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Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov will disperse his South African breeding interests this week without reserve.
The sale of his thoroughbreds has been billed as the Novisara Dispersal Sale as part of the annual Cape Breeders Club stallion evening and auction at Highlands on May 22 followed by the Cape Mare and Weanling Sale on May 23 at Kleinplasie in Worcester.
The Cape Sale includes the offering of G1 winner Thunder Dance to dissolve the partnership of Klawervlei and Ian Longmore and will be followed by the Novisara dispersal.
Kadryov's Novisara consignment are currently stabled at Normandy Stud with the draft being managed by well known breeding figure Robyn Bruss.
Although not a popular political figure, Kadryov has a passion for racing and breeding and has been a major international racing supporter.
He owned the talented and versatile Bankable, winner of over $US2 million, and the much travelled Mourilyan, who wrote South African history when he finished third in Shocking's Melbourne Cup in 2009 for trainer Herman Brown. in the $6 million Melbourne Cup in 2010.
When Bankable was retired Kadyrov chose South Africa's Summerhill Stud to stand him and purchased 25 mares to support him in his first season.
Unfortunately Bankable only stood for one season, dying suddenly of colic in January of 2012, leaving Kadryov with a strong broodmare band and no stallion, leading to the unheralded arrival of Dubai World Cup winner Gitano Hernando as his replacement last spring with no public fanfare.
Kadryov purchased Gitano Hernando before the 2011 Dubai World Cup for a reported $US3 million. The stallion had won the race in 2010 but could not repeat that effort with a sixth placing prior to his retirement.
This week's sale features weanlings by Bankable weanlings and mares all currently in foal to Gitano Hernando and being sold with a free service to him for 2013.
Gitano Hernando is standing at Maine Chance Farms where he covered the band of mares he inherited from Bankable as well as good support from local breeders canny enough to learn of the stallion’s arrival in South Africa.
The son of Hernando, bred by Newsells Park Stud in the UK and sold as a yearling at Deauville in France, boasts a pedigree featuring the likes of Nijinsky, Cure the Blues, Danzig and Miswaki.
Gitano Hernando is also inbred to Buckpasser and Hail To Reason.
Originally raced by Renata Jacobs, Gitano Hernando won his maiden by 4½ lengths on Wolverhampton’s all-weather track in 2009 before he was purchased by Team Valor International and partners including Hollywood film producer Gary Barber.
Team Valor's Barry Irwin took a big liking to the stallion as he owned his fourth dam Hanina, the dam of Mrs McArdy, winner of the G1 1000 Guineas at Newmarket.
Trained by ex-Italian jockey Marco Botti, Gitano Hernando followed up his Wolverhampton win with a victory on turf at Doncaster before he was beaten a nose in the G3 Dee Stakes at Chester and suffered a fetlock injury in the process.
Back in action at Wolverhampton in September, Gitano Hernando chalked up another victory before he was transferred to America for the G1 Goodwood Stakes on the synthetic track at Santa Anita where he beat five multiple G1 winners including Colonel John, Richard’s Kid and Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird.
The colt then returned to England for the winter where Marco Botti worked to prepare him for the Dubai World Cup, reappearing In February 2010 to win the Listed Winter Derby on Lingfield’s polytrack.
In the World Cup he struck traffic and a puzzling ride from Kieren Fallon resulted in a 6th place finish behind Gloria De Campeao.
Back in England Gitano Hernando reappeared with a win in Ireland’s G3 Diamond Stakes on the Dundalk all weather before a fourth on the turf in the G1 Champion Stakes at Newmarket.
Back in the UAE, Gitano Hernando had two tapeta prep runs for Team Valor to set him up for the 2011 World Cup before Kadryov stepped in to purchase the stallion and place him in the hands of Herman Brown.
Again he finished sixth, followed by an 8th in Ambitious Dragon’s G1 Queen Elizabeth II Cup at Sha Tin in Hong Kong before he justified his purchase price by winning the G1 Singapore Airlines International Cup in Kranji.
It was a proud moment for South Africans as the colt had been conditioned by Brown and piloted by Australian-based South African Glyn Schofield.
Gitano Hernando paraded around the winner’s enclosure with the South African flag draped across his shoulders.
He was retired after one more start in the UAE before arriving in South Africa in late 2012.
