Floribunda (1958–1979) was a British-bred Irish-trained

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse and sire. A specialist sprinter, he won his first three races (including the New Stakes by wide margins before his two-year-old season was curtailed by injury. In 1961 he was beaten in his first two races before returning to his best to win the

King George Stakes The King George Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is ...

and

Nunthorpe Stakes The Nunthorpe Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged two years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is sched ...

. He was retired to stud at the end of the season and had mixed success as a sire of winners.

Background

Floribunda was a dark-coated bay horse with no white markings, bred in Britain by his owner Meg Mullion. Mullion, who owned the Ardenode Stud in partnership with her husband Jim, sent the colt to Ireland to be trained at the

Curragh The Curragh ( ; ga, An Currach ) is a flat open plain of almost of common land in County Kildare. This area is well known for Irish horse breeding and training. The Irish National Stud is located on the edge of Kildare town, beside the ...

, County Kildare, by Paddy Prendergast, a trainer noted for his handling of precocious two-year-olds. His sire Princely Gift was a leading sprinter who broke the track record at Doncaster Racecourse when carrying 130 pounds in the 1955

Portland Handicap The Portland Handicap is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 5 furlongs and 143 yards (1,137 metres), an ...

. Floribunda's dam Astrentia also produced his full sister Kew, the great-grand-dam of the

Prix de Diane The Prix de Diane, sometimes referred to as the French Oaks, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 2,100 met ...

winner Sil Sila.

Racing career

1960: two-year-old season

Floribunda began his racing career in Ireland in spring, winning a maiden race at the

Curragh Racecourse The Curragh Racecourse -- usually referred to as simply the Curragh -- is one of Ireland's most important Thoroughbred racecourses. It is situated on the Curragh plain in County Kildare, between the towns of Newbridge and Kildare. History ...

by twelve lengths. On his next appearance he set a new track record when winning over five

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hor ...

s at

Phoenix Park The Phoenix Park ( ga, Páirc an Fhionnuisce) is a large urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its perimeter wall encloses of recreational space. It includes large areas of grassland and tre ...

. Predergast sent the colt to England in June for the New Stakes, one of the most important two-year-old races at Royal Ascot. Ridden by the Australian jockey Ron Hutchinson he started the 2/7 favourite and won by eight lengths. His "runaway" win led to him being described as the best two-year-old of the season up to that point. Floribunda returned to England in August when he was stepped up to six furlongs in the

Gimcrack Stakes The Gimcrack Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and geldings. It is run at York over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled to ...

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. He sustained an injury in the race and finished third behind Test Case. He did not run again that season.

1961: three-year-old season

On his first appearance as a three-year-old, Floribunda was tried over seven furlongs in the

Tetrarch Stakes The Tetrarch Stakes is a Conditions races, Listed Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres ...

at the Curragh, but failed to stay the distance and finished unplaced behind Time Greine. Floribunda returned to sprinting at Royal Ascot in June and showed better form, without looking likely to win, when finishing second to Silver Tor in the

King's Stand Stakes The King's Stand 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 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled ...

. In July Floribunda returned to England for the

Goodwood Racecourse Goodwood Racecourse is a horse-racing track five miles north of Chichester, West Sussex, in England controlled by the family of the Duke of Richmond, whose seat is nearby Goodwood House. It hosts the annual Glorious Goodwood meeting in la ...

. Despite having sustained three consecutive defeats he was made 4/6 favourite and won decisively from the filly Cynara with the previous season's leading sprinter Bleep-Bleep in third place. Floribunda's best performance came at York in August when he was ridden by Hutchinson in the Nunthorpe Stakes. He won "in brilliant style" by four lengths from Cynara and Silver Tor. According to John Randall, writing in the '' Racing Post'', the performance established Floribunda as "Ireland's greatest sprinter". It was expected that Floribunda would run in the

Prix de l'Abbaye The Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged two years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,000 metres (about 5 furlongs) ...

at Longchamp in October and then stay in training as a four-year-old, but he never ran again and was retired to stud.

Assessment

The independent

Timeform Timeform is a sports data and content provider located in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. Founded in 1948, it provides systematic information on form to punters and others involved in the horse racing industry. The company was purchased by t ...

organisation rated Floribunda the best two-year-old of 1960 with a rating of 135. The official Free Handicap, however, was topped by the filly Opaline. In the following season, Floribunda improved his Timeform rating to 136, making him the second highest-rated horse in Europe behind the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, France, over a distance ...

winner Molvedo. In their book ''A Century of Champions'', based on a modified version of the Timeform system, John Randall and Tony Morris rated Floribunda the best British or Irish-trained horse of his generation. He was also rated the thirteenth-best British or Irish-trained sprinter and the sixteenth-best Irish racehorse of the 20th century.

Stud career

Floribunda retired to stand as a stallion at his owners Ardenode Stud. He had moderate results, the best of his offspring being Princely Son (

Haydock Sprint Cup The Sprint Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Haydock Park over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), an ...

) and Porto Bello ( New Stakes). He was sold and exported to Japan where he died 30 September 1979.

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 1958 racehorse births 1979 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in Ireland Thoroughbred family 1-o