BIG Brown has `gone global’ just in time for buyers to start drawing up their wish-lists for the 2013 yearlings sales series beginning with the Magic Millions on the Gold Coast on January 9.

The Kentucky Derby/Preakness Stakes heroes tally of first crop two-year-old winners climbed to 15 when the USA-bred youngster Apollo Sonic won in Tokyo at the weekend.

Apollo Sonic drew away from his 15-rivals to score by an easy 3-lengths in a hotly-contested maiden over the mile.

Big Brown’s first crop has won far and wide from coast-to-coast in the USA, across the Atlantic into Europe and as of last weekend, in Asia’s most competitive racing centre.

 

Before Big Brown became one of North America’s most promising first season sires, his progeny were warmly received in the sale ring from weanlings up to two-year-olds.

Indeed, one of his juveniles sold for US$1.3 million at a Ready To Run Sale in Florida earlier in the year.

Bought by Demi O’Byrne (on behalf of Coolmore), the colt named Darwin scored an impressive win first time out at Belmont Park in New York last month.

Big Brown’s first Australian-bred weanlings sold particularly well but the stallion’s profile has lifted enormously in the short time between then and now.

There are 25 Big Brown sons and daughters catalogued at the 2013 Magic Millions Yearling Sale from a variety of well credentialed mares including On Type, Miss Mooney Mooney, Shovoff, Joie, Sontweni, C’Yaontheotherside and a quality chestnut filly out of Alborada from John Kenneally’s Erinvale Thoroughbreds draft.

Kenneally’s Big Brown filly is a daughter of the Zeditave mare Alborada who hails from the acclaimed Born Rich family which has it roots in the west.

“The filly’s half-brother is a horse called Excelorada trained by Neville Parnham in Perth who has won seven out of his last eight or nine starts and he’ll be running again pretty soon,” Kenneally said.

“He was a nice horse too, he made $100,000 when we sold him at the 2009 Perth Magic Millions.”

As well as being a member of a proven stakeswinning family, Big Brown’s presence on the top-line is a considerable drawcard on its own.

“Big Brown has started off extremely well,” Kenneally remarked.

“He is a big chance of making a stallion because he was such a great racehorse.”