by Nigel Pullen ©

The role of pacemakers in major races has often courted controversy, but in the 2001 running of the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes (G1), at Ascot, it produced a bizarre new twist. The Group 1 mile contest attracted an international line-up including Noverre and Tamburlaine (England), Vahorimix (France), Proudwings (Germany) and Bocelli (Singapore), along with the Irish-trained pair Bach and Hawkeye.

The unconsidered horse was Noverre's pacemaker Summoner, and he dutifully fulfilled his role by setting a good, even-paced gallop. Heavy rain that morning had made the ground very soft, and when Summoner was still five lengths clear entering the two and a half furlong home straight, the other riders suddenly realised they had given him too much leeway. Try as he might, Noverre could not accelerate in the tacky ground, and it was left to the pacemaker, Summoner, to come home one and a half lengths ahead of his stable companion, with Hawkeye the same distance back in third. A very similar thing had happened in the same race in 1994, when Maroof had made all at odds of 66-1 to beat a top class field, which included classic winners Barathea, East of The Moon, Sayyedati and Turtle Island. This year's milers however are a pretty ordinary crop by comparison.

The birth of a filly named Miba, back in 1962, heralds the start of our story. She comfortably won a six furlongs maiden on the third of her four juvenile starts, but being a daughter of Ballymoss, came into her own the following season over longer distances. Although only recording two victories, the Princess Elizabeth Stakes (8 furlongs) and Pretty Polly Stakes (10 furlongs), she raced in top company, finishing sixth in both English 1,000 Guineas and Oaks, before being placed in the Ribblesdale Stakes at Royal Ascot and the Park Hill Stakes.

Miba's sire, Ballymoss, was a late-maturing colt who finished second to Crepello in the Epsom Derby, before gaining classic glory with victories in both Irish Derby and English St Leger. At four, he developed into the best horse in Europe taking the Coronation Cup, Eclipse Stakes, King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes and Prix de L'Arc de Triomphe.

Miba herself was 5x4x4 to Gainsborough, and she also descended tail male and tail female from two similarly bred individuals in Nearco (her great grandsire) and Romulea (her third dam). Nearco was by Pharos (by Phalaris out of a Chaucer Mare), and his granddam Catnip was a daughter of Spearmint. This was almost the reverse pattern found in Romulea, since she was a great granddaughter of Spearmint, and her dam Romneya was by Pharos's three quarter genetic relative Colorado (by Phalaris out of a Chaucer mare). A further twist was added by the fact that Colorado was also a five-eights sister to Toboggan, who appeared in Miba's fifth generation as the dam of Bobsleigh (maternal grandsire of Ballymoss's sire Mossborough). Finally a look at the fourth generation of Mossborough's maternal grandsire Singapore reveals that fourteen of the sixteen ancestors found there were also present in the pedigree of Miba's dam, Stop Your Tickling; due to their common strains of Gainsborough, The Tetrarch, Isonomy and St Simon.

At stud, five of Miba's six foals were winners, and it was the first and last of that quintet who were to shape the destiny of Summoner. Miba's first foal Ya Ya (by Primera) recorded her sole victory by leading all the way to a win a mile and three quarter handicap on her final outing, and was eventually to become Summoner's fourth dam. Five years after the birth of Ya Ya, Miba was taken to Kentucky to be covered by Nijinsky II, and the resulting filly named African Dancer proved Miba's best offspring. Like her dam, African Dancer ran in the highest class, and proved herself by scoring in the Cheshire Oaks (G3) and Park Hill Stakes (G2). She also finished runner-up in the Yorkshire Oaks (G2), and third in both Epsom Oaks (G1) and Lancashire Oaks (G3). African Dancer proved equally good as a broodmare subsequently becoming the ancestress of Balisada (Coronation Stakes-G1), Inchmurrin (Child Stakes-G2) and Welney (Mill Reef Stakes-G2). However, African Dancer's importance to our story really stems from the fact that she was to become the third dam of the stallion Inchinor. A look at the pedigree of Summoner reveals that his sire was that same Inchinor, ensuring that Summoner was linebred 5x5 to the mare Miba.

Let us now return to Miba's first foal Ya Ya. Her sire Primera raced until he was six, winning the competitive Ebor Handicap plus back-to-back runnings of Princess of Wales's Stakes, and was a stallion best known for his fillies. There was quite a bit of similarity between the pedigrees of Ya Ya's sire Primera, and dam Miba. Their respective sires, My Babu and Ballymoss, shared strains of Rabelais, Bayardo, Swynford, The Tetrarch, Sundridge and Pharos; while their respective maternal grandsires, Deiri and Jock, were sired by horses with a similar Teddy, St. Simon, Hampton and Wellingtonia pattern.

When retired to stud, Ya Ya's best offspring proved to be the smart seven to ten furlong performer Fluellen (by Welsh Pageant), who was placed in top handicaps such as the Cambridgeshire and Lincoln, and in the St. Simon Stakes (G3) and Prince Of Wales's Stakes (G2). He certainly deserved more than just five wins from a 32 race career, but was one of those difficult horse to place; just below group class and always set to carry welter burdens in handicaps.

Ya Ya produced Summoner's third dam Seven Seas in 1978. She was a daughter of French 2,000 Guineas winner and excellent sire Riverman. Seven Seas scored twice as a three-year-old, winning a seven furlongs maiden and an 11 furlongs handicap. Her pedigree was extremely interesting as it brought together the very close relatives Never Bend and My Babu 2x3. While Never Bend was by Nasrullah out of a mare by Djebel's son Djeddah, My Babu boasted almost the reverse pattern, being by Djebel out of Nasrullah's three quarter genetic relative Perfume II. Nasrullah and Perfume II had pedigrees almost the reverse of each other too, Nasrullah by Pharos's son Nearco out of Mumtaz Begum, and Perfume II by Mumtaz Begum's three quarter brother Badruddin out of a mare by Pharos. All this made Never Bend and My Babu wonderful balances for each other in a pedigree, and they have appeared close up in a plethora of Group winners.

Never Bend's background was also a perfect foil for Ya Ya's granddam Stop Your Tickling. For a start both had Asterus, and the parents of Never Bend's sire Nasrullah (by Nearco - Mumtaz Begum) and Stop Your Tickling's dam Senatrix (by King Salmon - Romulea) were bred on almost the reverse cross. Nearco was by Pharos with a granddam by Spearmint, a combination that nicely balanced Romulea, who traced tail male to Spearmint and was out of mare by Pharos's three-quarter genetic relative Colorado. The relationship between Mumtaz Begum and King Salmon was equally close, the former being by Blenheim II out of a mare by The Tetrarch, and the latter actually a half-brother to Blenheim II sired by a son of The Tetrarch.

With this sort of genetic heritage it was surprising that Seven Seas was a relative failure as a broodmare, producing just three winners from her ten foals. Summoner's granddam Soemba was Seven Seas first foal, and this daughter of General Assembly had to wait until October of her second season before registering her sole victory in an ordinary nine furlongs maiden by six lengths. The mating that produced Soemba brought together 2x2 a pair of stallions in Secretariat and Riverman who were bred on the famous Nasrullah/Princequillo cross, both also having a strain of Teddy further back.

Soemba started quite well at stud with five winners from her first six foals, but after her first foal Sumonda (by Lomond), who was placed third in the listed Princess Elizabeth Stakes, the quality of her offspring began to tail off, and she fetched just 11,000 guineas at the Newmarket December Sales in 1996. Potentially her best produce was the 1990 filly named Sumoto. This daughter of Mtoto looked a real classic prospect when beating subsequent English 1,000 Guineas heroine Sayyedati by a comfortable two lengths when those fillies made their debuts at Ascot. However, several training set backs meant that Sumoto never had the chance to fulfil her undoubted potential, and although she raced five times as a three-year-old, recorded her only other victory in a minor seven furlongs race at Lingfield.

Sumoto's sire Mtoto was a late maturing horse, coming into his own over middle distance as a four- and five-year-old. He won the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G1), and also back-to-back runnings of both the Eclipse Stakes (G1) and Prince of Wales's Stakes (G2). His wonderful career ended with a fast finishing second to Tony Bin in the Prix de L'Arc de Triomphe (G1).

Sumoto's pedigree was extremely unusual in that there was not a single duplication between sire and dam within the first six generations. Indeed moving back to the seven generation we only find the names of Asterus, Blenheim II, Friar Rock and Sir Gallahad II appearing more than once. However, Sumoto's tail male and female ancestors, Crepello and Miba, did have a similar Swynford, Malva, Gainsborough and Asterus background.

Sumoto was sold for just 6,500 guineas as a seven-year-old, and soon proved a rare bargain with her offspring soon notching up the sort of success that injury prevented her from achieving on the racetrack. Her second foal Compton Admiral (by Suave Dancer) finished runner-up in the Solario Stakes (G3) as a juvenile, and the following season made a successful reappearance in the Craven Stakes (G3). However shock results were soon to become part of family tradition, and Compton Admiral faithfully fulfilled this role, and caused his own Group 1 shock, by beating both Xaar and Fantastic Light to secure the 1999 Eclipse Stakes (G1), starting as the complete outsider. Sadly, he fractured a bone in his off-fore knee in his next race, but did return to the track in 2001 to finish third in a minor event.

Sumoto's third foal was our subject horse Summoner. He has been lightly raced, the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes being his fifth victory from just ten starts. A neck second to Adilabad in a one mile listed event at Goodwood in August 2000 had been his previous personal best, but he had also finished ten and a half lengths behind King's Best, when ninth in last season's 2,000 Guineas.

Summoner's sire was the very underrated stallion Inchinor. After finishing runner-up in the Dewhurst Stakes (G1), Inchinor won a trio of seven furlongs Group 3 events, the Greenham, Criterium and Hungerford Stakes. Not a great deal was expected of Inchinor when he retired to stud at a fee of just 3,000 guineas, but he soon produced the goods siring Group 2 winners Bannister and Golden Silca, along with Group 3 scorers Palanca and Umistim.

As already mentioned Inchinor's fourth dam was also the mare Miba, making Summoner linebred 5x5 to her. Inchinor himself stands at just 15.1 ½ hands, and his dam, the Child Stakes (G2) heroine Inchmurrin, was not much bigger than a pony herself. Since Inchmurrin was 2x4 to the greatest little horse Northern Dancer, this was surely no disadvantage.

When considering the pedigree of Summoner, this double of Northern Dancer was certainly important, as it picked up the strain of General Assembly, the sire of Summoner's granddam. If we compare the pedigree of Northern Dancer's dam Natalma with that of General Assembly's dam Exclusive Dancer we find a very similar pattern. Most obviously both were by Native Dancer, but a close look at the backgrounds of Arbitrator (granddam of Natalma) and Exclusive (dam of Exclusive Dancer) reveals that they shared strains of Fair Play, The Tetrarch, Rock Sand, Meddler, Chicle, Broomstick and Peter Pan. Indeed, Arbitrator's dam Mother Goose was a seven-eighths genetic relative to Exclusive's sire Shut Out. Since Exclusive was also the dam of the stallion Exclusive Native, this relationship helps explain the success of the Northern Dancer/Exclusive Native cross which has produced many notable winners such as Balanchine, Elnadim, Entrepreneur, Flawlessly, Mehthaaf and Senor Pete.

Another fascinating feature of Summoner's pedigree was the appearance of Klairon, the great grandsire of Inchinor. The strong genetic relationship between Never Bend and My Babu was previously mentioned when discussing the pedigree of Summoner's third dam Seven Seas. This was now further reinforced by Klairon, who was a slightly closer than a five-eights brother to My Babu. Both traced tail male to Djebel and tail female to Sweet Lavender, and while Klairon provided Colorado, My Babu supplied Colorado's three-quarter genetic relative Pharos. It is worth pointing out that Inchinor's Group 3 winner Palanca is out of a mare by Dowsing, and the latter stallion also had this Never Bend/My Babu cross.

One final point of interest is the relationship between the mare Picture Light and Mtoto, who were found 5x2 in Summoner. Picture Light was by Court Martial, and her dam Queen Of Light was by a son of Aurora out of a daughter of Donatello II. This was matched in Mtoto, whose pedigree not only boasted Court Martial, but also Alycidon (sire of Mtoto's second dam). Since Alycidon was by Donatello II out of Aurora, his pedigree was the reverse of Queen Of Light.

It will be interesting to see how the career of Summoner progresses. He may well find that the Group 1 penalty he will have to carry in future Group 2 and Group 3 events counting against him, but he has had his moment of glory, and provided this family with its second surprise Group 1 victory.

October 7, 2001. Copyright by Nigel Pullen 2001.