Dark Ronald
| Dark Ronald | |
|---|---|
.jpg) |
|
| Sire | Bay Ronald |
| Grandsire | Hampton |
| Dam | Darkie |
| Damsire | Thurio |
| Sex | Stallion |
| Foaled | 1905 |
| Country | Great Britain |
| Colour | Bay |
| Breeder | Edward Kennedy |
| Owner | 1. Sir Abe Bailey 2. Burkhard von Oettingen |
| Record | 7: 4 wins, 2 places |
| Earnings | £8,288 |
| Awards | |
| 1918, 1919, 1920, 1921 & 1922 Leading sire in Germany | |
| Last updated on 17 December 2010 | |
Dark Ronald was an English bred Thoroughbred racehorse and sire with a global influence on the breeding of Thoroughbreds and sport horses, with many show jumpers tracing back to him.
The sire of Dark Ronald, Bay Ronald, was a moderate handicap racehorse and a useful sire. He produced two other notable sons: Bayardo and Macdonald II. Bayardo went on to be one of the greatest runners of his time, and a sire of two English Triple Crown winners. Macdonald II was a very successful runner in France. Bay Ronald also sired the filly Rondeau, the dam of the very significant sire Teddy (that sired, among others, Athelstan, Ortello, Sir Gallahad III, Case Ace, and Sun Teddy).
His dam, Darkie, was a poor performer on the turf with only two placings, both as a two-year-old. Foaled in 1905, Dark Ronald was purchased at the Doncaster sales as a yearling for 1,300 guineas, by breeder Sir Abe Bailey.
At age two, Dark Ronald had two starts, winning his first in the five-furlong Hurst Park Foal Plate, and finishing second in the Lingfield Park Foal Plate. In the latter, he pulled up lame. Both front tendons were fired, and he was rested for two years at Sir Bailey's farm in South Africa.
Returning to England as a four-year-old, he ran in the Newbury Spring Cup, finishing unplaced. Following this, he had better success, winning the next three races in which he ran: the 10-furlong Durham Plate, the seven-furlong Royal Hunt Cup, and the 12-furlong Princess of Wales's Stakes. He finished third in his next race, the Doncaster Cup, but yet again came back lame. His owner decided to retire him for breeding.
In his seven starts, Dark Ronald had four wins and two places, and earned £8,288 (besides landing a huge bet in the Royal Hunt Cup by winning some £100,000 for his owner).
Dark Ronald first stood at Tickford Park in 1910 at a stud fee of £98 a mare. His first crop included the great racehorse and sire Son-in-Law and Ambassador IV, later sent to the United States, where he had a great influence on the American breeding industry. In his second crop, his get included Vaucluse. However, his foals were not promising, and when the German National Stud at Graditz offered the great sum of £25,000 for the stallion, his owner was happy to sell him. His final English crop, born after he was shipped overseas, included the great sire, Dark Legend, as well as Brown Prince II, and Magpie, a leading sire in Australia. Dark Ronald's English progeny won more than 70 races and £30,000.
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