Wootton Bassett

Named after a corrupt, rotten borough, Wootton Bassett (Iffraaj- Balladonia, by Primo Dominie) comes to Australia as a proven stallion with his first locally bred crop selling as yearlings in 2024. Corruption ran rife through Wootton Bassett between 1447 to 1831 at which point the borough was abolished by the Great Reform Act. During its existence as a constituency, the borough’s voters were easily purchased by land owners, who took advantage of the borough having two seats in the House of Commons.

Across 84 elections the ‘rotten’ voters in Wootton Bassett elected over a hundred and fifty politicians; a vast amount of power for a town that numbered only Bred by Laundry Cottage Stud in England, 2008 born Wootton Bassett was sold as a yearling at the Goffs Doncaster St Leger Yearling Sale, purchased for 44,000 guineas (2023 A$144,000) by Bobby O’Ryan. He entered the stable of trainer Richard Fahey in the ownership of Frank Brady & The Cosmic Cases.

Wootton Bassett first raced in June 2010 as a two year-old, winning over six furlongs, then backed it up with another win over the same trip at Doncaster in July. Sent to the DBS Premier Yearling 2YO Stakes at York over six furlongs in August, he won that too earning £147,000 for the privilege, then went to the Doncaster Weatherbys Insurance 2YO Stakes in September picking up a cheque for £193,000 when winning over 1300m.

Winner of four from four, it was time to be bold, and his trainer sent Wootton Bassett to France for the Gr1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere over 1400m. Punters made him second in the betting which was quite a strong indication of his talents, given that he’d never been tried in black type company. The favourite, Moonlight Cloud (Invincible Spirit), might be familiar to Australians as she was the mare who almost beat Black Caviar at Royal Ascot two years later.

Shamus Award retired in 2014 to In the Jean-Luc Lagardere, Wootton Bassett jumped well and cruised to the front, leading by half a length galloping with ears pricked. At the final furlong, he was asked for an effort, and he cruised ahead to win easily by nearly three lengths all with his ears pricked as if having a little jaunt in the park. The win earned him the Champion 2YO Colt in France title for 2010.

3×3 pedigree

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Back at three, Wootton Bassett was disappointing with four starts, all in Gr1 company, running fifth, seventh, fifth, and thirteenth. He was retired to stud, standing at Haras d’Etreham for €6,000 but even the low price and his Champion 2YO tag couldn’t inspire broodmare owners and Wootton Bassett had only 24 live foals in his first crop. A price reduction to €5,000 for his second crop didn’t help with just 18 foals in that crop.

Dropped to €4,000 for his next two seasons, Wootton Bassett’s numbers improved to 45 and 47 foals respectively. Those first foals, born in 2013, hit the European racetracks in 2015 and Almanzor showed plenty, winning his first three starts including the Listed Grand Criterium de Bordeaux. Based on a sole stakes winner from a tiny crop, Wootton Bassett’s fee rose back to €6,000 and breeders realised that he might be good value with 91 foals born from his 2016 serving season.

And the breeders who took the punt were rewarded almost immediately when Almanzor was awarded the Champion 3YO Colt in Europe in 2016, thanks to three Gr1 wins. Wootton Bassett had arrived. His fee began to climb; €20,000 in 2017 and 2018, then €40,000 in 2019 and 2020. His first crop of 24 foals now boasts 20 runners, 14 winners and two stakes winners; the other being Listed winner Do Re Mi Far Sol who was a stakes winner at three.

His second crop, born in 2014, didn’t produce a stakes winner, but there were only 18 foals, of which 17 raced and 11 of them have won 40 races. The next two small crops produced a total of four stakes winners including dual Gr1 winner Audarya, and Gr3 winner Amilcar and The Black Album. With two Gr1 winners from only 134 foals, it was time for the 2017 crop to shine. These 91 foals, his largest crop at the time, produced a staggering 13 stakes winners, led by Gr1 winner Wooded who now shuttles to Swettenham Stud.

His foals born off a €20,000 fee already have produced nine stakes winners including Champion 2YO Filly and Gr1 winner Zellie, and Gr1 winner Incarville as well as Gr1 placed Gr2 winner Chindit. From his final two French crops, sired at a €40,000 fee, Wootton Bassett already counts twelve stakes winners including four Gr1 winners; King of Steel, Al Riffa, Bucanero Fuerte, and Unquestionable, with these horses having just turned three and four in Europe.

From the statistics pages of this issue — the same data, inside an article.

There is, surely, more to come. In 2021, Wootton Bassett was purchased by Coolmore Stud and his fee leaped to €100,000, while he shuttled to Australia for the first time at a fee of $71,500. As his progeny kept winning, his fee kept climbing, to €150,000 for both 2022 and 2023, and is currently €200,000 for this season (2024). In Australia, he stood in 2021 and 2022 for $71,500, pushing up to $93,500 for 2023.

Scarily, given his record so far, the foals off his best and biggest books have only just turned two in Europe and are yearlings in Australia. If he continues at the same rate of success, his number of top quality racehorses is about to explode. With nine Gr1 winners and 40 stakes winners from 623 foals of racing age, Wootton Bassett is a true rags to riches story. And that’s without mentioning the next generation.

His first Champion – Almanzor – stands at Cambridge Stud in New Zealand and already has twelve stakes winners under his belt led by Gr1 winner Manzoice. Wootton Bassett’s sire Iffraaj was no slouch as a racehorse. The winner of seven races, including three at Gr2 level, was placed in the Gr1 July Cup. Iffraaj shuttled between Ireland and New Zealand and has fashioned an impressive record with 96 stakes winners led by Gr1 winners Gingernuts, Turn Me Loose, Jungle Cat, Jon Snow, and Wyndspelle locally and Wootton Bassett, Ribchester, Rizeena, Chriselliam, Western Empire, and Benvenue in Europe.

Wootton Bassett is his best sire son, while Ribchester has nine stakes winners and Turn Me Loose has seven. Wootton Bassett was the fifth foal of his dam, Balladonia, who was a winner over 1800m and was stakes placed three times.

Balladonia was an excellent broodmare with ten winners from eleven foals, led by Wootton Bassett, as well as stakes placed winner of seven races Mister Hardy (Kyllachy), winning mare Pretty Primo who is the dam of Champion Older Female Sprinter in Germany and Gr3 winner Kitty Marion (Iffraaj), and the unplaced dam of Listed winner Katla (Majestic Missile). Balladonia is out of a winning half-sister to Gr3 winner Clare Bridge. Wootton Bassett’s nine Gr1 winners are out of mares by: Maria’s Mon (Almanzor), Galileo (Al Riffa), Green Tune (Audarya), Elusive City (full brothers Wooded and Bucanero Fuerte), Azamour (Incarville), Verglas (King of Steel), Sea The Stars (Unquestionable), and Nathaniel (Zellie).

Notably, the two half-brothers Galileo and Sea The Stars have both left mares who have produced Wootton Bassett Gr1 winners. Five of Wootton Bassett’s 40 stakes winners are out of mares from the Sadler’s Wells sireline, and only one of them is from a Galileo mare. In good news for the Australian broodmare pool, Wootton Bassett has sired four stakes winners out of mares from the Danzig sire line, while the American Gone West sireline is responsible for the dams of another four of Wootton Bassett’s stakes winners.

The damsire lines of Green Desert, Mr Prospector, Storm Cat, and Night Shift are all responsible for another three Wootton Bassett stakes winners each. The remainer of Wootton Bassett’s stakes winners come from a vast range of damsire-lines, showcasing his versatility as a sire. Wootton Bassett’s first Australian yearlings look set to continue on his winning ways, and his ability to cross well with a broad selection of sirelines surely adds to his exciting potential.

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