Breeders’ Cup Mile winner More Than Looks to shuttle to Yulong
Last year’s Breeders’ Cup Mile (Gr 1, 8f) winner More Than Looks (More Than Ready) will shuttle to Yulong Stud in Victoria in 2025.
By a sire of sires in More Than Ready (Southern Halo), More Than Looks retired to Lane’s End Farm in Kentucky following his Breeders’ Cup win and commands a first-season fee of US$15,000 (approx. AU$23,500).
Bred by Hinkle Farms, More Than Looks is out of the stakes winning Harlan’s Holiday (Harlan) mare Ladies’ Privilege, a sister to multiple Graded winner Takeover Target being out of winning Empire Maker (Unbridled) mare Vanquished – herself a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Critical Eye (Dynaformer).
A winner at Grade 3 level in the Manila Stakes (Gr 3, 8f) at three, the Cherie DeVaux-trained More Than Looks added the Jefferson Cup Stakes (Listed, 8f) at Churchill Downs to his CV later that same year, as well as a Grade 2 placing in the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame Stakes (Gr 2, 8f).
His crowning moment came as a four-year-old when he defeated an international field of eight elite level winners in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, including English 2,000 Guineas (Gr 1, 1m) winner Notable Speech (Dubawi) and dual Japanese Grade 1 winner Geoglyph (Drefong).
With that victory More Than Looks achieved his highest career rating of 105 on the Beyer speed scale, and boosted his total prize-money to USD$1,870,715 (AU$2,946,147).
“His closing speed, the precocity he had, particularly the way he hit the line certainly attracted us,” Yulong’s general manager Vin Cox told ANZ Bloodstock News.
“Mr Zhang [Yulong, owner], myself, and Bill [Farish, Lanes End] finalised the deal. Lanes End is a storied stud, one of the preeminent stallion farms in America. We’re thrilled to own half the horse with them.
“He’s probably got a few more strings to his bow and a broader range than a lot of stallions in Australia, while there’s More Than Ready blood there, it [Australia] is still very Danehill line – and the Danehill line crosses exceptionally well with More Than Ready, so there’s that element too.”
More Than Ready himself enjoyed much success in Australia, having shuttled to Vinery Stud for 19 consecutive seasons from 2001 to 2019. His southern hemisphere-bred progeny include two Golden Slipper (Gr 1, 1200m) winners in Sebring and Phelan Ready, Blue Diamond (Gr 1, 1200m) heroine Samaready, as well as eight-time Group 1 winner and Champion filly More Joyous.
The late WinStar Farm-based stallion is the sire of 232 individual stakes winners with 96 stakes winners from his southern hemisphere-bred crops – 79 of those coming in Australia. On top of his exploits as a sire, More Than Ready has proved to be a top class broodmare sire, with his daughters producing 192 individual stakes winners and 65 of those have come in Australia.
Cox said he was hoping More Than Looks could prove to be a success story in Australia just like More Than Ready.
“More Than Ready is an extremely good sire, a sire of sires, and an exceptional sire of broodmares. It’s a line that’s worked well here in Australia and hopefully will continue through this bloke,” he said.
This latest addition comes just days after Yulong announced they had bought Classic prospect Angel Capital (Harry Angel) with a view to standing him at stud at the conclusion of his racing career.
A fee for More Than Looks will be announced at a later date.