It was with great sadness that racing met the news that horse racing legend Galileo had passed away in 2021.

As a competitor, the Aidan O’Brien-trained stallion was crowned the European Champion Three-Year-Colt in 2001 after winning the Epsom Derby, the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes, and the Irish Derby in the same season. However, it was his time at stud that has been the most prolific of all, with Galileo winning the Leading Sire in Great Britain & Ireland award a staggering eleven times in a row between 2010 and 2020 thanks to the success of his progeny.

Several of his progeny will be looking to emulate his achievements at the King George in July, with the likes of Kyprios, Wordsworth and Tuesday all listed in the ante-post odds for the race – the first name mentioned, as the reigning Epsom Derby champion, is likely to be featured in many horse racing tips columns.

If they can, they will join the list of major winners to have been bred from Galileo – a collection which includes the legendary Frankel, Rip Van Winkel, Nathaniel and many, many more besides.

Every time a new generation of Galileo progeny takes to the track, there is plenty of anticipation, and racing fans will look forward to seeing how a horse by the name of Malawi performs in the months and years ahead.

Pedigree Power

Sired by Galileo, his mother is Weekend Strike, whose own half-brother Court Vision won the Breeders’ Cup Mile in 2011. Malawi’s brother, Sizzling, also enjoyed a solid racing career and won a Group 3 outing at Cork in 2018. So this African-inspired horse’s credentials cannot be called into question, and the hope is that he can build upon what was an encouraging enough campaign in 2021.

Trained by one of the best in the business, O’Brien, and owned by the perennially successful Coolmore operation, Malawi certainly has the credentials to go a long way in the sport.

Malawi finished second in each of the first three runs of his career, with a defeat at Navan to Point Nepean coming by just a short head. Those early runs showed plenty of potential, but O’Brien and the horse’s connections still weren’t sure of the ideal trip to send Malawi over. His next run took place over one-mile-two-furlongs at Dundalk, and he led the way impressively before just being headed off by Safecracker in the final furlong.

Sensing there was more to come, O’Brien pushed Malawi over two miles next time out at Thurles, but the horse clearly struggled with the extra yardage and even an experienced jockey like Seamie Heffernan struggled to get a tune out of him. A step down in trip looks to be the most likely course of action, and it will be interesting to see how a slightly more mature and race-hardened Malawi fares in the seasons ahead.

One thing is for sure… he couldn’t wish for a better bloodline.