Sonnyboyliston (foaled 5 March 2017) is an Irish

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 c ...

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 ...

. He made no impact as a two-year-old and was

gelded 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, making th ...

before returning in 2020 to win three handicap races. He improved to become a top-class stayer as a four-year-old in 2021, winning the

Martin Molony Stakes The Martin Molony Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbred horses aged four years or older. It is run at Limerick over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 110 yards (2,515 metres), and it ...

Ebor Handicap The Ebor Handicap is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile 5 furlongs and 188 yards (2,787 metres). It is ...

and

Irish St Leger The Irish St Leger is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 6 furlongs (2,816 metres), and it i ...

Background

Sonnyboyliston is a chestnut horse with a white blaze bred in Ireland by Diane O'Neill. As a

yearling Yearling may refer to: *Yearling (horse), a horse between one and two years old *''The Yearling ''The Yearling'' is a novel by American writer Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, published in March 1938. It was the main selection of the Book of the Mo ...

in September 2018 he was consigned to the Tattersalls Ireland sale and was bought for €26,000 by the trainer Johnny Murtagh, acting on behalf of Liam Clarke's Kildare Racing Club partnership. The colt entered training with Murtagh at Coolaghknock Glebe,

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, ...

. He was from the fourth crop of foals sired by Power who won the

National Stakes The Vincent O'Brien National Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres ...

and the Irish 2000 Guineas. His other foals have included Laws of Indices, Helvic Dream and Mr Clint (

Singapore Gold Cup The Singapore Gold Cup is a thoroughbred horse race held annually in November at Singapore Turf Club. Contested on turf over a left-handed course, the domestic Group 1 race is run over a distance of 2,000 metres and is open to local horses age t ...

). Sonnyboyliston was the first foal of his dam Miss Macnamara, a durable racemare who won five races on the flat and twice under National Hunt rules. Her dam Kincob was a sister of the Irish 2000 Guineas winner

Bachelor Duke Bachelor Duke (foaled 11 March, 2001) is an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire who recorded his only win in six races when taking the 2004 running of the Irish 2000 Guineas. He failed to win as a two-year-old in 2003 ...

. Kincob was a great-great-granddaughter of the American broodmare Thong, whose other descendants have included Sadler's Wells, Nureyev, Thatch and El Condor Pasa.

Racing career

2019: two-year-old season

Sonnyboyliston began his racing career in 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 ...

over seven furlongs on soft ground 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 ...

on 16 August when he started at odds of 25/1 and finished sixth behind Brook On Fifth, beaten more than ten

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 ...

by the winner. He made no impression in two subsequent starts, finishing unplaced in one-mile maiden races at the Curragh in September and

Navan Racecourse Navan Racecourse is a horse racing venue at Proudstown near Navan, County Meath, Ireland, approximately 48 kilometres from Dublin. The course stages Flat racing but is best known for National Hunt racing. Navan Racecourse is owned by Horse Racing ...

in October.

2020: three-year-old season

Before the start of his second campaign Sonnyboyliston was

. The early part of the flat season was disrupted by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

and Sonnyboyliston did not return to the track until 19 June when he started second favourite for a handicap race over one mile at Gowran Park. Ridden by the apprentice jockey Ben Coen he recorded his first success as he took the lead in the last quarter mile and won by one and a half lengths from Meaningful Star. In July he finished third in a ten furlong handicap at Navan and then carried 133 pounds to victory in a similar event at the Curragh catching 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 ...

Thundering Nights on the line to win by a short head.

Billy Lee Billy Lee is a former Gaelic footballer and former manager of the Limerick county football team. He is from Newcastle West. Player Lee played for Limerick. He became a selector when Liam Kearns managed the team between 1999 and 2005, and then ...

took over from Coen when the gelding contested a more valuable handicap at the Curragh on 13 September when was matched against older horses. Starting at odds of 4/1 he went to the front approaching the final furlong and drew away to win by four and a quarter lengths from Finans Bay with third place being taken by Helvic Dream. For his final run of the year he was stepped up in class and finished fourth to Helvic Dream in the Group 3 International Stakes at the Curragh in October.

2021: four-year-old season

Sonnyboyliston made his first appearance as a four-year-old in the Listed Devoy Stakes at

Naas Racecourse Naas Racecourse is a horse racing venue in Naas, County Kildare, Ireland, approximately 18 miles from Dublin. The course stages both Flat racing and National Hunt racing and in 2010 fifteen race meetings were held there. The Naas Races Company w ...

on 28 March when he finished third behind Broome and Sunchart. In May he was sent to England and moved up in distance to run third behind

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

and

Trueshan Trueshan (foaled 24 February 2016) is a French-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse who specialises in races over extended distances. He finished unplaced in his only race as a two-year-old in 2018 but won four of his five starts in the ...

in the

Ormonde Stakes The Ormonde Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 5 furlongs and 84 yards () at Ch ...

over thirteen and a half furlongs at

Chester Racecourse Chester Racecourse, also known as the Roodee, is a racecourse located in Chester, England. The horse racing venue is officially recognised by Guinness World Records as the "oldest racecourse still in operation". Horse racing in Chester dates ...

. On 18 June at

Limerick Racecourse Limerick Racecourse (Greenmount Park) is a horse racing venue in County Limerick, Ireland, which stages both National Hunt and flat racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by ...

Sonnyboyliston started 6/5 favourite ahead of Sunchart for the Listed

over one and a half miles on good ground in which he was ridden by Shane Kelly. He raced in mid-division before moving up to join the leaders in the last quarter mile, overtook Sunchart a furlong out and stayed on well to win by one and a half lengths. On 10 July Sonnyboyliston ran for the second time in England but failed to reproduce his best form as he came home sixth behind Hukum in the Group 3

John Smith's Silver Cup Stakes The John Smith's Silver Cup Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile 5 furlongs and 188 yards (2,787 ...

over one and three quarter miles at

York Racecourse York Racecourse is a horse racing venue in York, North Yorkshire, England. It is the third biggest racecourse in Britain in terms of total prize money offered, and second behind Ascot Racecourse, Ascot in prize money offered per meeting. It att ...

. Six weeks later, over the same course and distance, the gelding was partnered by Coen (no longer an apprentice) when he started at odds of 10/1 under a weight of 134 pounds for the

. Racing in heavy rain, Sonnyboyliston raced towards the rear of the twenty-runner field before beginning to make progress entering the last half mile. He joined the leaders approaching the final furlong and got the better of a sustained struggle with Quickthorn to win by a head with a length and a half back to Alounak in third place. After the race Johnny Murtagh said "I love this game! When I'm doing the entries for those races, because we have the horses for the big races now, I'm going back to my experience as a jockey and thinking - yeah that's the type of horse we need. He ran very well and that was a very good race. I loved the way he came home." He went on to mention the

and the Melbourne Cup as possible targets. In the Irish St Leger at the Curragh on 12 September Sonnyboyliston (with Coen in the saddle) started the 4/1 second favourite behind

Search For A Song Search For A Song (foaled 30 March 2016) is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse best known for her performances over extended distances. After being unraced as a juvenile she won on her racecourse debut in 2019 and finished fourth in the Irish Oaks ...

in a thirteen-runner field which also included

Twilight Payment Twilight Payment (foaled 6 May 2013) is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2020 Melbourne Cup. Bred and originally trained by Jim Bolger he did not race until he was three years old but showed promising form over exten ...

, Baron Samedi (

Belmont Gold Cup Stakes The Belmont Gold Cup Stakes is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for horses aged four years old and older held over a distance of two miles on the turf scheduled annually in early June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. The event cu ...

), Master of Reality (

Vintage Crop Stakes The Vintage Crop Stakes is a Listed flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Navan over a distance of 1 mile and 6 furlongs (2,816 metres), and it is scheduled to take pl ...

) and Amhran Na Bhfiann (

Curragh Cup The Curragh Cup is a Group races, Group 2 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at the Curragh Racecourse, Curragh over a d ...

). Sonnyboyliston settled behind the leaders as Amhran Na Bhfiann set the pace and opened up a big advantage. Twilight Payment reeled in the tiring front-runner in the straight but was soon challenged by Sonnyboyliston who took the lead approaching the final furlong and kept on well to win by three quarters of a length. Murtagh commented "This horse never disappoints and I thought he did very well to win today. It looked like a proper race and he had a good position all the way. He got into a battle, but he never lacks in a battle." Three days later the trainer announced that the gelding would not be sent to Australia for the Melbourne Cup, explaining "He’s been on the go for a long time and hasn’t let us down all year. I feel it’s time for him to have a little break now."

Pedigree

*Sonnyboyliston is inbred 4 × 4 to Danzig, meaning that this stallion appears twice in the fourth generation of his pedigree.

References

{{Reflist 2017 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in Ireland Thoroughbred family 5-h