The Botha family’s Benmarne Stud is no stranger to producing great results, both in the sales ring and on the racecourse.
Among the graduates of Benmarne are G1 Thekiwni Stakes winner Querari Falcon who also ran third in the 2016 G1 Cape Fillies Guineas, and the very talented Monks Hood.
The latter, a R375 000 buy from the 2016 National Yearling Sale, showed tremendous form in a brief South African campaign, with Monks Hood winning four of eight local starts including both the G2 Dingaans and G2 Gauteng Guineas. In landing the 2018 Guineas, Monks Hood trounced subsequent G1 Daily News 2000 winner Surcharge -who would go on to capture the G1 Cantala Stakes in Australia before retiring to stud in Victoria.
The farm have also reaped good results in the sales ring, with Benmarne selling Querari Falcon’s full-sister Free As The Wind for R1 100 000 at the 2020 National Yearling Sale.
Benmarne is a small stud that was started by the late Mr Ben Botha, whose son Arne currently manages the farm.
The name of the operation is a combination of Botha family names, as Arne explains, ‘Ben’ (for my father) M (for my mother, Marie, who is still involved with the farm) and Arne for me.”
The Bothas will be offering four yearlings at this year’s National Yearling Sale, including Imhotep (Lot 106), a Vercingetorix half-brother to Querari Falcon, and Shachath (Lot 219), a Global View filly whose dam is a full-sister to Java Handicap winner Fulcrum and a three-parts sister to champion Captain’s Lover.
Benmarne’s draft can be found in Block B come the week of the National Yearling Sale.
The Danika Stud has also produced equine stars to shine on both the racetrack and in the sales ring.
Among the notable thoroughbreds produced by the Eastern Cape farm are Equus Champions Kochka and Kings Gambit, the latter’s G1 winning dam Lady Brompton, and G1 President’s Champions Challenge victor Happy Landing. Other smart gallopers bred by Danika include Zouaves, who earned over R1 million during his career, and G3 UAE 2000 Guineas second Zanzamar.
Understandably, these results have seen considerable interest in Danika’s yearlings on offer, and Danika made headlines when selling a Gimmethegreenlight colt, on behalf of the Missing U Syndicate, for R1.2 million at the 2020 National 2YO Sale.
Danika will be offering two lots, one on behalf of the Missing U Syndicate, at the 2022 National Sale.
Zinovi (Lot 262), a colt from the first crop of G1 SA Classic winner Heavenly Blue, is a half-brother to G2 Hawaii Stakes winner Zouaves, while Global Force (Lot 15) is a Global View colt whose stakes placed dam is bred on similar lines to the aforementioned Kings Gambit.
Interested parties can view the above the lots in block H at the TBA complex.
