Australians have plenty of respect for champion French stallion Siyouni, so news that his finest son - Cartier European Horse of the Year in 2021 - St Mark’s Basilica (Fr) will shuttle to Coolmore Australia this spring will be warmly received by breeders.
Coolmore are excited to announce the addition of St Mark’s Basilica, a regally-bred European Champion two-year-old and World Champion three-year-old to our roster in 2022.
“We are delighted to offer a horse with such rare qualities as St Mark’s Basilica to Australasian breeders. As a sire prospect, he has everything you could ever hope for and in terms of quality he has attracted an unparalleled first book of mares in Europe,” commented Coolmore Australia Principal, Tom Magnier. (Read about his 2021 book of mares here)
“Simply brilliant on the track, St Mark’s Basilica is just like leading stallions Shamardal and Lope De Vega in winning both the French 2000 Guineas and Prix du Jockey Club double.
“His sire Siyouni is the most expensive stallion to ever stand in France and has been remarkably successful with limited opportunities in Australia. (Siyouni is the sire of current star 2YO Amelia’s Jewel, read about her here).
“He comes from an impeccable family, being out of a Group-winning two-year-old by Galileo and half-brother to a Classic winner in Magna Grecia.
“To top it all off he’s an absolutely stunning individual, so we look forward to showing him to local breeders later in the year.”
St Mark’s Basilica was bred by leading Australian breeder Bob Scarborough and purchased by MV Magnier at Tattersalls October Book 1 for 1,300,000 gns (approximately $2,500,000).
Trained by Aidan O’Brien, St Mark’s Basilica was effective from 1200m to 2100m and racked up a stellar sequence of Group I wins starting with the Dewhurst Stakes as a juvenile.
He went on to achieve five consecutive Group 1 victories in three countries.
Arguably his finest winning performance came against his elders in the Eclipse Stakes at Sandown, where he easily beat multiple Group 1 winners Addeybb and Mishriff by 3½ lengths.
In doing so, he achieved a Timeform rating of 132 as a three-year-old which is higher than local Champions such as Pierro and So You Think.
St Mark's Basilica will stand at a fee of $44,000 (incl. GST).
