Dee Bee and Osprey
IF Aston Dee Bee was a racehorse he would be preparing for retirement to stud at a service fee of around $100,000 and maybe even more.
The glamor Kentucky studs, or Coolmore in Ireland, would be clambering over themselves to syndicate him, a syndicate that would fill within hours of it being announced.
A Group 1 winner with record breaking speed, by the champion sire, out of a Group placed dam whose own mother was a Group 1 winner, record breaker and fabulous producer. Aston Dee Bee has it all.
The equine equal of Aston Dee Bee would be every thoroughbred stud's dream. It is more than likely legend Winx would line up as a potential mate.
But, if Aston Dee Bee was retired to stud tomorrow, and his connections announced a $4400 stud fee ... the entire greyhound world would be aghast. Cries of "what about the little breeders" or "greedy owners, greedy studmasters" would abound.
More likely, Aston Dee Bee will go to stud around the $2000 mark as a service fee and he is worth every cent ... and more.
Saturday night's victory by Aston Dee Bee in the Group 2 Ballarat Cup was at the hands of a classy line-up. Third was another Melbourne Cup winner Ando's Mac (and he too certainly has a stud career) and others like Bewildering, Jimmy Newob, Judicial Man all of who have stud careers beckoning.
It took Aston Dee Bee's record to 50 starts for 29 wins and 10 placings and his stakes now total $672,000.
No one can find fault with Aston Dee Bee's potential stud career. Every aspect of his pedigree, conformation, race career ... you name it, he lives up to what is expected.
Two of his litter sisters are Group finalists.
And, we need to go back five generations before we find the name of any import in his pedigree ... Farloe Melody, Grove Whisper and Fortified Speed.
With Bombastic Shiraz as his damsire he has a dominant female line able to be matched to numerous bloodlines.
And Elite Oriental, as his granddam, is ideal as well. I have been waiting and watching with a potential stud dog with Knocka Norris (Elite Oriental's litter brother) in his damline to emerge. Falcon's Fury looked promising, but he has vanished.
Aston Dee Bee has so many options at stud it is crazy ... Where's Pedro, Brett Lee through females, Bombastic Shiraz through sons, Token Prince is an absolute MUST to be included in the pedigree of the bitches to be mated by Aston Dee Bee, and so is Solve The Puzzle.
The simple fact we have to go back five generations before we get to an import in the pedigree of Aston Dee Bee means bitches with any import in their pedigree should suit him.
The saturation of the famed sisters Zulu Moss and Riviera Moss in his dam means daughters of Magic Sprite, Oaks Road and Talks Cheap will suit him as well.
The Wheeler influence in his sire will allow all manner of line breeding to Wheeler's line.
The touch of Fortress via his son Fortified Speed in Aston Dee Bee's direct damline will allow special matings to be produced via bitches with Velocette, Slater and Kinloch Brae in their pedigree.
Awesome Assassin, whose sister Goddess Of Fire is the fifth dam of Aston Dee Bee, will also be an important ancestor in matings to the Melbourne Cup winner.
I would also particularly like to see actual daughters of Brett Lee mated to him.
Ima Geisha Girl is a full sister to Aston Dee Bee's dam Aston Elle but from a repeat mating (Oh no, don't tell me a repeat mating worked! ... of course it did).
Ima Geisha Girl was a real race star. Mated to Brett Lee she produced Pop The Cork an absolute flying machine. I don't think anyone ever saw the very best of Pop The Cork.
Aston Dee Bee has always been a fast, super fast, race dog. He's taken his time to harness that pace and turn it into Group 1 glory. This can be the Bombastic Shiraz influence. His progeny were mostly the same.
A stud career beckons for Aston Dee Bee, not while he is in such devastating race form though.
If he was a thoroughbred, he would have been retired immediately after his Group 1 victory and you would all be rushing off ready, willing and able to pay his $100,000 service fee.
WHILE Aston Dee Bee is just about a "cert" to make it at stud, I also like the prospects of Dundee Osprey at stud.
The son of Fabregas-Dundee Rose by Where's Pedro retired the winner of the G1 Topgun, Sale Cup and Harrison Dawson. He also won the ultimate speed test, the 2016 Speed Star.
I "love" Dundee Osprey's balanced pedigree with Larkhill Jo and Light Of Fire coming via son and daughter. The fact his dam is by Where's Pedro and from the "Bale" female line is superb.
He is an "absolute special" to link successfully with bitches by Jarvis Bale. Bekim and Barcia Bale bitches will both suits him as well.
It you want an exercise in class, take a look at the line-up Dundee Osprey downed when he won the Topgun in 2016. Following him home was Aston Bolero, Pantera Nera, Let It Develop, Unlawful Entry, Zambora Brockie, Worm Burner and Aqua Cheetah ... Group 1 superstars all of them.
In the Speed Star he bettered Burn One Down, Zambora Brockie, Jesaulenko, Shima Song and Polijuice Potion. Which basically means he has more natural speed than that line-up of superstars.
OK, he went staying later in life.
But no one will ever tell me champions like Temlee, Worth Doing, Brother Fox, West Cape etc would not have made legend stayers. They were never tested (coveting their future stud careers) and became great sires.
Dundee Osprey is the real deal for mine.
