jonquil

Retired to stand at Knockhouse Stud in Ireland.

Has retired to stand at Norton Grove Stud.

Has been retired and will stand at Gestüt Etzean in Germany where he will hopefully fill in the void left behind by Lord Of England.

Another sad loss to racing. The great sire Pivotal passed aged 28, having been retired from stud duties just last year. R.I.P.

Has been retired and will stand at Meadow Farm Stud for 2022.

Edit: Whoops, still had Japan Dirt Derby on the brain. I meant to type Japan Cup Dirt originally. Personally, I think Sodashi could do well, but it's also a very big ask. It would be amazing if she did well and was raced outside of Japan, but I think I personally would've preferred to see her race on turf if she ever competes in the U.S.

In a recent interview with trainer Naosuke Sugai, he talked about some of the reasoning behind the sudden switch from turf: "I considered the advantages of weight against the older horses and her pedigree. I think it is good for her to challenge on the dirt once, also for her future. The distance of a mile and a furlong is better for her. Depending on the result, her future options will expand. Her condition is good. " Sodashi's sire, Kurofune, was a winner of the G1 Japan Cup Dirt and the G1 NHK Mile Cup on turf. He also ran 5th in the Tokyo Yushun behind fellow sire Jungle Pocket. Sodashi's dam is the stunning-looking Buchiko who scored four wins on dirt with the majority of her wins recorded in Kyoto. Sodashi's close relative, Yukichan, also sired by Kurofune, won the Kanto Oaks and the TCK Jo-O Hai. If Sodashi does well on Japanese 'dirt', then she could be considered for big races outside of Japan, including the Breeder's Cup. However, this will be no easy task as it'll also be only her second race against older horses as well as a completely different surface. Her likely competitors could include the previous Champions Cup winner Chuwa Wizard, who went on to place 2nd in the Dubai World Cup. It was also mentioned that Sodashi had to have a tooth extracted, but has pretty much recovered well with some time at the farm. She is now back with her trainer preparing for her upcoming race.

I was surprised when I heard about this. It's quite a big change for her. I don't know how I feel about this.

Will stand at Dalham Hall Stud at a fee of £55,000.

His stud fee is a pretty good indicator of the acknowledgement breeders have given him. He's been sitting at £250,000 for years now. For comparison, Frankel only just hit the £200,000 mark for his stud fee for 2022.