Northern Baby
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Northern Baby (1 April 1976 – 21 February 2007) was a Canadian-bred, French-trained
Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...
racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...
and
sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" an ...
. In a racing career which lasted from October 1978 until September 1980 he won five of his seventeen races. After showing promising form as a two-year-old he emerged as a top-class middle-distance performer in 1979, winning the Prix de la Côte Normande in France but showing his best form in England, where he finished third in both The Derby and the
Eclipse Stakes The Eclipse Stakes is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Sandown ...
before recording his most important victory in the
Champion Stakes The Champion Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 1 furlong a ...
. He remained in training as a four-year-old with mixed success, running several moderate races but defeating the outstanding filly Three Troikas in the Prix Dollar. He was retired to stud and became a very successful sire of
steeplechase SteepleChase Records is a jazz record company and label based in Copenhagen, Denmark. SteepleChase was founded in 1972 by Nils Winther, who was a student at Copenhagen University at the time. He began recording concerts at Jazzhus Montmartre, ...
rs. He died in 2007 at the advanced age (for a Thoroughbred) of thirty-one.


Background

Northern Baby was a small, lightly-built chestnut horse with a narrow white blaze, two white
socks A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the Calf (leg), calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. ...
and one white
coronet In British heraldry, a coronet is a type of crown that is a mark of rank of non-reigning members of the royal family and peers. In other languages, this distinction is not made, and usually the same word for ''crown'' is used irrespective of ra ...
, bred by the Kinghaven Farm Stud in
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
. He was one of many important winners sired by the Canadian-bred
Northern Dancer Northern Dancer (May 27, 1961 – November 16, 1990) was a Thoroughbred that, in 1964, became the first Canadian-bred horse to win the Kentucky Derby. After being retired from racing, he became one of the most successful Stallion, sires of the 2 ...
, who won the
Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...
in 1964 before becoming one of the most successful breeding stallions in Thoroughbred history. He was the first foal of Two Rings, a tough and consistent racemare who won nine of her thirty-one races including the
Nassau Stakes The Nassau Stakes is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to Filly, fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at ...
. Two Rings was great-granddaughter of the broodmare Gallita, whose other descendants included
Nadir The nadir is the direction pointing directly ''below'' a particular location; that is, it is one of two vertical directions at a specified location, orthogonal to a horizontal flat surface. The direction opposite of the nadir is the zenith. Et ...
, Mashaallah and
Mark of Esteem Mark of Esteem (26 March 1993 – 21 May 2014) was an Irish-bred thoroughbred racehorse. In his two years of racing, he won four races and placed once from seven runs, with earnings of £365,139. Background Mark of Esteem was a bay horse with ...
. As a
yearling Yearling may refer to: *Yearling (horse), a horse between one and two years old *''The Yearling ''The Yearling'' is a novel by American writer Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, published in March 1938. It was the main selection of the Book of the ...
, the colt was offered for sale at
Keeneland Keeneland Association, Inc. is an equine business based in Lexington, Kentucky. It includes two distinct divisions: the Keeneland Race Course, a Thoroughbred racing facility, and Keeneland Sales, a horse auction complex. It is also known for ...
and was bought for $120,000 by representatives of Anne-Marie d'Estainville. He was sent to race in Europe where he was trained by
François Boutin François Boutin (21 January 1937 – 1 February 1995) was a France, French Thoroughbred horse trainer. The son of a farmer, he was born in the village of Beaunay in the northerly Seine Maritime département. He began riding horses at a young ag ...
at
Chantilly Chantilly may refer to: Places France *Chantilly, Oise, a city ** US Chantilly, a football club *Château de Chantilly United States * Chantilly, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Chantilly (Charlotte neighborhood), North Carolina ...
and ridden in most of his major races by
Philippe Paquet Philippe Paquet is a former champion jockey from France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Sai ...
.


Racing career


1978: two-year-old season

Northern Baby did not appear on the racecourse until October 1978 when he was one of eighteen two-year-olds to contest a
maiden race In horse racing, a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the s ...
over 1600
metres The metre (or meter in US spelling; symbol: m) is the base unit of length in the International System of Units (SI). Since 2019, the metre has been defined as the length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval of of ...
at
Saint-Cloud Racecourse Hippodrome de Saint-Cloud is a grass race course for Thoroughbred flat horse racing opened in 1901 at 1 rue du Camp Canadien in Saint-Cloud near Paris, France. During World War 1, the race course site housed the No. 4 Canadian Stationary Hospita ...
and won by one and a half lengths. Later that month he was moved up sharply in class when he was sent to England for the
Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern races, Pattern race sys ...
William Hill Futurity over one mile at
Doncaster Racecourse Doncaster Racecourse (also known as the Town Moor course) is a racecourse in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. It hosts two of Great Britain's List of British flat horse races#Group 1, 36 annual Group One, Group 1 flat races, the St Leger ...
. He started third favourite, but was never in contention and finished eighth behind the Irish-trained Sandy Creek.


1979: three-year-old season

Northern Baby began his three-year-old season by winning a minor race over 2100m at Saint-Cloud and was then beaten one length by the
Alec Head Alec Head (31 July 1924 – 22 June 2022) was a French horse trainer and breeder. Head was the owner of Haras du Quesnay, located near Deauville. A descendant of the trainers who founded the English Racing Colony in Chantilly, Oise, Head's gran ...
-trained Wolverton in the Prix de Suresnes over 2000m at
Longchamp Racecourse The Longchamp Racecourse (, ) is a 57 hectare horse-racing facility located on the Route des Tribunes at the Bois de Boulogne in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. It is used for flat racing and is noted for ...
. On 20 May, Northern Baby started the 17/4 second favourite for the Group Three
Prix La Force The Prix La Force is a Group 3 (horse racing), Group 3 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run over a distance of 2,000 metres (abo ...
, but was again beaten by a runner from the Head stable, finishing second by a head to Fabulous Dancer. On 6 June, Northern Baby started at 66/1 outsider for the 200th running of the
Derby Stakes The Derby Stakes, more commonly known as the Derby and sometimes referred to as the Epsom Derby, is a Group races, Group 1 flat Horse racing, horse race in England open to three-year-old Colt (horse), colts and Filly, fillies. It is run at Ep ...
over one and a half miles at
Epsom Downs Racecourse Epsom Downs is a Grade 1 racecourse in a hilly area near Epsom in Surrey, England which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. The "Downs" referred to in the name are part of the North Downs. The course has a crowd capacity of 130,000 including ...
. He raced just behind the leader before turning into the straight in third place before moving up to dispute the lead with two furlongs left to run. He was quickly overtaken by
Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...
and Dickens Hill but stayed on to finish third, beaten seven lengths and three lengths. Northern Baby returned to England for one of Britain's most prestigious weight-for-age races, the
Eclipse Stakes The Eclipse Stakes is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Sandown ...
over ten furlongs at
Sandown Park Racecourse Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt racing, National Hunt races and one Group One, Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Sta ...
and finished third behind Dickens Hill and Crimson Beau. In August, the colt was dropped in class for the Group Three Prix de la Côte Normande at
Deauville Racecourse Hippodrome Deauville-La Touques is a race track for thoroughbred horse racing located in Deauville in the Calvados département, in the Normandy ''région'' of France. Originally called Hippodrome de la Touques, it was named for the Touques River ...
in which he started second favourite behind Wolverton. Northern Baby won the race easily by two and a half lengths from Lord Zara, with Wolverton in fourth. Northern Baby began his autumn campaign in the
Prix du Prince d'Orange The Prix du Prince d'Orange is a group-3 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles), and it is scheduled ...
over 2000m at Longchamp in September, in which he was beaten half a length and a head by the four-year-old colt Rusticaro and the five-year-old mare
Trillion ''Trillion'' is a number with two distinct definitions: *1,000,000,000,000, i.e. one million 1,000,000, million, or (ten to the twelfth Exponentiation, power), as defined on the long and short scales, short scale. This is now the meaning in bot ...
. On 7 October Northern Baby started a 90/1 outsider for the
Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe () is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris over a distance ...
. Ridden by the Irish jockey
Pat Eddery Patrick James John Eddery (18 March 1952 – 10 November 2015) was an Irish flat racing jockey and trainer. He rode three winners of the Derby and was Champion Jockey on eleven occasions. He rode the winners of 4,632 British flat races, a f ...
he briefly took the lead in the straight before fading to finish sixth of the twenty-two runners behind Three Troikas,
Le Marmot Le Marmot (14 May 1976 – 1981) was a French Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He won two of his three race as a two-year-old in 1978 including the Prix La Rochette before emerging as a top-class performer in the following year when he won t ...
, Troy, Pevero and Trillion. Two weeks after his run in the Arc, Northern Baby was sent to England for the third time to contest the Group One Champion Stakes over ten furlongs at
Newmarket Racecourse Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of ...
. Paquet resumed his partnership with the colt, who started at odds of 9/1 in a field of fourteen runners which included Ela-Mana-Mou, Lyphard's Wish and the French-trained filly Producer (winner of the
Prix de l'Opéra The Prix de l'Opéra is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles) each ...
and the
Prix de la Forêt The Prix de la Forêt is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and ...
) who started favourite. Northern Baby moved up to dispute the lead two furlongs and always looked the likely winner. In the closing stages he held off a challenge from the five-year-old Town And Country to win by one and a half lengths, with Haul Knight a neck away in third and Lyphard's Wish in fourth place.


1980: four-year-old season

Northern Baby began his third season in the Group One
Prix Ganay The Prix Ganay is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 2,100 metres (about 1 mile and 2½ furlongs) at L ...
and Longchamp on 4 May in which he was ridden by Eddery and finished third behind Le Marmot and Three Troikas. On 1 June he met Three Troikas again in the Prix Dollar over 1950m at the same course. Ridden by Paquet, he started the 5.3/1 favourite and won by a length from Strong Gale, with the Arc winner two and a half lengths away in third place. In the
Prix d'Ispahan The Prix d'Ispahan is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,850 metres (about 1 mile and 1¼ furlongs), ...
at the end of the month he finished fourth after setting the pace for the winner Nadjar, who raced in the same ownership. In August, the colt was sent to England again, but failed to reproduce his form of 1979, finishing unplaced behind Master Willie in the Benson and Hedges Gold Cup at
York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...
. A month later, Northern Baby was brought back in distance for the
Prix du Moulin The Prix du Moulin de Longchamp is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is s ...
over 1600m at Longchamp and finished fifth behind
Kilijaro Kilijaro (8 February 1976 – after 1990) was an Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and Horse breeding#Terminology, broodmare. She was the best filly of her generation in Ireland at both two and three years of age, winning the Phoenix Stakes ...
. Two weeks later, Northern Baby showed something of a return to form as he finished third behind Dunette and Three Troikas in the Prix du Prince d'Orange, but did not race again.


Assessment

In 1978 the independent Timeform organisation gave Northern Baby a rating of 109, twenty-five pounds below their top-rated two-year-old Tromos. In the following year he was rated 127 by Timeform, ten pounds below the top-rated racehorse Troy. In the official International Classification he was rated thirteen pounds below the top-rated Three Troikas. As a four-year-old, Northern Baby was rated 119 by Timeform, eighteen pounds below the top-rated Moorestyle. In the International Classification he was rated eight pounds behind Moorestyle and seven pounds inferior to the top-rated older horse Ela-Mana-Mou.


Stud record

Northern Baby was retired to stud to begin his career as a breeding stallion at the Grangewilliam Stud near
Maynooth Maynooth (; ) is a university town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to Maynooth University (part of the National University of Ireland and also known as the National University of Ireland, Maynooth) and St Patrick's College, Maynoo ...
in
County Kildare County Kildare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the Local gove ...
. In 1982, he was moved to Stone Farm in
Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...
, where he became "buddies" with the
Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...
winner Gato Del Sol. He sired several top-class flat race performances, but had his greatest success as a sire of
steeplechase SteepleChase Records is a jazz record company and label based in Copenhagen, Denmark. SteepleChase was founded in 1972 by Nils Winther, who was a student at Copenhagen University at the time. He began recording concerts at Jazzhus Montmartre, ...
rs. His best winners included: *Baby Turk, 1982, won Grand Prix de Deauville *Highland Bud, 1985
American Champion Steeplechase Horse The American Champion Steeplechase Horse is an United States, American horse racing honor awarded as part of the Eclipse Award program since its inception in 1971. It is awarded annually to the top horse in Steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechas ...
, won two runnings of the Breeders' Cup Steeplechase *
Michelozzo Michelozzo di Bartolomeo Michelozzi (; – 7 October 1472), known mononymously as Michelozzo, was an Italian architect and sculptor. Considered one of the great pioneers of architecture during the Renaissance, Michelozzo was a favored Medici ...
, 1986, won
St Leger The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over ...
* Warm Spell, 1988,
American Champion Steeplechase Horse The American Champion Steeplechase Horse is an United States, American horse racing honor awarded as part of the Eclipse Award program since its inception in 1971. It is awarded annually to the top horse in Steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechas ...
*Possibly Perfect, 1990,
American Champion Female Turf Horse The American Champion Female Turf Horse award is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor. It is part of the Eclipse Awards program and is awarded annually to a female horse (filly or mare) for her performance on grass race courses. Until 1978 t ...
, won Yellow Ribbon Invitational Stakes, Santa Ana Handicap, Gamely Handicap, Ramona Handicap,
Beverly D. Stakes The Beverly D. Stakes is a Grade II flat horse race in the United States for thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years and upward over a distance of miles at Colonial Downs in New Kent County, Virginia. The event is a supporting stakes race ...
*Noyan, 1990, won 20 races including the
Punchestown Gold Cup The Punchestown Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Ireland which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Punchestown over a distance of about 3 miles and ½ furlong (3 miles and 12 ...
Northern Baby was pensioned from breeding duty in 2001. He was
euthanized Animal euthanasia (euthanasia from ; "good death") is the act of killing an animal humanely, most commonly with injectable drugs. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditions or diseases, lack of resources to con ...
on 21 February 2007 and was buried at Stone Farm.


Pedigree


References

{{reflist 1976 racehorse births 2007 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Canada Racehorses trained in France Thoroughbred family 17-b