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Coolmore announces first-season fee for star colt Home Affairs.
Home Affairs is on the cusp of one of the most anticipated stallion careers in Australian history and he will have a fee to match after Coolmore Australia on Wednesday night announced his introductory figure.
In confirming that the son of I Am Invincible would not race on at four, Coolmore Australia said that following June's Platinum Jubilee Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) at Royal Ascot, Home Affairs would be retired to Coolmore Australia's Jerry's Plains property, where he will stand for a fee of $110,000 (inc GST).
The fee puts the dual Group 1 winner in rare air for a first-season sire, but Tom Moore from the Coolmore Marketing and Nominations team said the early feedback was it was justified.
"He has been extremely popular and we have been inundated with enquiry about him from breeders happy to use him at that fee," Moore said.
"The demand for him is something that we haven't experienced with a first season sire before."
An $875,000 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale purchase, Home Affairs won the Silver Slipper Stakes (Gr 2, 1100m) at two before winning the Coolmore Stud Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) last spring.
He resumed with a win in the Black Caviar Lightning (Gr 1, 1000m), becoming the first three-year-old since another Coolmore stallion, Fastnet Rock, to do so.
Along with being by Australia's most commercial stallion, Home Affairs is from the Flying Spur mare Miss Interiors, who is a descendant of the great Franfreluche.
"People want to use him because, essentially, he's got everything that they look for in a stallion prospect," Moore said.
"He's by I Am Invincible, he's got blistering speed, he's a particularly good-looking horse and he comes from an outstanding pedigree that has produced leading stallions like Encosta de Lago and Flying Spur and now Russian Revolution.
"I Am Invincible has already become a sire of sires, through Brazen Beau and Hellbent, but Home Affairs is certainly his best-credentialled son to go to stud and we feel like he offers breeders the best opportunity to access what we believe to be the next I Am Invincible."
Home Affairs is one of three new stallions for Coolmore, set to take up residence alongside World Champion 3YO St Mark's Basilica (Siyouni), who will stand for $44,000 (inc GST), and Fastnet Rock's son Acrobat ($11,000 (inc GST)).
Fastnet Rock (Danehill) will stand for $165,000 (inc GST) for the fourth year in a row, Pierro (Lonhro) is down to $99,000 (inc GST) from $110,000, while So You Think (High Chaparral) is up to $93,750 (inc GST) off the back of his ascension to the top of the Australian General Sires table following the deeds of Think It Over, Knight's Order and Nimalee at Randwick on April 9.
"Three individual Group 1 winners on the same day at Randwick during The Championships was obviously the highlight of another phenomenal season on the track for So You Think, but he has long established himself as one of Australia's very best sires," Moore said.
"He's truly earned his increase for 2022 but despite the increase we still see him as being great value for those who have been served so well by him over the years.
"He's such a consistent sire, on both the track and the sale ring, but we generally believe the best is yet to come for him. He's covered in excess of 200 mares for each of the last four seasons so he's only going to continue to rise through the stallion ranks."
So You Think stood for $77,000 last year, having stood the previous two years at $38,500.
Wootton Bassett (Iffraaj) will again shuttle from Europe and has again been priced at $71,500 (inc GST), while American stars Justify (Scat Daddy, $55,000) and American Pharoah (Pioneerof The Nile, $49,500) are also unchanged from last year.
COOLMORE STALLION ROSTER 2022
FASTNET ROCK - $165,000
HOME AFFAIRS - $110,000
PIERRO - $99,000
SO YOU THINK - $93,500
WOOTTON BASSETT - $71,500
JUSTIFY - $55,000
AMERICAN PHAROAH - $49,500
ST MARK'S BASILICA - $44,000
YES YES YES - $38,500
KING'S LEGACY - $33,000
MERCHANT NAVY - $27,500
CHURCHILL - $22,000
SAXON WARRIOR - $19,250
MAGNA GRECIA - $19,250
PRIDE OF DUBAI- $16,500
ACROBAT - $13,750
ADELAIDE - $5,500