Octagonal (horse)


Octagonal was a champion New Zealand-bred, Australian raced Thoroughbred racehorse, also known as 'The Big O' or 'Occy'. He was by the champion sire Zabeel, out of the champion broodmare Eight Carat, who also produced Group One winners Mouawad, Kaapstad, Diamond Lover and Marquise.

Biography

Trained by John Hawkes, Octagonal made his debut late in 1994, and was crowned the Australian Champion Two Year Old on the strength of his autumn campaign, which comprised wins in the Todman Trial and AJC Sires Produce Stakes and close seconds in the STC Golden Slipper and AJC Champagne Stakes.
As a three-year-old, Octagonal won seven of his eleven starts, and took his record to 10 wins from 16 starts. In addition to beating a high-standard crop in Sydney's three-year-old autumn triple crown - the Canterbury and Rosehill Guineas and the Australian Derby - Octagonal won the two richest weight-for-age races on the Australian calendar, the W S Cox Plate and the Mercedes Classic. With earnings of just short of A$4 million, Octagonal was voted the 1996 Australian Champion Three Year Old, Australian Horse of the Year, and remains the last horse to have won the triple crown. The Victoria and Australian Derby double eluded him, however, as he was narrowly defeated by Nothin' Leica Dane in the Victoria Derby.
Octagonal returned to the track as a four-year-old, but his win the Underwood Stakes was the only highlight of a spring campaign that saw him unplaced in six of his seven starts. Meanwhile, the horses who had finished second to him in the triple crown - Saintly and Filante - won three races each, including the Epsom Handicap, the W S Cox Plate, and the Melbourne Cup. Octagonal's final campaign, during the autumn, was more consistent, and featured Group One wins in consecutive starts in the Chipping Norton Stakes, Australian Cup, and the Mercedes Classic. At his final start, he was runner-up in the AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes; a feat coincidentally emulated in the farewell of his champion son, Lonhro, seven years later.
Octagonal retired to stud after 28 starts with a record of 14 wins, 7 seconds and a third. He ended his racing career with a stakes tally of A$5,892,231, the highest of any galloper in Australasia to that point. Octagonal was euthanized on 15 October 2016 at the age of 24 years at Woodlands Stud at Denman in the NSW Hunter Valley. He was buried next to his fellow stallion mate Canny Lad. Owner Bob Ingham described his career as 'heroic' and 'life-changing'. Ingham, along with his late brother Jack Ingham purchased and raced Octagonal from New Zealand.
Octagonal stood at Cootamundra, New South Wales prior to his death. He is the sire of Australian Group One winning brothers Lonhro and Niello, the South African Group 1 winner, Suntagonal. In 1998, he stood at Haras du Quesnay in France where his most prominent offspring was Laverock whose wins include two Group 1 races: the Prix d'Ispahan at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris and the Gran Premio del Jockey Club at Milan, Italy's, San Siro Racecourse.
He was euthanized on 15 October 2016 in Australia. He was 24 years old.

Race record

ResultDateRaceVenueGroupDistanceWeight JockeyWinner/2nd
2nd2 Sep 1995Roman Consul StakesRandwickG31200 m55G. Cooksley1st - Our Maizcay
Won16 Sep 1995Heritage StakesRosehillLR1300 m55.5G. Cooksley2nd - Mi Modest
Won2 Oct 1995Stan Fox StakesRandwickG31400 m55G. Cooksley2nd - Encores
3rd14 Oct 1995Caulfield GuineasCaulfieldG11600 m55.5D. Gauci1st - Our Maizcay
Won28 Oct 1995Cox PlateMoonee ValleyG12040 m48.5S. Dye2nd - Mahogany
2nd4 Nov 1995Victoria DerbyFlemingtonG12500 m55.5S. Scriven1st - Nothin' Leica Dane
2nd24 Feb 1996Hobartville StakesWarwick FarmG21400 m55.5G. Cooksley1st - Nothin' Leica Dane
Won9 Mar 1996Canterbury GuineasCanterburyG11900 m55.5D. Beadman2nd - Filante
Won23 Mar 1996Rosehill GuineasRosehillG12000 m55.5D. Beadman2nd - Saintly
Won30 Mar 1996Mercedes ClassicRosehillG12400 m52D. Beadman2nd - Count Chivas
Won6 Apr 1996Australian DerbyRandwickG12400 m55.5D. Beadman2nd - Saintly

ResultDateRaceVenueGroupDistanceWeight JockeyWinner/2nd
6th17 Aug 1996Manikato StakesMoonee ValleyG11200 m57D. Gauci1st - Poetic King
7th31 Aug 1996Memsie StakesCaulfieldG21400 m57D. Gauci1st - Sir Boom
5th14 Sep 1996Feehan StakesMoonee ValleyG21600 m57D. Gauci1st - Toil
Won22 Sep 1996Underwood StakesCaulfieldG11800 m57D. Beadman2nd - Seascay
4th12 Oct 1996Caulfield StakesCaulfieldG12000 m57D. Beadman1st - Juggler
5th26 Oct 1996Cox PlateMoonee ValleyG12040 m57D. Gauci1st - Saintly
9th2 Nov 1996Mackinnon StakesFlemingtonG12000 m57D. Beadman1st - All Our Mob
2nd15 Feb 1997Apollo StakesWarwick FarmG21400 m57D. Beadman1st - Juggler
Won22 Feb 1997Chipping Norton StakesWarwick FarmG11600 m57S. Dye2nd - Juggler
Won10 Mar 1997Australian CupFlemingtonG12000 m57S. Dye2nd - Gold City
Won22 Mar 1997Mercedes ClassicRosehillG12400 m57S. Dye2nd - Arkady
2nd12 Apr 1997Queen Elizabeth StakesRandwickG12000 m57S. Dye1st - Intergaze

Progeny

Octagonal's major race winners include:
HorseRaceDistance
Prizemoney
Lonhro2001 Caulfield Guineas
2002 Mackinnon Stakes
2003 Chipping Norton Stakes
2003 Queen Elizabeth Stakes
2003 George Main Stakes
2002 & 2003 Caulfield Stakes
2003 & 2004 George Ryder Stakes
2004 C F Orr Stakes
2004 Australian Cup		1600
2000
1600
2000
1600
2000
1500
1400
2000		$5,790,510
Laverock2006 Prix d'Ispahan
2006 Gran Premio del Jockey Club 		2000
2400		$1,154,190
Niello2003 Spring Champion Stakes
2004 Canterbury Guineas
2004 Rosehill Guineas		2000
1900
2000		$959,200
Suntagonal2002 Premier's Champion Stakes 1400R496,400

Pedigree