Falbrav (foaled 28 February 1998) is a retired
Thoroughbred racehorse and active
sire
Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French.
The words "sire" a ...
, bred in Ireland but trained in Italy and the United Kingdom during his racing career which ran from 2000 to 2004. He is notable for having won
Group 1/
Grade I races in five countries: the
Premio Presidente della Repubblica and the
Gran Premio di Milano in Italy; the
Japan Cup in Japan; the
Prix d'Ispahan in France; the
Eclipse Stakes
The Eclipse Stakes is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Sandown P ...
, the
Juddmonte International Stakes
The International Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 56 yards (2, ...
and the
Queen Elizabeth II Stakes
The Queen Elizabeth II Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is s ...
in the United Kingdom and the
Hong Kong Cup
The Hong Kong Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Hong Kong which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 2000 metres (about miles or 10 furlongs) at Sha Tin, and it is scheduled to take place each year in ...
in Hong Kong.
Background
Falbrav, a "massive, bull-like"
bay horse with three white feet and a small
star
A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...
, was bred in Ireland by the Italian Azienda Agricola Francesca. He was from one of the last groups of foals
sired by the
Northern Dancer stallion
Fairy King Fairy King or king of the fairies may refer to:
*Oberon
*the Erlking (Danish ''elverkonge'' "elf-king")
*Fairy King (horse) See also
*Fairies
*Mythological king
{{disambiguation ...
out of the
Slewpy mare Gift of the Night. Apart from Falbrav, Fairy King, who died in 1999, sired the winners of over five-hundred races, including
Helissio (
Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe) and
Oath (
Derby).
Falbrav was first put into training with Luciano D'Auria at
Bellinzago Lombardo in Italy, but was moved to the English stable of Luca Cumani in early 2003.
"Falbrav" is a
Milanese dialect word meaning "be good".
Racing career
2000: two-year-old season
Falbrav won a maiden race at San Siro Racecourse, Milan on his racecourse debut in September 2000. He was placed in three other races that autumn, most notably the Group 2 Premio Guido Berardelli in which he finished a neck second to Mistero.
2001: three-year-old season
Racing exclusively at the San Siro and
Capanelle racecourses, Falbrav won three times from six starts in 2001. His most significant performance, however, came in defeat, when finishing second to Morshdi in the Group One
Derby Italiano
The Derby Italiano is a Group 2 flat horse race in Italy open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Capannelle over a distance of 2,200 metres (about 1 mile and 3 furlongs), and it is scheduled to take place each year in ...
. His end of season rating of 113 made him the best three-year-old in Italy, but placed him sixteen pounds below the European champion
Galileo
Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He was ...
, suggesting that he would struggle against top class international competition.
2002: four-year-old season
Falbrav won another minor event on his four-year-old debut. From that point on, he began to show vastly improved form. In May he won the Group 1
Premio Presidente della Repubblica, taking the lead a
furlong from home and beating the odds-on
Godolphin colt
Ekraar
Ekraar (foaled February 13, 1997) is a retired American Thoroughbred racehorse.
Racing career
Ekraar was sired by Red Ransom, who was standing stud in the United States at the time. His dam was Sacahuista, who won the 1987 Breeders' Cup Distaf ...
by one and a quarter
lengths
Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the Intern ...
. A month later, Falbrav again defeated a Godolphin challenger, winning the
Gran Premio di Milano by three lengths from Narrative.
He was then aimed at the
Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and ran third in the
Prix Foy. Although Falbrav's challenge provoked interest and enthusiasm in Italy he appeared to have his limitations exposed when finishing ninth behind
Marienbard
Marienbard (foaled 1997) was an Ireland, Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse best known for his win in the 2002 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
Background
Marienbard is a bay horse bred in Ireland by Saif Ali. He was sir ...
in the French classic.
In the
Japan Cup in November, however, he led inside the final furlong and stayed on strongly to hold off
Sarafan and
Symboli Kris S
Symboli Kris S (, foaled January 21, 1999 in the United States – December 8, 2020) is a retired Japanese Thoroughbred race horse. He was voted Japanese Horse of the Year in 2002 and 2003. He was retired at the end of 2003 and was syndicated ...
in a photo-finish. The rest of the field included such major winners as
Golan
Golan ( he, גּוֹלָן ''Gōlān''; ar, جولان ' or ') is the name of a biblical town later known from the works of Josephus (first century CE) and Eusebius (''Onomasticon'', early 4th century CE). Archaeologists localize the biblical ci ...
,
Storming Home
Storming Home is a retired, British-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and active sire who was trained in the United Kingdom and the United States during a racing career which ran from 2000 to 2003. He won five important races, but is probably best kno ...
,
Indigenous,
Bright Sky and Jungle Pocket (2001
Tokyo Yushun and Japan Cup). The race was a rough one, and Falbrav's win was confirmed only after an objection from the connections of the runner-up who claimed that a collision in the closing stages had cost their horse the race. According to Sarafan's rider, "Falbrav bumped me...I'm not happy or satisfied at all."
2003: five-year-old season
Spring
After the Japan Cup, Falbrav's owners, Scuderia Rencati, sold a half share in the horse to Teruya Yoshida. For his five-year-old season, Falbrav was transferred to the
Newmarket stable of
Luca Cumani following a reported disagreement between the horse's owners and Luciano D'Auria. Cumani was impressed by Falbrav, saying that he looked "a million dollars", but early plans were flexible, with the owners undecided about whether to campaign the horse in Europe or Japan.
He began the year in France, finishing third in the
Prix Ganay before beating Bright Sky in the
Prix d'Ispahan. Cumani was not particularly enthusiastic about the win, but pointed out that he had been concerned by the soft ground, which did not suit Falbrav.
Summer
In the summer, Falbrav raced in his new home country. He finished fifth behind
Nayef
Nayef ( ar, نايف) is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include:
Given name
* Nayef Aguerd (born 1996), Moroccan football player
* Nayef Hawatmeh, founder of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine
* Na ...
in the
Prince of Wales's Stakes
The Prince of Wales's Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 1 furlong and 212 yards (2,004 met ...
at
Royal Ascot
Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races and ...
but then reversed the form in the
Eclipse Stakes
The Eclipse Stakes is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Sandown P ...
, winning by three-quarters of a length after breaking clear of the field a furlong out. Cumani felt that the horse had been forced to take the lead earlier than was ideal but was keen to praise him, describing him "full of confidence and power" and comparing him to "a heavyweight boxer." Others were more sceptical, pointing out that the fast-finishing runner-up had been unable to find a clear run in the closing stages. He returned to Ascot for the one and a half mile
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, where he raced prominently before weakening into fifth place behind
Alamshar
Alamshar (foaled 18 April 2000) is a retired Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and active sire. He won five of his nine races in a career which lasted from September 2002 to September 2003. He is best known for his performances as a three-year-old whe ...
.
In the
International Stakes at York he produced what the
''Telegraph's'' described as his "key weapon... a decisive turn of foot"
to go four lengths clear two furlongs from the finish, before running on to record a two-length win, increasing his Sandown superiority over Nayef, who finished third. Cumani's assessment of Falbrav reached even greater heights after the race, as he called Falbrav "amazing, a machine... one of the best horses I have ever trained" The win also earned Falbrav's owners a £250,000 bonus for winning the Middle Distance Championship series from the
British Horseracing Board
__FORCETOC__
From 10 June 1993 until 30 July 2007, the British Horseracing Board (BHB) was the governing authority for horseracing in Great Britain. It was created in 1993, and took on responsibilities previously held by the Jockey Club. This wa ...
.
Autumn
He next travelled to Leopardstown for the
Irish Champion Stakes, in which he "just failed" to catch
High Chaparral, having struggled to find space to run in a rough race. After the race, Falbrav's connections launched an unsuccessful appeal to have the result overturned, on the grounds that High Chaparral should have been disqualified. He then proved his versatility by moving down to the one-mile distance and beating the
1,000 Guineas
The 1000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 ...
winner
Russian Rhythm in the
Queen Elizabeth II Stakes
The Queen Elizabeth II Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is s ...
at Ascot, recording the second fastest time in the race's history. After the race, his trainer reportedly offered to present four crates of
champagne to anyone who could persuade Falbrav's owners to keep their horse in training for another year.
Falbrav's owners then paid a supplementary charge of $180,000 to run him in the
Breeders' Cup at
Santa Anita where Cumani opted for the
Turf after seriously considering a run in the
Classic. He led a furlong from home before losing out in a three way photo-finish, a head behind the
dead-heaters High Chaparral and
Johar
Johar (foaled 1999 in Kentucky, died November 10, 2014)http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/88680/stallion-johar-dies-at-age-15#ixzz3Irqla5SG was an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2003 Breeders' Cup Turf in ...
.
On his final racecourse appearance, Falbrav beat
Rakti
Rakti (10 February 1999 – December 2010) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse, who won six Group One races in Italy (where he was originally trained) and the United Kingdom in a career which lasted from 2001 to 2005.
Background
Rakti was ...
by two lengths in the Hong Kong Cup at
Sha Tin Racecourse. Frankie Dettori said of the run, "That was electric... He just flew. He took my breath away", after Falbrav's acceleration had settled the result a furlong from the finish.
Assessment
Falbrav won the 2003
Cartier Racing Award for
Champion European older horse.
In the International Classification for the same year, Falbrav was rated on 127, six pounds behind
Hawk Wing
Hawk Wing (foaled 1999 in Kentucky) is an American-bred, Irish-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. Owned by the Magnier family and trained by Aidan O'Brien, the horse won three Group 1 races and was the leading horse in the world in 2003.
2001: Two ...
. Although this rating made him the fourth best horse in the world, some commentators claimed that he had been unfairly under-rated. The argument was centred on the fact that Hawk Hing's rating was based on one performance (in the
Lockinge Stakes), whereas Falbrav had raced at a consistently high standard from April to December.
The same arguments, in reverse, were aired when Falbrav was awarded the title of
BHB Horse of the Year.
Although they also gave Hawk Wing a higher rating,
Timeform named Falbrav their "Horse of the Year". In awarding him a rating of 133 they observed,
Stud career
Falbrav operates as a "shuttle" stallion, standing at the Shadai Stallion Station in
Hokkaido, Japan in the early part of the year before moving to Australia for the Southern Hemisphere breeding season where he has stood at the Arrowfield Stud at
Scone, New South Wales.
He has made a "good start" at stud, producing winners like Fanunalter (
Diomed Stakes), Fravashi (
QTC Sires Produce Stakes), Distant Memories (
Winter Hill Stakes
The Winter Hill Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Windsor over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlongs (2,012 metres), and it is ...
), Brava Fortune (
Karrakatta Plate) and One Carat (
Hakodate Sprint Stakes
The Hakodate Sprint Stakes (Japanese 函館スプリントステークス) is a Grade 3 horse race for Thoroughbreds aged three and over, run in June over a distance of 1200 metres on turf at Hakodate Racecourse.
It was first run in 1994 and ha ...
).
Pedigree
References
{{Cartier Champion Older Horse
1998 racehorse births
Racehorses bred in Ireland
Racehorses trained in Italy
Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom
Japan Cup winners
Cartier Award winners
Thoroughbred family 4-i