Coolmore's Star Stallion Wootton Bassett Dies at 17

Wootton Bassett, one of the world's hottest sires, died unexpectedly at the age of 17. His premature death while on shuttle duty in Australia was announced on Coolmore's website Sept. 23 in a post that stated the horse "suffered from choke and subsequently developed an acute pneumonia which deteriorated rapidly." The post continued: "Despite round-the-clock care from a dedicated team of vets, overseen by Dr. Nathan Slovis from Hagyard Equine Medical Institute in Kentucky, he was unable to be saved." His demise is a crushing blow for both Coolmore and the wider global bloodstock industry, and brings an end to a truly remarkable rags-to-riches tale. Wootton Bassett was bred by Laundry Cottage Stud Farm when Melba and Colin Bryce sent their Primo Dominie mare Balladonia to be covered by Darley's Kildangan Stud resident Iffraaj (GB) in 2007. The colt resulting from that mating was sold to bloodstock agent Bobby O'Ryan for £46,000 at the 2009 Doncaster St Leger Yearling Sale. Sent into training with Richard Fahey for owners Frank Brady and The Cosmic Cases, Wootton Bassett rocketed through an unbeaten five-race juvenile campaign. His first season in training culminated with a wide-margin victory in the 2010 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere (G1). That proved to be his final success as he was unable to add to his tally in four outings at 3. In 2012, Wootton Bassett was introduced at Haras d'Etreham. Despite an introductory fee of just €6,000, French breeders gave the horse a lukewarm reception, with a debut book numbering just 47 mares. His fee fell to €5,000 the following year, when he covered only 29 mares, and again to €4,000 in years three and four. That inauspicious start to life at stud gave little indication of what would come next. A debut crop of 23 foals would spell disaster for most stallions, but a bona fide champion emerged from within that number in the shape of Almanzor (FR). He was crowned the leading 3-year-old in Europe after sweeping through the Prix du Jockey Club (G1), Irish Champion Stakes (G1), and the Champion Stakes (G1) of 2016. Almanzor was not the only star to come from Wootton Bassett's smaller, early crops, with group 1 performers Patascoy and Wootton emerging from his third, and Audarya (FR), winner of the 2020 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1T) and Prix Jean Romanet (G1), emanating from his fourth. As the penny dropped that Wootton Bassett was something completely out of the ordinary, momentum began to build. He covered his first three-figure book in 2016, while still priced at just €6,000, and maintained those numbers as his fee rose to €20,000 in 2017 and then €40,000 in 2019. Then, in August 2020, came the news that would set his stallion career on a stratospheric trajectory. Coolmore's decision to purchase Wootton Bassett from Haras d'Etreham can't have been cheap, but there was rarely a day when it did not look like money well spent. His fee more than doubled to €100,000 for his first season in Ireland, and he was duly inundated with mares. His first Coolmore-conceived book numbered 234, and the resulting foals ripped up the rule book once they reached the racecourse. That first Irish-bred crop yielded 10 juvenile group winners, surpassing the previous record (seven) held jointly by Danehill and Galileo. They included four group 1 winners to boot, namely Camille Pissarro (IRE) (2024 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere), Henri Matisse (IRE) (2024 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf, G1T), Tennessee Stud (IRE) (2024 Criterium de Saint-Cloud, G1), and Twain (IRE) (2024 Criterium International, G1). Those names have continued to perform at 3 this season, with Camille Pissarro landing the Prix du Jockey Club and Henri Matisse claiming the Poule d'Essai des Poulains (G1). Those results, along with fellow group 1 scorers Al Riffa (FR), Sahlan (IRE), and Whirl (IRE), have seen Wootton Bassett go more than €2 million clear in this year's European sires' title. At the time of his death, his record stands at 127 stakes performers, giving him an impressive black-type horses-to-runners strike rate of 15.7%. Of those 127, 50 have struck in group company, while 16 of those have won at the very highest level. Needless to say, those results have only added to Wootton Bassett's popularity. His current 2-year-old crop, bred at a fee of €150,000, comes from a book of 245 mares. This cohort has already yielded 30 European winners, including the likes of Albert Einstein, Beautify, Composing, Constitution River, and Puerto Rico. Another member of this crop, the as-yet-unraced Poker, became the most expensive colt in European sales history when purchased by Amo Racing for 4.3 million guineas at Book 1 of last year's Tattersalls October Yearling Sale. Wootton Bassett stood the latest breeding season at a career-high fee of €300,000, and Weatherbys records show he covered 206 mares, including 113 (55%) black-type names. Wootton Bassett had also begun to exert his considerable influence on the global stage, with his debut Australian-bred crop containing Golden Slipper (G1) runner-up Wodeton (AUS), who will shoot for group 1 glory in this weekend's Golden Rose Stakes (G1) at Rosehill Gardens. He was due to stand the Southern Hemisphere season at a record fee of AU$385,000. The current campaign has also seen Wootton Bassett make headway as a sire of sires, with his son Wooded (IRE), who stands at Haras de Bouquetot, producing the Prix Jean Prat (G1) winner Woodshauna (FR), while Almanzor sired Prix de Diane (G1) winner Gezora (FR). His other sons at stud include Amo Racing's Champion Stakes winner King of Steel, who stands at Tally-Ho Stud, and River Tiber (IRE), who is based at Haras de la Huderie in France.