Whizgig
Whizgig | |
---|---|
Sire | Rubens |
Grandsire | Buzzard |
Dam | Penelope |
Damsire | Trumpator |
Sex | Mare |
Foaled | 1819 |
Country | United Kingdom |
Colour | Chestnut |
Breeder | George FitzRoy, 4th Duke of Grafton |
Owner | Duke of Grafton |
Trainer | Robert Robson |
Record | 14:7-1-0 |
Earnings | ca. £5,000 |
Major wins | |
1000 Guineas (1822) Oatlands Stakes (1822) Match against Ardrossan (1822) Subscription Handicap Plate (1823) |
Whizgig (1819–1840) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare who won the classic 1000 Guineas at Newmarket in 1822. In a racing career which lasted from April 1822 until May 1824 she ran fourteen times and won seven races. Unraced as a two-year-old, Whizgig won six of her seven races in 1822, her only defeat coming in the Oaks Stakes. She remained in training for a further two seasons, but was less successful, winning only one more race. She later became a successful broodmare.
Background
Whizgig was a chestnut mare bred by her owner George FitzRoy, 4th Duke of Grafton at his stud at Euston Hall in Suffolk. Her sire, Rubens was a successful racehorse, who at the time of Whizgig's conception was covering mares at Newmarket at a fee of 25 guineas. He sired two other classic winning fillies in Landscape, who won the Oaks in 1816 and Whizgig's contemporary and stable companion Pastille.[1] Rubens was champion sire in 1815, 1821 and 1822.[2] Whizgig's dam, Penelope was a contemporary of the 1801 Derby-winning filly Eleanor, beating her several times, and was half-sister to 1809 Derby winner Pope and the mares Pope Joan, Parasol and Prudence.[3] Penelope was a prolific and influential broodmare, producing thirteen foals between 1806 and 1823, all with names beginning with the letter W. Whizgig was her eleventh foal and her siblings included the Derby winners Whalebone, Whisker as well as Web, Woful, Wilful, Wire, Wildfire and Windfall. Penelope died in 1824.[4] Grafton sent the filly to be trained at Newmarket by Robert Robson, the so-called "Emperor of Trainers".[5]
Racing career
1822: three-year-old season
Whizgig began her racing career at Newmarket's Craven meeting in the spring of 1822. On 11 April, the fourth day of the meeting the filly faced two opponents in a five furlong Sweepstakes. Ridden by Francis Buckle she won at odds of 1/2 to win a prize of 800 guineas.[6] She did not impress all observers, with the Sporting Magazine describing her as "a little idle lurching thing".[7] On the following afternoon Whizgig ran in a Sweepstakes for fillies over the Rowley Mile course and won at odds of 3/1, beating three others very easily[8] for a 1,200 guinea prize. Later that day Whizgig completed a hat-trick when she won another Sweepstakes to take a further 1,800 guineas. On this occasion the race was run over the Ditch Mile course and was open to both colts and fillies,[9] and Whizgig won by a neck after "a fine race".[8] Only three fillies appeared to oppose Whizgig in the 1000 Guineas Stakes on 25 April, including her stable companion Varnish. The Grafton fillies were combined in the betting for the race over the Ditch Mile and started at odds of 2/5. Whizgig recorded her fourth consecutive victory as she won from Rosalind with Varnish in third.[10] A day before Whizgig's success, Grafton, Robson and Buckle had won the first classic of the season when Pastille had become the first filly to defeat the colts in the 2000 Guineas over the same course and distance.
On Friday 24 May Grafton's two classic-winning fillies met on the racecourse in the Oaks over one and a half miles at Epsom Downs Racecourse. Buckle rode Whizgig and the 1000 Guineas winner was preferred both by her owner and in the betting, starting the 11/8 favourite ahead of Pastille. Whizgig went to the front from the start and lead from Pastille until the closing stages when she was overtaken by Mr Wilson's Rubens filly and faded to lose her unbeaten record, finishing unplaced. Pastille however, was produced by a strong late run by George Edwards to win by a head at odds of 7/2, in what the Sporting Magazine described as, "as good a race as ever seen for the Oaks".[11][12]
After a break of almost five months, Whizgig returned to the racecourse at the Newmarket Second October meeting. In an edition of the Oatlands Stakes, a handicap race over the Bunbury Mile course, the filly carried a weight of 99 pounds in a field which included colts and older horses. Ridden by a lightweight jockey named Boggis, she won from the five-year-old Robin Hood, with the 1821 Derby winner Gustavus among the unplaced runners.[13] On the following day Whizgig ran a match race over ten furlongs against Lord Exeter's five-year-old Ardrossan. The filly defeated her older rival, from whom she was receiving 15 pounds, to claim the prize of 100 guineas.[14]
1823: four-year-old season
Whizgig began her four-year-old season on 14 April on the opening day of the Craven meeting when she ran in the Craven Stakes, an all-aged race over ten furlongs. She started 5/1 second favourite in a field of fifteen runners but finished out of the first four behind the Duke of Rutland's colt Scarborough.[15] At the First Spring meeting two weeks later Whizgig contested a King's Plate for fillies and mares over the three and a half mile Round Course and finished second of the six runners behind the six-year-old Luss.[16]
As in 1822, Whizgig was off the course for the summer months and returned for the Second October meeting. Her attempt to win a second Oatlands Stakes ended in failure as she finished unplaced carrying a weight of 121 pounds in a race won by a three-year-old colt named Ganymede. On her final start of the year, Whizgig ran in a Subscription Handicap Plate at the Houghton meeting. She was ridden by Buckle and carried 112 pounds against seven opponents over the two-mile "Ditch In" course. The race resulted in a dead heat between Whizgig and an unnamed roan colt owned by Colonel Wilson and ridden by Buckle's son Frank Jr. Whizgig beat the colt in a deciding heat to record her first win in over a year.[17]
1824: five-year-old season
Although she was covered by the stallion Orville in early 1824 Whizgig remained in training as a five-year-old but did not reproduce her best form. On her seasonal debut she finished unplaced in the Craven Stakes on 19 April. She was made second favourite for the King's Plate for fillies and mares at the First Spring meeting but was unplaced behind the 1821 Oaks winner Augusta. After failing to reach the first three places in a handicap race at the Second Spring meeting, Whizgig was retired from racing and sent to stud.[18]
Stud record
Whizgig was retired from racing to become a broodmare at the Duke of Grafton's stud and produced nine foals between 1825 and 1839 with names that began with the letter "O". Her union with Orville produced a colt foal named Omen in 1825 and two years later she produced a colt named Orbit, sire by Centaur. Neither colt made any impact on the racecourse, but Whizgig established her reputation as a broodmare with her third foal, a bay filly by Emilius foaled in 1828.[19] Named Oxygen she won the Oaks for the Duke of Grafton in 1831 before becoming a successful broodmare. Her descendants included the Prix du Jockey Club winners Saint Germain and Jouvence.[20] Whizgig died in 1840.[21]
Pedigree
Sire Rubens (GB) 1805 | Buzzard 1787 | Woodpecker | Herod |
---|---|---|---|
Miss Ramsden | |||
Misfortune | Dux | ||
Curiosity | |||
Alexander mare 1790 | Alexander | Eclipse | |
Grecian Princess | |||
Highflyer mare | Highflyer | ||
Alfred mare | |||
Dam Penelope (GB) 1798 | Trumpator 1782 | Conductor | Matchem |
Snap mare | |||
Brunette | Squirrel | ||
Dove | |||
Prunella 1788 | Highflyer | Herod | |
Rachel | |||
Promise | Snap | ||
Julia (Family: 1-o)[20] |
- Whizgig was inbred 3 x 4 to Highflyer, meaning that this stallion appears in both the third and fourth generations of her pedigree. She was also inbred 4x4 to Herod.
References
- ^ "Rubens". Bloodlines.net. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
- ^ Morris, Tony; Randall, John (1990). Horse Racing: Records, Facts, Champions (Third ed.). Guinness Publishing. ISBN 0-85112-902-1.
- ^ Weatherby (1834). "Prunella". The General Stud Book. 1: 466.
- ^ Weatherby (1834). "Penelope". The General Stud Book. 1: 743–744.
- ^ "The Dukes of Grafton". Tbheritage.com. Retrieved 2012-10-23.
- ^ Edward and James Weatherby (1823). Racing calendar. 1822. C H Reynell. p. 9. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
- ^ Sporting magazine (Apr. -Sept. 1822). Rogerson and Tuxford. 1822. p. 7. Retrieved 2012-10-28.
- ^ a b Sporting magazine (Apr. -Sept. 1822). Rogerson and Tuxford. 1822. p. 6. Retrieved 2012-10-28.
- ^ Edward and James Weatherby (1823). Racing calendar. 1822. C H Reynell. p. 11. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
- ^ Edward and James Weatherby (1823). Racing calendar. 1822. C H Reynell. p. 22. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
- ^ Sporting magazine (Apr. -Sept. 1822). Rogerson and Tuxford. 1822. p. 102. Retrieved 2012-10-28.
- ^ Edward and James Weatherby (1823). Racing calendar. 1822. C H Reynell. p. 41. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
- ^ Edward and James Weatherby (1823). Racing calendar. 1822. C H Reynell. p. 174. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
- ^ Edward and James Weatherby (1823). Racing calendar. 1822. C H Reynell. p. 176. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
- ^ Edward and James Weatherby (1824). Racing calendar. 1823. C H Reynell. p. 11. Retrieved 2012-10-28.
- ^ Edward and James Weatherby (1824). Racing calendar. 1823. C H Reynell. p. 21. Retrieved 2012-10-28.
- ^ Edward and James Weatherby (1824). Racing calendar. 1823. C H Reynell. p. 203. Retrieved 2012-10-28.
- ^ Edward and Charles Weatherby (1825). "Racing calendar. 1824". C H Reynell. p. 34. Retrieved 2012-10-28.
- ^ Charles Weatherby (1832). The General stud book. C & W Reynell. p. 464. Retrieved 2012-10-28.
- ^ a b "Thoroughbred Bloodlines - Penelope - Family 1-o". Bloodlines.net. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
- ^ Weatherby (1840). "Whizgig". The General Stud Book. 4: 506–507. hdl:2027/coo.31924066667076.
- ^ "Whizgig pedigree". equineline.com. 2012-05-08. Retrieved 2012-10-28.
- v
- t
- e
- 1814 Charlotte
- 1815 Filly by Selim
- 1816 Rhoda
- 1817 Neva
- 1818 Corinne
- 1819 Catgut
- 1820 Rowena
- 1821 Zeal
- 1822 Whizgig
- 1823 Zinc
- 1824 Cobweb
- 1825 Tontine
- 1826 Problem
- 1827 Arab
- 1828 Zoe
- 1829 Young Mouse
- 1830 Charlotte West
- 1831 Galantine
- 1832 Galata
- 1833 Tarantella
- 1834 May-day
- 1835 Preserve
- 1836 Destiny
- 1837 Chapeau d'Espagne
- 1838 Barcarolle
- 1839 Cara
- 1840 Crucifix ‡
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- 1842 Firebrand
- 1843 Extempore
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- 1848 Canezou
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- 1850 Lady Orford
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- 1853 Mentmore Lass
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- 1860 Sagitta
- 1861 Nemesis
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- 1864 Tomato
- 1865 Siberia
- 1866 Repulse
- 1867 Achievement
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- 1873 Cecilia
- 1874 Apology ₩
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- 1876 Camelia
- 1877 Belphoebe
- 1878 Pilgrimage
- 1879 Wheel of Fortune
- 1880 Elizabeth
- 1881 Thebais
- 1882 St Marguerite
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- 1884 Busybody
- 1885 Farewell
- 1886 Miss Jummy
- 1887 Reve d'Or
- 1888 Briarroot
- 1889 Minthe
- 1890 Semolina
- 1891 Mimi
- 1892 La Fleche ₩
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- 1894 Amiable
- 1895 Galeottia
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- 1897 Chelandry
- 1898 Nun Nicer
- 1899 Sibola
- 1900 Winifreda
- 1901 Aida
- 1902 Sceptre ₩ ‡
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- 1904 Pretty Polly ₩
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- 1906 Flair
- 1907 Witch Elm
- 1908 Rhodora
- 1909 Electra
- 1910 Winkipop
- 1911 Atmah
- 1912 Tagalie
- 1913 Jest
- 1914 Princess Dorrie
- 1915 Vaucluse
- 1916 Canyon
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- 1921 Bettina
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- 1924 Plack
- 1925 Saucy Sue
- 1926 Pillion
- 1927 Cresta Run
- 1928 Scuttle
- 1929 Taj Mah
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- 1932 Kandy
- 1933 Brown Betty
- 1934 Campanula
- 1935 Mesa
- 1936 Tide-way
- 1937 Exhibitionnist
- 1938 Rockfel
- 1939 Galatea II
- 1940 Godiva
- 1941 Dancing Time
- 1942 Sun Chariot ₩
- 1943 Herringbone
- 1944 Picture Play
- 1945 Sun Stream
- 1946 Hypericum
- 1947 Imprudence
- 1948 Queenpot
- 1949 Musidora
- 1950 Camaree
- 1951 Belle of All
- 1952 Zabara
- 1953 Happy Laughter
- 1954 Festoon
- 1955 Meld ₩
- 1956 Honeylight
- 1957 Rose Royale
- 1958 Bella Paola
- 1959 Petite Etoile
- 1960 Never Too Late
- 1961 Sweet Solera
- 1962 Abermaid
- 1963 Hula Dancer
- 1964 Pourparler
- 1965 Night Off
- 1966 Glad Rags
- 1967 Fleet
- 1968 Caergwrle
- 1969 Full Dress
- 1970 Humble Duty
- 1971 Altesse Royale
- 1972 Waterloo
- 1973 Mysterious
- 1974 Highclere
- 1975 Nocturnal Spree
- 1976 Flying Water
- 1977 Mrs McArdy
- 1978 Enstone Spark
- 1979 One in a Million
- 1980 Quick As Lightning
- 1981 Fairy Footsteps
- 1982 On The House
- 1983 Ma Biche
- 1984 Pebbles
- 1985 Oh So Sharp ₩
- 1986 Midway Lady
- 1987 Miesque
- 1988 Ravinella
- 1989 Musical Bliss
- 1990 Salsabil
- 1991 Shadayid
- 1992 Hatoof
- 1993 Sayyedati
- 1994 Las Meninas
- 1995 Harayir
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- 1999 Wince
- 2000 Lahan
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- 2002 Kazzia
- 2003 Russian Rhythm
- 2004 Attraction
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- 2009 Ghanaati
- 2010 Special Duty
- 2011 Blue Bunting
- 2012 Homecoming Queen
- 2013 Sky Lantern
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- 2015 Legatissimo
- 2016 Minding
- 2017 Winter
- 2018 Billesdon Brook
- 2019 Hermosa
- 2020 Love
- 2021 Mother Earth
- 2022 Cachet
- 2023 Mawj