Invasor (horse)
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| Invasor | ||
 Winning the Gran Premio Nacional(G1) of 2005 in Uruguay |
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| Sire: | Candy Stripes | |
| Dam: | Quendom | |
| Damsire: | Interprete | |
| Sex: | Stallion | |
| Foaled: | 2002 | |
| Country: | Argentina | |
| Colour: | Bay | |
| Breeder: | Haras Clausan | |
| Owner: | Shadwell Stable | |
| Trainer: | Anibal San Martin (2005) Kiaran McLaughlin (2006) |
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| Record: | 10:9-0-0 (to date) | |
| Earnings: | $3,904,070 (to date) | |
| Major Racing Wins & Honours & Awards | ||
| Major Racing Wins | ||
| Polla de Potrillos (2005) GP Jockey Club (2005) GP Nacionál (2005) Clásico Ensayo (2005) Pimlico Special (2006) Suburban Handicap (2006) Whitney Handicap (2006) Breeders' Cup Classic (2006) |
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| Racing Awards | ||
| Uruguayan Triple Crown Winner (2005) Uruguayan Horse of the Year (2005) |
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Infobox last updated on: November 4, 2006. |
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Invasor (b. August 3rd, 2002) is a thoroughbred racehorse bred in Argentina by Haras Clausan. The winner of the 2005 Triple Crown in Uruguay, he was later purchased by Sheik Hamdan bin Rashid al Maktoum who paid approximately USD 1.4 million for the horse. His biggest win was the 2006 Breeders' Cup Classic, in which he defeated heavily favored Bernardini and highly fancied Lava Man.
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[edit] Beginnings
A black-pointed bay with a small white star, Invasor was born in Argentina, sired by the famous Candy Stripes out of the Interprete mare Quendom. He was bought as a 2-year-old by brothers Juan Luis and Luis Alberto Vio Bado, and Pablo Hernandez, three Uruguayans who brought him to Uruguay.
Now that the horse is no longer his (the decision to sell was, he says, agonizing), Pablo Hernandez remembers the day he and the two brothers first saw Invasor. "We had flown to Argentina and were scheduled to take a small plane to La Biznaga Farm, where we were going to look at horses. But the plane had engine failure and the trip was canceled. Our friend, Miguel Ezcurra, from Bullrich Auctioneers, took us by car to visit some smaller farms near Buenos Aires. After having seen some 80 colts and fillies at several farms, we went to Clausan Farm in Areco, a province of Buenos Aires, and that's where we met Invasor. Immediately, it was as if we had been hit with Cupid's arrow. We just fell in love with him." Sandro Mizeroqui, owner of Clausan Farm (now re-named Haras Santa Ines), said the horse would cost them $25,000. The three Uruguayans countered with $18,000. They all settled for $20,000. Hernandez said, "We purchased him and exported him to Maronas Racetrack in Uruguay. Our lucky strike had begun."
Trained by Anibal San Martin, Invasor was ridden by Gustavo Duarte, one of Uruguay's leading jockeys. Duarte called Invasor the best horse he's ever ridden.
Invasor broke his maiden in his debut in Maroñas in late February of 2005, winning a 5½ furlong maiden race by 6¾ lengths, but then fractured his right hind sesamoid and required surgery. He had to wait until August to reappear, winning the "Ensayo" Stakes over 7½ furlongs by 2½ lengths.
[edit] Triple Crown
Invasor won the first leg of the Uruguayan Triple Crown, the one mile Gran Premio Polla de Potrillos run on September 10th, by 5¾ lengths under heavy rain on a muddy track. One month later, on October 9, he won the 2000 m (1¼ mile) Gran Premio Jockey Club by 3½ lengths, and completed the sweep winning the Gran Premio Nacional by 6½ lengths. In all three races, the horse Potri Flash came second. With this sweep, Invasor became a favorite of the public, and a favorite to win Uruguay's most important race, the championship Gran Premio Internacional Jose Pedro Ramirez, run every January 6th in Maroñas.
His total earnings for taking the Triple Crown amounted to $113,866.
[edit] The sale
Invasor was sold after winning the Uruguayan Triple Crown to Sheik Hamdan bin Rashid al Maktoum, who paid, as said, around U$S 1,400,000 to have the horse run for Shadwell Stable. Considering how much the horse could win in Uruguay, the sheik's offer was too hard to turn down, although one Vio Brado brother was very reluctant. Still, the deal was made, and Invasor was flown into the state of Florida, southernmost of the US states, to be trained by Kiaran McLaughlin in the Palm Meadows Training Center. There the horse prepared for his next race, the UAE Derby.
[edit] Present
After training in Florida, Invasor was sent to Dubai to compete in the UAE Derby, running into traffic problems, and finishing fourth, but coming on again to end up only a half length behind the 3rd and 2nd horses, albeit far from the winner, Discreet Cat (owned by the competing Godolphin Stables). Less than two months later, he came back to win the Grade I Pimlico Special by 1¼ lengths over Wanderin Boy, after stalking the leader through most of the race. On July 1st, Invasor proved that his Pimlico Special win was no fluke by soundly winning the Grade I Suburban Handicap by 4 lengths at Belmont Park. On August 6, he won his third straight Grade I race, holding off a hard-charging Sun King to win a photo finish in the Whitney Handicap at Saratoga. Invasor was pointed to the Jockey Club Gold Cup but developed a fever a week prior to the race, so his trainer decided to skip it and point him to the Breeders' Cup Classic to be run in November, 2006.
Though he is now owned by a sheik and races in the United States, he is Uruguay's national hero. In Uruguay, whenever Invasor runs, people flock to their nearest simulcast provider. "There was great anticipation here for the Jockey Club Gold Cup," said Pablo Roig, editor of Uruguay Turf Line. "Here in Montevideo, we follow all his races through the OTB simulcasts, and the people are enjoying all his victories."
"In Uruguay, soccer is our main sport," said Luis Costa Baleta, a horse owner from a long-time Uruguayan racing family. "Whenever the national team plays, the entire country stops to watch the match. Since Invasor has gone to the United States, every time he runs, all the simulcast halls are crowded with people who come to see him and bet on him. They shout and cheer for him as if Uruguay was playing in the finals of the World Cup. They treat the horse as if he was still their own. No one can imagine what it's like. He's become a national hero."
The racing journalist and writer Miguel Aguirre Bayley wrote: "In my opinion, Invasor excelled because of his refined qualities, his endurance, and his outstanding intelligence. Invasor may well become one of the best racehorses in the history of the American Turf."
To date (November 4, 2006), Invasor has run ten times and won nine. The one race he lost, he finished fourth. His career earnings, so far, amount to $3,904,070.
[edit] Breeders' Cup
On November 4, 2006 Invasor, under jockey Fernando Jara, raced in the Breeders' Cup Classic. The field included favored Bernardini, second favorite Lava Man, and European three-year-old champion George Washington. Invasor, under the guidance of the 18-year-old jockey Jara, passed Bernardini in the home stretch, defeating Bernardini by a length. This win made him the overwhelming favorite for the Eclipse Award for Older Male Horse and the likely U.S. Horse of the Year.
[edit] Pedigree
| Pedigree of Invasor | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sire Candy Stripes (USA) ch. 1982 |
Blushing Groom (FR) ch. 1974 |
Red God | Nasrullah |
| Spring Run | |||
| Runaway Bride | Wild Risk | ||
| Aimee | |||
| Bubble Company (FR) ch. 1977 |
Lyphard | Northern Dancer | |
| Goofed | |||
| Prodice | Prominer | ||
| Euridice | |||
| Dam Quendom (ARG) blk. 1997 |
Interprete (ARG) dkb/br. 1988 |
Farnesio | Good Manners |
| La Farnesina | |||
| Inaccesible | Liloy | ||
| Iliada | |||
| Queen of Victory (ARG) dkb/br. 1990 |
Cipayo | Lacydon | |
| Tsarina | |||
| Twitch Crown | Crown Thy Good | ||
| Twins (F-No.14-c) | |||
