Marchfield, Canadian champion and sire, sold to South Africa

Michael Burns

Canadian champion Marchfield has been sold to stand in South Africa.

Marchfield, a two-time champion older horse and young sire in Canada, has been sold to Moutonshoek Stud in South Africa, Racing Post reports.

The 9-year-old son of A.P. Indy began his stallion career in 2011 at Park Stud in Ontario. He was represented by 41 foals in his first crop.

“For us, this is like standing a freshman sire,” Bennie Van Der Merwe, a partner in Moutonshoek Stud, said. “From a South African perspective, you don't have to tell anybody about A.P. Indy's standing as a sire of sires in North America. And compared to some other countries, we have no problem at all that he was a two-turn horse.”

Homebred in Ontario by Eugene Melnyk, Marchfield won seven of 23 starts during his four-season racing career for earnings of $1,040,161. He spent the bulk of his career in Canada, winning the Grade 2 Sky Classic Stakes and the Autumn Stakes, as well as the Breeders’ Stakes, the third leg of the Canadian Triple Crown. He was named Canada’s champion older horse in 2008 and 2009.

Marchfield is out of the multiple Grade 3-winning Red Ransom mare Pico Teneriffe, who is the dam of five winners from as many to race, including stakes winner Congor Bay and stakes-placed winner Westmoreland. He is from the family of Grade 1 winner Devil May Care, Grade 2 winners Minister Eric and Regal Ransom, and Group 3 winner Salmon Ladder.

"He ran on grass and Polytrack, which also fits our breeders' needs,” Van Der Merwe said. “He is from a quality family and the Roberto line has done very well worldwide as broodmare sires and particularly well in this country."

Marchfield joins Mambo in Seattle, runner-up in the 2008 Travers Stakes, on the Moutonshoek Stud roster.