MECCA’S ANGEL has been sold to stud, and will stand to one of the world’s leading stallions Galileo as she begins her breeding career.

Michael Dods’ stable star was formally retired in the wake of her performance in Ascot’s Qipco British Champions Sprint Stakes at the weekend.

She retires having amassed more than £675,000 during her 20-race career, and will embark on a new life in breeding following her sale, which was brokered privately by Tom Goff of Blandford Bloodstock.

Galileo stands as a stallion at Coolmore Stud, and has sired 63 Group One winners including the likes of New Approach, Australia, Found and Minding.

“The time was right,” said Dods, who trained Mecca’s Angel at his Denton Hall stables, near Piercebridge. “She’s been a truly great filly for the yard and taken us to places we could only dream of getting to, but she’s got to an age where a mare is better off going to stud.

“It’s been a pleasure to have been associated with her. I remember her first race as if it was yesterday – it was a four-way photo finish at Thirsk, and she finished fourth – and from that point on, she never stopped improving.”

Mecca’s Angel claimed two Group One victories, winning back-to-back renewals of the Nunthorpe Stakes at York, and also claimed notable successes at Doncaster, Newbury, Longchamp and the Curragh during her career.

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She broke the track record at Longchamp, but Dods regards this year’s Nunthorpe triumph, in which she finished two lengths clear of a stellar field that also featured the likes of Limato, Take Cover, Profitable and Sole Power, as her greatest performance.

“I think that was probably her best-ever run,” he said. “The previous year’s race was a good one, but I thought this year’s Nunthorpe was an especially competitive race and she won it as easy as you’d like. She won a lot more convincingly than the previous year, even though I thought the opposition was better.

“She loved that flat track at York. For whatever reason, Ascot just didn’t really suit her, and we saw that at the weekend, even though the track bias meant she couldn’t have won no matter how she did.

“On a flat five furlongs, with the right ground, she was just about unbeatable, so it was places like Longchamp, Newbury and York where she really excelled. Those flat fives witnessed her very best performances.

“She never ran a bad race though – there was always a reason if things didn’t quite go as planned. She didn’t have a lot of racing because the ground obviously had to be right for her, but when you get a horse like that, it’s always a bit of a dream.”

Her departure will leave a big hole in Dods’ string, but the County Durham handler remains confident his yard will continue to go from strength to strength.

“You’re obviously sad to see her go, and I’m not saying we’ll ever get another one as good as her,” he said. “But time moves on and we’re fortunate to have a lot of very good owners who allow me to buy some nice horses.

“David Metcalfe (who owned Mecca’s Angel) has bought a couple, and hopefully they’ll train into nice horses to run. There’ll be no Mecca’s Angel next season, but we’ve still got some quality horses to be heading into the winter with.”