Auguste Rodin prepping for the Breeders’ Cup. (Ernie Belmonte/Past The Wire)
Grandson of Sunday Silence takes his bow at the Japan Cup
Coolmore Ireland Release
IRELAND—Coolmore is delighted to announce that 6-time Group 1 winner and dual Derby hero Auguste Rodin, will take up stud duties for the 2025 season at Coolmore’s base in Ireland. He will take his bow at the Japan Cup on November 24th following a truly exceptional career that has seen Gr.1 glory at 2, 3 and 4 years.
“Auguste Rodin is an exceptional racehorse and stallion prospect with the blend of class, speed and pedigree that only the best possess. He is a very special horse for us, and I truly believe he ranks up there with the best middle-distance racehorses and sires that we have stood here before him like Sadler’s Wells, Galileo, Montjeu, Caerleon and Camelot. Physically he fills the eye so well as he has extra quality and movement so I can’t wait to see his first crop in Ballydoyle in 2028. We are going to do all we can to give him the best possible opportunity to follow in his illustrious predecessor’s footsteps,” commented Coolmore’s MV Magnier.
Trained by Aidan O’Brien, the classy and precocious Auguste Rodin, earned TDN Rising Star status when winning his maiden as a 2-year-old at Naas, before taking the Gr.2 Champions Juvenile at Leopardstown and the prestigious Gr.1 Futurity Trophy at Doncaster. His 3-year-old campaign was nothing short of spectacular, highlighted by his victories in the Epsom Derby, Irish Derby, Irish Champion Stakes and Breeders’ Cup Turf, which marked his fourth Gr.1 of the season – an extraordinary achievement that hallmarked his talent and versatility. This year, as a 4-year-old, he added the Gr.1 Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot to an already glittering CV.
By the Japanese Triple Crown winner and 11-time Champion Sire sensation, Deep Impact, Auguste Rodin boasts five multiple-champion sires in his first three generations, along with three standout race-mares, who were all Gr.1 performers at less than a mile. He is the first foal out of Rhododendron, a triple Gr.1 winner by Galileo and full-sister to seven-time Gr.1 winner and Champion Magical. Both mares are out of three-time Gr.1 and 1,000 Guineas winner Halfway To Heaven.
Reflecting on Auguste Rodin’s remarkable achievements, jockey Ryan Moore said, “He’s been an unbelievable horse for us. We have always thought the world of him. He has everything you’d want. He has so much pace. He could kill horses for speed, and he was able to stretch that out over 12 furlongs. Horses like him are so hard to find. An incredible horse.”
Echoing the sentiments of Moore, trainer Aidan O’ Brien added “Auguste Rodin is out of Rhododendron, one of the best Galileo mares, and by Deep Impact, Japan’s best stallion. He connects two of the most powerful breeding lines in the world. He has been a pleasure and a privilege to train. He is just a very unique horse and we’re very excited to see what he will achieve at stud. We will be supporting him with our own mares.”
Auguste Rodin’s career will be remembered for his speed, class, resilience and dominance on the track, with earnings of almost €6 million.
