Last month saw the final contest of the 2024 European Pattern season as the St Leger Italiano took place in Milan. Established in 1971, the Pattern is designed to provide a steady stream of high-quality events throughout the campaign.
Usually offering significant prize money, Pattern class contests are also much-coveted due to the breeding value they bestow upon their winners. One or more Pattern class wins or placed efforts can greatly increase the stud value of a horse and pave the way to a lucrative second career.
Pattern Class events also build the reputations of existing sires, as owners of mares flock to secure the services of a stallion with a proven ability to sire high-level performers.
With that in mind, those involved in the breeding of future stars peruse the year-end results with interest. So, with the 2024 campaign now in the books, which stallion came out on top?
Galileo: Gone but Far from Forgotten
Having sadly left us in 2021, Galileo’s status as the king of the European racing scene will inevitably diminish in the years to come. However, if 2024 proves to be his final season of challenging for top honours, he will certainly have ended on a high.
As the sire of 20 European Pattern race winners, Galileo finished four clear of perennial rival Dubawi and emerging force Wootton Bassett. Coming in at number four with 15 wins is Galileo’s greatest son and the most likely heir to his stallion throne, Frankel.
That tally of 20 takes Galileo’s total of Pattern winners to 471. That’s the most by any sire in history, and 144 more than the 327 registered by his own sire Sadler’s Wells – a record some believed would never be surpassed.
Star Stayer Led the Way in 2024
The 20 Pattern wins achieved by Gaileo’s offspring in 2024 were split between 11 of his sons and daughters. Chief Little Rock, Content, Dawn Rising, Grosvenor Square, Prague, and Tower Of London all bagged a single pattern-level success, but the following quartet deserve a special mention for adding more than one to their sire’s mighty tally.
Kyprios: 6 Pattern Wins
A perfect seven from seven in 2024, this six-year-old stayer supreme made a triumphant return from an injury-interrupted 2023. Kicking off his six-race Group class winning streak in the Savel Beg Stakes, he followed up in the Ascot Gold Cup, the Goodwood Cup, the Irish St Leger, the Prix du Cadran, and the Champions Long Distance Cup. Set to return in 2025, he may keep the name of his sire up in lights for a little longer.
Jan Brueghel: 3 Pattern Wins
Galileo’s final crop heads into their Classic season in 2025. However, they number only 13. As such, there’s a fair chance that Jan Brueghel will go down in history as the final Classic winner sired by the greatest stallion of all time. In addition to his St Leger success, this strong stayer picked up wins in the Al Basti Equiworld Dubai International Stakes and the Gordon Stakes.
Illinois: 2 Pattern Wins
Beaten by just a neck by Jan Brueghel in the St Leger, Illinois also filled the runners-up spot in the Grand Prix de Paris. However, whilst coming up just short at the very highest level, he claimed a brace of Group 2 contests in the Queen’s Vase and the Prix Chaudenay.
Grateful: 2 Pattern Wins
A product of Galileo and the US wonder mare Tepin, Grateful had a better chance than most of making her presence felt in Pattern company. A little later to develop than others in the yard, she skipped the Classics but delivered in the spring and autumn to claim the Group 3 Stanerra Stakes and Group 1 Prix de Royallieu.
With Group class winners in Britain, Ireland, and France, over trips ranging from one mile to 2m4f, 2024 served as a fine reminder of why Galileo is held in such esteem and the task faced by those hoping to emerge from his formidable shadow.
