A race that helped define Farnan as the best of his generation on the track has all the signs of doing the same for his reputation as an emerging sire as the Golden Slipper countdown intensifies at Randwick.
In 2020, Farnan separated himself from the pack with a Todman Stakes win that enhanced his bona fides for the Golden Slipper.
The colt duly delivered a fortnight later in a Slipper remembered more for the absence of racegoers in the early days of the coronavirus outbreak that swept across the world.
At acceptance time for this year’s Todman, Farnan, as a sire, is a standout on representation.
Three juveniles by Farnan - North England, Farcited and King Of Pop - have been entered for the Group 2 race for colts and geldings.
Whether they all run at Randwick on Saturday is undecided with Farcited and King Of Pop also acceptors for the Group 3 Black Opal Stakes in Canberra on Sunday.
What isn’t in doubt is the Todman’s significance as a major form reference for the Golden Slipper that also doubles as an insight into what might lie ahead for the Australian breeding industry.
Farnan is the the latest of six horses to complete the Todman-Slipper double on an honour roll of future stallions that includes Luskin Star (1977), Marauding (1987), Tierce (1991), Pierro (2012) and Vancouver (2015).
Beyond that achievement, the Todman, named for the first Golden Slipper winner, has consistently unearthed future stallions of significance since the turn of the century.
Exceed And Excel (2003) and Written Tycoon (2005) rank as the most decorated stallions to win the Todman but Farnan’s sire Not A Single Doubt also left an indelible mark at stud despite finishing out of the placings in the 2004 edition.
And while its early days for Farnan, his upward trajectory is a justification for historic Kia Ora Stud’s decision to re-enter the stallion game after an extended hiatus.
When the late Malaysian businessman Ananda Krishnan made a call to revive a stallion roster at the Hunter Valley stud that was once home to household names Gunsynd and the 1970 Golden Slipper winner Baguette, the acquisition of Farnan was pivotal to those plans.
Headlining a roster that also includes Group 1 Champagne Stakes winner Captivant and dual stakes-winning juvenile Prague, Farnan has so far sired five individual two-year-old winners to top the Australian first-season stallions’ list.
For Kia Ora’s racing manager Luke Wilkinson, Farnan’s bright start to his stud career can be attributed to the influence of his sire.
“I think from listening to trainers, (Farnan’s progeny) have a lot of the Not A Single Doubt qualities,” Wilkinson said.
“And that is they are easy to train, unassuming whilst in the stable and they don't cause their trainers any grief.
“At the same time they also put it together when things are needed.
“I worked with a lot of Not A Single Doubts when I was at Mick Price's and they are fantastic to have in the stable.
“They just eat, sleep and work. And that's all we can ask for.”
Among the progeny of Not A Single Doubt that Wilkinson worked with at Price’s was Extreme Choice, now one of the country’s leading sires at Newgate.
“I worked with a lot of Not A Single Doubts when I was at Mick Price's and they are fantastic to have in the stable." - Luke Wilkinson
If Farcited takes his place in the Todman, Kia Ora will be further invested as a senior figure in a syndicate that races the colt who is Farnan’s most expensive yearling as a $1.2 million purchase at last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.
Trained by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, the partnership that took Farnan to Golden Slipper glory, Farcited opened his racing career with a Black Opal Stakes Preview win last month.
Farcited is one of the outsiders for the Todman where major colts syndicates are key players with Golden Slipper favouritism on the line between Newgate-aligned stablemate North England and the Coolmore-owned colt Wodeton.
“From a stallion perspective, the Todman always seems to be the stronger of the Golden Slipper lead-up races,” Wilkinson said.
“It would be a great result for a Farnan to win because the wraps on some of the other horses are very big.”
Bren O’Brien
Capitalist colt Banknote Hustler will also have an influential Kia Ora link in Todman as will the fillies Inkaruna and Tupakara in the Reisling Stakes.
Fireball Stakes runner Yoshinobu adds further depth to the stud’s Randwick team as the racing arm of Kia Ora’s operation continues to deliver on Krishnan’s vision.
Krishnan died in November and his legacy will be evident on both sides of the Tasman on Saturday.
Last year, he formed an alliance with Te Akau Racing, joining the New Zealand powerhouse in six yearling sale purchases in 2024 as part of the Kiwi powerhouse’s stallion breeding syndicate.
The best of those so far is the $1.3 million Snitzel colt Return To Conquer, unbeaten in three New Zealand starts and a warm favourite to win the Group 1 Sistema Stakes at Ellerslie.
It’s enough to lure Wilkinson to New Zealand for Champions Day.
“Of all our runners we’re involved in on Saturday, Return To Conquer is probably our best chance,” Wilkinson said.
“We loved him as a yearling and we had to have a piece of him.”
