Haras de Beaumont is set for a big year and it has started with aplomb for Kamel Chehboub's stud and its exciting young sire Sealiway.

The dual Group 1 winner is represented by his first two-year-old runners this term and he hit the mark immediately with Witchway's comprehensive victory at Marseille-Borely last Wednesday. 

Given the way the Jean-Pierre Dubois homebred hit the line it is small wonder that trainer Patrice Cottier is excited about him. The same could be said of Haras de Beaumont, whose burgeoning operation started when Sealiway retired to stud. 

Stud director Mathieu Alex said of Witchway's success: "Winning the way he did was a great start. His trainer is very, very positive about him and said he's going to be much better over a longer distance."

Sealiway was a tough and top-notch two-year-old, with his juvenile highlight coming in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere at Longchamp on Arc day. The son of Galiway put eight lengths between himself and Coventry Stakes victor Nando Parrado, with subsequent Prix Jean Prat winner Laws Of Indices in third. 

The chestnut went on to greater heights the following season, backing up a second to St Mark's Basilica in the Prix du Jockey Club with victory in the Champion Stakes. He took out a whole host of big names, including Classic winners Mac Swiney, Mishriff and Adayar, with Australian Group 1 hero Dubai Honour in second. 

Given Sealiway was a Group 1 winner at two and three, there should be every chance he will produce high-class runners at those ages and at a variety of trips. 

Alex said: "We've got 32 two-year-olds within the team and with all different profiles. Some for now, some for later on, some over five [furlongs], some for longer distance, so we've got different profiles, which is great."

Meanwhile, in the covering shed, Sealiway remains as popular as ever, even during the tricky fourth year which so many stallions find tough as breeders swarm to the new recruits. He has consistently covered three-figure books at the Normandy operation, something which bodes well for the years ahead. 

He added: "It's his fourth year [covering] which can sometimes be tricky, but he’s a horse who's covered 160 mares every year, so he’s a very popular stallion. 

"People sometimes wait, they wait for the foals, wait for the mares to foal and so on, but it's all very, very positive. It's great because this horse is extremely important for the farm. Our farm was created for this horse, so it's been a lot of work for four years and now we're having his first two-year-olds to run."

Another young sire who is set for an important year is Puchkine, whose first crop of foals have been arriving in recent weeks. 

Alex said of the five-year-old: "He’s a very good-looking son of Starspangledbanner and was unbeaten at two. He won the Prix Jean Prat in in one of the fastest times ever. He’s got speed, he’s got precocity and is very good looking.

"We’re very pleased with the foals and the great thing about him is the support he's getting from his owner-breeders Alain Jathiere, Gerard Augustin-Normand and Haras d'Etreham. They're three of the biggest owner-breeders in France and they’re all right behind him, so that's a big deal."

Ace Impact was an unbeaten champion on the track, his highlights for Jean-Claude Rouget being dazzling victories in the Prix du Jockey Club and Arc. The son of Cracksman will have his first yearlings sell later this year, with that crop having made up to €220,000 as foals last term. 

Alex added: "It's a big year for him. Entries [for the sales] are being made and some of the biggest farms in Europe are are getting yearlings by him into the big sales. It's very exciting. He's going into his third year of covering but already has 120 mares-plus booked to him."

The experienced stalwart of the stud is Intello, the Wertheimer brothers' beautifully bred son of Galileo and another winner of the Prix du Jockey Club. The 16-year-old is the sire of top-level winners Junko, Adhamo and Intellogent and his first crop conceived at the stud will run as two-year-olds this season. 

Intello has also made a bright start to the European Flat turf season with his Group 2-winning son, the Wertheimers' Bright Picture, landing a second Pattern victory in the Prix Exbury at Saint-Cloud this month. 

"It’s great to have a proven stallion here as well," Alex said. "The rest of the boys are young, so it’s important for us to have a proven horse and obviously to stand one owned by such prestigious owner-breeders is great for the stud."

There is plenty to look forward to on the racetrack for Haras de Beaumont and the Chehboub family's Gousserie Racing as well. Homebred three-year-old fillies Vaticana and Baklawa have landed stakes victories in recent weeks and are duly set for bigger targets as the season progresses.

Alex said: "We’ve had two stakes winners already, Bakelawa and Vaticana, and they’re two fillies we’re going to target the Classics with."

Racing Post 23/03/26