No Nay Never
The much-missed Scat Daddy sired a string of important European 2YO winners and the first of them – the 2013 Norfolk Stakes and Prix Morny winner No Nay Never – has stepped into his shoes.
With 20 juvenile Group winners in his first six Irish crops, No Nay Never is passing on his precocity, but he was more than just a fast 2YO himself, and his team of older black-type winners in 2023 included two Group winners and a Listed winner over 1¼ miles.
No Nay Never owes much of his early success to the GREEN DESERT line. His dual Gr.1 winner Blackbeard is out of a mare by BORN TO SEA, a son of INVINCIBLE SPIRIT, who in turn sired the dam of Gr.2 winner Trillium. Another Gr.2 winner, Aesop’s Fables, is out of a daughter of SHINKO FOREST, another son of GREEN DESERT. No Nay Never also has a 7f Gr.3 winner out of a mare by SEA THE STARS. He has an impressive 22% SWs out of mares by OASIS DREAM, including 2023 Gr.2 2YO winners Array and Les Pavots.
His multiple Gr.1-winning filly Alcohol Free is out of a grand-daughter of DANZIG. He is also working very well with mares by sons of DANEHILL, including EXCEED AND EXCEL (Gr.1 winners Ten Sovereigns and Madame Pommery), ROCK OF GIBRALTAR (Gr.2 scorer Land Force), FASTNET ROCK (Gr.1-placed Pearls And Rubies, plus Gr.2 NZ winner Need I Say More) and HOLY ROMAN EMPEROR (Gr.1-placed 2YO Stakes winners Mountain Bear). DANEHILL sired the 2nd dam of his Gr.1 2YO winner Meditate.
No Nay Never is thriving with mares with more Mr Prospector blood. He owes four of his Gr.2 winners to mares from this line, including Zain Claudette (out of a SPEIGHTSTOWN mare) and the siblings Arizona and Nay Lady Nay (out of a mare by ENGLISH CHANNEL). His Gr.1 winner Little Big Bear has a 2nd dam by MISWAKI.
No Nay Never has SWs out of daughters of PIVOTAL and PEINTRE CELEBRE. NUREYEV’s son THEATRICAL sired the 2nd dam of Ten Sovereigns, while PIVOTAL filled the same position in the pedigree of Blackbeard. The 2nd dam of Aesop’s Fables is by NUREYEV’s son DANCING DISSIDENT. Mares by SIYOUNI could be especially suitable.
No Nay Never’s Gr.2 winners Shadn and Visualisation have dams by SADLER’S WELLS (also broodmares sire of Justify’s Gr.1 winner Opera Singer). No Nay Never has the Gr.3 2YO winners Henry Adams and Midnight Mile out of mares by GALILEO (also broodmare sire of Justify’s brilliant 2YO City of Troy). Mares by HIGH CHAPARRAL produced three Group winners to No Nay Never, including Gr.2 winner Matrika. EL PRADO sired the dam of Gr.2 winner Lake Forest.
No Nay Never will suit FOOTSTEPSINTHESAND, SHAMARDAL and LOPE DE VEGA mares.
The SHIRLEY HEIGHTS male line has quickly made its mark with No Nay Never. His smart son Wichita had a dam by DASHING BLADE, while the Group winning 2022 2yos Meditate and Midnight Mile respectively have a dam by DALAKHANI and a 2nd dam by DARSHAAN.
No Nay Never’s useful sprinter Royal Commando has a dam by ACCLAMATION, while ROYAL APPLAUSE sired the 2nd dam of Gr.2 winner Trillium.
No Nay Never has a Gr.3 winner out of an INDIAN RIDGE mare and his Group winners Wichita, Land Force and Love Locket all have 2nd dams by INDIAN RIDGE.
BLUSHING GROOM’s sons RAINBOW QUEST, NASHWAN and RAHY collectively sired the 2nd dams of five of No Nay Never’s Stakes winners. RAINBOW QUEST also sired the dam of one of his Stakes winners.