ROCK OF GIBRALTAR DIES 24 Oct 2022 15:02
World champion three-year-old and Group 1 sire Rock Of Gibraltar died due to heart failure on Sunday night.
The 23-year-old son of Danehill, who was bred by Joe Crowley, Anne-Marie and Aidan O’Brien, wrote his name into the history books when becoming the first horse to win seven consecutive Group 1s in the northern hemisphere, breaking Mill Reef’s 30-year record.
He won at the Curragh on his first start at two for O’Brien and concluded that season with successes in the Grand Criterium and Dewhurst, having also landed the Gimcrack and Railway Stakes – the latter from stablemate Hawk Wing.
At three, “The Rock” won the 2,000 Guineas, Irish 2,000 Guineas, St James’s Palace Stakes, Sussex Stakes and Prix du Moulin
Rock Of Gibraltar has sired 256 stakes performers to date, including 77 worldwide Group winners and 16 at the highest level.
They included Eclipse and Criterium International winner Mount Nelson, Golden Jubilee Stakes and Haydock Sprint Cup winner Society Rock plus Irish 1,000 Guineas and Garden City Stakes heroine Samitar and Hong Kong Cup scorer Eagle Mountain.