TDN Weekend

stallions and cash in Almanzor abroad. If not, however, the two studs may have to compromise on a central tenet of their respective businesses. For the Coolmore imprint on the Cauvinière mindset is no- where more evident than in their enthu- siasm for large books of mares. Alex be- lieves that a stallion makes his name first and foremost from racehorses, not from supply and demand. But de Chambure swims against that current. "You can go out there and ad- vertise your horse everywhere, and get 20 or 30 extra mares, but I think they will only devalue him," he insists. "I have so much respect for all the other studs, but it does make me sad that they're not stricter about numbers. It's such a short- term view, for the stallion himself and for the whole market. The horse needs sup- port from his shareholders, he needs their good mares, but it's a quality game, not a numbers game. Thirty years ago a real good stallion needed 50 mares to make it. So why do people think they nowadays need 200 mares to get them going? We live in a world where people want quality." T he two studs manifest much of their character on the next tier down from their young stars: for while both have shown real flair in respectively re- cruiting Rajsaman and Scissor Kick, each has worked very different angles. The Cauvinière team clocked Rajsaman as one of the last sons of a stallion who had done much to stop the French rot, in Linamix, and was top-class on his day – as when beating Siyouni and Lope De Vega for a mere Group Three prize, or when go- ing under by less than a length to Goldiko- va and Cirrus Des Aigles in the Prix d'Ispa- han. "And he was last turning in, it was unbe- lievable," Alex marvels. "Luckily his [final] owners were not really into breeding, and we were able to buy him privately. Again, we sent him some good mares – maybe fewer than went to Le Havre in the first year, but still 10 to 15 good mares. And he was leading first crop sire and, most im- portantly, had stakes horses after stand- ing at €4,000." Even before then, he had earned a fee hike after becoming the busi- est stallion in the country with 219 mares. Rajsaman had been under everyone's nose, if only they cared to look. But Scis- sor Kick is a left-field Australian discov- ery for de Chambure. "I had a feeling that Redoute's Choice was going to be a big success in Europe and when this horse came up – with his pedigree, looks and race record – I thought him just perfect," he explains. "That Danehill line from Aus- tralia has done so well in Europe, through Fastnet Rock, Choisir and Exceed And Excel, all sires of G1 winners here. He's something a bit exotic, maybe, but it makes a lot of sense and we're going to give him every chance. Over the last few years there's been a growing trust in Aus- tralian sires and the stallion market is so competitive here that it was a value op- tion as well." Very much the kind of thing, you sus- 37

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