Autumn Boy’s victory in the Caulfield Guineas created its own piece of history as the first time three generations of colts - son, sire and grandsire - had won the famous stallion-making race. How unusual is the feat globally? This week’s Run the Numbers finds out.
The Derby, arguably the world’s most historic race, established the importance of sire dynasties early in the journey.
The 13th edition of the famous Epsom race in 1793 was won by a colt called Waxy, who would produce four individual winners of the race himself, Waxy Pope, Whalebone, Blucher and Whisker.
Whalebone would emulate his sire by producing multiple Derby winners, Lap-Dog, Spaniel and perhaps Moses (who’s sire was never definitively established). It is the first recorded instance of three generations of the same family winning a famous race.
It would be a feat repeated later in the 19th century thanks to Doncaster (1873), son Bend Or (1880) and grandson Ormonde (1886) all winning the Derby. Spearmint (1906), Spion Kop (1920) and Felstead (1928) also achieved the feat.
The Derby triple was also achieved later in the 20th century, thanks to Mill Reef (1971), Shirley Heights (1978) and Slip Anchor (1985) over a 14-year period.
More recently, and perhaps unsurprisingly given his 21st-century dominance, Galileo has been the source of two such Derby triple plays. Having won the Epsom Classic himself in 2001, his son New Approach was successful in 2008, and his grandson Masar in 2018.
Just this year, it happened once more when Lambourn, a son of 2014 Derby winner Australia claimed the famous race. He is another one of Galileo’s five Derby-winning sons.
Galileo has also achieved something similar in the Irish Derby, with Australia and Lambourn having emulated him as dual Derby winners. Montjeu (1999), Camelot (2012) and Los Angeles (2023) achieved the same thing at The Curragh.
In France, recent sire, sons and grandsons to achieve this in the French Derby are Shamardal, Lope De Vega and Look de Vega and Darshaan, Dalakhani and Reliable Man.
The feat has been achieved just twice in America’s most famous race, the Kentucky Derby, and not since 1956, when Needles followed his sire Ponder (1949) and grandsire Pensive (1944) to victory. The other family triple play came through Count Turf in 1951, following on from sire Count Fleet and grandsire Reigh Count in winning the famous Run For The Roses.
The feat has never been achieved in the Tokyo Yushun, the Japanese Derby, although that may seem a matter of time, given Deep Impact has three sons at stud. It has also not happened in the Japan Cup.
While Australia has four Derbies classified now as Group 1, the feat of three generations winning the same race has never been achieved in any of them. Given current breeding trends, you would suggest it may never happen.
It has also never happened in a Group 1 Guineas, until Saturday.
Autumn Boy’s win followed the victory of his sire The Autumn Sun in 2018, as he became the first of his sire’s sons to win a Group 1 race.
Some 19 years prior to The Autumn Sun’s win, Redoute’s Choice confirmed himself as the colt of his generation with victory over Testa Rossa.
It was not only a Caulfield Guineas first, but also a first in any three-year-old Australian Classic race.
It has happened in another three-year-old race, the Coolmore Stud Stakes. Ozzmosis’ victory in 2024 came after his sire Zoustar won the race in 2013, with his victory five years after Northern Meteor’s win down the Flemington straight. Sunlight, Zoustar’s daughter, had completed the three-generational run of success when she won the Coolmore in 2018.
Encosta De Lago, Northern Meteor’s sire, also won the same back in 1996, although it was a Group 2 called the Ascot Vale Stakes when held in the second week of September.
It also happened in the ATC/AJC Sires’ Produce, when Encounter won in 1997. He is the son of 1991 winner Tierce, who was in turn by the winner of the 1984 edition, Victory Prince.
Further back, Heroic (1924), his son Ajax (1937) and grandson Magnificent (1945) all won the ATC Champagne Stakes.
It has not happened in either the Golden Slipper or the Blue Diamond, although 1999 Blue Diamond winner Redoute’s Choice has had multiple sons, a grandson and a great grandson win that race. It’s just that there wasn’t a direct succession.
While we didn’t quite have the time to go through every Group 1 race in Australia, we can safely say the family three-peat has also never been achieved in the three Melbourne spring features, the Melbourne Cup, the Caulfield Cup and the Cox Plate.
Selected Australian races won by a colt, its sire and grandsire
*Encosta De Lago won the same race, albeit under a different name at Group 2 level.
