Sir Dragonet (9 February 2016 – 16 October 2021) was an Irish bred thoroughbred racehorse that won two

Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern races, Pattern race sys ...

races in Australia, most notably the 2020 W. S. Cox Plate.

Background

Sir Dragonet is the son of

Camelot Camelot is a castle and court associated with the legendary King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described as the ...

who was the European Champion Three-Year-Old Colt in 2012. His mother, Sparrow, was stakes placed when finishing third in the

Ballyogan Stakes The Ballyogan Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at The Curragh over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled to t ...

. She also produced Sir Dragonet's full-brother, Sir Lucan, winner of the Yeats Stakes.

Racing career

Sir Dragonet won his first two starts in 2019, a

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 ...

Tipperary Tipperary is the name of: Places *County Tipperary, a county in Ireland **North Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Nenagh **South Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Clonmel *Tipperary (town), County Tipperary's na ...

and then the Group III

Chester Vase The Chester Vase is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old colts and geldings. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 63 yards () at Ches ...

by a margin of eight lengths. The owners Coolmore paid an £85,000 late entry fee for the horse to take part in the

2019 Epsom Derby {, class="collapsible collapsed" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="clear:right; float:right; text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" width="280px" ! colspan="3" style="border:1px solid black; background-color: #77DD77;" , Also Ran Th ...

. Starting the 11/4 favourite and ridden by Ryan Moore, Sir Dragonet was one of 7 horses in the race trained by

Aidan O'Brien Aidan Patrick O'Brien (born 16 October 1969 in County Wexford, Ireland) Aidan O'Brien bio NTRA. ...

. In a "blanket finish", and after leading the field with two furlongs to travel, he was beaten by just three quarters of a length in 5th position by stable mate

Anthony Van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Brabantian Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Southern Netherlands and Italy. The seventh c ...

. Sir Dragonet would have a further six runs in Europe without success, with his last start being a second placing behind Magical in the 2020

Tattersalls Gold Cup The Tattersalls Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 110 yards (2,112 ...

. The horse was then sold for an undisclosed sum to Australian buyers and the horse was sent to Australia to continue racing. On the 24 October 2020, Sir Dragonet contested his first race in Australia, the 100th running of the W. S. Cox Plate at Moonee Valley. He came from midfield to win by a length-and-a-half. The win gave jockey

Glen Boss Glen Boss (born 21 August 1969 in Caboolture) is an Australian jockey, who is best known for riding Makybe Diva to victory in three consecutive Melbourne Cups: 2003, 2004, and 2005. He has also been successful in four Cox Plates: Makybe Diva in ...

his 4th win in the race. Sir Dragonet then took his place in the

2020 Melbourne Cup The 2020 Melbourne Cup (known commercially as the 2020 Lexus Melbourne Cup) was the 160th running of the Melbourne Cup, a prestigious Australian Thoroughbred horse race. The race, run over , was held on 3 November 2020 at Melbourne's Flemingt ...

at Flemington. Starting at odds of 12/1 he finished in 6th place beaten three-and-a-half lengths. After a further three unplaced runs, Sir Dragonet won his second

when winning the 2021

Tancred Stakes H E Tancred Stakes is an Australian Turf Club Group One, Group 1 Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race for horses three years old and older, run over 2,400 metres at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse in Sydney, Australia. The prize money for the event ...

at Rosehill. This would prove to be the horses final win in his career. On the 16 October 2021, Sir Dragonet broke down during track-work at Moonee Valley and had to be euthanised on course. He was having his final piece of work a week before he attempted to defend his win in the Cox Plate. It is believed he faltered just 800 metres into his gallop. Trainer Ciaron Maher spoke of the incident, "We’re heartbroken to announce that Sir Dragonet has broken down during a piece of work at Moonee Valley. In the year that the Dragon has been in our care, he has won our hearts with his exploits both on and off the track."

Pedigree

References

{{reflist Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in Australia 2015 racehorse births 2021 racehorse deaths Horses who died from racing injuries Cox Plate winners