THE new season, now less than one week away from starting, is sadly historic in that it marks the last full crop of Red Ransom’s to race when they collectively turn two on August 1.
Red Ransom was without a 2yo crop this season due to E.I and has over 80 2yo’s to race this season with that number more than halved in his final crop of yearlings for the 2012 sales due to his unfortunate passing during the season.
The Vinery Stud foundation sire and member of the elite 100+ Stakes winners Club died in mid-November 2009 towards the end of his 11th season on duty in Australia where he forged a tremendous reputation despite coming here more or less towards the middle of his illustrious career, as Vinery’s Adam White explained. 
“Red Ransom had already established himself as the pre-eminent turf sire in the States and further abroad,” White says, “obviously he sired a lot of dirt stakes winners as well, but grass was his strong point and undoubtedly why he was able to replicate his US success in Australia.”
Indeed, Red Ransom was to make an immediate impact here siring three Golden Slipper runners from his first full crop including Vinery’s own Halibery who had previously won both the Blue Diamond Fillies Prelude and Preview before finishing runner-up in the Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m).
Halibery was one of five stakes winners from Red Ransom’s first crop but it was the stallion’s next crop that would set him on an even greater trajectory.
It included three stakes winners – Crimson Reign, John Singleton’s Magic Millions 3YO Trophy winner Tippitaka as well as Charge Forward – runner-up in the fastest Golden Slipper ever run and later a champion freshman sire.
But better was to come when, in 2004, John Hutchins & Vinery chose Red Ransom as the mate for his epic mare Tracey’s Element, the resulting foal (Typhoon Tracy) would go on to win six Group 1’s, over $3 million and crowned Australia’s Horse of the Year in 2009/10.
And while Typhoon Tracy was naturally Red Ransom’s career highlight in Australia, she is ably supported by an ensemble of high class and prototypically handsome horses like $800,000 Easter Yearling Onemorenomore, Duporth, All American (conqueror of So You Think), Domesday, Red Dazzler, Portillo and the diminutive Romneya.
“Sprinter/milers is where all the emphasis is in Australia and that suited Red Ransom whose best horses were deadly from 1200m up a mile,” says White.
“He was able to get fast maturing two-year-olds – Charge Forward and Portillo – both placed in Golden Slippers.
Strangely, Red Ransom has only ever left the single Group 1 winning two-year-old anywhere in the world – Onemorenomore, who turned the 2009 AJC Champagne Stakes (1600m) into a procession defeating Manhattan Rain and Tickets by four lengths or more.
So why was Red Ransom such a brilliant sire in Australia, or for the fact in the States?
White says, like many, it was mostly due the fact that he was an outcross for Northern Dancer/Mr. Prospector and Star Kingdom/Sir Tristram/Vain lines closer to home.
“Every generation has at least one stallion that is an outcross that makes it to that level. During the 1990’s in America and then later on here, Red Ransom was probably the most successful outcross stallion around.”
Red Ransom, a son of the immortal Roberto, has a legacy to offer – apart from his broodmare daughters, he will live on via his sons.
Indeed, there are no less than a dozen of them registered with the Australian Stud Book for this season proving that outcrosses, as well as stakes wins, are a lure for stud masters looking for their own foundation sire.
Vinery believes that Onemorenomore is the horse worthy of occupying his father’s honored space at the Stud.
“He was a very expensive yearling in monetary terms, it was looks as well as pedigree,” White noted, ‘he has an extremely strong female line beginning with his dam Palia who won the Group 2 Emancipation Stakes (1600m) at Randwick. As well as that he was a pre-Christmas two-year-old who ran a huge race in the Breeder’s Plate. He came back in the autumn and thrashed a good field in the last leg of the Grand Slam and I can’t imagine how good he might have been at three.”
Thankfully for Vinery, many of the nation’s top breeders agree with his assessment and have collectively supported the horse with a dazzling array of mares including 9 Group 1 winners the likes of Serious Speed, Regimental Gal, Devil’s Moon, Linky Dinky and Heavenly Glow.
“Onemorenomore serve 145 mares in his first year which is the right number for vendors and the right number to give him enough runners. The quality is there right the way through and we couldn’t be happier with the support he is getting.”
Now all White is waiting for is hearing feedback from clientele counting down the days till his first foals arrive.
“He was such a good looking yearling and is a magnificent stallion, I’m sure he will pass on that quality to his foals. I think they will make ideal sale horses just as he was.”
