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Naval Crown

Darley Fees 2025- The Irish sires

Darley now have 22 sires on their flat roster across the UK, Ireland and France. The Irish roster for 2025 comprises the same nine sires who covered 1123 mares in 2024. This is an average of 125 mares per sire which is only slightly behind the average coverings per sire at Coolmore. Notably, Darley’s Irish sires were considerably busier than their 12 UK counterparts who covered an average of 101 mares per sire. The Irish roster is low on diversity with four sons of Dubawi, two sons of Shamardal and one each for sons of Galileo, Elusive Quality and Oasis Dream. It is a good roster but it would have been nice to see some new faces, more diversity in the sire lines and voluntary restrictions on book sizes.

1. Night Of Thunder €150,000 (€100,000) 16.0 1/2 hh (2011 Dubawi ex Forest Storm by Galileo)

Verdict: Beginning to rumble

Two new Group 1 winners in Economics and Desert Flower prompted a big hike in his fee. 2024 also saw him sire five other Group winners including Fairy Godmother who also seemed destined for the top and 12 Listed winners. Economics was bred at €25,000 and Desert Flower off a €75,000 cover so his good season will be a relief to breeders who used him at €100k in 2024 and 2023 in the expectation that his best days were still to come.

Night of Thunder’s first crop was exceptional, eventually yielding 22 stakes winners from 112 foals. His subsequent crops weren’t nearly as impressive. He had 17 stakes winners from the next three crops and surprisingly he had sired only two Group 1 winners in Europe (Highfield Princess and Thundering Nights) from his initial four crops. His career stats are good with 54 black type winners from 627 foals of racing age to the end of 2024 (8.6%). Physically Night of Thunder is a far from perfect specimen and it won’t have gone unnoticed that Economics appeared to bleed after the Dante and Champion Stakes. However, his yearlings had a median of €246,750 so the market has embraced him and he now looks set to be a fixture among the elite European sires. At his new fee he needs to be consistently siring 2-3 Group 1 each year. He attracted 130 mares in 2024 but with his best bred crops to come, he may be able to justify his new rating.
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2. Blue Point €100,000 (€60,000) 16.1 hh (2014 Shamardal ex Scarlett Rose by Royal Applause)

Verdict: Making waves
He has surpassed expectations and to sire three Group 1 winners in his first crop is impressive. Big Evs and Kind of Blue are sprinters but Rosallion was a top miler and the ability to sire milers makes a big difference to his commercial appeal. His yearling median in 2024 was €99,750 (albeit for a crop conceived at €40,000) so his new fee will require the market to show even more love. He has sired 13 stakes from the 281 named foals in his first two crops which is only 4.6% but that percentage should increase as those crops have their three and four old year careers in 2025. There are already an impressive 97 winners from the 158 named foals in his first crop(61%) so he will be popular with trainers. The question will be whether he can maintain his momentum? His two year old’s of 2024 included the unbeaten Group 2 winner Sky Majesty and a pair of Listed winners amongst 33 winners so that was encouraging . Racingpost stats show his progeny average winning distance is 6.5 furlongs with only Havana Grey of the top twenty sires showing a lower average winning trip. There is nothing wrong with being a sire of sprinters but commercially it matters. That is why the success of Rosallion was important as the perception that he sires milers may outweigh the reality that he is primarily a sire of sprinters.

I had my doubts about Blue Points prospects given that he came from an unremarkable female line, he was an atypical Shamardal in terms of distances and he was best at five. Now the fact that he improved with age, augurs well for further success for his initial crops. Its interesting that his dam is by Royal Applause who is now such a prominent feature in pedigrees via his son Acclamation and grandsons Dark Angel and Mehmas. At his new fee, he is pricey for a sprint sire but a fee of €60,000 attracted 161 mares in 2024 so he has lots of fans. He is clearly a good sire but he is fully priced for now.

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3. Teofilo €30,000 (€30,000) 16.2 hh (2004 Galileo ex Speirbhean by Danehill)

Verdict: Doesn’t pack the same punch as before

Next year will be the 5th consecutive season that he stands for €30,000. He has compiled a very credible career record with a current tally of 24 Group 1 winners that included at least one Group 1 winner in each of his first 11 crops the most recent of which is Nation’s Pride from his 2019 crop. He has 99 stakes winners (7%) and has a good reputation as a broodmare sire. His yearling median last year was €43,000 so there is little commercial upside off a €30,000 covering fee and that will dissuade commercial breeders. We know that statistically older sires are less effective but he would still have been a good option for a younger mare if they had considerably reduced his fee. I was a fan of his throughout his career but at €30,000 and 21 years of age he is now overpriced.

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4. Ghaiyyath €20,000 (€25,000) 16.2 hh (2015 Dubawi ex Nightime by Galileo)

Verdict: Big Horse, now a big gamble

His first runners resulted in 12 winners from 44 runners in a crop numbering 101. There were no stakes winners but Stanhope Garden was Group 3 placed and there were some promising end of season maiden winners. As a big horse who got better with age no one was realistically expecting two year old fireworks. He did enough to give hope that he may succeed as a sire but not enough to inspire confidence that he will succeed. His yearling median dropped to €41,626 off a €25,000 covering fee reflecting market nervousness. His progeny will improve with time and stars may emerge but given the modest fee reduction a cautious approach is advised for now.

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5. Space Blues €16,000 (16,000) 15.3 1/2 hh (2016 Dubawi ex Miss Lucifer by Noverre).
Verdict: Good chance of lift off

He had 11 wins and 4 places from 19 runs including success in the Breeders Cup Mile, Prix de la Foret and Prix Maurice de Gheest. He only ran once at two when winning a maiden, but with 109 two year olds to run in 2025 he will be amongst the favourites for the first season sire title . His dam was high class winning the Challenge Stakes. He is free of Sadler’s Wells and Danzig so he is an outcross option for many Irish mares. Normally I would expect a fee reduction for a fourth season at stud but perhaps because he attracted 177 mares in 2024 they saw no need to stoke demand. I fancy him to do well as a sire but as with any unproven sire that is only guesswork until we see the merit of his first runners.

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6. Native Trail €16,000 (17,500) 16.1 1/2 hh (2019 Oasis Dream ex Needleleaf by Observatory).
Verdict: Proceed with caution

An unbeaten two year old who won the National Stakes and the Dewhurst, he was runner up to Coroebus in the Guineas but gained classic success in the Irish Guineas. That proved his last victory as he had two further unsuccessful runs at three and no success from his two runs at four. He was reported as having a wind operation in the Autumn of his three year old season but that didn’t worry the owners of the 179 mares who visited him in 2024. Oasis Dream hasn’t a great record as a sire of sires. Showcasing did well but Aqlaam, Arcano, Muhaarar, Power and others all failed to make a significant impact. Coincidentally Power also won the National Stakes and Irish Guineas. Native Trail comes from a strong female family with names such as African Rose, Calyx and Distant Music all appearing on the page. As a dual Group 1 winner at two and a classic winning miler at three he ticks a lot of boxes for commercial breeders. I was still surprised at his popularity but time will tell whether he justifies that support.

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7. Earthlight €12,500 (€15,000) 15.3 hh (2017 Shamardal ex Winters Moon by New Approach)

Verdict: Needed a much brighter start
Earthlight , Pinatubo and Victor Ludorum were the three unbeaten sons of Shamardal who dominated the two year old season in 2019. Earthlight had 113 two year olds last season of which 62 ran, 20 won and there was a single stakes winner in the Group 3 winner Daylight. As Prix Morny and Middle Park winner, his progeny were expected to be precocious and the lack of fireworks provoked a strong market reaction that saw his yearling median drop from €75k in 2023 to €25,091 in 2024. Earthlight’s three parts brother Shadow of Light won the Middle Park and Dewhurst but his emergence isn’t going to change anyone’s mind about Earthlight’s prospects. It’s not inconceivable that he could turn things around, but if I was a commercial breeder I would be slow to spend €12,500 on that possibility.

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8. Naval Crown €9,000 (€10,000) 15.3 hh (2018 Dubawi ex Come Alive by Dansili)

Verdict: Far from watertight

Naval Crown earned his berth at stud courtesy of an unexpected victory at 33-1 in the Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot. His overall record was four wins from 20 starts so whilst he had talent (he also finished runner up to Alcohol Free in the July Cup) he wasn’t a superstar. His female line is unexceptional and better judges than me have cribbed at his physique. All of those factors explain why he is the cheapest of the Dubawi’s on the roster. His relatively low price was enough to offset some peoples reservations and he attracted 118 mares last year. Despite Dubawi’s stellar reputation as a sire of sires there are still plenty of dud sire sons on his cv and this guy will have to outperform expectations to succeed.

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9. Raven’s Pass €7,500 (€7,500) 16.1 1/2 hh (2005 Elusive Quality ex Ascutney by Lord at War)

Verdict: Another Pass
He has good percentages for a stallion at this fee with 40 stakes winners (6%) but his best days are behind him. There are only 2 stakes winners in his crops born since 2018 albeit none of those crops had more than 38 named foals. He also had a bad year at the sales with only 4 out of 10 yearlings selling for a median of €3,755 and he attracted only 24 mares in 2024. Understandably, there will be no clamour to use him at an unchanged fee.

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Final Word

The stallions at Kildangan reflect the breeding ethos of our age. Only one of them (Ghaiyyath) won over 12 furlongs and it was his victories over 10 furlongs the endeared him to breeders, not his stamina. Three of the sires (Space Blues, Native Trail and Naval Crown) have yet to have runners and Earthlight and Ghaiyyath saw their first runners in 2024. They are heavy with sons of Dubawi . Unrestricted book sizes are the order of the day and its easy to see why research from Emily Hill shows that there is a 50% reduction in T:T horses (stamina) in the general population and a 70% increase in C:C (sprinters). It’s a competitive marketplace and Darley can argue that they are simply giving the market what it wants but they are also part of the problem as we lose stamina in the thoroughbred population and unrestricted book sizes narrow genetic diversity. There is a widespread awareness in the sector that big books, high levels of inbreeding, the use of unsound sires and the pursuit of speed and precocity to the detriment of anything akin to stamina isn’t good for the breed, but still it continues. Charles Warner’s quip that ‘Everybody complains about the weather, but nobody does anything about it’ might also apply to the Irish breeding sector.



Kildangan Fees 2023

There are 9 stallions at Kildangan for 2023. Belardo (Bearstone Stud) and Ribchester (Haras du Logis) have departed and Naval Crown has landed. There are four sons of Dubawi, two sons of Shamardal and one each for sons of Galileo, Invincible Spirit and Elusive Quality. Five of the sires have yet to have runners and overall the Irish roster is weaker in quality and quantity than the 12 sires in Dalham stud. Dubawi’s growing reputation as a sire of sires has worked in their favour. It also helps that Dubawi’s sons are often a good outcross option for an Irish broodmare band saturated in crosses of Sadler’s Wells and Danehill . That said, blindly believing in sire lines rarely works out and its always worth remembering that for every Night of Thunder/ Zarak/New Bay there have been underwhelming sire sons of Dubawi eg Worthadd, Poets Voice, Makfi, Postponed etc. In terms of marketing and promotional savvy, Darley are now a match for Coolmore or any other operator. Unfortunately, they have also adopted Coolmore’s policy of what would traditionally be regarded as very large (excessive) books of mares.

2023 fee (2022 fee)

1. Night Of Thunder €100,000 (€75,000) (2011 Dubawi ex Forest Storm by Galileo)

Verdict: No longer a bargain

Highfield Princess kept his name in lights with victories in the Prix Maurice de Gheest, The Nunthorpe and the Flying Five. The two year old Isaac Shelby won the Grp 2 Superlative Stakes and Rumbles of Thunder and Lola Showgirl won Grp 3’s . Night of Thunder’s offspring were wildly popular at the sales and he had a yearling median of €186k from a crop conceived at €25,000 . These sales results provided the justification for the latest price increase more than results on the track.

He covered 180 mares in 2022 at €75 000 and 177 mares in 2021 at €75,000. If you were to quibble, you could argue that his fee has gotten ahead of his results on the track and his first crop greatly outshone his 2nd and 3rd crops. I did a piece on Night of Thunder back in 2019, when I said he seemed destined for the very top (see https://www.montjeu.com/night-of-thunders-lightning-start/) . I will keep the faith for now. He is no longer in bargain territory but with his better bred crops imminent, he should maintain his climb up the ladder.
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2. Blue Point €35,000 (€40,000) (2014 Shamardal ex Scarlett Rose by Royal Applause)

Verdict: Overpriced/ High risk with first runners in 2023

Covered 142 mares this year, 183 in 2021 and 198 in 2020 so there are a lot of believers in his potential. He was a superb racehorse, winning a Gimcrack at 2, two Group races at three and the Kings Stand at 4. At five he was unbeaten in five starts including 3 Group 1’s. He ran twenty times, winning eleven and placed 6 times, so he was durable as well as classy.

The negatives are that he is from an unexceptional female line, he is an atypical Shamardal in terms of distance preference and he was at his best at 5. I’d worry that people will expect fireworks from his first runners. Its always a mistake to assume that sprinters should be good sires of two year olds just because two year olds run over sprint distances. With such a modest reduction in fee and facing into such a risky season, I wouldn’t be rushing to take a gamble on him this season.

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3. Teofilo €30,000 (€30,000) (2004 Galileo ex Speirbhean by Danehill)

Verdict: A very likeable sire but overpriced for commercial breeders

Teofilo sired a new Grade 1 winner in Nations Pride and Boundless Ocean, Gear Up and West Wind Blows all added Group victories. Teofilo did even better as a broodmare sire with 4 Group 1 winners in Coroebus (by Dubawi), Cachet (by Aclaim), German Oaks winner Toskana Belle (by Shamalgan) and Dreamloper by Lope De Vega. Teofilo is a very solid proven sire (109 stakes winners from 1560 foals (7%) who can sire top horses from milers to out and out stayers. The negatives are that his yearling median was €51,434 last year off a €40,000 covering fees. When you consider his fertility is not the best then he is not attractive for commercial breeders. Conversely his yearlings at the sales represent good value for buyers as he is underrated by the market.

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4. Ghaiyyath €25,000 (€25,000) (2015 Dubawi ex Nighttime by Galileo)

Verdict: Fairly Priced

Now entering his third season, he attracted 161 mares in 2022 and 138 in 2021.. He is bred on the same cross as Night of Thunder and his dam was a classic winner, hence his €1.1 million price tag as a foal. His 13 career stats saw 9 wins including 4 Group 1’s. He was a Grp 3 winner at two which is bonus territory for a son of Dubawi. Dubawi’s reputation as a sire of sires is continuing to grow and that probably meant he didn’t get the price drop that is common in a sires third season. Using any unproven sire is a gamble but for me this fellow isn’t badly priced for the package on offer.

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5. Space Blues €16,000 (17,500) (2016 Dubawi ex Miss Lucifer by Noverre).
Verdict: Slightly Pricey for second season

Attracted 160 mares this year after retiring on a high following his Breeders Cup mile victory. He also annexed a Prix de la Foret and a Prix Maurice de Gheest in a career that say him amass 11 wins and 4 places from 19 runs. In many ways, he was a typical Dubawi who improved each season. He has a nice outcross pedigree for many mares as he is free of Sadler’s Wells and Danzig. I thought they might have taken a little more off his fee for his second season but he still rates an interesting prospect.

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6. Earthlight €15,000 (€18,000) (2017 Shamardal ex Winters Moon by New Approach)

Verdict: No strong views


He attracted 162 mares in 2021 but this dipped below 100 this year (which perhaps indicates an issue of which I’m not aware). Earthlight won his five starts at two including a Prix Morny and a Middle Park in which he beat Golden Horde. At three, he won a Listed race and Group 3. Shamardal’s reputation peaked in 2019 when Pinatubo, Earthlight and Victor Ludorum all enjoyed unbeaten two year old seasons. Lope De Vega remains his only proven sire son. Having retired at 20k, Earthlight’s fee is now predictably reduced for his third season. Comparing the two sons of Shamardal, I think Earthlight’s fee is more attractive than Blue Point’s, as he was more precocious and from a stronger distaff line. However, I wouldn’t be rushing to use him either.

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7. Naval Crown €15,000 (na) (2018 Dubawi ex Come Alive by Dansili)

Verdict: Doesn’t excite at the price

With Charlie Appleby enjoying a golden run, there are a lot of sons of Dubawi being retired to stud. Naval Crown earned his place courtesy of a narrow victory in the Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot. He also won a Grp 2 at Meydan, was runner up in the July Cup and 4th in the 2000 Guineas to Poetic Flare. He was a 33-1 shot when winning his Grp 1 and it was a curious race with the draw having an impact. His overall record was four wins from 20 starts so whilst undoubtedly talented he wasn’t a superstar. His pedigree is modest by the usual Darley standards and its not one of the stronger female families in their broodmare band. On that basis, I think he is a little less exciting than some of his stud mates and there are better value unproven sires available.

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8.Profitable €9,000 (€12,500) 2012 Invincible Spirit ex Dani Ridge by Indian Ridge)

Verdict: Overpriced

He sired a Queen Mary winner in his first crop and Darley overreacted by giving him a fee hike. The market responded by reducing the number of mares to 118 in 2022 , compared to the 168 in 2021. He had another Grp 2 winning filly this year in Wed and Miramar won a Grp 3 as did Mitbaahy. Profitable won a Kings Stand at four and he is very much an influence for speed. He has five stakes winners from his 135 three year olds and one to date from his 91 two year olds. These aren’t particularly impressive statistics and those invested in him will hope that his offspring will improve with age, just as he did. He had a yearling median of €25,074 which was reasonable but a reduction on the €32k of 2021. The market may be cooling on him and he needs a top horse or two to emerge.

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9. Raven’s Pass €7,500 (€7,500) (2005 Elusive Quality ex Ascutney by Lord at War)

Verdict: Overpriced (slightly)

Had a quiet year on the track but strangely his sales results were much improved with his yearling median increasing from €12,370 to €21,397. He has good percentages for a stallion at this fee with 38 stakes winners from 590 foals (6%) but he has never really excited . He has achieved some notable successes as a broodmare sire with Mishriff, Kessaar and Saffron Beach being offspring of his daughters.