Some six months after he was officially retired from stud duties by Coolmore, Fastnet Rock will add another chapter to his extensive book of achievements should either Buckaroo or Absurde deliver a first Melbourne Cup (G1) Nov. 5 for their renowned sire.
Fastnet Rock will spend the first Tuesday in November in much the same way he has every day since his retirement in late April, enjoying a pick of grass or taking a leisurely stroll around his lush paddock at Coolmore Australia’s sprawling farm on Golden Highway, in Jerrys Plains.
Approximately 1,100 kilometers south at Flemington, Buckaroo and Absurde—both quoted at single-figure odds in the Melbourne Cup betting markets—will be stretching every sinew as they attempt to win the time-honored contest and so become the first son of Fastnet Rock to etch his name onto Australian racing’s most famous trophy.
Had connections of Cox Plate (G1) heroine Via Sistina decided to test her credentials in the nation’s toughest examination of stamina and speed, there would have been an even greater chance of Fastnet Rock finally claiming one of the few big races missing from his CV. To call it an anomaly might be stretching a point, however, given Fastnet Rock’s prowess was primarily seen over sprint distances during a career that yielded six stakes wins, including the Lightning Stakes (G1) and the Oakleigh Plate (G1).
When he joined Coolmore’s stallion roster in 2005, there was a general perception that he would purely throw speedy types—and his Coolmore Stud Stakes (G1) winners Nechita (2012) and Merchant Navy (2017) certainly fit the mold. However, that perception was turned on its head when, predominantly during his decade-long stint shuttling to the Northern Hemisphere from 2010, he served some stoutly bred mares who have produced horses capable of getting over much further ground.
They included Buckaroo’s dam, Roheryn , whose stakes-winning son Middle Earth was recently a big-money acquisition for the Ciaron Maher stable; and Absurde’s dam, Incroyable, whose handy jumper Chimichuri has won two of six starts over hurdles.
It is therefore perhaps unsurprising that both Buckaroo—who became Fastnet Rock’s 44th individual elite-level winner when he took September’s Underwood Stakes (G1) for Chris Waller—and the Willie Mullins-trained Absurde have shown themselves highly capable of outrunning their sire’s genes, with 11 wins between them in races over a mile or considerably further.
“Fastnet Rock has had a huge impact on Australian breeding and he’s been a really significant stallion for such a long time for us,” said Coolmore’s head of marketing and nominations, Tom Moore.
“What Via Sistina has done since arriving in Australia, and especially what she did in the Cox Plate, has reminded everyone what a tremendous stallion he is. Then last weekend China Sea ran a huge race to finish third in the Victoria Derby, so his progeny are certainly running very well at the moment.
“He’s always been such a versatile stallion, he can produce sprinters, middle-distance horses or, as we’re seeing with Buckaroo and Absurde, some really solid stayers. What they all have in common is that they’re generally really tough and stay very sound.”
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