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Cockney Rebel (IRE)

Val Royal - Factice, by Known Fact
Bay, foaled 2004.
Breeder: Oak Lodge Bloodstock.
Other sons of Val Royal at stud: -

Val Royal unlocked Classic potential in Factice’s family

Newmarket and the Curragh were dominated by two horses in May, with Cockney Rebel winning both the English and Irish 2000 Guineas and Finsceal Beo both versions of the fillies’ Classic.

Cockney Rebel surprised everyone but his connections – trainer Geoff Huffer was in his second stint as a trainer, and retired later in the season – with his decisive win at Newmarket, coming from well off the pace under Olivier Peslier with an impressive turn of foot to beat Vital Equine – to whom he had finished third in the Champagne Stakes as a juvenile and who also retires to stud this season – by a length and a quarter.

At the Curragh Cockney Rebel was sent off favourite and duly delivered with another impressive display, seeing off the useful Group winner Creachadoir by a length. In his next start in the St James’s Palace Stakes, Cockney Rebel hung badly left across the track in a below-par run behind Excellent Art. It was subsequently discovered he had fractured his pelvis and although he returned to training he was never to race again.

Cockney Rebel is from the first crop of Val Royal, a Group Two winner in Europe before a successful transfer to the States where he won two Grade Twos before victory in the Grade One Breeders’ Cup Mile. He was retired at six, having raced only 12 times, all on turf.

Val Royal spent three seasons at stud in Australia before transferring to Oak Lodge Stud in Ireland and later to the National Stud in Newmarket. Although Cockney Rebel is his finest performer to date, Valbenny is a Grade Two winner in the States and Ehor a Listed winner in Australia, with an excellent ratio of winners to runners from all his progeny.

On the dam’s side, Factice was a maiden winner from a family of winners, with a half sister a minor stakes winner in the States. The fifth dam is the outstanding broodmare Rare Perfume, the dam of Jaipur, from whom hail Be My Guest and Golden Fleece. We have to wait and see if Val Royal or his son, who retires to stand alongside him at the National Stud, can uncover more latent Classic potential from their mares.

Race record

At 2
3rd Champagne Stakes, G2, 7f, York

At 3
1st 2000 Guineas, G1, 8f, Newmarket
1st Irish 2000 Guineas, G1, 8f, Curragh

COCKNEY REBEL (IRE), 2004

Stud details

Stands: The National Stud.

Fee: £10,000.

Amadeus Wolf | Arcadio | Authorized | Baltic King | Cockney Rebel | Common World | Dark Angel | Dutch Art | Dylan Thomas | Echo Of Light | Excellent Art | Heliostatic | Jeremy | Lawman | Manduro | Milk It Mick | Misu Bond | Moss Vale | Notnowcato | Orientor | Primary | Rail Link | Red Clubs | Scorpion | Sir Percy | Strategic Prince | Teofilo | Three Valleys | Vital Equine | Windsor Knot |