Diego Velazquez to shuttle to Swettenham Stud
Diego Velazquez, a Group 1-winning son of Frankel (Galileo), will shuttle to Swettenham Stud in 2026.
The Prix Jacques le Marois (Gr 1, 1600m) winner will arrive in Australia after covering his first book of mares at the National Stud in Newmarket at a fee of £17,500.
Adam Sangster, Swettenham Stud principal, and brother to Sam, who purchased the colt before his career-defining triumph in the Deauville Group 1 in August, said he was delighted to offer breeders in the southern hemisphere a horse of Diego Velazquez’s calibre.
He said: “As an industry, we have all been waiting for a fast son of Frankel to stand in Australia, and to purchase the most precocious son of his generation who won the stallion-making European mile was a stroke of genius from my brother Sam.
“The victory certainly helped facilitate standing Diego Velazquez in Australia for Sam and his partners, as we at Swettenham are very selective in who we stand so that breeders can have the greatest chance of a return on investment.
“There is a tremendous sense of family pride working together with Sam to stand Diego Velazquez. We have already discussed the mares they’re supporting him with in the northern hemisphere, and we are incredibly excited about getting behind him with some quality mares in the southern hemisphere.”
Bred by Epona Bloodstock, Diego Velazquez was bought by MV Magnier and White Birch Farm for 2.4 million guineas at Book 1 of the Tattersalls Yearling Sale.
The four-year-old is the 11th and final foal out of the stakes-winning mare Sweepstake (Acclamation), making him a three-parts brother to Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud (Gr 1, 2400m) scorer Broome (Australia) and multiple Group winner and Group 1-placed Point Lonsdale (Australia).
Trained by Aidan O’Brien, the colt raced for the duration of his career for Coolmore and their partners, but carried the iconic Sangster colours to victory in the Prix Jacques le Marois.
Diego Velazquez was a near five-length winner on his debut at two at the Curragh and followed up with a first Group win in the Champions Juvenile Stakes (Gr 2, 1m) at Leopardstown.
He began his three-year-old campaign last year with a close-up fourth in the Poule d’Essai des Poulains (Gr 1, 1600m) and bounced back later that term to win the Meld Stakes (Gr 3, 1m1f) and Solonaway Stakes (Gr 2, 1m).
After finishing ninth in the Queen Anne Stakes (Gr 1, 1m) at Royal Ascot, Diego Velazquez returned to a winning groove with victory in the Minstrel Stakes (Gr 2, 7f) at the Curragh, which he backed up with his victory over 2,000 Guineas (Gr 1, 1m) winner and Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup Mile (Gr 1, 8f) winner Notable Speech (Dubawi) in the Prix Jacques le Marois.
Sam Sangster added: “He’s a horse who leaves little to the imagination. He is the stamp of his father and a top-class racehorse to match. He’s done it at Group 2 level across three seasons and was Classic-placed, which gives him a rare depth of form and longevity. Topped off with a Group 1 success in the Prix Jacques Le Marois, one of Europe’s premier stallion-making races.”
A fee for the son of Frankel will be announced at a later date.