Choisir, leading to the wire in the Golden Jubilee, has been purchased by Coolmore Stud.
Australian sprint sensation Choisir has been purchased by Coolmore Stud - subject to a veterinary inspection - following his excellent effort in yesterday's Darley July Cup (Eng-I). The son of rising star Danehill Dancer will go into quarantine in Ireland before shuttling to Coolmore Australia for the upcoming stud season.The champion 2-year-old colt and group I winner in his homeland arrived in Britain three weeks before Royal Ascot where he literally turned the racing world upside down. On the opening day of the meeting - despite carrying a Group I penalty- he blitzed his 19 rivals in the group II King's Stand Stakes over five furlongs with an awesome display of front running. Just four days later, and from an unfavorably wide draw, he added the six-furlong group I Golden Jubilee Stakes in similar fashion, breaking the track record in the process. In doing so he was emulating his grandsire Danehill who had broken the track record in the same race in 1989. Choisir also became only the third horse in history to land the Royal Ascot sprint double and the first since Diadem back in 1920. Choisir had to carry the same weight as the northern hemisphere-bred 4-year-olds despite still being a 3-year-old.In Thursday's July Cup, Choisir ran another fine race but couldn't withstand the late challenge of Oasis Dream. The John Gosden-trained colt was champion 2-year-old in Europe last year and had finished third behind Choisir at Ascot on his seasonal debut. Trainer Paul Perry said afterwards, "He's been beaten by a horse that was trained for the race. The winner was on his way up, while we were probably just on the way down. He's done the job he came for and it was a very courageous effort to finish second in a race that was really just an afterthought.""A really strongly made colt from the sire-producing Danehill line, I think he'll prove very popular with commercial breeders both here in Ireland and in Australia. We're delighted to have got him," commented Coolmore's Christy Grassick on the new acquisition.
