El Segundo Pronounced Amongst Best in the World

El Segundo Pronounced Amongst Best in the World

Karaka Premier Sale graduate El Segundo (NZ) has been confirmed amongst the best thoroughbreds in the world when he was ranked the joint highest-rated Southern Hemisphere galloper by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities.

The IFHA's recent release of the Top 50 World Leading Horses (October 2007 to March 2008) sees the Colin Little trained El Segundo (Pins x Palos Verdes by Oak Ridge) sitting in eighth position with a rating of 122 alongside Weekend Hussler to tie for the Southern Hemisphere's top spot.

Second placed in the Group 1 Cox Plate behind Fields of Omagh last season, El Segundo went one better this season defeating a class field in the 2007 Cox Plate to take his Group 1 tally to four with almost A$3.8 million in prizemoney.

Purchased as a yearling in 2003 by Michael Stedman Bloodstock for NZ$140,000 from Ancroft Stud, El Segundo's glittering career has seen him record 12 wins, four seconds and three thirds from his 26 raceday outings.

Amongst these was his first Group 1 victory in the MRC Yalumba Stakes (2000m) beating Fields of Omagh and Confectioner in October 2005. He ran a second fresh up the following season before taking the Group 2 Memsie Stakes (1400m) and Group 1 MRC Underwood Stakes (1800m) in succession. His third Group 1 victory was the same season, winning the MRC CF Orr Stakes (1400m) in February last year.

The six-year-old is the best performed progeny of his Waikato Stud sire, Pins (Snippets), who retired to Stud as the fastest son of his multiple Group 1 winning sire. Pins is also the sire of dual Group 1 winner Legs (ex River Century by Centaine), Group 1 Levin Classic winner Porotene Gem (ex Rubyfoo by Danzatore), and Group 1 Caulfield Guineas winner Econsul (ex Gypsy Soul by Centaine).

Three-quarters of the way through the racing season, Pins is one of three New Zealand sires currently in the top ten on the Australian General Sires Table.

New Zealand Champion Sire Zabeel (Sir Tristram) leads the NZ charge in second position through the deeds of Efficient, while O'Reilly (Last Tycoon), also from the Chittick family's Waikato Stud, features thanks to his Caulfield Cup winning son Master O'Reilly (ex Without Remorse by Bakharoff).

El Segundo is joined on the Rankings by the New Zealand-bred 2007 Melbourne Cup victor Efficient (NZ) (Zabeel x Refused the Dance by Defensive Play) in 22nd place and Group 1 Yalumba StakesMaldivian (NZ) (Zabeel x Shynzi by Danzig) in 39th.

The 2008 IFHA list is headed by Steve Asmussen's Curlin (Smart Strike x Sherriff's Deputy by Deputy Minister) who is rated at 130. A remarkable season last year saw him crowned the US Horse of the Year while he recently further justified his accolades by winning the world's richest race, the Group 1 Emirates Dubai World Cup.

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