Stallion Profile November 2003

Taimazov

Champion sprinter puts Halo line in spotlight

Argentina has long been a source of major thoroughbreds with outstanding racehorse and sire Forli being a notable example. In 2003 that country’s Champion Sprinter Taimazov joined the Australian stallion roster and, as DAVID BAY reports in this profile, he has a pedigree to match his superb race record.

ONE of the most intriguing new horses at stud this season is Taimazov (ARG), the Champion Sprinter in Argentina in 2001 and dual Gr.1 winner who is looking after a high quality book at Gary and Phoebe Turkington’s Wattle Brae Stud on the Darling Downs.
A very fast horse who ran 55.03 when winning a Gr.1 over 1000m on the turf at San Isidro at Argentina’s “Night of the Stars”, Taimazov (Southern Halo (USA)-Heiress (USA) by Greinton (GB)) is inbred to Almahmoud, grandam of Halo and Northern Dancer and the family of Danehill.
An imposing almost-black horse with a very strong physique, Taimazov is one of more than 175 stakes winners sired by Southern Halo - 88 of then Group winners and 12 of them champions. He has been the Leading Sire in Argentina for the past eight seasons.
Southern Halo (Halo-Northern Sea by Northern Dancer) retired to stud in Argentina in 1988 and began dual hemisphere work in Kentucky in 1996 (at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud).
He was sold to Japan in 2003 following the death of Sunday Silence (also a son of Halo) but the 20 year-old did only one northern season there at East Stud before being purchased recently by Hernan Ceriani Cernadas, owner of Haras La Quebrada. Cernadas stood Southern Halo in Argentina before he sold him to Coolmore.
Southern Halo was a good but little unlucky racehorse, winning four races as a three year-old and finishing second twice in Gr.1 events against the best of his age.
He broke his maiden over 9f (1800m) at Santa Anita (1:51.20) and won Allowance events over 7f and 8f (twice). He was second in the $US500,000 Super Derby Invitational-Gr.1 (10f) to Wise Times and second in the Swaps Stakes-Gr.1 (10f) to Clear Choice (USA) as well as being runner-up in the Silver Screen Handicap-Gr.2 and El Cajon Stakes. He won again the following season over 8f and retired with five wins, seven seconds and three thirds and $344,875 from 24 starts.
By the time of his retirement to stud, Southern Halo’s sire Halo (Hail to Reason-Cosmah by Cosmic Bomb) was represented by his first Kentucky Derby winner in Sunny’s Halo (born 1980), but his second winner of that race and eventual sire superstar Sunday Silence (Horse of the Year) was not born until 1986.
However Halo (foaled 1969) had also been represented by the brilliant brother and sister duo Glorious Song (Champion Older Mare USA, Horse of the Year Canada) and Devil’s Bag (Champion Two Year Old) and had been the USA’s Leading Sire in 1983 (he would win the title again in 1989). For those interested in dosage he is classified as “Brilliant” and “Classic”.
The sire of more than 60 stakes winners, Halo won his best race, the United Nations Handicap-Gr.1 at five and retired to Windfields Farm as the winner of nine races with 13 placings in a 31-start career. He was syndicated for $US1.2m in 1975.
His initial success prompted huge offers and when 25 of his 40 shares were sold in 1984 at $US900,000 each, this valued him at $US36m. He stood at Arthur Hancock’s Stone Farm in Kentucky from 1984 and died there in 2000.
Halo has turned out to be an exceptional broodmare sire as well, his daughters producing the likes of Machiavellian, Singspiel and Rahy. He is also the sire of the second dam of Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus.
Devil’s Bag (broodmare sire of Australian sires Orpen and Grand Royale) and his brother Saint Ballado have been enormously successful Halo sons at stud in the USA, while Sunday Silence has been the dominating force in Japanese breeding for the past decade (his daughter Sunday Joy was a classic winner in Australia last season).
Australian breeders have also met with success via a Halo son with the American Gr.2 winner Don’t Say Halo (USA) (ex Never Babble by Advocator) providing a string of good horses including the Blue Diamond Stakes-Gr.1 winner and sire Canonise, Excited Angel, Exclusive Halo and St Clemens Belle as well as the dam of classic winner Gold Guru and high class Salameh.
Southern Halo is the “Sunday Silence” of Argentina with his runners including the Argentinean champions El Compinche (Champion Miler), Wally (Champion Sprinter Argentina), Team (Horse of the Year, Champion Two Year Old Colt), Southern Spring (Champion Three Year Old), Cadeaux (Champion Two Year Old Filly), New Heaven, La Galerie, Taimazov (Champion Sprinter) and Handsome Halo (Champion Two Year Old Colt).
His best American runners are More than Ready (dam by Woodman) whose seven wins included the King’s Bishop Stakes-Gr.1 (7f) at Saratoga and who shuttles to Vinery at $22,000, and the Argentinian-bred Gr.1 winner Miss Linda.
His daughters are proving exceptional broodmares as well with Gr.1 stars Guernika (Luhuk) and Asset (Salt Lake) among their runners.
Southern Halo’s dam Northern Sea (Northern Dancer-Sea Saga by Sea-Bird) won seven races including the Test Stakes-Gr.3 and was runner-up in the Frizette and Selima Stakes, both Gr.1. Her dam, a stakes winner of nine races, won the Ladies Handicap and is out of Shama (Bold Ruler-Lea Lark by Bull Lea).
Lea Lark is also the fourth dam of the very good sire Miswaki (mares by his sons Umatilla and Aliocha could prove interesting mates for Taimazov, and the line has shown a general liking for Mr. Prospector and his sons as well).
Southern Halo sired Taimazov and his South African Gr.1-winning sister Igreja, from the unraced Heiress (Greinton-Fact by Dancing Moss).
Named after gold medal-winning weightlifter, Timur Taimazov and born in the year of the Atlanta Olympics, Taimazov carried his name with great honour, establishing himself as one of the most dominant gallopers to have competed in Argentina in recent times.
An explosive sprinter with all three of his feature Group successes coming on turf, the complete race record of Taimazov reads 28 starts for eight wins, six seconds and two thirds.
His most notable victories came in the Carrera de las Estrellas-Gr.1, or “Race of the Stars”, in the sizzling time of 55.03 for the 1000m journey - on a night when the progeny of Southern Halo won three of the six feature events.
Taimazov was twice successful at the highest level in South America, also winning the Gran Premio Suipacha-Gr.1 (1000m in 55.42). His remaining six victories included a Gr.2 event (Classico Pippermint over 1000m, won in 57.29) he proved adept at racing on both turf and dirt.
Argentina is the dominant force in thoroughbred breeding in South America and has an annual foal crop of about 8000 (Brazil has 4500). Racing is held year-round, alternating race days between the major tracks of San Isidro and Hippodromo Argentina (Palermo). The third largest track, La Plata, races three days each week.
All racing is counter-clockwise. About two-thirds of the racing is on dirt with San Isidro having the only turf (main) course (as well as an inner dirt one built in 1994). Owned by the Argentine Jockey Club, this course on 148ha, 22km north of Buenos Aires, races twice a week and has a capacity for 100,000 people. It had a four-year refit in the 1970s and reopened in 1979.
Taimazov’s sister Igreja raced in South Africa - a country that has proved a happy hunting ground for Argentinian-bred runners - where she was an outstanding racehorse at two and three years. Her host of leading stakes performances included victory in the Cape Fillies’ Guineas-Gr.1, while she also second in the Premier’s Champion Stakes-Gr.1.
Now at stud in Europe, Igreja has visited Champion UK Sire Sadler’s Wells on a number of occasions and promises to upgrade the immediate pedigree even further.
Not that the family is wanting in black type, as there are Gr.1 winners through every remove and traces to English Oaks winner Rose of England, Taimazov’s sixth dam.
Taimazov’s damsire Grienton (GB) (Green Dancer-Crystal Queen by High Top), won the Hollywood Gold Cup, was successful at Gr.1 level in Europe, winner of $US1.9m, and is a grandson of Nijinsky (Taimazov is 3fx5m to Northern Dancer and 5f,6mx5f to Native Dancer).
(An interesting aside is the fact the Southern Halo sired the very fast two year-old filly Southern Alert, who set a track record of 51.24 for 4.5f on debut at Prairie Meadows in the USA in August 2002, from the Greinton mare Mink Alert).
Heiress, dam of Taimazov is out of the stakes winner and Gr.1-placed Fact (ARG) (Dancing Moss-Fallow by Worden). Next dam Galloway Queene is by Colombo from Fairie Queene by Solario from the English Oaks winner Rose of England (Teddy-Perce Neige by Neil Gow).
Galloway Queen is a sister to British Empire (July Stakes, sire), Colombo is of course the damsire of Todman (and his brothers Noholme, Faringdon and Shifnal) and Worden is a half-brother to Wilkes (FR). This could provide some potent pedigree combinations using mares featuring Todman or his brothers Noholme (grandsire of Semipalatinsk), Shifnal or Faringdon or Wilkes and his sons and daughters.
Taimazov’s grandam Fact is a half-sister to Gr.1 winners Farm and Fizz (both by idle Hour) while Fact is also a three-quarter sister to Gr.1 winners Fatly and Fain (both by Dancing Moss, a son of Ballymoss and the Leading Sire in Argentina in 1973).
Fact produced 10 winners from her 15 foals, three of them stakes winners in the USA and including Gr.3 winner Bolder than Bold (Plum Bold), a winner of almost $US400,000 and Gr.1 placed Fiction (Perrault).
Her stakeswinning daughter Little Hailey (Blushing Groom) is also a successful broodmare with the stakes winners Bold Second (runner-up Del Mar Futurity-Gr.1, sire) and Sing Because (14 wins) among her runners. Taimazov’s pedigree features Almahmoud 4f,5fx7f (dam of Cosmah and Natalma) and could provide a very good foil for mares by Danehill, a horse also inbred to this mare, and for mares by El Moxie who has Almahmoud as his third dam and is a grandson of Mr. Prospector (Raise a Native-Gold Digger by Nashua).
Using Mr. Prospector introduces another male line of Native Dancer (also grandsire of Sea-Bird) into a pedigree that features that horse’s daughters Natalma and Courbette (a daughter of multiple Gr.1 winner Gallorette, the fourth dam of Success Express).
Taimazov has met with strong support at Wattle Brae in his first season where he stands at a fee of $11,000 (including GST) and he looks an ideal type on appearance and pedigree to sire the precious runners who do so well in Australia.
Watching the video of his races in Argentina I was impressed by his acceleration, and it will be no surpise if his stock also excel in the major sprints down the long Flemington straight.
He could take the Halo line to new heights Down Under.