Clive Webb-Carter Bloodstock Services, Horcott House, Fairford, Gloucestershire. GL7 4BY | m: +44 (0) 7860 158 645 | e: cwc@wcbloodstock.co.uk

LYPHARD IS KEY TO BERTOLINI

 Published: 30/01/2012


One broodmaresire that has made a surprisingly good start to 2012 is Bertolini (Danzig). Although his two stakes winners this year are both out of 2005 CheveleyPark Stakes (Gr 1) and Cherry Hinton Stakes (Gr 2) winner, Donna Blini, it wasenough to catch my attention, particularly as he had also been the dam-sire to a Gr 3 winner in 2011. To add to this both the Bertolini stakes producing dams are bred onthe same cross.

The first of Bertolini’sdam-sire stakes winners this year was on the 8th January, and was DonnaBlini's 2009 (3yo) filly by Deep Impact, Gentildonna, won the Sho Shinzan Kinen (Gr3) at Kyoto. Thiswas followed by her year older own-sister, Donau Blue (Deep Impact), winning theKyoto Himba Stakes (Gr 3) on Sunday, also over 8 furlongs. (Two of three Deep Impact’s2012 stakes winners to the have been out of Donna Blini). Donna Blini, who was purchasedby Katsumi Yoshida for 500,000gns at the 2006 Tattersalls December broodmare sale, is out of the Lyphard's Special (Lyphard) mare Cal Norma's Lady.

Bertolini isalso the dam-sire to the Zukunfts-Rennen (Gr 3) winner Amaron (Shamardal). Amarondam, Amandalini (Bertolini) is a half-sister to US Gr 2 winner Persianlux, andis out of the Lyphard (Northern Dancer) mare, Luxurious. Therefore bothall of Bertolini’s stakes producing dams are themselves out of Lyphards linemares.

Bertolini's goodstart as a dam-sire could be considered slightly surprising particularly as not only ishe the sire of 14 stakes winner, to which Donna Blini is one of two Gr 1winners, but he has never stood for a stud fee higher than approximately £10,000(in 2006 he stood for €15,000). However if you looks at his pedigree he hasevery right to be a strong broodmare sire. He is by Danzig the dam sire of over150 stakes winners, holds Ayldar (Raise A Native) as his dam-sire, the dam-sire to over 125stakes winners and holds Never Bend as his second-dam sire, another great influenceas a broodmare sire.  Bertolini’s femalefamily is strong too. He is out of the US Gr 2 winner Aquilegia (Alydar), whois an own-sister to Althea (Gr 1), as well as being from the same family as Gr1 winners Aldiza (Storm Cat), Balletto (Timber Country), Arch (Kris S), Ali Oop(Al Hattab), Ketoh (Exclusive Native) and GreenDesert (Danzig).Bertolini, who was a $750,000 purchase at Keeneland September in 1997, provedto be tough sprinter which saw him win the July Stakes (Gr 3) at two before beingplaced runner-up in the Sprint Cup (Gr 1), behind Diktat (Known Fact) in 1999.

To date Bertolini has had 25 runners out of his daughters of which nine are winners and three are stakes winners. Bertolini certainlyoffers breeders value at his current advertised fee of £3,000, as in 2011 he had 64wins in Britain and Ireland be to 12th on the leading number of wins table (all the sires above him stand at a fee at least three times his fee). CWC