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A European bred gelding with strong southern hemisphere bloodlines
On Tuesday, Darley stallion Teofilo (Galileo) sired his second Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m) winner as his son Twilight Payment produced an extraordinary front-running performance to win the Group 1 marathon.
The son of Galileo (Sadler’s Wells) was represented by his first winner in the Flemington showpiece when Cross Counter landed the race for Godolphin and Charlie Appleby in 2018 and the stallion has made his mark in the staying ranks on every corner of the globe over the past few years.
Teofilo has sired 94 stakes winners in total and 32 of those have come in races classed as ‘staying’ contests over 2300 metres or more. The staying stakes winners sired by the stallion are headed by ten Group 1 winners, which include Hong Kong Vase (Gr 1, 2400m) scorer Exultant, last month’s Prix Royal Oak (Gr 1, 3100m) winner Subjectivist and Quest For More, who landed the Prix Du Cadran (Gr 1, 4100m) in 2016.
Twilight Payment is also bred on his dam side to stay the extended trips despite being out of an Oasis Dream (Green Desert), who is generally regarded a top-class producer of sprinters, but this year we have had an insight that when bred to staying stallions that the Juddmonte Farms-based stallion can throw types with the ability to stay longer trips.
Oasis Dream as a broodmare sire has sired 56 stakes winners in total and six of them have been over distances beyond 2300 metres, including Chapada (Bullet Train), who took out this season’s Herbert Power Stakes (Gr 2, 2400m). The stallion is also the broodmare sire of last month’s Cox Plate (Gr 1, 2040m) winner Sir Dragonet (Camelot), who has himself shown an affinity to stay the distance when winning the Chester Vase (Gr 3, 1m4f) and he also finished sixth in Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup.
The gelding’s dam side is packed full of stamina, with his second dam My Renee (Kris S) landed the Give Thanks Stakes (Listed, 1m4f) in 2004 which saw her crowned Champion Older Female Stayer in Ireland in that year.
My Renee is the dam of five winners including multiple Group winner Banimpire (Holy Roman Emperor), whose stakes wins included the Noblesse Stakes (Gr 3, 1m4f) and the Ribblesdale Stakes (Gr 2, 1m4f).
Twilight Payment’s fourth dam is 1980 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (Gr 1, 2400m) winner Detroit (Riverman) and she produced Carnegie (Sadler’s Wells), who emulated his dam by winning the Longchamp showpiece in 1994. Detroit proved herself a top-class producer, also being the dam of Prix Guillaume d'Ornano (Gr 2, 2000m) winner Antisaar (Northern Dancer), who won the St Simon Stakes (Gr 3, 1m4f) and Lake Erie (Kings Lake) and Listed winner Honfleur (Sadler’s Wells), who were both stayers.
Detroit is also the grandam of Group 3-winning trio Osalia (Danehill Dancer), Dawn Wall (Fastnet Rock) and Obama Rule (Danehill Dancer).
Detroit herself is a half-sister to Group 1 winner Durtal (Lyphard), the dam of Gildoran (Rheingold), who won the Ascot Gold Cup (Gr 1, 2m3f) in 1984 and 1985.
Durtal is also a half-sister to Listed winner Verderna (Val De Doir), who in turn produced Lady Giselle (Nureyev) - the dam of Group 1 winner and breed-shaping stallion Zabeel (Sir Tristram), fellow elite-level winner Baryshnikov (Kenmare).
Lady Giselle is also the grandam of Group 3 winner and Golden Slipper Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Crowned Glory (Danehill), the dam of dual Group 1 winner and now Twin Hills-based sire Hallowed Crown (Street Sense) and Group 3-winning Aquis Farm-based sire Needs Further (Encosta De Lago).
Further back this is also the family of dual Group 1-winning sprinter Viddora (I Am Invincible).