There is an old saying that one should never look a gift horse in the mouth, but if the gift horse is a NH broodmare then, given the general economics of NH breeding, the best policy is often not to bother looking it in the mouth at all but simply say: ‘Thanks but no thanks’ and run a mile. However, if the gift horse is offered by Philippa Cooper of Normandie Stud this is not the case, for Philippa’s gifts are often extremely generous. One of them was Ancora.
I first encountered Ancora at Tattersalls November Sales at Fairyhouse in 2007, when she was offered as an unraced broodmare covered by Hernando. She was a good-looking half-sister to Tolworth Hurdle and Ryanair Chase winner Thisthatantother, by the good stallion Accordion and out of the Listed-winning mare Baden; and I valued her at between €65,000 and € 70,000. She was led out unsold at €95,000.
I next met her several years later at Phillipa’s Normandie Stud in Sussex. By then we had become good friends, having been elected to the TBA Board at the same time. I also had a stallion to promote, Telescope, and I asked if she was interested in a foal-share arrangement with Ancora (by now half-sister to another Grade 1 winner, Carlingford Lough, and full-sister to Grade 1 placed The Tother One), in which I would pay stud, keep and veterinary fees and we would share income from foal sales.
Philippa agreed to do this but a few weeks later she rang to say that she wanted to change the arrangement: she wasn’t interested in NH breeding, so I could have the mare and keep all proceeds from her foals; but she insisted that Ancora be returned to her for rehoming should she cease to be of use to me as a broodmare. If ever I was made an offer I couldn’t refuse, this was surely it!
Ancora’s six foals for us brought a total of just under £60,000, so Ancora proved a very nice ‘gift horse’ indeed. Her 2017 filly by Telescope, Perculator, won a NH Flat race and a handicap hurdle and placed several times, whilst the 2018 filly by the same sire, Threeunderthree, won a Point-to-Point and placed in several others.
In 2019 Ancora produced her most profitable foal, a colt by Telescope who was sold in his birth year for €31,000. However, he clearly didn’t develop as hoped, for as a 3YO he brought only €22,000. Although named Muscle Man, he may not have been all muscle, since he didn’t race until he reached the age of five, when he was 6th in a Maiden Irish Point and then fell two out whilst in fourth place on his second run. Rather more is needed if he is to justify his foal price somewhere down the line!
The next year Ancora was barren to Telescope; and for her 2021 foal she was switched to Dartmouth and produced an attractive filly, although one that only realised £4,000 at the DBS January Sale. Whilst this was slightly disappointing, the real disappointment came for the buyer when the filly only brought £2,000 at the DBS May Sales as a 3YO, when sadly she failed to impress even her breeder.
Ancora’s last two offspring were by Telescope and Dartmouth respectively, both colts and both sold for €10,000 as foals in Ireland.
To date. Ancora has produced three winners, the best being San Rumoldo, a Malinas gelding bred by Philippa Cooper. However, even he only reached a career-high RPR of 107, which presently places Ancora some way behind her dam’s record of breeding two winners of Grade 1 races with another Grsde 1-placed. Unless her last three foals can achieve miracles, she seems unlikely to catch mummy up!
Ancora began to show her age after the Dartmouth colt was produced, slipping her foal to Logician that year. She died the next Summer.