Former Champion Two-Year-Old sire Mossman dies aged 26
The Vinery stalwart sired six Group 1 winners in an 18-year stud career
Former Vinery Stud stallion Mossman (Success Express), the sire of six elite-level winners including 2014 Golden Slipper (Gr 1, 1200m) victress Mossfun, has died at the age of 26.
The Peter and Wendy Moran-bred Mossman was retired to stud in 2000 after winning four times on the track for Warwick Farm trainer Clarry Conners, headlined by the 1998 Queensland Classic (Gr 1, 1600m) (later known at the JJ Atkins), and began his career at the Moran’s Noble Park Stud in Queensland, where he averaged just 32 mares covered in his first three seasons.
Despite the small numbers, Mossman’s return was impressive with 43 of his 57 runners from those crops going on to win, including Group winners Our Sweet Moss, Segments and Golden Slipper runner-up Pure Energy.
This early success instigated a deal between Vinery and the Moran family that saw Mossman relocate to the Hunter Valley property for the 2004 season. He stood for a further 14 seasons at Vinery, establishing himself as one of the most consistent and popular stallions in the country, before being pensioned from stud duties in 2018.
“It’s never nice to lose them, it’s obviously a sad weekend for us,” Adam White, bloodstock manager at Vinery Stud, told ANZ Bloodstock News last night.
“We were very lucky to have him and his sire Success Express, who actually came down with him when we did the deal to secure Mossman. Both two fantastic horses.
“Mossman’s was just a great stallion to have on the roster. He had the best nature and he was such an easy horse to work with. As a young horse he had that lovely rich bay coat and you could almost see your face in his coat sometimes. He was just a magnificent-looking horse and he’ll be sorely missed by all.”
Mossman’s progeny is headlined by seven-time Group 1 winner Buffering, who won the Manikato Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m), VRC Sprint Classic (Gr 1, 1200m) and Winterbottom Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) in the space of a month in 2013, and racked up career earnings of over $7.25 million on the track.
“Buffering was a great testament to what Mossman sired, very tough and durable horses,” White said.
“He almost sired two Golden Slipper winners with Mossfun and Pure Energy, who ran second; he could get a very precocious two-year-old but a lot of them raced on until about seven or eight. Buffering was a classic example of that, he was certainly a good advertisement for what the Mossman breed were.
“He was a versatile stallion, he had two very good two-year-olds but he also sired an Oaks winner. He had great milers, a great sprinter in Buffering, he was very versatile and he could do it all.”
Mossman stood his first season at Noble Park at a fee of $8,250, which dropped to $5,500 for the next three years. In his 14 subsequent years at Vinery, his fee hit a high of $27,500, and White believes the standout aspect of Mossman’s career was what he produced from his limited first crops.
“He did it the hard way right from the start. He had very small numbers in Queensland and made a huge impact straight away. That was one thing that appealed to us, being able to prove he could get a top-class runner from very small numbers,” White said.
“He was a wonderful horse for us. He actually had a bout of colic in his second season for us and could only get a small number of mares again, but he developed into a very consistent sire and one that just did a fantastic job.”
Mossman led home a Vinery quinella in the 2014 Champion Two-Year-Old Sires title race, with Mossfun’s Slipper win propelling him to top spot ahead of barnmate Testa Rossa.
“It was a great achievement, it’s very rare now to have first and second in a sires’ title on the same farm, and they were so affordable at the same time,” White said.
“They did wonders for our roster, and it was not long after More Than Ready had sired a couple of Golden Slipper winners as well.”
As well as Buffering and Mossfun, Ivictory, Miss Mossman, Ofcourseican and Plucky Belle all provided the son of Success Express (Hold Your Peace) with wins at the highest level. In total, Mossman has sired 521 winners from 712 runners, with 41 of those saluting at stakes level.
“Mossman has made a massive impact on the Australian industry and played an enormous role in the success of the farm,” Vinery’s general manager Peter Orton said.
“He was a horse of great character and had the most beautiful nature, he will be sadly missed by all those around him, especially our staff who cared so well for him throughout his time here at Vinery.
“Mossman will be laid to rest next to his own sire Success Express overlooking the stallion area.”