By Sid Fernando

It was a big weekend for the Darley sires. Truth be told, it was also a big weekend for the Juddmonte (Oasis Dream et al) and Coolmore sires (Danehill Dancer’s Italian Oaks winner), too, but we’re limited in space and are going to highlight only three Darley horses today because Elusive Quality and Street Cry were responsible for the two G1 winners Monday in the US, and King’s Best is the sire of the G1 Japanese Derby winner Sunday. Tiger Hill, Singspiel, Cherokee Run, and other sires under the Darley umbrella in the States and Europe also had stakes winners, too, in supporting roles.

Elusive Quality is the sire of the best older colt in the US, Quality Road, who won the Memorial Day G1 Metropolitan Handicap over a flat mile at Belmont Park in thoroughly impressive style. The Ned Evans 4yo homebred carried 124 lbs and won in the fast time of 1:33.11 by a length and a quarter from the very good 4yo Musket Man, who carried 7 lbs less than the winner. Quality Road now has a sparkling record of 7 wins from 10 starts and earnings of $1.6 million. He’s an extremely fast colt who’s set several track records already from distances of 6 1/2 furlongs to 1 1/8 miles and gives every indication that he’ll continue to develop this year. The Breeders’ Cup Classic at 1 1/4 miles is the target at Churchill Downs, where hopefully he’ll be challenged by last year’s Horse of the Year, Rachel Alexandra, and undefeated champion Zenyatta. Needless to say, both mares are by Darley sires, too: Medaglia d’Oro and Street Cry, respectively. So, at this writing, the three best runners in the US are by Darley stallions.

Elusive Quality stands in Kentucky for $75,000 and also has had stints in Australia and Brazil. At present, he’s represented by 59 black type winners, including 17 who’ve won Group/Graded events. He’s made his mark at the highest levels of the game with a Derby and Preakness winner in Smarty Jones and a Breeders’ Cup classic winner in Raven’s Pass, who’s also a Darley sire. The stallion’s other G1 winners are Australian-bred Camarilla, the French-raced Elusive City, and the Canadian-bred Maryfield.

By Gone West, Elusive Quality won 9 races from 6 to 8 1/2f, including two G3 events. His runners act on all surfaces and can occassionally stay up to 10f in top company. Many are fast, sprint types.

King's Best: Son of Kingmambo.

The other big mile race Monday was on the West Coast, the G1 Shoemaker Mile Stakes on turf at Hollywood Park. The 5yo entire Victor’s Cry, a son of Street Cry, won the race in a rapid 1:32.88 and became his prolific sire’s newest winner at the top level and his 11th G1 winner overall—an amazing feat for a horse with only 4 crops of racing age and with not a single individual crop numbering more than 86 named foals. He also is the sire of at least 31 black type winners.

Street Cry stands for $150,000 and Like Elusive Quality has stood in Australia, where he is as good there as he is here. Last fall his son Shocking won the 3200-meter (abt. 2 miles) Melbourne Gold Cup, the most famous G1 race Down Under. Like Elusive Quality, he’s also sired a Kentucky Derby and Breeders’ Cup Classic winner: Street Sense won the former and Zenyatta won the latter, and it’s notable that both are from his first crop. The stallion also has shown that he can get top-class 2yos, 3yos, and older runners at varying distances and over all surfaces.

Street Cry won 5 races, including the G1 Steven Foster over 9f and the G1 Dubai World Cup at 1of. He’s by Machiavellian (by Mr.Prospector) out of Irish Oaks winner Helen Street, and notable here is that Street Cry’s full sister produced promising young Darley sire Shamardal (by Giant’s Causeway), already the sire of three classic winners from his first crop, incuding the French Guineas winner Lope de Vega.

Darley’s French-based King’s Best is the sire of Eishin Flash, the G1 Japan Derby winner from Sunday. The European-conceived colt won the 2400-meter race at Tokyo over a firm turf in 2:26.90 and upset a strong field of contenders, including the highly regarded Victoire Pisa.

King’s Best, a successful son of Kingmambo like the Japanese-based King Kamehameha (sire of the Japan Derby runner up and himself a Japanese Derby winner) and the US-based Lemon Drop Kid, is the sire of 30 black type winners, including 18 Group winners and 5 Group 1 winners. The sire previously stood in Ireland and Australia and at present also shuttles to Argentina. He stands for 15,000 euros.

What’s particularly notable about King’s Best is his close relationship to Galileo and his half-brother Sea the Stars, both sons of King’s Best’s half-sister Urban Sea. And like his famous relations, King’s Best also was a classic winner: He won the 2000 Guineas defeating Giant’s Causeway, and three races in total.