Lethal Force (foaled 10 April 2009) is an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

. As a two-year-old in 2011 he showed potential but failed to win in four races. In the following year he recorded his first major success when winning the Hungerford Stakes. In 2013, Lethal Force emerged as one of the leading sprinters in the world by defeating strong international fields in both the Diamond Jubilee Stakes and the

July Cup The July Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres ...

Background

Lethal Force is a grey colt bred in Ireland by Declan Johnson, a "hobby breeder" based in

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...

. His sire Dark Angel, from whom he inherited his grey colour, won four races including the

Mill Reef Stakes The Mill Reef Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-olds. It is run at Newbury over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled ...

and the Middle Park Stakes as a two-year-old in 2007 before beginning his stud career in the following year. In addition to Lethal Force, his first crop of foals included the

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

winner Alhebayeb and the

Chartwell Fillies' Stakes The Chartwell Fillies' Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 7 furlongs () at Lingfield Park in M ...

winner Lily's Angel. Lethal Force's dam, Land Army, showed no ability as a racehorse, but was descended from Miss Ribot, a mare whose wins included the

Santa Ana Stakes The Santa Ana Handicap is a Thoroughbred horse race run at annually Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California during the third week of March. The race is open to fillies and mares, age four and up, willing to race one and one-eighth miles on the ...

in 1969. As a foal, Lethal Force was sent by the Rathasker Stud to the Goff's sales in November and was bought for €9,500 by John Egan. In September 2010, Lethal Force was again put up for auction, this time at the Tattersalls Ireland sales and was bought for €8,500 by the trainer Clive Cox acting on behalf of Alan G. Craddock. Cox took the colt into training at his Beechwood Farm stable at Sheepdrove, near Lambourn in

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

Racing career

2011: two-year-old season

Lethal Force ran four times as a two-year-old without winning. He began his career by finishing in a five furlong

maiden race In horse racing a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the se ...

at Ascot Racecourse in May, when he finished second as a 33/1 outsider. Later in the month he started favourite for a similar event at Goodwood but finished second, a

short head ''Short Head'' (French: '' Courte tête'') is a 1956 French comedy film directed by Norbert Carbonnaux, written by Michel Audiard and starring Fernand Gravey, Micheline Dax and Jean Richard. The film is known under the alternative title ''Photo Fi ...

behind Sir Glanton. He had hung to the right and then to the left in the closing stages, and after a stewards' enquiry he was demoted to third place. 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 ...

in June Lethal Force was moved up in class for the

Group Two A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...

Coventry Stakes. Ridden for the first time by Adam Kirby, he started at odds of 50/1 and finished fourth of the twenty-three runners, less than two

length 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 Interna ...

s behind the Aidan O'Brien-trained winner Power. In July, Lethal Force started at odds of 3/1 in the Vintage Stakes at Goodwood, but finished fourth of the seven runners behind Chandlery.

2012: three-year-old season

Lethal Force began his three-year-old season by dropping back in class for a maiden race over furlongs at Bath Racecourse on 20 April. Ridden by John Fahy, he started at odds of 30/100 and won easily by nine

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 ...

. The colt was moved into Listed class for his next two races, finishing second by a

neck The neck is the part of the body on many vertebrates that connects the head with the torso. The neck supports the weight of the head and protects the nerves that carry sensory and motor information from the brain down to the rest of the body. In ...

in the Carnarvon Stakes at Newbury and third to Slade Power in the Sandy Lane Stakes at Haydock Park. In June, Lethal Force ran for the second year at Royal Ascot, running in the Group Three

Jersey Stakes The Jersey Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old horses. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each ...

over seven furlongs. After appearing likely to take second place, he faded in the final strides and finished fourth behind the

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

Ishvana. On 21 July, the colt started 4/6 favourite for a seven furlong race at Haydock but finished second to the filly Rhythm of Light after John Fahy dropped his whip a furlong from the finish. On 21 August, Lethal Force started at odds of 25/1 for the Group Two Hungerford Stakes over seven furlongs at Newbury. The race appeared to lie between the Australian-bred Soul, who started favourite, and the Richard Hannon Sr.-trained Strong Suit. Ridden by Kirby, Lethal Force took the lead from the start, opened up a five length lead by half way and held off the late challenge of Strong Suit to win by a neck. In the

Park Stakes A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. ...

Doncaster Racecourse Doncaster Racecourse (also known as the Town Moor course) is a racecourse in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. It hosts two of Great Britain's 36 annual Group 1 flat races, the St Leger Stakes and the Racing Post Trophy. History Doncas ...

in September, Kirby attempted to repeat the tactics he employed at Newbury, but Lethal Force was caught inside the final furlong and finished third to Libranno. On 7 October, Lethal Force was sent to France to contest his first Group One race, the Prix de la Forêt over 1400 metres at Longchamp Racecourse. He took an early lead, but "weakened quickly" and finished tenth of the eleven runners behind Gordon Lord Byron.

2013: four-year-old season

Lethal Force made his four-year-old debut in the

Duke of York Stakes The Duke of York Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 6 furlongs () at York in May. History An ...

at York on 15 May. He started at odds of 16/1 and finished second, beaten a head by

Society Rock Society Rock (8 February 2007 – 31 May 2016) is an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse who has won the Golden Jubilee Stakes and Haydock Sprint Cup. He was owned by Simon Gibson and trained by James Fanshawe. Breeding Society ...

after racing alongside the winner throughout the final furlong. On 22 June, he was one of eighteen sprinters to contest the Group One Diamond Jubilee Stakes over six furlongs at Royal Ascot, and started at odds of 11/1. Kirby sent the colt into the lead from the start and then quickened clear of the field approaching the final furlong. He hung to the left in the closing stages, but held on to win by two lengths from Society Rock, with the Bahraini challenger Krypton Factor in third and Gordon Lord Byron in fourth. After the race Kirby said "I'm really, really pleased. We've always had a lot of respect for this horse and, to be fair to him, he's always ran his race without ever winning", while Cox commented "I'm thrilled for everyone. It's just amazing – this is what it's all about. Adam is such a brilliant rider, but it's fantastic for the whole team at home. When he sent him on, it was explosive." On 13 July Lethal Force started 9/2 third favourite for the July Cup over six furlongs at Newmarket. His opponents included Society Rock from England,

Sole Power Sole Power (foaled 18 March 2007) is a British-bred, Irish-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. A specialist sprinter, he won twelve of his sixty-five races and competed in five different countries in a nine-year racing career. He is unique in being ...

and Gale Force Ten (

) from Ireland, Shamexpress ( Newmarket Handicap) from Australia and the South-African-trained favourite Shea Shea. As at Ascot, Lethal Force led from the start and went clear approaching the final furlong. He stayed on in the closing stages to win by lengths from Society Rock, with Slade Power in third. His winning time of 1:09.11 established a new track record, beating the mark set by

Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century clas ...

in 1999. Kirby described the winner as "a machine... a bull of a horse...the sky's the limit." Following the race, Lethal Force was rated the best sprinter in the world following the retirement Black Caviar in the July edition of the

World Thoroughbred Rankings The Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings (LWBRR), known as World Thoroughbred Racehorse Rankings (WTRR) before 2012, are horseracing's equivalent to World Rankings by other major sporting organizations such as ATP Tennis Rankings, World Golf R ...

and there was speculation that he would be sent to Australia in the autumn to contest the

Patinack Farm Classic The Champions Sprint, registered as the Victoria Racing Club Stakes, is a Victoria Racing Club Group One Thoroughbred horse race for horses aged three years old and over, under weight for age conditions, over a distance of 1200 metres held at F ...

. On 4 August, Lethal Force was sent to France to challenge the outstanding mare

Moonlight Cloud Moonlight Cloud (foaled 5 March 2008) is a British– bred, French- trained Thoroughbred racehorse who has won the Prix Maurice de Gheest three times and the Prix du Moulin de Longchamp. In a famous race for the Diamond Jubilee Stakes in 2012, sh ...

in the

Prix Maurice de Gheest The Prix Maurice de Gheest is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,300 metres (about 6½ furlongs), and it is sched ...

over 1300 metres at Deauville Racecourse. Lethal Force soon took the lead but was overtaken in the final furlong by Moonlight Cloud and finished second, beaten by lengths. Lethal Force returned to England in September and started 5/2 favourite for the Haydock Sprint Cup. He was never able to reach the leaders and weakened in the closing stages, finishing ninth of the thirteen runners behind Gordon Lord Byron. Following his defeat it was announced that the colt would not race again and would be retired to become a breeding stallion at the

Cheveley Park Stud Cheveley Park Stud is a thoroughbred racehorse ownership and breeding operation in Newmarket, Suffolk, UK, which has bred and owned many notable horses. It is the oldest stud in Newmarket, the "capital" of British racing, with evidence of ...

Stud career

As of 2020 Lethal Force stands for a stud fee of €6,000 at Haras de Grandcamp in

Trun, Orne Trun () is a commune in the Orne département and the region of Normandy in north-western France. Geography Administration Population Economy * Heller SA, manufacturer of plastic scale model kits. * Electrical Ruins and monuments Aerial ...

France.

Notable progeny

'c =

colt Colt(s) or COLT may refer to: *Colt (horse), an intact (uncastrated) male horse under four years of age People * Colt (given name) *Colt (surname) Places *Colt, Arkansas, United States *Colt, Louisiana, an unincorporated community, United States ...

, f =

'', g =

gelding A gelding is a castrated male horse or other equine, such as a pony, donkey or a mule. Castration, as well as the elimination of hormonally driven behavior associated with a stallion, allows a male equine to be calmer and better-behaved, makin ...

Pedigree

References

{{reflist, 30em 2009 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 21-a Cartier Award winners