THE much-travelled Hunting Horn was a popular addition to the stallion ranks last year and covered 82 mares in his debut season.
The former Ballydoyle trainee notched up three wins and a string of blacktype placings in 23 starts from his Irish base, and was repatriated from Qatar to begin this new phase of his career.
Runner-up in a Galway maiden on the second of two starts at two, Hunting Horn beat subsequent Irish Derby winner Latrobe in a Navan maiden first time out at three and was placed in the Group 3 Classic Trial at Sandown and Group 3 Chester Vase before finishing only two and a half lengths behind Study Of Man in the Prix du Jockey Club-French Derby. He was sixth in that classic but a wide-margin winner of the Group 3 Hampton Court Stakes over 10 furlongs at Ascot just 18 days later and then headed even farther abroad for his next starts.
Belmont Derby
Hunting Horn was third to Catholic Boy in the Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes in New York before heading to France. There he was short-headed by Brundtland in the Group 2 Prix Niel at ParisLongchamp and although the trips did not reap rewards, he was was among the team’s representatives in both the Arc and Breeders’ Cup Turf.
His four-year-old campaign also accumulated lots of air miles, kicking off with a third-place result in a Grade 3 at Gulfsteam Park before finishing third to French King in an ultra-valuable 12-furlong listed contest at Doha. Belmont Park was his next stop and Hunting Horn was only a neck behind his stablemate Magic Wand when the pair finished third and fourth to Channel Maker in the Grade 1 Man O’ War Stakes.
Group 2
He then took fourth behind Crystal Ocean in the Group 1 Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Ascot, and later won the Group 2 Moonee Valley Gold Cup over 12 and a half furlongs in Australia. It takes a robust horse to handle so much international travel, and that toughness would a valuable trait to pass on to his offspring.
Hunting Horn is out of Mora Bai (Indian Ridge), a half-sister to dual Derby star and leading international sire High Chaparral (Sadler’s Wells), so he is somewhat closely related to that standout. He is a son of the juvenile ace and multiple classic star Camelot, a multiple classic sire whose unbeaten Group 1 scorer Luxembourg is a leading fancy to add to that haul in 2022.
Even So (Irish Oaks), Russian Camelot (South Australian Derby, Underwood Stakes), Athena (Belmont Oaks Invitational), Latrobe (Irish Derby), and the ill-fated pair Sir Dragonet (Cox Plate, Tancred Stakes) and Santa Barbara (Belmont Oaks Invitational, Beverly D Stakes) are among Camelot’s best to date.
Strongest impact
Hunting Horn is a grandson of Montjeu, and so represents the branch of Sadler’s Wells that has made the strongest impact on the National Hunt sector, and that gives him dual-purpose appeal.
HUNTING HORN (IRE), Bay 2015. Won three races, £863,088, from 1 mile 2 furlongs to 1 mile 4½ furlongs, at 3 and 4 years including, McCafe Moonee Valley Gold Cup, Moonee Valley, Gr.2, Hampton Court Stakes, Ascot, Gr.3, also placed second in Qatar Prix Niel, Parislongchamp, Gr.2, and third in Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes, Belmont Park, Gr.1, Centennial Celebration MBNA Chester Vase, Chester, Gr.3, W L McKnight Stakes, Gulfstream Park, Gr.3, bet365 Classic Trial, Sandown Park, Gr.3, Longines H.H.The Amir’s Trophy, Al Rayyan, L.
Retired to Stud in 2021.
Stands at: Castlefield Stud, Bishopslough, Bennettsbridge, Co Kilkenny, Ireland
Contact: Jack Tuohy or Ger O’Neill
Telephone: +353 (0)86 3589661 (Jack) or +353 (0)86 3844560 (Ger)
Fee: €2,000