“IT is with deep sadness that we announce the death of our stallion Havana Gold, aged 13, after sustaining a fatal pelvis injury this afternoon.”

With that we learned of the passing last week of the Tweenhills sire, and what a blow it must be for David Redvers, Sheikh Fahad and anyone who had a part to play in the stallion’s success. Havana Gold was the leading British-based first-season sire in 2017, and the leading British-based sire of two-year-old in 2021.

Like father, like son, and Havana Gold’s first son to go to stud, Havana Grey, was crowned the leading British-based first-season sire last year, five years after his father did so.

Havana Gold is the sire of numerous stakes winners, including Group 2 winner El Caballo, Group 3 winners Tabdeed and Treasuring, Royal Ascot’s Listed Windsor Castle Stakes winner Chipotle, listed winners Fearby and Chateau, and last season’s unbeaten two-year-old Streets Of Gold.

The son of Teofilo (Galileo) was bred by Sir Eric Parker out of the group-winning sprinter Jessica’s Dream, a daughter of Desert Style (Green Desert). Havana Gold was bought during his juvenile career by Qatar Racing and went on to win the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat as a three-year-old for Qatar Racing and CSH, before retiring to stud at Tweenhills in 2014.

Havana Gold won four of his six starts at two, the most important of these being the Group 3 Somerville Tattersall Stakes over seven furlongs at Newmarket, and the Listed Ascendant Stakes at Haydock over a mile. Runner-up to Toronado in the Group 3 Craven Stakes, he was fourth in the Group 1 Tattersalls Irish 2000 Guineas to Magician.

Racing moment

His greatest racing moment came at Chantilly when he landed the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat over a mile, and among the vanquished that day were Mondialiste, Style Vendome and Anodin. Havana Gold went to stud at a fee of £8,500, and his fee ranged over the years from a low of £7,000 to a high of £15,000. One thing he always did was to deliver for breeders in the sale ring, as well as on the racetrack, and over the past two years his yearlings have averaged around €37,000.

Group 1 winning sprinter Havana Grey made an explosive start at stud last year and looks set for further and greater glory. With his success there will be more than usual focus on trying to come up with another son to develop into a stallion prospect. Meanwhile, Havana Gold will leave quite a hole in the Tweenhills stallion roster.