A multiple grade one winner, multiple stakes record-breaker and Breeders’ Cup hero, Johar is by Gone West, sire of sires Elusive Quality, Grand Slam, Mr. Greeley and Zafonic. What’s more, he is out of Champion and millionaire Windsharp, the dam of grade one winners Johar and Dessert with her first two foals.

Johar is free of the strain of Northern Dancer, and the Gone West/Northern Dancer cross has produced more than 100 stakes winners, including Speightstown, Grand Slam, Zafonic, El Corredor and Elusive Quality. Johar is half-brother to a grade one winner by Northern Dancer’s son, Storm Cat, and Storm Cat is also broodmare sire of Gone West’s Champion Sprinter Speightstown, so mares by Storm Cat and his sons should do well. There are several other Northern Dancer strains which have strong appeal here. Gone West sired at least six graded stakes winners out of mares by The Minstrel. He is bred on similar lines to Vice Regent and mares by that horse, and his son, Deputy Minister have done well with Gone West and his sons. Other branches of the Northern Dancer line which have worked with Gone West include Danzig, Nijinsky II, El Gran Senor, Be My Guest and Dixieland Band. Gone West and his sons have also worked with mares descending from Northern Dancer’s sire, Nearctic through Icecapade and his sons Clever Trick and Phone Trick. Johar should also like Northern Dancer through Sadler’s Wells and Nureyev, who give a double to the great family of Rough Shod II (also in Johar’s broodmare sire, Lt. Stevens).

Johar is out of a mare descending from Turn-to through Hail to Reason and Roberto. Other branches of the Turn-to line have worked well here. Gone West sired grade one winner West By West out of a mare by Cox’s Ridge and his grade one winner goes back to a mare by Cox’s Ridge’s sire, Best Turn. A son of Gone West sired Breeders’ Cup Sprint victor Cajun Beat out of a mare by Cure the Blues, and there is also a Gone West stakes winner out of a mare by Temperence Hill, like Cure the Blues, a son of Stop the Music. There are also four stakes winners by Gone West and his sons out of mares from the Halo branch of the Hail to Reason line.

Gone West appears to have a strong affinity for mares from the In Reality line, this cross produced classic winners Smarty Jones and Commendable. In Reality would be particularly interesting through Known Fact who is from the immediate family of Gone West and Atan (in Johar through Sharpen Up, sire of Johar’s second dam). The In Reality branches of Valid Appeal and Relaunch could also do well here, and Smarty Jones is out of a mare by Smile.

Gone West is a Raise a Native line stallion, but he could be suited by some other Raise a Native strains. Crossed back over mares descending from Raise a Native through Majestic Light, Gone West and his sons have sired three graded stakes winners, including grade one winner Nonsuch Bay. Johar could also be interesting with mares carrying the strain of Mr. Prospector’s genetic relative, Alydar. Other strains which are worth considering here include Ribot through Hoist the Flag, and Never Bend through Riverman and his son, Irish River.