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{{Short description|Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
 
{{Infobox racehorse
| horsename = Double Form
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| record = 19:7-4-5
| earnings =
| race = [[Temple Stakes]] (1979)<br />[[King's Stand Stakes]] (1979)<br />[[Haydock Sprint Cup]] (1979)<br />[[Prix de l'Abbaye]] (1979)
| awards= Timeform rating 110p (1977), 123 (1978), 130 (1979)<br />Gilbey Champion Sprinter (1979)
| updated =
}}
 
'''Double Form''' (14 February 1975&ndash; – 22 April 1983) was an Irish-bred British [[Thoroughbred]] racehorse and [[Horse breeding#Terminology|sire]]. A specialist sprinter, he showed promise as a two-year-old in 1977, and improved to become a high-class performer in 1978. He won only one race as a three-year-old but was placed in several major sprints. In 1979 he improved again to become the highest-rated sprinter in the United Kingdom, winning the [[Temple Stakes]], [[King's Stand Stakes]] and [[Haydock Sprint Cup]] in England and the [[Prix de l'Abbaye]] in France. He was the first horse to win both the King's Stand Stakes and the Prix de l'Abbaye. He was retired to stud where he was an immediate success but died inon 22 April 1983.
 
==Background==
Double Form was a "big, strong, good-looking"<ref name="Timeform1977">{{cite book |author=Timeform staff| title=Racehorses of 1977| publisher=Timeform|year=1978|isbn=0-900599-25-1}}</ref> bay horse with no white [[Horse markings|markings]] bred in Ireland by his owner Baroness Thyssen. He was sired by Habitat, an American-bred, British-raced miler who became one of the leading European stallions of the 1970s and 1980s. His other progeny included [[Habibti]], [[Marwell (horse)|Marwell]], [[Rose Bowl (horse)|Rose Bowl]], [[Flying Water]], [[Homing (horse)|Homing]] and [[Sigy (horse)|Sigy]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pedigreepost.net/archives/HabitatPt2NigelPullen.htm |title=Habitat |publisher=Pedigreepost.net |date=2002-02-03 |accessdate=2012-08-04 |deadurlurl-status=yesdead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111128055607/http://www.pedigreepost.net:80/archives/HabitatPt2NigelPullen.htm |archivedate=2011-11-28 |df= }}</ref> and he was the British [[Leading broodmare sire in Great Britain & Ireland|Champion broodmare sire]] on three occasions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tbheritage.com/HistoricSires/LeadingSires/GBLeadingBSSires.html |title=Leading Broodmare Sires of Great Britain and Ireland |publisher=Tbheritage.com |date= |accessdate=2012-08-04}}</ref> Double Form's dam, Fanghorn was placed in the [[Poule d'Essai des Pouliches]] and was also the dam of Gradiva, the ancestor of the [[Irish Derby]] winner [[Soldier of Fortune (horse)|Soldier of Fortune]].<ref name="bloodlines1">{{cite web|url=http://www.bloodlines.net/TB/Families/Family14c.htm |title=Thoroughbred Bloodlines - Pretty Polly - Family 14-c |publisher=Bloodlines.net |date= |accessdate=2014-06-03}}</ref> Baroness Thyssen sent the colt into training with Fulke Johnson Houghton at [[Blewbury]] in [[Wiltshire]].<ref>{{cite news|url=httphttps://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/horseracing/2344264/Johnson-Houghton-to-retire-at-end-of-season.html |title=Johnson Houghton to retire at end of season|newspaper=Telegraph|accessdate=2 June 2012}}</ref> Double Form usually raced in [[Blinkers (horse tack)|blinkers]]
 
==Racing career==
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Double Form began his third season with an easy win over six furlongs at [[Thirsk Racecourse]] and then finished second to [[Vaigly Great]] in the five furlong [[Palace House Stakes]] at Newmarket, beaten one and a half lengths. At Sandown in May, the colt recorded his first Group race success in the Temple Stakes, beating Ahonoora by a length, with the filly Greenland Park a length and a half away in third place. In June at Royal Ascot, Double Form was moved back up to Group One level for the King's Stand Stakes, in which he started at odds of 12/1 and ridden by John Reid. The field included Vaigly Great, Ahonoora, Golden Thatch ([[Ballyogan Stakes]], [[Greenlands Stakes]]), [[Devon Ditty]] ([[Cheveley Park Stakes]], [[Flying Childers Stakes]]) and King of Macedon ([[Prix Maurice de Gheest]]). The race was dominated from the start by Golden Thatch, Double Form and Ahonoora. When Golden Thatch weakened a furlong from the finish, Double Form went to the front and held off the persistent challenge of Ahonoora to win by three-quarters of a length.<ref name="Timeform1979">{{cite book |author=Timeform staff| title=Racehorses of 1979| publisher=Timeform|year=1980|isbn=0-900599-29-4}}</ref>
 
Double Form was aimed at the [[July Cup]] over six furlongs at Newmarket, but was withdrawn after contracting a viral infection, and did not appear again until the [[William Hill Sprint Championship]] at [[York Racecourse]] in August. He appeared to be less than fully fit and finished fourth behind [[Thatching (horse)|Thatching]], Ahonoora and Abdu, but was promoted to third after the winner was disqualified for causing interference in the closing stages.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2507&dat=19790908&id=UcFAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=46UMAAAAIBAJ&pg=3101,1632935 |title=Ile de Bourbon should win September Stakes |author="White and Gold" |publisher=[[Glasgow Herald]] |date=8 September 1979 |accessdate=2014-06-14}}</ref> In September, Double Form started at odds of 11/4 for the [[Vernons Sprint Cup]] and won by three lengths from Ahonoora. He was ridden in this race by the veteran [[Geoff Lewis]], who had been peruadedpersuaded by Fulke Johnson Houghton to postpone his retirement to take the ride. After the race Lewis said; "It was well worth it, it's wonderful to go out on a winner in a big race like this".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Rolling+back+the+years%3A+Lewis+bows+out+in+style+on+Double+Form.-a091186479 |title=Rolling back the years: Lewis bows out in style on Double Form |publisher=[[Racing Post]] |date=8 September 2002 |accessdate=2014-06-14}}</ref> Double Form's final race was the Prix de l'Abbaye on 7 October. Although the King's Stand Stakes and the Abbaye were the only two Group One races in Europe open to three-year-olds and older horses, no sprinter had previously completed the double. Double Form started 3.9/1 second favourite behind Thatching, with the other contenders including King of Macedon, [[Sigy (horse)|Sigy]], Ahonoora, Adraan ([[Prix d'Arenberg]], [[Prix du Bois]]), Greenland Park and [[Kilijaro]]. Making the most of a favourable inside draw, Reid sent Double Form into an early lead and looked likely to win easily 400 metres from the finish. In the closing stage however, he began to tire but ran on "most bravely", and in a very close finish he prevailed by a head and a nose from Kilijaro and Greenland Park, with the Irish filly Baby Brew half a length away in fourth.<ref name="Timeform1979"/>
 
==Assessment==
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==Stud record==
Double Form was retired from racing to become a breeding stallion at the Airlie Stud, near [[Dublin]] at a fee of £4,000 in 1980. He had little opportunity to establish, himself, dying inon 22 April 1983 at the age of eight, after severing a main artery when covering a mare.<ref name="Timeform1985">{{cite book|author=Timeform staff|title=Racehorses of 1985| publisher=Timeform |year = 1986|isbn=0-900599-42-1}}</ref> He showed considerable promise in his brief stud career, siring [[Huntingdale (horse)|Huntingdale]], Timeform's top-rated two-year-old of 1985 and [[Double Schwartz]] a sprinter who emulated his sire by winning the Prix de l'Abbaye in 1986.
 
==Pedigree==
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[[Category:1975 racehorse births]]
[[Category:1983 racehorse deaths]]
[[Category:Thoroughbred racehorses]]
[[Category:Racehorses bred in Ireland]]
[[Category:Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom]]