Ajaya to stand at Rathbarry Stud

Ajaya will stand at Rathbarry Stud

We are delighted to announce that Ajaya, our homebred Gimcrack Stakes winner, will stand as a stallion at Rathbarry Stud.

Not only is Ajaya a son of leading sire of sires Invincible Spirit, who is already responsible for stakes-producing sons such as Lawman, I Am Invincible, Zebedee and Born To Sea, but he also boasts excellent two-year-old form that will be surely be well received in the commercial market.

Trained by William Haggas, Ajaya won a strong edition of the Gimcrack Stakes at York, showing a fine turn of foot to comfortably beat subsequent Group 1 winner Ribchester. He also fell only a head short of Gutaifan in the Prix Robert Papin.

Ajaya storms to victory in the Gimcrack Stakes

“Ajaya was a high-class two-year-old blessed with bags of speed and a good temperament,” said William Haggas. “His performance in the Gimcrack was top class, beating subsequent Group 1 winner Ribchester, and he loved fast ground. He’s a thoroughly likeable colt who thrived on racing.”

Tony Nerses added: “Ajaya gave us a wonderful afternoon when such an impressive winner of the Gimcrack Stakes, made all the more special by the fact that he was bred at Blue Diamond Stud.

“We’re delighted that he will stand at Rathbarry Stud, an operation with a long history of developing successful stallions, and we wish them all the best. He’s a well-bred and talented son of Invincible Spirit and we look forward to supporting him with a number of our own mares.”

Ajaya is the first foal out of Nessina, who was purchased by Tony Nerses for 300,000gns to join Blue Diamond Stud in 2012. By Hennessy, she is a sister to Tantina, the dam of this season’s leading first-crop sire Bated Breath as well as Group 1 winner Cityscape.

It is also the further family of champion Australian sire Redoute’s Choice.

A fee for Ajaya will be set at a later date.