DUAL classic winner and Ballylinch Stud stallion Lope De Vega (by Shamardal) has had quite a purple patch recently.

His first-crop sons Belardo and Endless Drama were first and third in the Group 1 Al Shaqab Lockinge Stakes (British Champions Series) at Newbury a fortnight ago, two days later his second-crop daughter Jemayel won the Group 1 Prix Saint-Alary at Deauville, then Blue De Vega finished third in Saturday’s Group 1 Tattersalls Irish 2000 Guineas, and Steel Of Madrid became a new stakes winner for the stallion when successful at Newmarket that same afternoon.

The latter is trained by Richard Hannon, he was bred by Jeddah Bloodstock, and he is a 120,000gns graduate of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale in Newmarket.

The horse he beat in the Listed Pantile Stud Fairway Stakes was the classic-entered Lope De Vega colt Linguistic, and a step up to pattern company looks like a logical next move for him.

FAMOUS DAM LINE

Steel Of Madrid is the second foal out of the seven-furlong scorer Bibury (by Royal Applause), the mare had a Born To Sea (by Invincible Spirit) colt last year, and she descends from one of the most famous mares of all time.

Bibury is out of the stakes-placed five-times scorer Dahlia’s Krissy (by Kris S), which makes her a half-sister to the Group 1 Gold Cup and Group 3 Qipco Long Distance Cup hero Rite Of Passage (by Giant’s Causeway). He lives alongside Moscow Flyer, Beef Or Salmon, Hurricane Fly, Hardy Eustace and Kicking King as one of the Living Legends at the Irish National Stud.

Dahlia’s Krissy is a half-sister to the stakes-placed six-times winner River Image (by Irish River) and she is out of Dahlia’s Image (by Lyphard), a stakes-placed full-sister to Grade 2 Jersey Derby winner Llandaff and to Dahar, a multiple Group/Grade 1 scorer who is one of four of his dam’s progeny to win at the highest level.

That mare is, of course, the brilliant Dahlia (by Vaguely Noble), champion at three and four years of age, prolific Group 1 star, and dam also of the US Grade 1 winners Rivlia (by Riverman), Delegant (by Grey Dawn) and Dahlia’s Dreamer (by Theatrical).

Her daughter Wajd (by Northern Dancer) won the Group 2 Grand Prix d’Evry, and was placed in both the Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks and Group 1 Prix Royal-Oak, before becoming the dam of Group 3 Cumberland Lodge Stakes winner Wall Street (by Mr Prospector) and of Group 1 St Leger hero Nedawi (by Rainbow Quest), a leading sire in Brazil.

With any outstanding broodmare there is a tendency to focus on the achievements of her progeny rather than on what she herself did on the track, and in the case of Dahlia that would be an injustice to one of the great fillies of the turf.

The Group 1 Irish Oaks heroine of 1973 also won the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud, Prix Saint-Alary, Washington D.C. International Stakes, Man O’War Stakes, Hollywood Invitational Handicap, Canadian International Championship Stakes, and two editions of both the Benson & Hedges Gold Cup (now Juddmonte International Stakes) and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, a total of 11 Group/Grade 1 victories.

MOUNTAINS

Steel Of Madrid has mountains to climb before he could be considered to be anywhere near the same league as his brilliant fourth dam, but he clearly has plenty of ability, he is on the upgrade, and pattern success could his before long.