Basilica of St. Mark secures its initial racing success as Thesecretadversary triumphs in a Listed competition
St Mark's Basilica's First Southern Hemisphere Offspring Make Debut
St Mark's Basilica, the European champion two-year-old of 2020, has made a significant impact in the Southern Hemisphere with his first-season offspring. The Coolmore shuttle stallion's first Southern Hemisphere-bred runners began debuting in the 2025 season, and Thesecretadversary, trained by Fozzy Stack, emerged as the first stakes winner during this season.
Thesecretadversary, previously known as Thesecretadversary, will make its debut under a new name, Diamond Necklace, in a fillies juvenile at the Curragh on Saturday. This colt is bred and raced by Coolmore & Cayton Park Stud. Its dam, Too Soon To Panic, is a Listed-winning daughter of Coolmore sire Gleneagles, while its second dam, Scream Blue Murder, is a Group 3 scorer.
St Mark's Basilica achieved significant success on the track, winning the G1 Dewhurst Stakes as a two-year-old and earning the title of European Horse Of The Year after securing four more Group 1 wins at three. He has been popular at stud in Australia, consistently covering over 100 mares each season, leading to 96 live foals in his first Southern Hemisphere crop. For the 2025 season, he had 20 named two-year-olds in Australia, ranking third among first-season sires there.
St Mark's Basilica is among the high-class shuttle stallions that arrived to introduce quality outcross bloodlines to the Southern Hemisphere breeding industry. Others include Wootton Bassett, Justify, and Pinatubo. His offspring have started showing promising racing potential on the track already, contributing to the growing impact of northern hemisphere champions shuttling to the south.
St Mark's Basilica's yearlings of 2024 sold for up to €1.7 million. The stallion stood for the 2025 season at a fee of €40,000. As a three-year-old, he was a brilliant racer, winning the French 2,000 Guineas, French Derby, Eclipse, and Irish Champion Stakes.
The debut of St Mark's Basilica's first Southern Hemisphere-bred runners marks an exciting chapter in the stallion's career. With Thesecretadversary's win in the Listed Churchill Stakes at Tipperary, it's clear that the impact of these offspring is already being felt on the racetrack. As more of these horses make their debuts, the anticipation for their performances continues to grow.
- St Mark's Basilica's offspring, bred in the Southern Hemisphere, have started displaying potential in horse-racing, following his successful career on the track in sports such as racing and the 2025 season saw the first stakes winner in Thesecretadversary.
- Activities in the horse-racing sports sphere are heightened with the debut of St Mark's Basilica's Southern Hemisphere-bred runners, the impact of which was exemplified by Thesecretadversary's win in the Listed Churchill Stakes at Tipperary, suggesting a promising future for this established bloodstock.
