First-season sire Impending drew plenty of attention at Darley's stallion parade at Northwood Park in Victoria over the weekend.
Darley's Victorian General Manager Andy Makiv said the stunning son of Lonhro was very well received by the strong turnout on what was a cold, wintery Sunday at the farm at Seymour.
"They are all stars in their own way, but certainly those who were seeing Impending for the first time were really taken aback by what a stunning horse he is," Makiv said.
"He's a really handsome horse, he's a lovely moving horse, he's got that wonderful pedigree, so I think he really paraded well. He's a horse that people thought 'I'd love to get a nomination to him."
"When you add it all together, not only is Impending a smashing individual, he's got the pedigree and performance to go with it." - Andy Makiv, Darley
Impending, who is standing for $20,000, is fully booked with 160 mares in his first season, including some great support from Darley's own band.
The dams of Ghisoni, Exosphere and Pierro are all going to Impending this season.
"He's obviously by Lonhro and the way Pierro is going, Lonhro is really stamping himself as a sire of sires. He's out of a wonderful mare (Mnemosyne), a dual Group 1 winning champion mare who is herself by a champion stallion in Encosta De Lago," Makiv said.
"He himself is a dual Group 1 winner and a winner of $2.7 million in prizemoney. When you add it all together, not only is he is smashing individual, he's got the pedigree and performance to go with it."
Darley also sold lifetime breeding rights in Impending, getting some of the leading breeders involved long term.
Frosted a crowd favourite
Spectacular grey stallion Frosted (USA) was also very popular at the parade, prompting plenty of queries from potential clients.
"He's a horse that always gets people's creative juices going and their love for horses," Makiv said.
"He's a grey, he is very handsome and he was an out-and-out champion."
"Frosted is a horse that always gets people's creative juices going and their love for horses," Andy Makiv
Darley showcased Frosted's spectacular 14-length win in the 2016 Met Mile at Belmont Park during his parade.
"He's a horse who always generates a lot of enquiry during the day. 'Can I breed to him? How do I get into him? What sort of mare will suit him? He's the sort of horse who gets so much interest through any parade, let alone on a big parade day."
Positive signs for Beau
Brazen Beau (Aus) is currently the highest-priced stallion at Northwood Park at a $38,500 service fee. The dual G1 winning sprinter created a considerable buzz of the yearling sales, with his first crop averaging over $350,000 at the Easter Yearling Sales and $135,000 at the Gold Coast Magic Millions.
With his first two-year-olds set to hit the track this season, Makiv says there is a great amount of anticipation about the son of I Am Invincible (Aus).
"He's just an awesome horse. Powerfully built, wonderful presence and quality." - Andy Makiv
"It's a really exciting time ahead. The next 12 months will hopefully be a lot of fun with Brazen Beau for people who have got them."
"He's just an awesome horse. Powerfully built, wonderful presence and quality. He's just outstanding in every way. Hopefully, he's the horse we are all talking about at the end of the two-year-old year and he's that horse that we are searching for."
Street Boss (USA), Holler (Aus) and Sepoy (Aus) were among the other stallions paraded on the day.
