Quality Road, the 4-year-old colt who lowered his own track record for nine furlongs (1800m) from 1:47.72 to 1:47.49 when he thundered to a spectacular 12.8 lengths win in the $500,000 Group1 Donn Handicap at Gulfstream Park, Florida, USA last month, is by Darley shuttled Elusive Quality and from Kobla, a daughter of Strawberry Road, one of Australia’s greatest overseas equine ambassadors.
A modestly bred horse got at Braidwood, NSW by the Nijinsky sire Whiskey Road, Strawberry Road followed up 1983 Australian Horse of the Year honours and wins in the AJC Derby, Queensland Derby, Cox Plate and Rosehill Guineas by winning Group1 races in France and Germany and at Group 2 level in America. In addition he was placed in America in four Group1s, the Breeders’ Cup Turf, Washington International, Turf Classic and San Luis Rey Stakes.
Strawberry Road went on to prove one of the most successful Australian bred northern hemisphere sires from his use at Brookside Farm, Kentucky. He supplied 255 winners, over 80% of his runners, of 1058 races and US$28million.
His 37 stakes winners included six Group 1 winners. One of them, Ajina, was champion filly at three and winner through her career of seven races, including in three Group1s, the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, CC American Oaks and Mother Goose Stakes. She is the dam of three winners but none of them have been anywhere near as good as Quality Road, a product of her sister Kobla. This mare won one race and earned US$1,080, money that is a vast difference to the US$1.05million she made as an in foal mare at a Keeneland sale in1999. She was bought by Quality Road’s breeder and owner Edward Evans.
Although she is the dam of Quality Road, Kobla has been a poor investment, producing only five foals in nine years and two winners, the other failing to get black type. Evans, however, has gained solace in Quality Road, the result of her seventh breeding season, as he is one of the most brilliant middle distance performers in America at this time.
So far Quality Road has raced nine times for six wins (five stakes) and three minor places and has set three track records, appearances in the Donn Handicap, Florida Derby (also nine furlongs at Gulfstream Park) and Group 2 Amsterdam Stakes (6.5 furlongs Saratoga).
Quality Road appears first class sire material because of not only his racing class but in depth breeding. Himself setter of a world record on grass for a mile and of a track record for seven furlongs at Gulfstream Park, his sire Elusive Quality, a son of Mr. Prospector’s Gone West, visited Australia from America six times, 2003-08. So far he has supplied 96 winners in his first three Australian crops. Six stakes winners and five stakes placed performers have included six out of Danehill mares.
His biggest Australian results could be ahead as he had 173 mares in 2007 and 119 on his last visit in 2008.
At Darley in Kentucky, Elusive Quality (fee $75,000) has over 50 American stakes winners, headed by Smarty Jones (champion at three, won Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes), Raven’s Pass (champion at three England, winner American Breeders’ Cup Classic; set new course record in England at two at seven furlongs), Maryfield (American champion sprinter) and Elusive City (a leading European 2-year-old). For 2009 his American sired progeny included 111 winners (14 in 21 stakes) and earners of US$5.8million.
There are at least 15 sons of Elusive Quality at stud, including Smarty Jones, Raven’s Pass and Elusive City. The latter shuttles from France to Haunui Farm in New Zealand and has had stakes winners in both hemispheres.
Elusive Quality’s track record setting son Quality Road is not only a descendant of Mr. Prospector in male line but he is also a relation to this world super progenitor. Kobla and his champion sister Ajina were got by Strawberry Road from Winglet, a Group 2 winning half-sister by Alydar (by Mr. Prospector’s sire Raise a Native) to the now deceased Jugah, a Northern Dancer sire of good winners from use in Victoria. Winglet’s fourth dam Durazna was a three-quarter sister to the third dam of Mr. Prospector.
Quality Road’s maternal grandsire Strawberry Road is the sire of the dams of some 444 winners, 66 successful at stakes level. The latter include the Australian winners All American, Crimson Reign, Newtown Jet, Tippitaka and Strawberry Storm and in New Zealand Danroad.
Quality Road’s sire Elusive Quality has one yearling in the Magic Millions Adelaide sale next week, a powerfully bred filly on account of Lindsay Park. Inbred 4x4x4 to Northern Dancer, it is from Siberie, an Ireland bred daughter of Caerleon (by Nijinsky) and Russian Snows, a Sadler’s Wells Group 2 winner and Irish Oaks second from an Irish One Thousand Guineas winner, Arctique Royale.
