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A few days ago we answered a a query about the Dynaformer/Mr. Prospector cross. The crux of the question was why a mating of a son of Dynaformer with a Mr. Prospector-line mare would rate differently (in this case higher) than Dynaformer himself with the same mares. Our answer was that overall, Dynaformer (TrueNicks, SRO) and his stallion sons had a better strike rate with Mr. Prospector line mares than did Dynaformer alone. The suggested explanation for this was that, while Dynaformer is a very good pedigree cross, he is a rather extreme physical type; his sons would still be a good pedigree cross, but one generation further on had biomechanics closer the average of the breed.

We were reminded of this by the victory of Spring At Last in the Donn Handicap (gr. I) last weekend. By Silver Deputy out of a Dynaformer mare, Spring At Last is a TrueNicks A++ horse on the basis of the Silver Deputy/Dynaformer cross. What's interesting here is the Silver Deputy is by Deputy Minister out of a Mr. Prospector mare, so bringing Mr. Prospector and Dynaformer together again, this time in the third and second generations of the pedigree. Silver Deputy also earns an A++ rating with Roberto-line mares in general (he has four other stakes winners out of mares from different branches of the Roberto line), and this shows a progression over Deputy Minister with Roberto (which produced just two stakes winners, neither graded, although it did achieve a solid B+ rating). One surely has to give credit again to the Mr. Prospector/Dynaformer combination, which as with the male line cross probably benefits here from some generational distance.

Incidentally, Dynaformer was broodmare sire of another major stakes winner at the weekend, that being the Strub Stakes (gr. II) victor Monterey Jazz. He rated an A++ on the basis of the Buckaroo/Dynaformer cross.

Filed under: Recent Winners