Oi, horses, who's your greatest granddad?

The Byerley Turk. That's the name of a race at Greyville on Sunday. It's a Grade 3 affair with some good colts carded, but it should be a much grander event. It should be the grandest race in the world.

Racing followers might glance at the name, think it odd-sounding, and forget about it. Truth is, the Byerley Turk was the original thoroughbred and has been described as "the most remarkable horse in history".

All thoroughbred lineage goes back to three foundation sires: The Byerley Turk, the Godolphin Arabian and the Darley Arabian. The latter duo sired racers in the early 1700s, but the Turk was doing it years earlier, making him the first among the mighty trio.

His earlier history is extraordinary. He was born in 1678 on a feudal farm in the Balkans. The big dark bay of unknown breeding was schooled for war. Dressed in the glittering, ruby-studded harness of the sipahi, or Ottoman cavalry, he was sent to fight as a charger at the sieges of Vienna and Buda.

He faced musket, sabre and cannon and survived. Charger and groom were then captured in a skirmish by a unit of adventuring Britons, who forced horse and lad to make the long trek to England.

At the royal barracks of Hounslow, he was acquired by a Captain Robert Byerley in 1687. More blood and guts: Byerley charged his steed against the forces of deposed James II at the Battle of the Boyne - but not before stopping off at Downroyal races and easily winning the big race, the Silver Bell.

After two years of bitter campaigning in Ireland, Byerley retired his great warhorse at the age of 14. Stud wasn't top of mind. An observer at the time wrote: "Byerley is not interested in the fees, finding it a rather louche way of earning money. So, he has allowed his treasure to cover mares free of charge."

The Turk sired Jigg, who begot Partner, who begot Tartar, who begot Herod. Herod is a colossus in the stud book. So are Diomed - foundation sire of the American turf - Sultan, Tourbillon, Djebel, My Babu and recent star Cirrus de Aigles.

The Turk's daughters were perhaps even more influential, among them a taproot mare known as "Dam Of The Two True Blues". The peerless Frankel is descended from these female jewels of the bloodline.

The Byerley Turk died in 1703 at 25 and was buried at Goldsborough Hall in Yorkshire. Jeremy James, whose book on the horse is recommended, wrote: "No stone marks his grave ... but on racecourses throughout the world his blood thunders on."

It thunders on at Greyville, but in whose veins?

The form of Copper Force is compelling, he has a weight advantage over some of the other fancied runners and his draw is prime for the 1400m, so I'll side with him.

The badly spelt Red Chesnut Road recently raided Joburg and ran a decent race in fourth, behind Exquisite Touch. Back on home ground in his third outing after gelding, he might be a big improver.

The fillies equivalent on the day is the Umzimkhulu Stakes, a race that looks as tricky as the river I canoed upon back in the day. They should have called it the Dam Of The Two True Blues Stakes.