Magna Grecia and Calyx to join Coolmore Australia stallion roster

Coolmore Stud announced on Friday European first-season sires Magna Grecia and Calyx will join Everest winner Yes Yes Yes as additions to their Australian roster for the 2020 breeding season.

The trio will join a loaded cohort that includes the evergreen Fastnet Rock, two Golden Slipper Stakes winners in Vancouver and Pierro, dual hemisphere sensations So You Think and Merchant Navy and two American Triple Crown winners, American Pharoah and Justify.

Magna Grecia, winner of the 2,000 Guineas last year as well as the Vertem Futurity Trophy at Doncaster as a two-year-old, will be the third winner of Newmarket’s Classic to join the Coolmore line-up this year, alongside Churchill and Saxon Warrior. He will be the seventh son of Invincible Spirit to stand at stud in Australia.

Watch Magna Grecia win the 2,000 Guineas

His dam Cabaret was a Group 3 winner, while his family dates back to the influential Eyewash, who counts Might And Power, Mosheen and Sariska among her descendants.

Invincible Spirit has already proven to be a sire of sires through the exploits of stallions like I Am Invincible, Cable Bay and Kingman.

Champion trainer Aidan O’Brien wasn’t surprised by the colt’s success: “Magna Grecia always stood out for two reasons, he was such a good-looking horse and he showed so much speed even from his early two-year-old days.”

After the colt’s retirement was announced, O’Brien added: “His Group 1 wins at two and three were top-class and the form of those races has turned out extremely well. His win in the 2,000 Guineas on his seasonal debut was outstanding.”

Kingman, who is enjoying a tremendous run from just two crops to race, is already following in his father’s footsteps in producing the speedy Calyx - already touted as his fastest son.

Winner of the event widely considered the northern hemisphere’s Golden Slipper equivalent, the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot - defeating three-time Group 1 winner Advertise - the John Gosden-trained Calyx was brilliant in his first three starts, before he was injured and retired after his fourth start when second in the Sandy Lane Stakes at Haydock.

Watch Calyx win the Coventry Stakes

“Calyx always had that rare brilliance you only see in champions,” Gosden said upon the colt’s retirement. “His performances at Ascot at both two and three years were of the highest standard. He is a very similar type to his sire Kingman.” His regular rider Frankie Dettori added: “He was blessed with so much speed. He was a serious horse.”

Coventry Stakes winner Calyx will be heading to Australia to join Coolmore's team of stallions for 2020Credit: Edward Whitaker

Calyx’s dam Helleborine won the Group 3 Prix d’Aumale, defeating dual Group 1 winner Immortal Verse, while she was runner-up in a strong edition of the Prix Marcel Boussac on the Arc undercard. Calyx hails from a strong family of sprinter-milers that includes Group 1 winners African Rose and Distant Music.

“We are delighted to welcome two very exciting new sires in Calyx and Magna Grecia to Coolmore Australia,” said nominations and sales manager Colm Santry, adding “They’re both top-class racehorses from the red-hot Invincible Spirit sire line and are both out of Group winning juveniles. In fact Calyx is the fastest son of Kingman, while Magna Grecia is the only son of Invincible Spirit to be a Group 1 winner at two and three.

He added: “I inspected both horses in Ireland a few months ago and they’re very good lookers. Both are strong individuals with impressive walks.”

“Calyx and Magna Grecia are two important additions to our stallion roster, as is our record-breaking Everest winner Yes Yes Yes,” Coolmore Australia principal Tom Magnier said. “All three stallions demonstrated exceptional ability at both two and three. We feel very fortunate to be able to offer them to Australian breeders.”

Both Magna Grecia and Calyx entered the market at €22,500 (approximately AUD$38,000) when standing at Coolmore in Ireland.

Fees for all three first season sires, as well as the entire Coolmore roster, will be announced at a later date.

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