Thesecretadversary’s white face and jagged white markings across his cheeks are caused by the sabino gene, which he likely inherited from Northern Dancer, to whom he is inbred (Picture: Coolmore Stud)
Thesecretadversary can’t really be called a South African horse as he was bred in Ireland, but he was bred and is owned by Gaynor Rupert’s UK breeding operation Cayton Park Stud, albeit in partnership with Coolmore on both counts.
The good looking St. Mark’s Basilica colt is ideally suited to seven furlongs and having won the Gr 3 Jersey Stakes at the Royal Ascot meeting and the Gr 1 Prix Jean Prat at Deauville over that trip he gets another opportunity to show his class over seven furlongs at York next week in the Gr 1 Sky Bet City Of York Stakes at the big Sky Bet Ebor Festival meeting.
That is if he is not rerouted to Deauville, because the retirement of Bow Echo and the sidelining of Gstaad has prompted the connections to keep him in at the first forfeit stage of this Sunday’s Gr 1 Prix Jacques le Marois over a mile at Deauville, a race that they were originally going to bypass in favour of York.
The City Of York Stakes takes place at 16H00 on Saturday the 22nd of August and standing in Thesecretadversary’s way if he runs there will be the 2000 Guineas and Breeders Cup Mile winner Notable Speech, a former adversary of the now retired Drakenstein Stud-bred USA-based stalwart One Stripe (One World).
The tally between Notable Speech and One Stripe was two-one in the former’s favour.
Notable Speech beat One Stripe in the Gr 1 Woodbine Mile and the Gr 1 Breeders Cup Mile and One Stripe beat Notable Speech when second in the Gr 1 Maker’s Mark Mile Stakes at Keeneland, although it has to be said the latter was unlucky in that race.
Notable Speech then came and showed how good he was by returning to the fierce competition of Europe and slamming them by two lengths in the Gr 1 Boyle Sports Lockinge Stakes over a mile at Newbury, although he did disappoint next time out at Royal Ascot when unplaced in the Gr 1 Queen Anne Stakes over a mile, with his exceptional turn of foot failing to materialise.
Thesecretadversary will be over his best trip and with his front-running resolute style will be hard to peg back.
He is officially part-owned by Mrs John Magnier, but he runs in the familiar light blue with a white square colours of Drakenstein Stud.
Trainer Fozzy Stack will likely be hoping for a low draw for the race which starts on a diagonal chute, which then joins the long main straight.
Click here to listen to Fozzy talking about his York runners
Thesecretadversary is inbred to Northern Dancer, with the Northern Dancer sire line being the topline of his sire (St. Mark’s Basilica (Siyouni)), the topline of his sire’s damsire (Galileo), the topline of his dam’s sire (Gleneagles) and the topline of his dam’s damsire (Oratorio).
It is easy to know he has a lot of Northern Dancer genes due to his white face and the jagged white markings that run across his cheeks, which means he carries the sabino gene which Northern Dancer carried.
It is also easy to be a follower of the stunning looking colt and today is a good day to write about him too, because it would be wonderful if he one day joins the magnificent stallion band who were being displayed by Gaynor Rupert to the patrons of Thursday’s Drakenstein Stud Stallion Day.
The Charlie Appleby-trained Godolphin-owned Notable Speech, who is by Dubawi, is currently ranked joint 6th in the Longines World’s Best Racehorse rankings, equal with the like of Sovereignty and ahead of the like of Calandagan and Constitution River, so he will be a hard nut to crack.
He will be a notable scalp for the Thesecretadversary to claim and if he does so it will level the score in the rivalry between Notable Speech and Gaynor Rupert-breds.
