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In The Hall of Fame: Sidney
Original article written by Grace Moon posted 3 years 3 weeks agoSo I’m a player who’s learned the hard way though my thoroughbreds that horses are very particular about the distance you race them at, I’ve put sprinters into mile races, routers in mile races and milers in both sprint and route races because to me one more or less furlong shouldn’t make a difference, and typically when I do this my horses run about as well as you can expect, aka not well at all. Which is why I find Sidney rather interesting in a totally infuriating manner. If he can win grade one’s in the sprint, mile and router divisions why can’t my horses run well outside of their divisions.
Sidney was a rather small dark bay stallion bred by the Steward and sold as yearling for just shy of seven figures. He was by Quite the Feat who won the German, Irish and London Derbies as well as the English St Ledger, Quite the Feat also sired Asian Champion Three-Year-Old Move On. Quite the Feat was sired by Steward’s Cup Turf winner Feat who sired several champions, including Hall of Famer Olive Branch. Quite the Feat was out of the Acapulco mare Wished Away, a stakes winner who earned 782,400 on the track and who had six stakes’ winners from twelve foals. Sidney’s dam was another Steward bred, the two-time grade one winner Dreamlittledarling. Dreamlittledarling also produced the five-time grade one winner Nostalgic Dreams and Primary Colors whose daughter It is Christyneth is the dam of Asian Champion Older Female Marsella. Dreamlittledarling was sired by multiple grade one winning champion Vernacular, who’s most notable offspring was the Hall of Famer Trafalgar. Dreamlittledarling’s dam was the Hall of Famer Dreamit To Be Real, who produced 13 foals, all stakes’ winners.
Year 37 was almost over when Sidney made his debut on week 11 at Adolescent Acres, in a 1 1/16th maiden special weight. Sidney did his better running later in the race, running in ninth for most of it. Sidney won by 4 ½ lengths over Quest for a Gift. Three weeks later, Sidney proved he could sprint, he was not the best at the distance, his winning margin for the Favorite Trick stakes is one of the shortest in the race’s history but he fought for every inch of that nose against the mare Up to a Jig. The next week Sidney took the second leg of the two-year-old turf triple crown, the grade 1 Lafayette stakes at a mile’s distance. Again, Sidney proved he was a horse that favored distance, barely getting his nose in front of fellow stakes winner I Got This who finished a head in front of maiden winner Leader of Vendita. Sidney made sim history on week 16, becoming the first thoroughbred to win the turf triple crown with a neck’s victory over future horse of the year Anorak in the grade 1 Magellan stakes. With his history making season Sidney was the unquestionable Two-Year-Old Champion of North America and the first and only two year old to be voted Champion Male Turf Horse against his elders.
Sidney made his first start at three in the Premio dell ‘Italia at Coliseum Park, Italy, going a mile and one sixteenth. Sidney once again had issues at the gate and ran off the pace but gave a strong effort at the end to finish a length and a half in front of Once Hopeful. Looking back the quality in year 38 English Two Thousand Guineas was interesting, two champion juveniles and a future hall of famer aside from Sidney. Sidney definitely was not impressed with his fellow juvenile champion Aleksander, winning by almost two lengths over him, hall of famer Rilian was half a length back in third. In case Rilian sounds familiar I briefly mentioned him in my last article on his half-sister Memento Mori. Sidney actually for the second time in his career behaved at the gate. Sidney reunited with an old foe Anorak in the London Derby; the two steward bred colts had last met in the Magellan stakes. Sidney once again proved his heart as he nosed out Anorak at the finish, with millionaire Wizarding War a half-length behind them. While it is not officially recognized by the sim, Sidney earned his second crown when he won the English St Ledger, by an impressive seven lengths, by far his largest victory margin to date. His final start at three was in the English Champion Stakes, his first race against older competition. Older horse Lorek Byrnison simply could not match Sidney as he won under a mild drive by two- and one-half lengths. Sidney earned his first of four Horse of The Year titles and was rightfully the European Champion Three-Year-Old Colt.
Sidney gave an impressive start to his four-year-old season in the grade three Canterberry Stakes over Is That An Order, winning by two and one fourth’s length over the fellow four year old. Sidney journeyed down under and immediately showed a fondness for Australian turf winning by four and one fourth’s length in his South Pacific debut in the grade two Australian Cup. Sidney kept things rolling in the grade one Caulfield Trophy, winning by three and one fourth of length over Two Toned. Now things got a little confusing on week 12 when Sidney ran in the Sydney Trophy, or I am just weird and pronounce Sidney the same way as Sydney. For the first two calls, or mile if I did my math correctly Sidney ran dead last with the six-year-old Two Toned leading the charge but ran past him in the final half mile to win by almost four lengths, Two Toned beat out Tiger Heart by a neck for second. Sidney started next in the Cox Trophy, a grade one mile and a quarter event worth half a million to the winner, the biggest purse Sidney had contested yet. Sidney proved his gate issues were not perfect breaking outwards and ran second to last for the first two calls before moving up into third for the third call three fourths of a length behind Mescalero and swept past a game Two Toned to win by three- and one-half lengths. Sidney’s final start at four was the Melbourne Trophy, a two-mile-long grade one event. Sidney broke well and ran towards the end of the field for the first half of the race but when he got moving fellow closer Boys In Blue could not stick with the tiny dark bay colt, who stormed clear by three and a half lengths over the Australian bred, who edged out Broken Allegiance by a neck for second. For his efforts down under Sidney was voted Champion South Pacific Older Horse and Horse of the Year.
Sidney’s achievements at two had already earned the stallion a place in the Hall of Fame and his final season only justified this. On day five of week two, Sidney started his history making season at Osaka Racecourse, Japan in the ungraded Vernacular stakes at a mile and seven eights on firm turf. Other notable starters included the previous year’s Asian champion three-year-old male Homeland Security and Brisbane Trophy winner Tiger Heart. Sidney kept to his normal closing habits, sweeping past Tiger Heart by a length and three fourths with Nangiloc a neck behind him. Two weeks later at Tokyo Racecourse, in the grade one Japanese Spring Marathon, Sidney saw Homeland Security and Nangiloc again in the two-mile-long event. Sidney had another bad start, and ran uncharacteristically close to the lead, before charging past Homeland Security by three and one fourth lengths while Nangiloc was forced into third by a neck’s length for the second time to complete the trifecta. On week six at Osaka Racecourse, Japan Sidney lined up against seven-year-old iron horse D’argo and year 37 Asian Champion three-year-old male Tetris for the Abeno-ku stakes, a grade one mile and three eights event worth a hundred thousand to the winner. Sidney was more relaxed this time and flew past Tetris by nearly eight lengths.
On week eight, Sidney returned to Europe, at London Gallops, Great Britain, Sidney faced off against four other older horses in the grade one London Cup. Slow to gain ground but Sidney got moving he was untouchable winning by five and one fourth lengths. On week ten again at London Gallops, Great Britain, Sidney contested and impressively took the Prince of Wales stakes, a grade one event at a mile and a quarter.
On week fourteen at Paris Race park, France, Sidney took part in the Arc de Triomphe stakes, facing off against last year’s European champion three-year-old male and horse of the year Anorak, millionaire Kingdom of Rust and South Pacific champion two-year-old male Sir Henry for the prestigious event. Sidney was no where near the lead at the start but pushed past Anorak by three lengths with Kingdom of Rust a head behind him. Sidney just had one more race to add to his resume, the Steward’s cup turf held at Sunshine Park, Florida. Facing off against European champion three-year-old male and horse of the year Anorak, North American champion turf horse Ben Browder, two-time grade one winner Clopin, grade one winner D’s Breeder’s Cup, Louisville Bunbury winner Imagineer, South Pacific champion three-year-old male King’s Guard, multiple grade one winner Kingdom of Rust, and South Pacific two-year-old champion colt Sir Henry. Sidney trailed for much of the race before pushing past D’s Breeder’s Cup by two lengths to end his career with an unblemished record of twenty-two wins from as many starts. For his globetrotting efforts, Sidney racked in a slew of awards, Asian champion older male, Asian horse of the year, European champion older male, European horse of the year and North American champion turf horse.
During his career, Sidney won seventeen grade ones, beat seventy-six stakes’ winners, and faced off against elven champions on his way to earnings of nearly seven million. After retirement Sidney was sent to Fox Lair, New York and stood his entire stud career for 125,000 and sired over nine hundred foals who have earned over a hundred million on the track. With over four hundred winners and one hundred and forty stakes’ winners led by European horse of the year and European champion three year old male Reddington, other notable progeny are European champion older male Brilliance, North American champion older female Forever with Me, grade one winner and dam of three champions With Care, Louisville Bunbury winner I Am Right Here, North American Champion Turf Female Our Very Last Kiss, South Pacific horse of the year The Thunderdome, Asian champion three year old male Delahoussaye, two time South African cup winner Midnight Soprano, Steward’s cup winner La Forza, Irish champion winner Wolfgang, South American Champion three year old male Dreamcast, Melbourne Derby winner Brundtland, African Champion Three year old female Kissmybreathaway, and African Champion older female I Will Find You.