The most anticipated delivery in Australian breeding history occurred overnight Aug. 16 at Coolmore Stud in New South Wales when the greatest racing mare ever to set foot in Australia, Makybe Diva, gave birth to her first foal.
Practically everyone at the farm rose during the night when the monitor went off to watch her give birth to a leggy colt by champion English Derby (Eng-I) winner Galileo. Everything went according to plan, and mare and foal are doing well, the farm reported.
Makybe Diva (Desert King--Tugela by Riverman) won more purse money than any horse in Australian racing history--Aust$14,526,685 ($11,621,000)--from 15 wins. Along the way, she won an unprecedented three group I Melbourne Cups. She was a two-time Australian Horse of the Year.
Estimates on how much the colt is worth, given his mother’s racing ability, his sire’s racetrack and subsequent breeding success, and the many black-type performances on his dam's side, range from $1.7 million to $3 million as a weanling.
