Darren Dance has proven to be a canny lad with Canny Lass
The Canny Lass family has proven to be a winning recipe for ATB’s Darren Dance, and High Lago added to that successful pedigree with a fighting swansong victory at Sandown yesterday.
Given the run of the race by jockey Michael Dee, the retiring mare pulled out all stops in the final stanza to set up a breeding date with exciting shuttle stallion American Pharaoh.
Darren Dance was elated with the win, especially from a breeding prospective.
“It was very pleasing to see High Lago finally win her metropolitan race today,” Darren said.
“She’s a daughter of High Chapparal out of De Lago Lass from that really good Canny Lass family and was having her final start for the ATB team.”
“Now she has a meeting with American Pharoah, the new shuttle horse from the US, and is booked into him for service this season.”
Triple Crown winner American Pharoah was the world’s highest-rated horse in 2015 and is set to stand at Coolmore Australia for the 2017 southern hemisphere breeding season.
A son of Pioneer of the Nile, American Pharoah is creating plenty of interest in Australasian breeding circles and his southern hemisphere service fee is $66,000 (AU).
If history is anything to go by, the mating is likely to be a successful one, as ATB’s canny lad has a canny knack of making the right choices.
High Lago bows out on a winning note
Darren was chasing a city win with High Lago and it finally came to fruition at Sandown.
“She’s been a pretty honest mare without winning,” Darren said.
“This was her third race win and she’d been placed on eight other occasions, including the Group 3 South Australian Oaks in Adelaide.”
“So she was stakes placed as a three-year-old and her objective this preparation was to win a metropolitan race before she went to stud.”
“She’s a lovely correct mare with a great attitude and she really tries hard in her races.
“Unfortunately, shes just been a little unlucky, finding one better, but today we were able to get the win on the board, and she’ll be picked up tomorrow from Darren Weir’s stables and sent up to Hunter Valley for the season.”
The canny syndicator, and now canny breeder, is building a glowing resume for former champion mare Canny Lass.
“High Lago’s dam, De Lago Lass, has proven to be a good family for us,” Darren said.
“We’ve had some nice horses out of that family.”
“She’s a brother to Falago, a son of Fastnet Rock, whose been a really good horse for us, winning over $400,000 and is also stakes placed.”
“We’ve got the Foxwedge sister at home, Foxlago, who has just turned three, and we look forward to seeing what she can do.”
Foxlago, who is yet to venture to the races, is in the hands of leading trainer Darren Weir in Ballarat.
The Rock Diva and Canny Lass Connection
The winning connection to ATB’s well performed mare, Rock Diva (Woodman x Canny Lass), through the likes of Rockolicious, We’re Sure and Wanted Diva, is also
a prolific one.
“This family is related to the very successful Rock Diva family, so it crosses back to our stakes winning Fastnet Rock daughter, Rockolicious,” Darren said.
“Rockolicious goes to stud this year and she’ll be served by Written Tycoon, so there’s a lot happening in the family.”
“We also had We’re Sure (Not A Single Doubt), who won city races in Sydney, so all in all, this pedigree is on the way up.”
“We are looking forward to having both High Lago and Rockolicious back at our stud in foal, and they’ll both be commercial mares.”
Rockolicious (Fastnet Rock x Rock Diva) is a beautifully bred stakes-winning mare who won the Listed Rosemont Stud Stakes (1200m) at Geelong in October 2016, after finishing close-up in the Group 2 Blazer Stakes at Flemington beforehand.
A winner of six races and over $250,000, Rockolicious was retired following a leg injury suffered in the Group 3 Maybe Mahal Stakes at her next start.
The ill-fated We’re Sure (Not A Single Doubt x Rock DIva), won four races and $173,250, including multiple Rosehill wins in Sydney, before suffering a career and life ending leg injury.
More recently, Wanted Diva (Wanted x Rock Diva), graduated to Melbourne city winner at just her third start, amassing almost $100,000 in earnings along the way.
Rock Diva has proven to be a very astute purchase by ATB’s Darren Dance and is due to foal later this season to recently crowned Champion Australian First Season Sire, Pierro.
Pierro, an outstanding son of champion racehorse and sire Lonhro, finished the 2016/2017 season with seven Australian winners and one in South Africa, accumulating earnings of more than $850,000 along the way.
The Canny Lass and Rock Diva stocks continue to rise, so make sure you keep an eye out for them in future Magic Millions and Inglis Sales.
An opportunity awaits to become a canny buyer, owner and breeder, just like Darren Dance!
ATB’s Canny Lass Family Fortunes
The sire & dam breeding for De Lago Lass and Rock Diva, along with their ATB offspring can be found below.
De Lago Lass
Sire: Encosta de Lago
Dam: Schiaparelli (Woodman x Canny Lass)
High Lago
Sire: High Chaparral
Dam: De Lago Lass (Encosta de Lago x Schiaparelli)
Career: 21-3:4:5 Prizemoney: $92,065
Falago
Sire: Fastnet Rock
Dam: De Lago Lass (Encosta de Lago x Schiaparelli)
Career: 37-6:9:3 Prizemoney: $418,440
Foxlago
Sire: Foxwedge
Dam: De Lago Lass (Encosta de Lago x Schiaparelli)
Yet to Race
Rock Diva
Sire: Woodman
Dam: Canny Lass ( Bletchingly x Jesmond Lass)
Rockolicious
Sire: Fastnet Rock
Dam: Rock Diva (Woodman x Canny Lass)
Career: 18-5-1-2 Prizemoney: $251,070 (retired)
We’re Sure
Sire: Not A Single Doubt
Dam: Rock Diva (Woodman x Canny Lass)
Career: 14-4-0-0 Prizemoney: $173,250 (retired)
Wanted Diva
Sire: Wanted
Dam: Rock Diva (Woodman x Canny Lass)
Career: 3-2-0-0 Prizemoney: $98,150 (active)
Visit the Coolmore Australia website for more information on Pierro and American Pharoah.
