Even after death, Street Cry continues to leave his mark

One of the earliest and best racehorses based in the United States for the sprawling international operation of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum was Street Cry. The Irish-bred son of Machiavellian (by Mr. Prospector) started his career in California with Eoin Harty, running third in the 2000 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile before being turned over to Saeed bin Suroor and developing into one of the best older horses in the world, taking the Dubai World Cup in 2002 and following with a tour-de-force win in the Grade 1 Stephen Foster Handicap.

It earned Street Cry a home at stud at Darley in Lexington, Ky., and he was the centerpiece of the U.S. stallion operation for Sheikh Mohammed, who had bought Jonabell Farm from the Bell family in 2001 to serve as his North American base of operations.

Street Cry would be joined by many other top-quality stallions at Darley over the years, such as Medaglia d’Oro, Bernardini, and Hard Spun, but a special place at Darley is reserved for Street Cry, who sired BC Juvenile winner and Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense in his first crop and was a top-flight international sire as a shuttle stallion to Australia. The sire of 109 stakes winners and counting, Street Cry is the sire of the great Horse of the Year Zenyatta, plus champions New Year’s Day, Shocking, and Whobegotyou, the latter two in Australia.

When he died young at age 16, it was a big loss to the Darley breeding and stallion divisions.

“Street Cry epitomized everything that Darley and Godolphin aim to achieve,” John Ferguson, bloodstock adviser to Sheikh Mohammed, said at the time of his death in 2014. “He was bred by Sheikh Mohammed in Ireland, excelled at the highest level on the racecourse in Dubai and the U.S., and then became the linchpin of our stallion operations in both America and Australia. His contribution to the breed has been significant.”

Said Darley sales manager Darren Fox: “[He] was so successful in both hemispheres. We have his sons Street Boss and Street Sense, who are really doing well here in our stallion barn and are definitely ensuring the line continues. It makes you wonder how many more good horses he had left in him, but such is the nature of the breeding business.”

Last weekend, the influence of Street Cry on the breeding world was highlighted when his son Street Boss, who stands at Darley for a fee of $12,500, sired Kentucky Oaks winner Cathryn Sophia, who won for the fifth time in six career starts. The following day, Street Cry had a son, Trojan Nation, run in the Derby, though he finished 16th.

Street Boss, a Grade 1 winner, is among more than 20 sons of Street Cry at stud around the world. He has been very successful at Darley despite his budget stud fee, siring Grade 1 winners Danza, who was third in the Kentucky Derby, and Capo Bastone and other graded stakes winners such as Holy Boss, Metaboss, and Decked Out, among his 24 stakes winners.

Also carrying on the Street Cry legacy at Darley is Street Sense, who has sired 46 stakes winners, including multiple Grade 1 winners Sweet Reason and Wedding Toast, plus such graded stakes winners in North America as Aubby K, Unlimited Budget, Ocho Ocho Ocho, and numerous group stakes winners in Australia as a shuttle stallion like his sire.

The final chapter of Street Cry’s stud career is still being written since he is still represented by numerous horses on the track. In fact, this is his best year ever in Australia. His daughter Winx is a sensation down under, is undefeated in seven starts this year at age 4, and is an earner of $4.12 million this season alone. Street Cry is all but assured of finishing as the leading sire in Australia when the 2015-16 racing season concludes at the end of June.

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