Code of Honor First Top-Level Winner for Noble Mission

Noble Mission  has always lived in the shadow of his brilliant older brother Frankel, but he is no black sheep of the family.

The 10-year-old, who retired to Lane's End in Kentucky with three group 1 victories to his name, became the sire of a top-flight winner Aug. 24 when his son Code of Honor stormed to victory in the Runhappy Travers Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course.

Code of Honor, who was promoted to second in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) before landing the Dwyer Stakes (G3) last month, pounced wide on the outside around the home turn and stayed on strongly to beat the frontrunning Tacitus (by Tapit ) by three lengths.

The colt trained by Shug McGaughey for owner/breeder Will Farish of Lane's End is the eighth foal out of the grade 3-winning Dixie Union mare Reunited, making him a half brother to six other winners, including Best Pal Stakes (G2) runner-up Big League.

Reunited is in turn a half sister to stakes winners Deal Breaker and Wind Tunnel and also to Dance Lively, the dam of Japanese grade 3 scorer Live Concert. Farther back, it is the family of high-class performers Fiesta Lady, Thorn Song, and Bsharpsonata.

Farish must have derived extra satisfaction from Code of Honor's exploits—he won the Xpressbet Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) and took third in the Xpressbet Florida Derby (G1)—as the colt was a $70,000 RNA at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale two years ago.

Code of Honor also, of course, burnishes the reputation of home stallion Noble Mission, whose first crop are 3-year-olds.

Noble Mission is also sire of Bahrain Trophy Stakes (G3) winner Spanish Mission, who features prominently in ante-post betting for the William Hill St. Leger (G1), and listed-placed Life Mission. Another son, Humanitarian, is a dual winner for John Gosden and ran a creditable seventh in the Investec Derby (G1).

Noble Mission was, like Frankel, bred by Juddmonte Farms from Galileo and the listed-winning Danehill mare Kind and was sent into training with Sir Henry Cecil for owner Khalid Abdullah.

Second in his sole start at 2, he won the Qatar Racing Newmarket Stakes and Bet365 Gordon Stakes (G3) at 3 and the Tapster Stakes at 4. He hit peak form at 5 when he landed the Bet365 Gordon Richards Stakes (G3) by nine lengths and added the Betfair Price Rush Huxley Stakes (G3), Tattersalls Gold Cup (G1), Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud (G1)—on the later disqualification of Spiritjim—and QIPCO Champion Stakes (G1) to his résumé.

He spent his first three seasons at Lane's End at a fee of $25,000, which was reduced to $20,000 last year and cut again to $15,000 for 2019.

As in his racing career, he will have to go some to match the achievements of Frankel at stud—though the dual world champion has been granted better chances in terms of quality and quantity of mares sent to him.

Frankel, who stood at Banstead Manor Stud in Newmarket this year at £175,000, is the source of 37 pattern winners. Eight of them have struck at the highest level, including joint world champion Cracksman and Investec Oaks (G1) heroine Anapurna.

Kind is the dam of three other sons who have entered the breeding shed: Frankel's former pacemaker Bullet Train (by Sadler's Wells), who originally stood in America but now fulfills a dual-purpose role at Woodfield Farm Stud in Ireland; Morpheus (by Oasis Dream), who spent four seasons at Tally-Ho Stud until he was transferred to Haras du Grand Chesnaie in France in 2019; and Proconsul (by Galileo), who crossed the Irish Sea from Mickley Stud to Annshoon Stud this year.

Code of Honor is another fine ambassador for the late-foal brigade, as he was born May 23.