No Australian return for Too Darn Hot

Too Darn Hot, Australia’s champion first-season sire elect, will not return to Darley’s Kelvinside base in 2024. 

The news will come as a blow to breeders who have booked their mares into the well-bred son of Dubawi ahead of what would have been his fifth season in the Hunter Valley. 

Having made an immediate impact in his first season with his runners in the northern hemisphere, there were high hopes pinned on the three-time Group 1 winner ahead of his first crop of runners hitting the track in Australia, and he more than delivered on that promise. 

His 12 winners are headed by his Group 1 JJ Atkins and Group 1 ATC Champagne Stakes-winning son and exciting stallion prospect Broadsiding. His Australian progeny also include stakes-performing winners Arabian Summer, Too Darn Lizzie and stakes-placed trio Superalloy, Silmarillion and Trembles. 

Too Darn Hot stood his first four seasons at Darley Australia for A$44,000 (£23,000/€27,000) and was due to stand his fifth term in the Hunter Valley at a price of A$110,000, the sixth most expensive advertised stallion in the country, behind only I Am Invincible ($275,000), Zoustar ($275,000), Extreme Choice ($275,000), Snitzel ($247,500) and Too Darn Hot’s former barnmate Anamoe ($121,000). 

“Too Darn Hot will not shuttle to Darley Australia’s Kelvinside base for the 2024 season,” Darley Australia said in a statement posted on X on Monday. 

“Following nine straight seasons covering full books in both hemispheres, it has been decided to give the horse a break from shuttling.

“A Group 1-producing sire in both hemispheres, Too Darn Hot has quickly established himself as one of the world’s most exciting young stallions. As Australia’s current leading first-season sire, Too Darn Hot has already set a new prize-money record – AU$4,133,610 – surpassing the earnings of all other first-crop sires in history. 

“Too Darn Hot has covered four southern hemisphere books and his eldest crop are rising three-year-olds.”

At the end of this month, Too Darn Hot will be crowned Australia’s champion first-season sire by prize-money, with his progeny having earned A$4,133,610, making him the first British-bred stallion to achieve the feat this century. He currently leads the way in terms of winners with 12, two ahead of his nearest rival Tassort. 

Away from the track, the stallion’s progeny quickly established themselves as hot property within sales rings across Australia. A total of 51 yearlings from his first crop sold for an aggregate of A$9,127,000 at an average of A$178,960, more than four times his stud fee. 

Too Darn Lizzie: One of a few flag-flyers for Too Darn Hot down under

The top seller among his first crop was Too Darn Lizzie, who fetched a cool A$1 million when selling to her trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, McKeever Bloodstock and the stallion’s breeders Watership Down, who retain a controlling interest in the stallion, at the 2023 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale. 

The momentum continued throughout this year’s sales series, where he had 36 youngsters sell for an aggregate of A$8,029,000 finished with an improved average of A$223,027. 

His son out of dual Group 3 winner A Time For Julia was his most expensive progeny sold at public auction this year when he was snapped up for A$1.9m at the Magic Millions sale in January, making him the second most expensive yearling at the auction. 

Too Darn Hot’s success has taken a similar trajectory in the northern hemisphere. In his first season with runners he sired four stakes winners and they were headlined by Group 1 Moyglare Stud Stakes winner Fallen Angel and Group 2 scorer Darnation. 

This season in Europe his progeny have built on the foundations they laid in 2023, with his number of individual stakes winners now sat at nine, with Fallen Angel once again leading the way courtesy of her dominant Irish 1,000 Guineas triumph. 

“I know this decision has been taken only with the welfare of the stallion in mind,” Johnny McKeever told ANZ Bloodstock News on Monday. 

“It is terribly disappointing for all the Australian breeders, but I’m sure they will be doing everything they can to ensure that as many of those breeders as possible can get access to him in the northern hemisphere on southern hemisphere time.

“I'm sure there is nothing to suggest that Too Darn Hot couldn’t return to Darley Australia in the future.”

The stallion stood the 2024 season at Dalham Hall in Newmarket for a career high fee of £65,000. 

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