Captain AL Grade 1

Where are the JM'S

Sylvester, tedium is your hallmark. Perhaps if you took up badminton as a pastime you would not be so bored or pedantic.

That was the Captain's second Gr 1 winner. JM is still so far ahead on that score that he's in the next solar system. Bearing in mind they entered stud in the same year. Now, really, enough already.

barry irwin you are anally retentive blah blah blah

remind me of george w

Magic take PP earnings out of JM...whos ahead then?

Barry I believe in debate and the fact is this season JM has not fired. Where as CA has.

I personally think CA will be the better stallion over future seasons.

JM along with Western Winter and Fort Wood will also remain a top stallion but not miles ahead as many predicted.

I tend to agree with Magic as C Als are on fire at this moment,they seem to pick up a race daily.

Sylvester, why must you create a debate where none exists.

Jet Master is a once in a century stallion.

Captain Al is a fantastic sire of precocity that is now beginning to get horses that run on.

Can you not leave it at that? Where is the controversy? Where is the mad, burning desire to "debate" the issue, other than in your own mind?

Enjoy them both!

Mike,

Now that is really hitting below the belt!

As the current season comes to a close in just one weeks time – the champion sires of 2009 are a fait accompli…
Wikipedia says that: a champion is defined as one who has repeatedly come out first among contestants in challenges (especially the winner of a tournament or other competition) or other test, one who is outstandingly skilled in their field. In sports, a champion is the athlete or team in first place at the end of a season of organized competition. It is for this reason that such competitions are often called championships.

The season is almost over – and as always racing returns to the ‘Garden Course” for the traditional nail-biting season finale at Clairwood this weekend. A ten race card with 3 important features including two Gr1 races for 2yo’s worth R1m. The winners of these two important juvenile features will have an affect on the outcome of the Equus Awards. So much at stake. Reputations will be made – and lost.

So often in the past we have seen stallion’s fortunes change in this one race day – as if being axed from glory, they are prized from the much aspired position at the top of the log. In 2002 Jallad was champion sire and looked to have 2003 sewn up as well. We saw him and Western Winter fight a dual for top honours on the general log the whole year. Jallad held the lead for 8 months until this fatal day – a Western Winter colt won the Gr1 Premier’s Champion Stakes and squeezed his sire ahead to win the overall sire championship that year – a Jallad colt ran 2nd and he won with another 2yo that day but it just wasn’t enough – all hail the king!.

This year there appears to be no such close call – all of the present incumbents are far ahead enough to look secure in their present position – the general log, sires of 3yo’s, sires of 2yo’s and the leading freshman sire are all but as they are currently on record.

It’s about a record breaking achievement and new most worthy champion sire of 2yo’s (elect) that I write about today. With trepidation one writes that the race is won until the last day of the season has come. So one captions the comment with the postscript “elect” so as not to seem too forward and brash – besides who wants egg on their face when the fat lady comes out and sings an unexpected song.

2003 was a noteworthy year in stallion terms as not only was there a humdinger battle between Jallad and Western Winter for overall champion but also between two new comers:- Captain Al and Jet Master. Theirs was even more fascinating. Who would have thought, in the presence of all of the esteemed imported competition that two home grown boys would, with just their first crops to race, shatter juvenile records and fight a duel for juvenile sire supremacy the like of which we have never seen before. Both have since grown in stature to become icons of our industry; marking a very important milestone in our industry’s coming of age. Any racing and breeding industry must be able to produce local stallions that can hold their own against imported blood – it’s good for the stud book and endorses local form on known conditions as a measure of soundness and ability. I was taught years ago by a wise old sage in Australia that colts that distinguished themselves at the highest level in local conditions should be able to outperform the imported ones at stud. Not to say that imported blood is not needed – on the contrary, it’s vital – from them we breed our home grown champions using their sons and daughters to reinforce and supply what we need.

Let’s spice up this weekend’s festivities, stallion wise. Unless you get the weekly Sporting Post you are probably unaware of the magic that fills our stallion log at present.

Many have told me how much they enjoy my regular little news letters and I appreciate the report – makes all the research that goes into making sure of my facts worthwhile. If this little exercise adds just one tiny bit of interesting trivia to your enjoyment of our dynamic industry then I have achieved my aim. I do not claim to be a writer and I am no good at journalese either – I write chatty letters in the belief that you all realise that I pretend nothing more. Furthermore it seems that everyone is very generous in their acceptance that all I do is promote the stallions in my portfolio couched in as interesting terms as I can possibly make it. So with this single purpose in mind please allow me to tell you about an achievement the likes of which will be hard to repeat.

This is fun. It’s so easy to write about something that you are passionate about – I cannot tell you how much I enjoy reporting that Captain Al is SA’s newest champion sire “elect” or should I say Captain Al is to be SA’s new champion sire of 2yo’s, why not?

Whichever you prefer, he is most definitely, as at this moment on the 24th July, just a week and one big race day from the end of the season; the leader amongst his peers on both the general sires log and in the 2yo sires log in no less than 9 different categories and he is likely to stay ahead (note how cautiously I put that) in all of those categories. Let me spell this out in bullet form – each bullet meant to hit a target in your heart so that you all feel as proud as we do:-

Captain Al is the:

* Leading sire overall by number of winners: 76
* Leading sire overall by number of wins: 124
* Leading sire overall by % winners: 58%
* Leading sire overall by % of stakes contributed to his total by any horse – i.e. not a one horse wonder
* Leading sire of 2yo’s by stakes – R2,61m – a new SA record
* Leading sire of 2yo’s by number of winners = 30 – a new SA record
* Leading sire of 2yo’s by number of wins = 38 – a new SA record
* Leading sire of 2yo’s by percentage of 2yo winners = 63% - a new SA record
* Leading sire of 2yo’s by % stakes winners/winners = 14%

The Captain is a fine and wonderfully consistent sire. I have my own small personal reasons for enjoying his success. I would have one any day. Given the choice, though, I would rather have a Jet Master. No question.

ag barry dont take everything seriously. as we all now, their is only one arsehole attached to all of us, and the worlds undoubted arsehole can only be george w.

enjoy your successes they are deserved. please just dont come across like a school teacher kakking on pupils when our views are different to yours.