Cover image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
With the strength showed by Switzerland (Snitzel) in the concluding stages of the Pierro Plate on Saturday, the qualities that saw Tom Magnier pay $1.5 million for the striking colt at the 2023 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale were on display for all to see.
The tale begins well before the Riverside spectacular, with November 2019 being the sliding doors moment that led to his dam, Ms Bad Behavior (Can) (Blame {USA}) traversing half the globe to take up residence at Arrowfield Stud in Scone.
With Switzerland now a genuine G1 Golden Slipper contender, The Thoroughbred Report caught up with Freyer to find out more about the backstory to the glamorous son of Snitzel.
Freyer’s formidable record
Ms Bad Behavior wasn’t a mare that a high number of participants in the Australian breeding game would’ve been largely familiar with prior to Jon Freyer, Arrowfield Stud’s bloodstock manager, going to US$600,000 (AU$918,000) at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November Mixed Sale to purchase her for clients Cloros Bloodstock.
“Ms Bad Behavior is owned by Cloros Bloodstock, which is Matt and Jo Cloros and we have a long standing breeding venture with them,” Freyer told The Thoroughbred Report on Sunday.
Jon Freyer | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“So we bought a lot of mares for them in Kentucky over the years and this was one that we bought back in 2019, as part of that ongoing venture that we have with them. I think there's 17 or 18 mares in that venture now.”
Forking out almost the equivalent of $1 million in Australian dollars, even for a quality racemare like Ms Bad Behavior, carries an element of risk, but even from the start, Freyer was full of adoration for the stakes-winning startet.
“She was, and still is, a beautiful mare, wonderful physical and a really quality mare,” he said.
“She (Ms Bad Behavior) was, and still is, a beautiful mare, wonderful physical and a really quality mare.” - Jon Freyer
“We try to target those mares particularly with the bloodlines that we think might suit some of our stallions (at Arrowfield Stud).
“Blame was a broodmare sire that we were quite keen on for some of our horses. So it was a significant price-tag, but she looks like she's worth every penny of that. They put together a marvellous catalogue at Fasig-Tipton. It's mouth-watering, and you'd like to go there and be able to buy more mares, but they do too good a job selling them.
“They are hard to get hold of, but we were fortunate enough to be able to get her.”
Freyer has enjoyed tremendous success with this formula of sourcing breeding stock from the United States, beyond the success of Ms Bad Behavior, he also acquired Panorama Ridge (USA) (Empire Maker {USA}), who produced six winners from seven to race, headlined by the G3 Widden S. champion Mallory (Not A Single Doubt).
That bloodline now continues on in the lush paddocks of Arrowfield, with Mallory having twice been visited by their star shuttle stallion Maurice (Jpn).
Purely on performance in the ring, the purchase was a resounding success, with three of Panorama Ridge's seven foals selling for more than $500,000 at yearling sales between 2014 and 2023.
Most recently, her colt by Dundeel (NZ) sold for $750,000 at the 2023 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale to China Horse Club/Newgate/Go Bloodstock/Trilogy, while at the same sale in 2019, her Not A Single Doubt colt (later named Harmony Nation) was bought by Astute Bloodstock for $800,000.
The Snitzel colt Autumn Flash was purchased by a combination of Hermitage Thoroughbreds/Wexford Stables/Andrew Williams Bloodstock for $600,000 in the 2017 iteration of the April Riverside spectacular, highlighting just how much of a hit her stock has been with local buyers.
Asked about the preparation needed to identify which mares he wants to bring back to Australia, Freyer was quick to point out the collective effort required to make the process smooth, and ultimately successful.
“We've got a good team here that do a fair bit of research on the catalogue to try and identify the bloodlines that suit us,” Freyer said.
“We've got a good team here that do a fair bit of research on the catalogue to try and identify the bloodlines that suit us.” - Jon Freyer
“But then when we're looking at it, we're going in-depth in to the pedigrees, what's coming, what else might be coming through, what type of form (is strong).
“I mean, any of the mares that we'd be interested in, we'd probably be watching every one of their races.
“Even the ones that aren't raced, they might have been entered somewhere, we try and do as much in-depth research on the catalogue and the prospective purchases as we possibly can.
Switzerland, winner of the Pierro Plate at Randwick on Saturday | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
“Then it just comes down to inspections and types and finding things that you think will suit and then looking at them and wondering whether she is the sort of mare that you want. Are they going to suit the stallion that you've got in mind?
“Ironing it down like that. There's nothing magical about it, it's just doing a lot of homework and then maybe having a little bit of good fortune and a bit of luck along the way.”
“Ironing it down like that. There's nothing magical about it (selecting mares to purchase), it's just doing a lot of homework and then maybe having a little bit of good fortune and a bit of luck along the way.” - Jon Freyer
The Blame game
Freyer alluded to his reverence for Blame (USA), a stallion who has rapidly established himself as an elite broodmare sire the world over.
Dating back to 2016, he has been the broodmare sire for 185 individual runners, 118 of which have won, with a further 14 of those scoring at black-type level.
His most notable success story is Forte (USA) (Violence {USA}), a star of recent racing in the United States, winning a total of three Group 1s, including the G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.
The remarkable winners to runners ratio of 63.8 per cent also includes success with multiple Australian influences, including the G2 Hungerford S. winner Sacred (GB), who is by star stallion Exceed And Excel.
Speaking on the draw of the striking bay stallion as a broodmare sire, Freyer said, “Particularly going to the (United) States and you're working on a currency differential as well, 65, 66 cents on the dollar you have to sort of box around the edges a little bit.
“Particularly going to the (United) States and you're working on a currency differential as well, 65, 66 cents on the dollar you have to sort of box around the edges a little bit.” - Jon Freyer
“So we try to target some of those horses that are in the fledgling stage of their broodmare (sire) careers that we think will do really well but are probably slightly underappreciated by the market.
“As a consequence, they're within our price bracket to bring back here, and he (Blame) was one such horse, he's got such beautiful bloodlines, and he was a top-class horse, and he's a pretty useful sire, but he comes from such a wonderful female family.
Blame (USA) | Standing at Claiborne Farm, USA
“Often those stallions are the ones that can make broodmare sires, and he was one that we targeted. Subsequently (to purchasing Ms Bad Behavior) he's established himself as a wonderful broodmare sire and as a consequence now, they're pretty hard to secure.
“There's a real premium on Blame there at the moment, in the States and even here (in Australia).”
“There's a real premium on Blame there at the moment, in the States and even here (in Australia).” - Jon Freyer
Snitzel shows compatibility with North American mares
Such is the chemistry between Snitzel and North American-bred mares, the star stallion would be a first-ballot selection for an equine version of Love Island USA, with the brilliant son of Redoute’s Choice consistently showing his ability to gel with some elite North American families.
In fact, four of his Group 1 winners, Wild Ruler, Russian Revolution, Hot Snitzel and Heavenly Blue are all out of American-bred mares, with the first two now forging their own careers in the breeding barn as stallions.
Gallery: Some of the Snitzel sired Group 1 winners from American-bred mares
Switzerland looks destined to be another elite racetrack performer resulting from Snitzel being visited by a North American-bred mare, and Arrowfield Stud will be hoping his slashing early form will be replicated by his younger brother, who is set to be offered at the 2024 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale as Lot 170.
“He obviously will be a really interesting lot,” Freyer said.
“He (Lot 170) obviously will be a really interesting lot.” - Jon Freyer
“I'm sure that the Coolmore boys will be keen to have a look at him as well. He's a really good colt.
“When Inglis has come through and assessed all the yearlings, I think they had him as about their top pick in our draft.
“He's come on well in that time (since being assessed), he's prepping well. He's a lovely colt. He'll be one of the star lots at the sale, I trust.
“Hopefully, in the interim, his brother does him proud.”
Ms Bad Behavior could certainly be forgiven for expecting a diamond ring from her regular suitor, having visited Snitzel in every breeding season since her Australian arrival in 2020. They have produced three colts to date, with their fourth foal together pending sex confirmation.
