Ireland by winners.
Kentucky Derby fever is captivating the US bloodstock world this week and Scat Daddy is generating all the talk with his four runners
Justify, Mendelssohn, Flameaway and Combatant.
Unbeaten Justify is a last start winner of the Group I Santa Anita Derby, while
Mendelssohn is a last start winner of the Group II UAE Derby and won the Group
I Breeders Cup Turf at Del Mar last year.
Thy will seek to do what their sire could not as Scat Daddy was a leading
Kentucky Derby contender back in 2007.
A Group I winner at two, he went into the Derby off victories in the Group II Fountain
of Youth Stakes and Group I Florida Derby, but bowed a tendon in the race and
was retired to what has become a now-legendary stud career.
Scat Daddy has sired 96 stakes-winners worldwide in a dual shuttling stud
career between Kentucky and South America.
His 11.6% stakes-winners to runners puts him up with the very best sires in the
world and we can only wonder what would have happened had he shuttled to
Australia.
His Group I winners are a mix of dirt and turf performers with his two best
turf sprinting sons No Nay Never and Caravaggio set to visit Australia in the
spring for Coolmore.
No Nay Never will be on his third trip and has weanlings to be offered at the
upcoming Magic Millions National Sale.
Click here to see his draft which includes the half-brother to Group I ATC
Australian Oaks winner Unforgotten to be offered as Lot 310 by Coolmore.
A lightning fast dark grey powerhouse of a sprinter, Caravaggio starred at Royal
Ascot two years running winning the Group II Coventry Stakes at two and then
the Group I Commonwealth Cup at three.
No Nay Never stands at a fee of $19,2500, while Caravaggio is priced at
$33,000.
Australian breeders might have missed out on Scat Daddy, but in Caravaggio and No
Nay Never we are seeing two of his very best turf sprinting sons.