'He has a lot going for him' - classy Motamarris added to Haras du Mazet roster

Up-and-coming French breeder Mathieu Talleux has purchased the classy performer Motamarris to stand at Haras du Mazet close to Pompadour in France.

The five-year-old son of Le Havre was bred and owned by the late Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum and won four of his eight starts while under the care of Freddy Head. He won his first three starts, a sequence bookended by a seven-length victory and an eight-length romp, both at Chantilly.

He was then third in the 2019 Prix du Jockey Club behind subsequent Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe hero Sottsass and that year's Poule d'Essai des Poulains scorer Persian King.

He missed the remainder of his Classic season but returned at four with a wide-margin victory in the Listed Grand Prix de Compiegne. His final two outings saw him finish third to Skaletti in the Group 3 Prix Gontaut-Biron before he filled the same position behind The Revenant in the Group 2 Prix Daniel Wildenstein.

"Motamarris has a lot going for him," Talleux told Jour de Galop. "His physique in particular; he's a tall horse, standing 1.68m, with a magnificent shoulder, breadth and a lot of depth. He's totally black, without a bit of white.

"His movement is impressive. He also has superb performances and had to fight in his races against champions of the calibre of Sottsass, Persian King and Skalleti.

Motamarris strikes a poseCredit: Haras du Mazet

"I really encourage people to watch the videos of his races since his debut; Motamarris had a lot of quality. I'm going to support him with show mares because he has a wonderful action and is the right model for it.

"But he can produce just as well for the Flat given his pedigree and performance. He's exceptionally well bred and I believe in him a lot."

Motamarris is the eighth foal out of the stakes-placed Anabaa mare Thamarat, making him a sibling to the Listed-placed pair Riqa, also the dam of triple Group 3 scorer Tantheem, and Saraaba.

In turn, Thamarat is a half-sister to Tamayuz, while Motamarris's third dam is Group 3 Prix de Flore winner Allez Les Trois, dam of Prix du Jockey Club hero Anabaa Blue and a half-sister to the hugely influential Arc heroine Urban Sea, who is responsible for the breed-shaping Galileo and his Derby-winning sibling Sea The Stars.

Motamarris joins Devastar and Masterofthehorse on the Mazet stallion roster.

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