Cracksman, dual Champion Stakes hero and Frankel’s best son, recorded a notable milestone recently when his number of foals on the ground from his first crop reached three figures.
Cracksman was retired to Dalham Hall Stud in 2019 after an exceptional career on the track that earned him dual European Champion honours. His impressive Timeform rating of 136 still ranks 10 points clear of any other performer by Champion Frankel.
It was no surprise that Cracksman was sent an illustrious first book of 147 mares from leading European breeders, 90% of whom were scanned in-foal. Now by May, 100 of those mares have produced sons and daughters, many receiving high praise from their owners.
Of Cracksman’s 100 foals, 39 have Stakes-performing dams including fillies out of 1,000 Guineas heroine Speciosa and multiple G1 winner Dynaforce.
Gary and Leslie Middlebrook bred a wonderful colt out of Penny Drops, who was placed in all five Stakes races she contested. He is a half-brother to the multiple 2020 winner Badri, who is rated 95p by Timeform.
Petches Farm bought the G3 performer Devotion in 2013 for 195,000gns and they have subsequently been rewarded with her first three runners being winners, the best so far being UAE 1,000 Guineas heroine Dubai Love, one of nine first-crop Stakes winners for Night Of Thunder. Last month, Devotion gave birth to a wonderful colt by Cracksman.
23 of Cracksman’s first-crop are siblings to Stakes performers including a lovely colt out of Silver Bark, owned by Team Hogdala. A full-sister to US G1 winner Ticker Tape and a half-sister to top-flight sprinter Brando, Silver Bark has produced five winners including Stakes performers Silver Meadow (Teofilo) and Toofi.
Other foals by Cracksman with notable siblings include half-brothers to G1 winners Al Kazeem and Mutual Trust, and a three-parts sister to Frankel’s Dream Castle, winner of the G1 Jebel Hatta in 2019.
Nearly two-thirds of Cracksman’s first foals are very closely related to Group winners, including Woodcote Stud’s highly rated Lubinka, a mare from the family of Classic winners Danseuse de Soir and Kingston Hill. Described as a “cracking strong colt with tremendous bone”, Peter Stanley of New England Stud could "not be happier with him”.
The filly out of Sand Vixen is one of five Cracksman foals on the ground bred by Godolphin. They also include the G3 winner Bean Feasa, a Dubawi half-sister to unbeaten Champion Teofilo, who had a filly on 16 April.
Both Summer Flower and Reunite hail from the strongest family in the studbook, Allegretta (dam of Urban Sea), and they had a colt and filly respectively by Cracksman this season.
Other notable foals include a colt out of Stakes winner Mount Elbrus and a half-brother to Lava Flow, dam of the best juvenile for 25 years - Pinatubo.
