Green For Go! Gimmethegreenlight to stand at Varsfontein Stud.
Three year old star Gimmethegreenlight was retired from racing this week. Owner Hassen Adams reported that the colt had sustained a minor ligament strain in the GR1 SA Classic where he started a short priced favourite.
Gimmethegreenlight was being aimed at Singapore and Dubai. The uncertainty of export protocols and the injury made Adams take the decision to retire him “as that is where he is most valuable”.
Adams, a South African patriot and passionate breeder decided not to yield to offers from overseas. “Ever since he won the Queen’s Plate we have had calls from breeders expressing interest in his stud career” commented Adams, himself a breeder with over 40 mares at stud.
Gimmethegreenlight is currently South Africa’s highest rated 3-year-old at 117 ahead of Guineas winner Variety Club (116) and on a par with champion filly Igugu (117). This rating deservedly earned after becoming the first 3-year-old in 39 years to win the Gr1 L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate when coming from off the pace to coast past Variety Club to win going away. Three weeks later Gimmethegreenlight took on Igugu in the 2012 J & B Met over a distance out of his range to become the highest weighted 3-year-old to run a place in the history of the race.
Happy Days! The Gimmethegreenlight team after the L'Ormarins Queen's Plate win.
Justin Snaith lamented this week “I was gutted when I heard of his injury in Joburg as he was my best horse. I had planned to make my International debut with him in Singapore next year. To date he was the best colt I have trained and I will be sending my own two mares to him this year”.
On hearing the news of Gimmethegreenlight’s retirement this week pedigree analyst and successful breeder, Rob Knuppe sent an email to Hassen Adams saying “Of all the thousands of deep pedigree searches I have undertaken in the past decade I have yet to see a more exciting pedigree make-up come close to that of Gimmethegreenlight. It is a foregone conclusion that he will be challenging South Africa’s top Sires in just a few years from now”.
Susan Kalmanson of Varsfontein has purchased a large portion of the stallion to secure the right to stand the stallion at her famous farm.
John Freeman and his team have been appointed syndicate managers. Freeman says that he is excited about the prospect of syndicating this great looking son of More Than Ready who is the sire of over 100 stakes winners including 3 champions and over US$85 million in stakes. “He hails from a precocious Australian dam-line and he caught my eye when I saw him win the first of his first four races as a two-year-old. He is a superb looking colt and a very exciting sire prospect. When I saw him annihilate Variety Club in the Queen’s Plate I begged Hassen to let me handle his career when the time came. I am delighted that Hassen turned down all those offers to export him – we need this type of blood in South Africa,”said Freeman
