THE Weatherbys Return of Mares contains no extravagant writing or thrilling plotlines, and features just the one sumptuous picture, and yet its publication each year is always keenly anticipated by industry insiders and enthusiasts alike.

That is because it contains a carefully curated, comprehensive list of every thoroughbred broodmare in Ireland and Britain, detailing the identity of their foals and coverings this season, as well as current and historical statistics on breeding activity in the two countries.

It provides an indispensable guide to the popularity of stallions, the latest news on top-class racemares and producers, and crucial clues to the health of the bloodstock business.

Affinisea again

For the second year in a row Affinisea was the busiest sire in Ireland and Britain, covering 382 mares at Whytemount Stud. He was sent 324 mares in 2021 and 211 in 2020, so is set to be heavily represented in National Hunt racing in the next decade and beyond. That might be considered strange in the context of his race record, which yielded a solitary success at Roscommon from just two starts, but breeders have put their faith in him as a good-looking Sea The Stars half-brother to Soldier Of Fortune, out of a half-sister to Sholokhov.

Affinisea is covering quality as well as quantity, with top-class racemares Glens Melody and Voler La Vedette and the dams of Andy Dufresne, Fiddlerontheroof, Highway One O Two, Lalor, The New One, The Shunter and Third Time Lucki featuring among his 2022 book.

Rounding out the top 10 busiest sires in Britain and Ireland last year are Crystal Ocean (352 mares), Order Of St George (287), Blue Bresil (267), Poet’s Word (258), Sioux Nation (255), Starman (254), Vadamos (250), Mehmas (249), and Wootton Bassett (249).

Double century

Ardad was the busiest British-based sire this year, receiving 205 mares at Overbury Stud as reward for his productive first season with two-year-olds in 2021, which was capped by his son Perfect Power winning the Norfolk Stakes, Prix Morny and Middle Park Stakes.

That book was an increase from 156 mares last season, and up from just 26 in 2020 when he struggled for support. His 2022 coterie is headlined by the dams of Amazing Maria, Grande Dame, Major Jumbo, Summer Sands, White Lavender and Zonderland.

The next busiest sires in Britain were Frankel (188 mares), Logician (183), Time Test (181), Havana Grey (166), Dubawi (165), and Too Darn Hot (164)

Dazzling dates

Speaking of Dubawi, the doyen of the Darley stallion roster looks set for a deserved first British and Irish sire title this year, as his progeny earnings of £6.3 million are more than a million ahead of those of his closest pursuer, the reigning champion Frankel.

The son of Dubai Millennium covers exceptional books of mares, and this year covered four very special mares who were Group 1 scorers and have delivered top-level scorers at stud, namely Dar Re Mi (dam of Too Darn Hot), Misty For Me (dam of Roly Poly and U S Navy Flag), Nightime (dam of Ghaiyyath and Zhukova) and Rhododendron (dam of Auguste Rodin).

Among the other Group/Grade 1 winners in this year’s book were Albigna, Alice Springs, Althiqa, Athena, Audarya, Ballydoyle, Cascadian, Clemmie, Enable, Fancy Blue, Glass Slippers, God Given, Hermosa, Joan Of Arc, La Pelosa, Lady Bowthorpe, Laurens, Legatissimo, Love, Loving Dream, Lumiere, Magical, Molly Malone, Mutamakina, Passage Of Time, Peaceful, Rushing Fall, Sheikha Reika, Sistercharlie, Snow Lantern, Star Of Seville, Tepin, Together Forever, Veracious, Was and Zhukova.

All being well, Dubawi’s 2023 foal crop could include siblings to Arabian Queen, Call The Wind, Cascadian, Castle Lady, Coroebus, Enable, Gleneagles, Mangoustine, Mishriff, Modern Games, Native Trail, Naval Crown, Old Persian, Quorto, Rebel’s Romance, Rizeena, Siyarafina, Snowfall, Sottsass, Space Blues, Tarnawa, Uni, Wooded and Yibir.

Poignant

Galileo’s tally of 12 British and Irish titles is likely to be unchallenged for a long time, and a poignant feature of this year’s Return of Mares is the list of the Coolmore sire’s 12 final foals who were conceived before his death in July 2021. They all, naturally, have outstanding pedigrees.

Coolmore are the registered breeders of seven of them: colts out of Australian Group 1 winner Amicus, 1000 Guineas fourth Manderley and Prix du Moulin runner-up Wind Chimes, full-brothers to blacktype performers Delphi, Easter Lily and High Heels, and a full-sister to Battle Of Marengo. Newstead Breeding welcomed two, a colt out of listed-placed Bounce, and a filly who is a half-sister to the listed-placed Gold Filigree.

The other three were a half-sister to Rose Bowl Stakes winner Method, bred by Frank Hutchinson; a colt out of Aegean Girl, an unraced half-sister to crack sprinter Lightning Moon, bred by Lynch Bages; and a filly out of Mill Reef Stakes runner-up Perfect Angel bred by Westerberg.

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The 2022 Return of Mares is available to purchase on weatherbysshop.co.uk