PULLOUT PREVIEW Thursday, December 12, 2019
NEW US SIRES Your guide to the 2020 freshmen headed by Audible, Mitole, Vino Rosso and Yoshida
Featuring a comprehensive assessment of the stud arrivals and an in-depth focus on WinStar Farm
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Thursday, December 12, 2019 racingpost.com
BLOODSTOCK SPECIAL NEW US SIRES OF 2020
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Our A-Z guide to the exciting recruits to the North American stallion ranks nicholas godfrey with his expert guide to the track and pedigree profiles of the freshmen entering stud Audible
Four-year-old bay by Into Mischief out of Blue Devil Bel (by Gilded Time) Stands at WinStar Farm Llc, Versailles, Kentucky; $25,000 Described as “the best Into Mischief I’ve seen” by his trainer Todd Pletcher, Audible was one of the best three-year-olds of his generation in 2018 when he was third to Triple Crown winner Justify in the Kentucky Derby after meeting trouble in the stretch. Boasting a career record of five wins from ten starts, the consistent New York-bred was never off the board in five starts during his Classic season, flashing brilliance at Gulfstream Park, winning the G2 Holy Bull by five and a half lengths before a three-length victory in the G1 Florida Derby. Subsequent G1 winners Catholic Boy and Promises Fulfilled were among the beaten horses in the latter contest. Purchased for $500,000 at Fasig-Tipton’s Florida Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale, Audible’s female side traces back to three-time G1 winner Classy Cathy. Having finished fifth in both the Pegasus and Dubai World Cups at four, he goes to stud after banking more than $2.1 million in prize-money. “He was one of the best in a historic class,” said WinStar president Elliott Walden. “He separates himself from other sons of Into Mischief with his looks and presence.”
Bahjatty
2yo b Carpe Diem - Sarayir (Mr Prospector) Indiana Stallion Station, Anderson, Indiana; private The name may not be entirely familiar but the pedigree certainly is given that this unraced juvenile hails from one of the most celebrated
female lines in existence, namely the family of Height Of Fashion, who is his second dam. Her reputation as a broodmare hardly needs recounting with progeny headed by the top-class trio Nashwan, Nayef and Unfuwain. Standing under the Shadwell banner at the Indiana Stallion Station, Bahjatty is by Carpe Diem, a dual G1-winning son of Giant’s Causeway who won both the Breeders’ Futurity and the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland for trainer Todd Pletcher. It is his dam’s side that is likely to make him stand out to Indiana breeders, however, as he is out of Oh So Sharp stakes victress Sarayir, the beautifully bred daughter of Mr Prospector whose progeny include several Pattern-race winners headed by Classic heroine Ghanaati (by Giant’s Causeway), who won the 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket in 2009. Other siblings include Mawatheeq (by Danzig), who won the G3 Cumberland Lodge Stakes at Ascot, and Feilden Stakes winner Rumoush. “He was unraced due to an injury,” explained Shadwell’s US stallion manager Kent Barnes. “He is a very good-looking colt, standing over 17 hands high and obviously from one of our better families so we decided to give him a shot at stud out of state and see what kind of foals he can sire.”
Breaking Lucky
7yo ch Lookin At Lucky - Shooting Party (Sky Classic) Blue Star Racing, Scott, Louisiana; $5,000 A regular at the top level over a number of seasons, Breaking Lucky is a Graded stakes-winning millionaire and a half-brother to the dam of Kentucky Derby winner Country House. The son of Preakness and Haskell winner Lookin At Lucky – sire of Breeders’ Cup Classic hero Accelerate – was G1-placed on several occasions, including three times behind Gun Runner, the 2017 Horse of the Year, all of them over a mile and a furlong, including second place in the Clark Handicap. He was also third in both the Stephen Foster and the Whitney, and ran in the inaugural Pegasus World Cup in 2017. Trained for the majority of his long career by Reade Baker, he won the Prince of Wales Stakes, the second leg of the Canadian Triple Crown, on dirt at Fort Erie as a three-year-old; he was also a G3 winner on synthetics at Woodbine. Breaking Lucky, who retires to Louisiana-based Blue Star with nearly $1.2m in earnings, is the third foal out of G1-placed winner Shooting Party, also responsible for the winning filly Quake Lake, the dam of Country House (also by Lookin At Lucky).
“This is an opportunity for the breeders in our area to tap into a sire line that is red hot,” said Blue Star Racing owner Dex Comardelle, speaking to the BloodHorse. “You’re also tapping into a very deep female family as well.”
Catalina Cruiser
5yo ch Union Rags - Sea Gull (Mineshaft) Lane’s End, Versailles, Kentucky; $20,000 A scopey chestnut who carried the colours of Hronis Racing, Catalina Cruiser took high rank among sprinter-milers on the southern Californian circuit, where he recorded a series of three-digit Beyers. With a special liking for Del Mar, he was beaten only twice in nine career starts during which he showed a fondness for racing prominently, either on or near the front. His breakthrough season came as a four-year-old in 2018 when he registered wide-margin victories in the San Diego Handicap and Pat O’Brien Stakes (both G2 events over seven furlongs); he
Search for the next big thing starts here
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HE 2020 intake of new sires in North America looks well up to scratch, including as it does such fabulous performers on the track as this year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic hero Vino Rosso, Breeders’ Cup Sprint history-maker Mitole, and 2018 Woodward Stakes victor Yoshida. The aforementioned Breeders’ Cup-winning duo will be studmates at Spendthrift Farm, while Japanese-bred Yoshida retires to WinStar. Also new to WinStar next year – the focus of our feature by Michele MacDonald on pages 6-7 – is a Grade 1 winner who appears at the other end of our A-Z new sires rundown, Audible, the Florida Derby winner. He will start out at $25,000, with Yoshida at $20,000. That A-Z list, diligently compiled by US racing expert Nicholas Godfrey, will undoubtedly contain the sires of future European stars, and it will be fascinating to see
how their second careers pan out, as it will for the sires who featured in these pages 12 months ago, such as Justify, Mendelssohn and Oscar Performance. While Bricks And Mortar is retiring to Japan, like Oscar Performance before him he was a poster boy this year for US turf horses, and the lines between dirt and turf sires seem to be blurring. What is clear is that the choice of new sires in North America is vast. Breeders will be busy plotting the right mate for their mare, taking into account a range of factors, a prominent one being price. The goal is to get into a stallion whose fee subsequently looks a bargain. It is a puzzle that will also be occupying the minds of the British and Irish bloodstock community, and we will be back in the new year with our supplement focusing on the exciting intake of British and Irish stallions for 2020. Andrew ScuttS, bloodStock mAnAging editor
brushed aside subsequent Breeders’ Cup scorer Battle Of Midway by more than seven lengths in the latter contest. Catalina Cruiser completed the same Del Mar double this year, while a stakes-record performance from off the pace in the G2 True North at Belmont Park showed he was more than a hometown hero. A Keeneland September yearling sold for $370,000, Catalina Cruiser is a multi-generational homebred on both sides of his pedigree. A son of Belmont Stakes winner Union Rags, his sire line goes back to Dixieland Band; he is out of a dam by Horse of the Year Mineshaft. “We’re very excited to have a fourth-generation sire at Lane’s End,” said Bill Farish, speaking to the BloodHorse. “He’s a big, scopey horse who I think gets most of his looks from Union Rags. People love a stallion who looks like he’ll get good-sized commercial yearlings, and he looks like this.”
Catholic Boy
4yo b More Than Ready - Song Of Bernadette (Bernardini) Claiborne Farm, Paris, Kentucky; $25,000 Catholic Boy gained distinction as a three-year-old when he became only the third North American colt to win G1 events on both dirt and turf, joining an elite group also including Secretariat and California Chrome thanks to his victories in the Belmont Derby and the Travers Stakes. With a dominant career-best effort in the latter, he readily handled a sensational field featuring Mendelssohn, Bravazo, Good Magic and Vino Rosso for a four-length victory. Trained by Jonathan Thomas, he was a six-time Graded-stakes winner altogether – including two in a three-win juvenile campaign, one each on turf and dirt, the latter a near-five-length success in the G2 Remsen. Tough and versatile, he travelled to
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Racing Post Thursday, December 12, 2019
Pictures: MICHELE MACDONALD
Claiborne Farm new recruit Catholic Boy and (right) Audible, the Florida Derby winner by Into Mischief who retires to WinStar Farm
nine different tracks in a three-year career before retiring to join the stallion roster at Claiborne having banked $2.1m in prize-money.
Victory in the G2 Dixie Stakes at Pimlico in May meant he was a Graded stakes winner at two, three and four.
By the top sire More Than Ready, who has sired G1 winners in seven countries, Catholic Boy is the second foal out of Bernardini mare Song Of
Bernadette, sold in foal to War Front for $2.3m at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November Sale in 2018. Claiborne’s Walker Hancock said:
“A Graded stakes winner on both dirt and turf at two, and Grade 1 winner on both dirt and turf at three, makes
Continues page 4
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Thursday, December 12, 2019 racingpost.com
BLOODSTOCK SPECIAL NEW US SIRES OF 2020 From page 3
him one of the most versatile and unique stallion prospects on the market. Plus, being a son of More Than Ready opens him up to breed to a very wide variety of mares.”
Coal Front
5yo dk b/br Stay Thirsty - Miner’s Secret (Mineshaft) Spendthrift Farm. Lexington, Kentucky; $5,000 A five-time Group/Graded winner of more than $1.8m, the good-looking Coal Front is one of several high-profile additions to the stallion band at B Wayne Hughes’s Spendthrift operation. Sold for $575,000 as a two-year-old at Ocala, the son of Travers Stakes winner Stay Thirsty won eight of 13 career starts, among them Graded stakes at a range of distances from six furlongs to a mile and half a furlong. Generally racing on or near the lead, he won four of his five starts as a three-year-old before progressing again at four and five and proving himself a world-class dirt miler with a memorable victory, overcoming a wide draw to contest the pace, in the richly endowed G2 Godolphin Mile on Meydan’s Dubai World Cup card in March. Out of a multiple stakes-producing Mineshaft mare, Coal Front is inbred 4x4x4 to Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew and 3x3 to A.P. Indy. “You’d be hard pressed to find many stallions better looking than Coal Front, who is the newest horse being offered through our ‘Share The Upside’ programme,” said Spendthrift general manager Ned Toffey.
Demarchelier
3yo b Dubawi - Loveisallyouneed (Sadler’s Wells) Claiborne Farm, Paris, Kentucky; $5,000 A Graded stakes winner on turf, Demarchelier is sure to command attention as he retires to historic Claiborne as the only son of European super stallion Dubawi standing in Kentucky. Named after Patrick Demarchelier, the French fashion photographer who was once Princess Diana’s personal snapper, the colt is regally bred indeed, out of an unraced sister to Ballydoyle G1-winning fillies Yesterday and Quarter Moon. There are eight G1 winners under the first three dams. Bred by Newsells Park, Demarchelier was sold as a yearling for 425,000gns from Tattersalls Book 1 to join owner Peter Brant’s team with Chad Brown, for whom he showed brilliance in winning his first three starts, all on turf, notably when displaying a remarkable turn of foot to close six wide and win the G3 Pennine Ridge Stakes over nine furlongs at Belmont. Among those behind were Henley’s Joy and Social Paranoia, subsequently one-two in the G1 Belmont Derby, in which Demarchelier was well fancied but was pulled up after taking a bad step. “Demarchelier had as much talent and turn of foot as any young turf colt I’ve trained,” said Brown. “He’s outstanding-looking, precocious, and has a great mind. I’ll certainly be in the marketplace buying his offspring for years to come.”
Disco Partner
7yo gr Disco Rico - Lulu’s Number (Numerous) Rockridge Stud, Hudson, NY; $5,000 A powerful late-running sprinter, Disco Partner was a formidable
performer at six furlongs on turf across several seasons – especially when he was at home at Belmont Park, where he won back-to-back renditions of the G2/G3 Jaipur Invitational Stakes, beating strong fields full of top turf sprinters on both occasions. He also tallied repeat victories in the Belmont Turf Sprint Invitational Stakes, and even scored a Listed win at a mile at Belmont. Bred in New York by owner Patricia Generazio, the son of Disco Rico twice earned G1 placings in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint, although probably his finest hour came in the 2017 Jaipur when he charged between horses down the stretch before stopping the clock in a sizzling 1min 05.67sec to establish a world record for six furlongs on turf. Out of the winning Numerous mare Lulu’s Number, Disco Partner retired with a career record of 11 wins and 14 places from 33 starts for prize-money earnings just shy of $1.5m. “I believe Disco Partner is a very exciting prospect for New York breeders,” said trainer Christophe Clement. “He had a tremendous amount of speed, and speed is always dangerous. He also had a fantastic
turn of foot and he’s retiring perfectly sound after consistently racing for many years at the highest level.”
Divisidero
7yo b Kitten’s Joy - Madame Du Lac (Lemon Drop Kid) Airdrie Stud, Midway, Kentucky; $7,500 Durable, resilient and blessed with a potent turn of foot, Divisidero was a turf miler through and through, near the top of the division for several years. A multiple G1-winning son of champion turf sire Kitten’s Joy, he recorded no fewer than 13 three-digit Beyers and was a stakes winner during every one of his five seasons of racing. Divisidero retired with career earnings exceeding $1.6m, much of it accrued via his exploits at Churchill Downs on the Kentucky Derby card where he was successful three years in a row, including back-to-back triumphs in the G1 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic. Among the horses behind him in his favourite race were a litany of US turf stars, such as Beach Patrol, Tourist, Big Blue Kitten, Oscar Nominated and World Approval. Although he is best known for his
Churchill Downs exploits, where he was also beaten only three-quarters of a length in the 2018 Breeders’ Cup Mile, Divisidero also set a track record at Belmont Park as a three-year-old. “Divisidero is a multiple Grade 1-winning millionaire by one of the best stallions in the world and from one of the most important female families the breed has known,” said Airdrie Stud’s Bret Jones. “When he was at his best he beat the top turf horses in America at Grade 1 level and did so with the turn of foot of a special horse. He deserves every chance to become an important sire.”
Enticed
4yo dk b/br Medaglia D’Oro - It’s Tricky (Mineshaft) Darley, Lexington, Kentucky; $10,000 Joining the Darley roster at Jonabell is Godolphin homebred Enticed, whose pedigree jumps out of the page as a multiple Graded-stakes-winning son of Medaglia D’Oro – now responsible for 25 individual G1 winners – out of top-class racemare It’s Tricky, a three-time G1 scorer by Mineshaft. Among several placed efforts in top company, she was also second in the Breeders’ Cup Ladies’ Classic.
Trained like his dam by Kiaran McLaughlin, Enticed lived up to his stellar pedigree as a two-year-old when he was third in the G1 Champagne Stakes on only his second start after breaking his maiden at Saratoga. On his final two-year-old start, Enticed went on to stamp himself a leading Classic contender with victory over a field full of future stakes winners in the G2 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes. At three he posted a convincing victory in the G3 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct before returning to the same venue with a runner-up effort behind this year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic hero Vino Rosso in the Wood Memorial. “We’re extremely excited to stand Enticed at Darley,” said Darren Fox, Darley’s sales manager in America. “He’s physically outstanding and we think he represents great value for breeders, with a lot of upside.”
Flameaway
4yo ch Scat Daddy - Vulcan Rose (Fusaichi Pegasus) Darby Dan Farm. Lexington, Kentucky; $7,500 A talented representative of the
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Racing Post Thursday, December 12, 2019
New stallion intake for 2020 (from top left, then clockwise): Force The Pass, Demarchelier, Divisidero, Heart To Heart, Enticed, Catalina Cruiser and Coal Front; (inset, left) Flameaway and (below) Leofric
coveted Scat Daddy bloodline, the consistent Flameaway is a five-time stakes winner who scored on dirt, turf and synthetic surfaces during a three-year racing career in which he captured stakes at two, three and four. Purchased for $400,000 by owner John Oxley at Fasig-Tipton’s Saratoga Select Yearling Sale in 2016, Flameaway was a dual stakes winner at two, scoring at Saratoga and Keeneland, the most prestigious venues in the country. Trained by Mark Casse, he enjoyed his finest hour the following season with a tenacious front-running effort in the G3 Sam F Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs, where he beat Catholic Boy and Vino Rosso, later to win an array of G1s between them. Having finished first or second in nine of his 18 career starts, Flameaway was retired with earnings of more than $900,000 after winning at distances from four and a half furlongs up to a mile and half a furlong. With speed inherited from his late sire, Flameaway hails from a female family inundated with European
stamina. His third dam is Flame Of Tara, who numbered Salsabil and Marju among her five black-type offspring. “We’re excited to stand Flameaway, a versatile and talented son of Scat Daddy,” said Darby Dan stallion director Ryan Norton. “He was precocious, proven over all surfaces, and won sprinting and while routing some of the top runners of his generation.”
Force The Pass
7yo ch Speightstown - Social Queen (Dynaformer) Anchor & Hope Farm, Port Deposit, Maryland; $4,000 Standing in Maryland as the property of TK Kuegler’s Wasabi Ventures Stallions, G1-winning millionaire Force The Pass is an attractive physical specimen, likely to be popular with breeders in the mid-Atlantic region. By rising sire of sires Speightstown, Force The Pass catapulted himself to the forefront of the three-year-old turf division when he followed up a gutsy G3 victory in the Penn Mile with an emphatic three-and-three-quarter-length
triumph in the G1 Belmont Derby Invitational over a mile and a quarter. Flying home in a closing half-mile sectional of 45.65sec, he had the likes of Divisidero, Bolo, Takeover Target and Startup Nation behind him. Also G1-placed that season behind Highland Reel in the Secretariat Stakes, he went on to accrue several further Graded stakes-placings in a career featuring five wins from 21 starts, among them a stakes victory as a six-year-old. He retired sound after amassing more than $1.35m in prize-money. Out of a multiple G3-winning daughter of Dynaformer and half-brother to a winner by Giant’s Causeway, Force The Pass is from the immediate female family of G1 winner Perfect Drift. “We think Force The Pass offers incredible value to mid-Atlantic breeders given his combination of race record, pedigree and physique,” said Kuegler. “We expect to use an aggressive marketing campaign to get 100 mares to the horse in his first season, which will give him every chance to live up to his potential at stud.”
Heart To Heart
Pictures: MICHELE MACDONALD, EQUISPORT/WENDY WOOLEY, NYRA
8yo b English Channel - Ask The Question (Silver Deputy) Crestwood Farm, Lexington, Kentucky; $5,000 A multiple Graded stakes winner on turf, including twice in G1 company, Heart To Heart retired after seven seasons on the track with a deserved reputation for soundness, durability and longevity. Having scored on his debut and stakes placed at two, he went on to win Graded stakes at three, four, five, six and seven, winning 15 times altogether from 41 career starts for more than $2m in earnings. Ten of his 13 stakes wins were gained in wire-to-wire fashion, the modus operandi employed when he landed back-to-back G1 wins as a seven-year-old in 2018, in the Gulfstream Park Turf and Maker’s Mark 46 Mile at Keeneland. Named champion three-year-old in his native Canada in 2014, Heart To Heart landed Graded stakes at six different venues. He was no slouch either, recording 18 three-digit Beyer figures throughout his long career. Bred in Ontario and trained for the
majority of his career by Brian Lynch, Heart To Heart is by champion turf horse English Channel out of a winning mare from the family of G1 winner Chart The Stars. “Heart to Heart is the racehorse we should all aspire to breed and race,” said Crestwood Farm’s Robert Keck. “He was precocious, fast, versatile and sound. He had miler speed, an amazing pedigree, and is a flawless physical. He has everything to be a top sire of fast and sound runners.”
Leofric
6yo gr/ro Candy Ride - Lady Godiva (Unbridled’s Song) Rockridge Stud, Hudson, NY; $7,500 A G1-winning son of noted sire of sires Candy Ride, Leofric blossomed in his later career, winning three times at Oaklawn Park as a four-year-old before stepping up in grade and really leaving his mark on the ‘handicap’ division the following season. Trained by Brad Cox, he won five of his seven starts at five, notably when seizing the lead in the stretch and then gamely holding off Preakness Continues page 8
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Thursday, December 12, 2019 racingpost.com
BLOODSTOCK SPECIAL NEW US SIRES OF 2020
Michele MacDonald speaks to WinStar Farm’s Sean Tugel about new recruit Yoshida, a grandson of the great Sunday Silence
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HREE decades ago American breeders snubbed their 1989 Horse of the Year as not worthy of support at stud, with their chilling lack of interest the primary factor that spurred his sale abroad. During the upcoming breeding season they will have a chance to make up for what, in hindsight, appears to have been an egregious error in judgment as the first elite American-raced scion of the now legendary male line established by Sunday Silence in Japan will begin stud duty at WinStar Farm. A Grade 1 winner on dirt and turf, Yoshida offers his exceptional versatility as well as dashes of the exotic through his sire, Sunday Silence’s Japanese champion Heart’s Cry, and the familiar through his dam, American Grade 1 winner Hilda’s Passion, a finalist for the 2011 Eclipse Award as best female sprinter. In the weeks after his arrival at WinStar in early November, Yoshida impressed admirers with his physical attractiveness in addition to his multi-dimensional race record. Capitalising on the storybook angle of his potential, WinStar promoted the sleek bay on social media as #theReturnofSundaySilence. Yet WinStar officials found that, even all these years later, they still have work to do in lobbying for this male line. Their main task at present revolves around tutoring the strengths of Yoshida’s sire Heart’s Cry, a top stallion in Japan whose offspring have performed with distinction internationally but who is not familiar to many Americans. “That’s probably the one part of Yoshida’s profile that I think we have to educate people on,” observes Sean Tugel, WinStar director of bloodstock services and assistant racing manager. “He’s the return of the Sunday Silence line, but what people also have to realise is that Heart’s Cry is a leading sire. He’s one of the premier sires in not only Japan but the world. “Heart’s Cry sired the winner of the Cox Plate in 2019 [the mare Lys Gracieux], and more recently he had the winner of the Japan Cup [Suave Richard]. People may not know exactly who Heart’s Cry is, and it’s our job to tell them, but he’s a top sire and you’re getting a chance to breed to a son of a premier horse. And Hilda’s Passion, Yoshida’s dam, was a Grade 1 winner and a track record-setter, so there’s very little not to like about this horse. “Heart’s Cry already has a son, Just A Way, who is the leading second-crop sire in Japan [and worldwide, by progeny earnings]. So Yoshida has all the ingredients to be a substantial sire,” he adds, before saluting Yoshida’s great grandsire, a foundation rock to which breeders can also cling. “We all know what the Halo line has done all over the world,” says Tugel.
No silencing versatile star of the track who offers breeders a shot at redemption Yoshida’s arrival at the farm was actually set into motion in the summer of 2015. WinStar, through agent John McCormack, bought the then yearling colt bred by Katsumi Yoshida’s Northern Farm for ¥94 million (around $750,000) at the Japan Racing Horse Association select sale in Hokkaido. WinStar officials and associates had travelled to Japan to try to repatriate Empire Maker to America, but Gainesway Farm and Don Alberto Corp succeeded in the bidding for that stallion, who had previously been sold by Juddmonte Farms to the Japan Bloodhorse Breeders’ Association. Instead, WinStar acquired three yearlings and two foals at the JRHA sale. In addition to being the most expensive of that group, Yoshida proved the best by far on the racetrack, as well as a fitting honour for his namesakes in the Yoshida family,
including Teruya Yoshida of Shadai Farm, breeder of Heart’s Cry. Trained by Bill Mott, Yoshida delivered a fine performance on his two-year-old debut, finishing second over a mile on turf after being hampered in deep stretch, and he proceeded to win his next two races, also on grass and including a Listed stakes, impressively. From that time forward Yoshida raced only in Graded/Group events, with 11 of his 18 career efforts in Grade/Group 1 competition. He scored his first major victory in the Grade 1 Turf Classic Stakes on yielding Churchill Downs ground in May 2018, defeating a field that included five top-level winners. That effort was so convincing that his connections, including co-owners China Horse Club and SF Racing, opted to send him to Royal Ascot for the Queen Anne Stakes. Yoshida acquitted himself with dignity, Sean Tugel: “Yoshida’s a very classy horse, he takes everything in his stride”
finishing only a length and a quarter behind winner Accidental Agent in fifth, but notably in front of Grade/ Group 1 winners Benbatl, Rhododendron, Limato, Suedois and Recoletos on good to firm ground. About two and a half months later Yoshida stormed home to capture the Grade 1 Woodward Stakes on dirt at Saratoga, defeating 13 rivals and defining himself as the ultimate kind of modern international runner who could perform no matter what sort of material lay beneath his feet. Following up that landmark score with a start in the Breeders’ Cup Classic on dirt, Yoshida encountered some bad luck, bobbling at the start and rallying six wide, but still winding up less than two lengths behind winner Accelerate and just a nose behind third-placed Thunder Snow. Finishing to Yoshida’s rear in the mile-and-a-quarter contest were the likes of champions West Coast and Roaring Lion and Grade 1 winners McKinzie, Catholic Boy, Mind Your Biscuits, Pavel and Discreet Lover. “He’s a very classy horse, he takes everything in his stride,” Tugel says of
Yoshida, whose fee has been set at $20,000. “We shipped him all over the world and all over the US and he would always show up and pretty much run his race.” In similar fashion Yoshida has adapted “extremely well” to farm life, arriving at WinStar soon after an uncharacteristic eighth placing in the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita, concluding his career with five wins and five placings while banking more than $2.5 million. Tugel says Yoshida had settled in so well that within just a few weeks “you couldn’t tell he’d been in full training”.
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E ADDS of Yoshida’s demeanour at the farm’s stallion shows: “He just comes out and is very professional. You could probably just put a rope shank on him and he’d follow you around.” In that sense Yoshida may be a welcome, mellower version of some of the hot-tempered individuals who have descended from the notoriously tough Halo; both Sunday Silence and Heart’s Cry certainly were/are more fire than ice. Although Americans may be, in general, relatively unfamiliar with Heart’s Cry, he is visually cut from the same cloth as Sunday Silence, being among the sons who most resemble their sire – as well as grandsire Halo – with a raw, nearly black frame embellished with a white stripe and one white foot. In racing, Heart’s Cry was a rugged competitor who benefited from the extra stamina provided by Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner Tony Bin, sire of his dam, multiple Japanese Graded winner Irish Dance. Most famously, Heart’s Cry held off the previously unbeaten Triple Crown winner Deep Impact, another son of Sunday Silence, in taking Japan’s
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Racing Post Thursday, December 12, 2019
Pictures: equisPort/wendy wooley, Mikiko ueda, PM advertising/Jon siegel, Michele Macdonald, Bloodhorse/anne M eBerhardt
Yoshida wins his first Grade 1, the Old Forester Turf Classic at Churchill Downs in May 2018 (left) and (below) in his paddock at WinStar Farm; (inset top) his grandsire Sunday Silence and (bottom) his sire Heart’s Cry
prestigious Grade 1 Arima Kinen over an extended mile and a half in 2005, a feat that earned him honours as champion older male. A few months later he handily captured the Group 1 Dubai Sheema Classic over a mile and a half from the likes of international champion Ouija Board. Yet what makes Yoshida so potentially potent for American breeders is that both his immediate male ancestors have made their marks at stud primarily through offspring out of mares by North American-bred sires. The evidence makes it clear that Yoshida could thrive with the mates he will receive in Kentucky. Sunday Silence sired 44 Grade 1 winners and 34 of those were out of mares by North American-bred sires. His Grade 1 winners bred along those lines included Japanese Horse of the Year, Triple Crown winner and multiple leading sire Deep Impact; champion and leading sire Manhattan Cafe; Classic winner and leading sire Agnes Tachyon; and Horse of the Year Zenno Rob Roy. Deep Impact, who passed away in July 2019, has now surpassed his sire and his own success at stud also seems intriguingly relevant. Deep Impact has sired 45 Grade/Group 1 winners, with 35 out of mares by American-bred stallions, including eight out of Storm Cat mares and another out of a mare by Storm Cat’s son Giant’s Causeway. For his part, Heart’s Cry has sired nine Grade 1 winners, with seven out of mares by American-bred stallions. His two Japan Cup winners, Suave Richard and 2017 hero Cheval Grand, were both produced by mares from Mr Prospector-line stallions, with Cheval Grand also the result of a 3x4x5 inbreeding to Halo. One And Only, Heart’s Cry’s son who won the 2014 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby), is 3x4 to Halo and
5x4 to Northern Dancer, also revealing potential strategies for American breeders as they contemplate matches with Yoshida. Lys Gracieux, the Cox Plate winner by Heart’s Cry, is 4x5x4 to Northern Dancer’s son Lyphard and has another line of Northern Dancer through Sadler’s Wells.
T
uGeL says: “We look to Heart’s Cry and what he’s worked well with – he’s really loved the return of Mr Prospector blood and has had great success there, which lends to our other idea as to how to breed the horse. “He’s bred identically to [WinStar-based shuttler) More Than Ready, from the Halo line out of a Mr Prospector-line mare [Hilda’s Passion is by Gone West’s son Canadian Frontier]. “More Than Ready loves the return of Mr Prospector in a mating, just like Heart’s Cry does. That helps give confidence that you can use More Than Ready as basically your parameter for what to breed to Yoshida-unbridled’s Song mares, the return of Mr Prospector, any type of Seattle Slew line, any type of [Northern Dancer’s grandson] Deputy Minister. “We see it working with Heart’s Cry with the Japan Cup winner [Suave Richard] out of an unbridled’s Song mare. He also had a Grade 3 winner [juvenile colt My Rhapsody] that same weekend out of a Salt Lake mare [whose pedigree features Seattle Slew and two lines of Northern Dancer], so both winners have American pedigrees.” Clearly, More Than Ready has thrived in Australia with Danehill/ Danzig/Northern Dancer-line mares who are plentiful in Kentucky. Duplicating some of the distinctive success of Deep Impact, Heart’s Cry has also worked well with Storm Cat
and Storm Bird-line mares, just as More Than Ready has with Grade 1-winning offspring such as Rushing Fall and Verrazano. Heart’s Cry’s offspring from these mares includes Godolphin’s exciting 2019 Graded-winning juvenile filly Woman’s Heart. “We know how many Storm Cat-line mares we have in America, so I would jump all over that,” Tugel says when further considering mares for Yoshida. At a little over 16 hands, Yoshida is an outstanding specimen who Tugel says will physically complement many mares. “I find him very well balanced,” he remarks. “He has phenomenal shoulder and depth of heart girth. His neck lies very well on him and he has a beautiful head and eye. His movement, his walk, his athleticism is second to none. He’s just an effortless mover and certainly that’s why, for four years as a racehorse, he was able to compete at the highest level and on all surfaces.” He adds: “He’s a very exciting horse. With local breeders here, once they’re able to see him and if they recognise the pedigree, he becomes a very exceptional prospect. Whether
‘We know Yoshida was excellent on turf and we know he was excellent on dirt. You put them together and you go, ‘Holy cow!’ And he’s by a leading sire’
Sean Tugel, WinStar director of bloodstock services and assistant racing manager
you’re breeding to race or whether you’re breeding for the commercial market, he checks all the boxes.” With WinStar, China Horse Club and SF Bloodstock planning to support Yoshida, his book will likely reach at least the 140-mare level viewed by some as a threshold for significant success, Tugel says. Applications from other breeders continue to arrive at the WinStar office. Looking ahead, foals by Yoshida have the potential to appeal to a wider range of buyers in the commercial marketplace than those by many of his American rivals. Mott forecast earlier in 2019 that Yoshida “is going to be a fashionable sire for people who are looking for a good turf horse or a good dirt horse. I think he could have international appeal with people from europe or Japan or wherever someone might be looking to run on the turf”.
T
uGeL notes: “Any time, whether it’s horses or anything else in this world, the more versatility you have, the more opportunity you have to succeed. We know he was excellent on turf and we know he was excellent on dirt. You put them together and you go, ‘Holy cow!’ And he’s by a leading sire. “He wasn’t better on one surface or the other. He was very good on both surfaces, and I think that will open up many avenues for all types of buyers and end-users and trainers, whether it’s an American-based buyer or somebody who is looking to buy to take the horse back to europe or Japan. You can make a case for him regardless of any place or any surface.” Joining Yoshida at WinStar for the upcoming season, in addition to established sires like More Than Ready, Speightstown and Tiznow, is Grade 1 winner Audible and Take
Charge Indy, America’s leading third-crop sire of 2019 who is returning after three seasons in South Korea. Audible, who was retired about six weeks before Yoshida’s arrival at the farm, has been “slammed” with interest from breeders. “He’s one of our busiest horses, if not the busiest, as of this time,” says Tugel. “You bring him out and he’s quite possibly the best-looking horse to retire this year. He’s booked full; we can’t take any more. We’ve had to shoo people away.” Take Charge Indy, “just like our two first-year stallions, is going to end up breeding a full book”, Tugel adds. “even though he was gone for a couple of years people can breed to him with confidence; you know that he can give you horses for the big stage. From two crops of three-year-olds or older, he’s had a horse in the Kentucky Derby both years. “At the end of the day he’s out of one of the best mares we have in America [multiple Grade 1 winner and 2014 Broodmare of the Year Take Charge Lady] and he’s by A.P. Indy, a game changer. He has fallen right back into the line where he deserves to be.” But it is only Yoshida who offers breeders the chance to redeem the mistake of initially spurning Sunday Silence, as well as clear opportunity for international achievement. “Not only will his foals appeal to the global Keeneland yearling market, we’ve seen how much the breeze-up sales have expanded in europe,” says Tugel. “I think Yoshida would be a horse for whom any of those guys could make a case. “If you’re looking for a horse who has international appeal and can step outside of America with his offspring from the get-go, Yoshida would be that horse.”
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Thursday, December 12, 2019 racingpost.com
BLOODSTOCK SPECIAL NEW US SIRES OF 2020 From page 5
runner-up Bravazo by a neck after a fierce battle to claim the G1 Clark Handicap over nine furlongs at Churchill Downs; on his previous outing he had won the G2 Fayette over the same trip at Keeneland. He was also G1-placed when third behind Yoshida in the Woodward at Saratoga (missing second by a nose to Gunnevera), and scored in G3 company at Mountaineer. Sold for $330,000 at the 2014 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, Leofric is out of an unraced Unbridled’s Song half-sister to multiple Graded stakes winner Multiple Choice. Having won eight of his 14 career starts, Leofric retired with $950,000 in earnings to his name. “Candy Rides, especially in New York, do very well,” said Rockridge Stud owner Lere Visagie. “He fits the mare population and he’s an attractive horse who people will like when they see him. He’s very correct in front and very balanced.”
Pictures: MICHELE MACDONALD
Spendthrift Farm new boys Omaha Beach, Mitole (below left) and Maximus Mischief (below right)
Lost Treasure
4yo b War Front - Wading (Montjeu) Hill ’n’ Dale, Lexington, Kentucky; $5,000 A three-time sprint winner for Ballydoyle, regally bred Lost Treasure brings a proper stallion’s pedigree to Kentucky. As a War Front half-brother to Just Wonderful, winner of the G2 Rockfel Stakes at two and multiple G1-placed, Lost Treasure comes from an exceptional family. He is the second foal of Wading out of a close relative of the outstanding Sea The Stars and half-sister to Galileo. She is a G2-winning sister to G1 winner Bracelet and three-parts sister to Athena, a G1 winner in America. A strong traveller suited by faster ground, Lost Treasure won three times over five/six furlongs for Aidan O’Brien, scoring twice in Curragh sprints on turf (beating double-figure fields on both occasions) on his first two starts as a three-year-old, a season in which he also landed a Polytrack event at Dundalk. Tried at the highest level thereafter, he recorded his best Racing Post Rating of 111 when fifth, only a length behind Mabs Cross, in the Prix de l’Abbaye, before being sent farther afield to run in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Churchill Downs and the Al Quoz Sprint at Meydan. “He was a very fast horse who should have won a Group race,” said O’Brien. “He’s a beautiful physical specimen and being by War Front, from the stallion-producing family of Galileo, he must have a great chance of making it at stud.”
The fastest juvenile by champion sire Into Mischief, he was still on the Classic trail as a three-year-old when his career was sadly cut short by injury following his sole outing in 2019, when he was beaten at odds-on in the Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park. One of five newcomers at B Wayne Hughes’s Spendthrift operation, Maximus Mischief was a $340,000 Fasig-Tipton two-year-old purchase out of the young Songandaprayer mare Reina Maria, a half-sister to G1-winning juvenile Secret Compass. He is free of Seattle Slew blood, while both Mr Prospector and Northern Dancer are six generations back in his pedigree, offering an interesting outcross option.
Maximus Mischief
Mitole
3yo b Into Mischief - Reina Maria (Songandaprayer) Spendthrift Farm. Lexington, Kentucky; $7,500 A brilliantly fast juvenile, Maximus Mischief recorded the best Beyer figure (98) among all two-year-olds in 2018 during an eyecatching campaign in which he went three-from-three by a cumulative 17 lengths in an impressive series of wide-margin victories. A big, strong, good-looking colt, Maximus Mischief capped that season with an all-the-way victory in the G2 Remsen Stakes over nine furlongs around two turns at Aqueduct for his Parx-based trainer Butch Reid, who said: “I’ve been around 35 years and never had a prospect like this one.”
being able to stretch sprint speed over a distance of ground, this athletic colt was a brilliant winner of the Arkansas Derby before being denied his Classic chance with an eve-of-race scratching (trapped epiglottis) from the Kentucky Derby, for which he was morning-line favourite. However, he returned for an autumn campaign better than ever, handling the top-class three-year-old speedster Shancelot to win the G1 Santa Anita Sprint Championship, before another bold effort when second in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile behind Spun To Run, who benefited from an uncontested lead. “Such an amazing horse,” said jockey Mike Smith. “He’s a throwback to those classic horses. He can do anything. Three-quarters to a mile and a quarter. He’s extremely fast and he’s got tremendous stamina. When you need him to be quick, he is. He can do it all.” From a top US dirt family (half-brother to Take Charge Brandi, Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner), Omaha Beach is the only multiple G1-winning millionaire on dirt by War Front. He is set to run in the G1 Malibu over seven furlongs at Santa Anita over Christmas before a probable tilt at the Pegasus World Cup ahead of stallion duties at Spendthrift. “I think he’s as good as they come,” said trainer Richard Mandella. “They don’t get any better.”
Preservationist
4yo b Eskendereya - Indian Miss (Indian Charlie) Spendthrift Farm. Lexington, Kentucky; $25,000 Mitole went from strength to strength during his stellar four-year-old campaign, winning six out of seven and in the process becoming the only male on dirt to win four G1s in 2019. Having already scored three times at the top level at seven furlongs to a mile, he was fast enough to keep tabs on the scorching pace set by top three-year-old Shancelot before running that horse down to justify favouritism by a convincing length and a quarter in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint, arguably the hottest race at the two-day championships, given it also featured G1 winners Whitmore,
Firenze Fire, Hog Creek Hustle, Catalina Cruiser and Matera Sky. Described as “the fastest horse I’ve ever trained” by Steve Asmussen, Mitole had previously won the Metropolitan Handicap (a race regarded as a premier event for stallion prospects), beating top-class McKinzie and dual Dubai World Cup victor Thunder Snow in a time of 1min 32.75sec for the mile. He also won the Churchill Downs Stakes and the Forego at Saratoga (both seven furlongs, stakes record time of 1min 20.80sec in the latter) to record G1 wins at four different tracks in 2019. Sold at Ocala for $140,000 as a juvenile in 2017, Mitole comes from a sprint family and retired with an estimable career record of ten wins from 14 starts (including nine of this last ten) with more than $3.1m in prize-money; he was never off the board racing from two to four.
Om
7yo ch Munnings - Rare Cat (Tabasco Cat) Harris Farms, Coalinga, California; $7,500 Hard-knocking and versatile, Om has been a fixture on the west coast circuit, a multiple G2 winner and G1-placed, including as a seven-year-old this year when second to Belvoir Bay in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. He was also runner-up in the same contest in 2016 when it was run over six and a half furlongs on Santa Anita’s downhilll turf course, closing with a furious rally to catch front-running favourite Obviously only for his jockey to lose his whip in
the final sixteenth. He was beaten a nose. Om won seven of his 32 career starts, among them a trio of G2 events as a three-year-old at a mile to nine furlongs, including the Del Mar Derby and the Twilight Derby at Santa Anita, to establish himself as California’s leading turf performer in the age group. He continued to shine over the following seasons, recording more placed efforts in good company, including this term when, cut back to sprint trips, he was second to World Of Trouble in the G1 Jaipur Invitational before his length-and-a-quarter defeat at the Breeders’ Cup. Numbering four Graded stakes victories altogether (plus seven second places), his career earnings topped $1.35m. A son of Munnings out of Rare Cat, a winning daughter of Tabasco Cat, and the dam of seven other winners, Om was bought as a juvenile for $125,000 by original trainer Dan Hendricks at the Barretts March Select 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale.
Omaha Beach
3yo dk b/br War Front - Charming (Seeking The Gold) Spendthrift Farm. Lexington, Kentucky; $40,000 Omaha Beach returned after a mid-season setback to regain his status among the top performers in the US Classic crop for 2019 when he became the only horse in 30 years to win G1 events at both six and nine furlongs in the same season. Blessed with the rare ability of
6yo b Arch - Flying Dixie (Dixieland Band) Airdrie Stud, Midway, Kentucky; $10,000 A G1-winning millionaire by Claiborne Farm’s late, influential sire Arch, Preservationist thrived as a six-year-old before being retired to stud with a career record of six wins from 11 starts. Described as “one of the most gifted and generous horses I’ve ever trained” by Jimmy Jerkens, he stepped up to the top level with aplomb in 2019, proving himself one of the top older horses in the nation with victories in two of New York’s senior races in the ‘handicap’ division. Carrying the Centennial Farms silks, he netted the G2 Suburban at Belmont in impressive fashion (by four and a half lengths over G1 winner Catholic Boy) before landing his G1 success at Saratoga in the Woodward, where victims included the likes of Yoshida and Mongolian Groom. A $485,000 Keeneland September yearling in 2014, Preservationist is out of a Dixieland Band mare and has a pedigree tracing back to blue hens Too Chic and Monade on his dam’s side. “Preservationist was bred top and bottom to be a special horse, and that is exactly what he was,” said Airdrie Stud’s Bret Jones. “While it’s well documented that his greatest achievements came as an older horse, everyone we have spoken to about this horse has told us that he has been revered as a special talent from his absolute earliest days as a two-year-old.”
Qurbaan
6yo ch Speightstown - Flip Flop (Zieten) Shadwell Farm, Lexington, Kentucky; $5,000 A winner on turf and the all-weather originally trained in France, Qurbaan achieved distinction via back-to-back victories in the G2 Bernard Baruch Handicap at Saratoga in 2018 and 2019. A five-time winner in France, Continues page 10
Racing Post Thursday, December 12, 2019
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Thursday, December 12, 2019 racingpost.com
BLOODSTOCK SPECIAL NEW US SIRES OF 2020 From page 8
Pictures: MICHELE MACDONALD, RACING POST/ALAIN BARR, BLOODHORSE/SKIP DICKSTEIN, EQUISPORT/JESSIE HOLMES
including both two-year-old starts, he was multiple G1-placed after being switched to the States, notably when beaten only a half-length by turf champion designate Bricks And Mortar – who has every chance of being named Horse of the Year for 2019 at the Eclipse Awards – in the Old Forester Turf Classic at Churchill Downs on Kentucky Derby day. With a string of three-digit Beyers to his name, the son of champion dirt sprinter Speightstown (a solid sire of sires) was always a force to be reckoned with at around a mile in US Graded stakes, where he either won or was placed nine times altogether. He won stakes races in four consecutive seasons and retired with career earnings of more than $850,000. Qurbaan was purchased by Shadwell for $300,000 as a weanling at the 2013 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale. He was the third foal out of the French-bred Zieten mare Flip Flop, a G1-placed stakes winner who has produced four winners from four foals to race. “Qurbaan was a barn favourite and was unlucky in some of his close finishes,” said trainer Kiaran McLaughlin, speaking to the BloodHorse. “He was consistent and versatile, winning on both firm and soft ground.”
Shagaf
6yo b Bernardini - Muhaawara (Unbridled’s Song) Indiana Stallion Station, Anderson, Indiana; $2,500 A delayed start to life at stud for this G3-winning son of Preakness Stakes victor Bernardini after injury scuppered plans for a rookie year in 2019. “He was scheduled to begin last year but an injury just before the breeding season delayed his transport so we decided to wait and start new for 2020 with him,” explained Shadwell’s US stallion manager Kent Barnes. Shagaf won his first three starts, for trainer Chad Brown, including a smashing six-length victory on his only two-year-old outing at Aqueduct. He continued in the same vein at three with a solid victory at Gulfstream before justifying favouritism in the G3 Gotham Stakes back at Aqueduct, but a wet track and trouble in running compromised his chances in the G1 Wood Memorial before he sustained an injury in the Kentucky Derby. Although he raced again in later seasons, he was never able to reproduce his best. The second foal of stakes winner Muhaawara, Shagaf is half-brother to the French all-weather winner Gharbeya. His dam is out of Habibti, a G1-winning two-year-old.
Sporting Chance
4yo dk b/ch Tiznow - Wynning Ride (Candy Ride) A & A Ranch, Anthony, New Mexico; $5,000 A group of local breeders have joined Fred and Linda Alexander to purchase G1-winning juvenile Sporting Chance to stand at their A & A Ranch in New Mexico. Trained by the legendary D Wayne Lukas, the son of dual Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Tiznow won his maiden second time out at Saratoga before stepping up to land the G1 Hopeful Stakes, drawing clear of the field at the head of the stretch before holding off subsequent G1 winner Free Drop Billy by a neck. Sporting Chance was G3-placed at three, when he went on to finish fourth in both the G2 Blue Grass Stakes and G3 Pat Day Mile.
Purchased for $575,000 as a yearling, Sporting Chance is a half-brother to US six-/seven-furlong dirt winner Catcher out of a G1-placed stakes-winning dam by Candy Ride. He is Breeders’ Cup nominated. “He’s a gorgeous individual,” said Fred Alexander, speaking to the BloodHorse. “We just couldn’t be more excited to have a Grade 1 winner of $409,790 in New Mexico. His owners purchased two yearlings a year with Wayne and went on to win three runnings of the Grade 1 Hopeful Stakes. That’s remarkable.”
St Patrick’s Day
4yo b Pioneerof The Nile Littleprincessemma (Yankee Gentleman) Journeyman Stallions, Ocala, Florida; $5,000 As a brother to Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, St Patrick’s Day is a high-profile recruit to the Florida stallion ranks. Carrying the colours of Sue Magnier, he raced on both sides of the Atlantic, starting his career with Bob Baffert in California where, having finished second to subsequent G1 runner-up Zatter on his debut at Del Mar, he broke his maiden at the same venue by defeating future Graded stakes winner Instilled Regard. While those juvenile outings came on dirt, he was
Group-placed as a turf sprinter after being switched to Ireland to join Aidan O’Brien. As well as the outstanding American Pharoah, St Patrick’s Day is a brother to G1-placed American Cleopatra and half-brother to G1 winner Chasing Yesterday. “I trained three of his siblings, all Grade 1 performers,” said Baffert. “St Patrick’s Day undoubtedly showed that same type of talent when he broke his maiden going 21.97sec and 44.92sec in his second start.” He enters stud as part of the Climax Stallions team at Brent and Crystal Fernung’s Journeyman Stallions, home to Florida’s leading first-crop sire Khozan. “With his pedigree and his talented but abbreviated race record, St Patrick’s Day reminds me of Khozan,” said Brent Fernung. “I think like Khozan he’ll benefit from these tough Florida mares.” American Pharoah fits the Climax ‘sibling’ model, their previous buys including Frankel’s half-brother Bullet Train and Curlin To Mischief, a Curlin half-brother to Into Mischief.
Vino Rosso
4yo ch Curlin - Mythical Bride (Street Cry) Spendthrift Farm. Lexington, Kentucky; $30,000 A powerful chestnut son of dual
Horse of the Year Curlin, Vino Rosso really blossomed as a four-year-old, saving the best for last on his final career start in the Breeders’ Cup Classic where a runaway four-and-a-quarter-length success over the favourite McKinzie was enough for him to be rated the number one horse in North America according to official ratings compiled by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities on a provisional rating of 126. Vino Rosso also won the G1 Gold Cup at Santa Anita in May over the US Classic trip of a mile and a quarter, at which he suffered a disqualification when first past the post in the Jockey Club Gold Cup; he had also been a leading Classic contender during his three-year-old campaign when he won the Wood Memorial. Bought at Keeneland’s September sales for $410,000 in 2016, Vino Rosso is out of a multiple stakes-producing Street Cry mare and retired as Curlin’s biggest prize-money winner with career earnings of $4,803,125. “I think he’s got a big future,” said trainer Todd Pletcher after he was retired to join the exalted Spendthrift roster. “He’s a very good-looking horse. He resembles Curlin a lot. “He was able to win at two, three and four and is a classy type of horse, which is what the people are looking for. He has a great disposition,
he’s healthy and sound and has all the attributes you look for in a stallion.”
World Of Trouble
4yo b Kantharos - Meets Expectations (Valid Expectations) Hill ’n’ Dale Farms, Lexington, Kentucky; $15,000 Unquestionably one of the fastest horses in North America, World Of Trouble was renowned for his blazing speed and wire-to-wire tactics that earned him a series of all-the-way successes. A G1 winner on both turf and dirt, the Florida-bred son of Kantharos won nine of his 13 races, having run exclusively in stakes after breaking his maiden by 14 lengths as a two-year-old. He won seven of his last eight career starts, the only defeat coming when narrowly beaten as a three-year-old by Stormy Liberal on his first run against older horses in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Churchill Downs. He took his form to an even higher level at four, landing both the Carter Handicap on dirt at Aqueduct and the Jaipur International on turf at Belmont. He retired with career earnings of $1.26m and having produced three-digit Beyers on his last seven starts, including a season’s high for a three-year-old of 118.
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Racing Post Thursday, December 12, 2019
New stallion intake for 2020 (from left, then clockwise): World Of Trouble, Sporting Chance, Qurbaan, St Patrick’s Day, Lost Treasure, Vino Rosso, Preservationist and Shagaf
Out of a half-sister to leading sprinter Bucchero, he will now stand alongside his sire at Hill ‘n’ Dale. “He’s the fastest horse I ever owned,” said owner Michael Dubb. “My jaw dropped every time he raced. He was such an easy horse as he could run on anything. “Since we couldn’t make the Breeders’ Cup due to a foot bruise, we decided it’s best for him to start making babies.”
Yoshida
5yo b Heart’s Cry - Hilda’s Passion (Canadian Frontier) WinStar Farm Llc, Versailles, Kentucky; $20,000 A truly versatile performer, Yoshida holds the distinction of being a G1 winner on both dirt and turf. Bred in Japan from the formidable Sunday Silence line, he also ran on three continents for trainer Bill Mott during a career in which he won five races.
Wednesday, November 6, 2019 | Dedicated to the Australasian bloodstock industry - subscribe for free: Click Click here
INTERNATIONAL FLAVOUR OF CUP LIKELY TO CONTINUE - PAGE 17
Vow And Declare takes out Melbourne Cup for Australia
| 17 |
Les Young's Pedigree Page
and Declare was passed passed in at auction, Paul Lansky When Vow and approached approached members of the group which race Lycurgus, among them Geoff Corrigan, and a number of family members to form a new syndicate
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to race the son of Declaration of War (War Front) with Danny O’Brien. They must now be thrilled thrilled they became involved involved with the winner of
Latest carnival news
Australia’s most coveted race and and to be sharing in the $5,722,690 he has earned to date. After Lycurgus, Geblitz produced the placed filly Blitz’n’Magic (Magic
What's on
Albert) in 2014 before Vow and and Declare was born the following year but the
Race meetings: Grafton (NSW), Kyneton
mare’s 2016 colt by Stratum (Redoute’s Choice) died. A sister to Lycurgus by Star Witness (Starcraft) arrived arrived in 2018 and and she is to be offered offered as Lot
(VIC), Port Lincoln (SA), Launceston (TAS),
329 at January’s Magic Millions Yearling Sale at the Gold Gold Coast in the
Avondale (NZ)
Danny O’Brien-trained stayer holds off internationals in tight Flemington finish
Widden Stud consignment. This spring Geblitz has foaled foaled a filly by Shalaa (Invincible Spirit) and
International meetings: Happy Valley (HK).
|been 14 | bred
Barrier trials / Jump-outs: Warwick Farm
back to American Pharoah Thursday, (Pioneer of the 7,Nile). November 2019
We wrote about Vow and and Declare’s sire Declaration of War, a multiple Group 1 winner, in yesterday’s ANZ Bloodstock News when profiling his
(NSW), Caulfield (VIC).
2019 Victoria Derby (Gr 1, 2500m) winner Warning.The former Coolmore
Sales: Keeneland (USA) - November
shuttler, now standing in Japan, has some pretty impressive statistics with five Group/Grade 1 winners among a total of 24 stakes winners from his
Breeding Stock Sale - Day 1
CHARLIE FELLOWES
early crops in Ireland, the United States and Australia which have given him a high 7.4 per cent stakes winners-to-runners.
two-year-old in France, Declaration of War was Twice a winner as a two-year-old
bred for speed speed but was at his racing best at around essentially bred around 1600m to
I am incredibly proud Prince OfoverArran, 2000mof though was never tried longer distances. and Declare comes from a family of high quality tracing back to Vow and he ran another fantastic race the famous “flying filly” Mumtaz Mahal (The Tetrarch) but breeding buffs
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Nicconi gelding a freak of Nature
will be scratching their heads as to from where the gelding has derived his
The Week Ahead
W
International Sales News What's on
sire of his third dam Young Vic, a mare with little racing ability.
hat a day yesterday was – it was unbelievable. Most
As you will see from the catalogue pedigree printed here, Young
importantly Prince Of Arran
Vic is an excellent producer but while her superbly-bred sire was a
has come through the run
disappointment at stud, he was outstanding as a racehorse, winning in
trotted up beautifully and and polished perfectly. HeWarren trotted polished Race meetings: Moree (NSW), offMoe all his feed, which is a great sign that the (NSW), Ararat (VIC), (VIC), horse isn’t stressed. had a lovely long pick of Townsville (QLD), Penola (SA), York He had
Rejuvenated sprinter scores scintillating Darley Sprint Classic win
M
stamina. My guess is that the source may be via Old Vic (Sadler’s Wells),
CHARLIE FELLOWES | @FELLOWESRACING
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and the Irish Derby (Gr 1989 both the Prix du Jockey Club (Gr 1, 2400m) and 1, 1m 4f ), two stiff tests.
grass at Werribee this morning. Tash sent me a (WA), Hastings (NZ).
One of Young Vic’s daughters, Youthful Presence (Dehere) produced
International Group races:saying Kranjithat (SGP) message she got so distracted giving
- Singapore Gold Cup 2000m), ended up staying out there for an him(Listed, grass she elbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m)
ATC Epsom Handicap (Gr 1, 1600m) winner Hauraki (Reset) and and two
Saas Fee Stakes (Listed, hour 1200m). and a half. So he’s, as always, had and had the best
winner Vow And
other stakes winners, most notably Kidnapped (Viscount), winner of the
Taipa (MAC). Declare,
by American-bred
treatment since the run. Sales: Keeneland (USA) - November
South Australian Derby (Gr 1, 2500m).
Breeding Stock Sale - Day 5 stallion I never thought
It was totally different to last year – I really felt at one stage 12 months ago we were going to win the race. But this year I never ever felt, despite how close we were, that it was ours.
level in Europe, has delivered for Australia
with a locally bred and trained victory in the
and strength depth. They went a very steady peed machine Nature Strip (Nicconi) simply gave nothing else a chance in
1, 1200m) as he scorched to victory
get some cover, so although he couldn't it any better. we wereplus fortunate generation anotherandson in his have sixthridden generation.There earned that with the way the race was run, we earned
Nature Strip
GETTY IMAGES
MELBOURNE CUP STAKE RESULT AND BREEDING INFO - PAGE 22
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that bracket because it was a lovely story. It’s
nothing more you can ask from a horse. We Santa Ana Lane’s jockey
Mark Zahra agreed the sprinter was ‘flat’, "He just went a bit tired today," Zahra said.
complaining, questioning what coul d have could
the perfect Australian story: Australian-trained, Australian-bred Australian-bred – just the right sort of horse you You got the feeling this year that Europeans coming over and and constantly winning it wasn’t really doing it any favours. But Tuesday showed that Australian horses can still be competitive and can still win this amazing race. It was won and
"When I got the gaps on the
that all along nothing went wrong. I was just
zoom - nothing would've beat
but it hasn’t. We have been so, so lucky and and I
the horses to beat us I really didn’t begrudge
the winner today - but he just
don’t underestimate how fortunate we have
him for it.
like I was six in front and he was still going through his gears and he ran it out so strongly.”
went like he's a tired horse."
waiting for something, even small, to go amiss
been with him.
Passed in for $90,000 (reserve $120,000) at the 2016 Inglis
“All preparation he has shown how well he is going, he’s a very happy
Sale, Nature Strip (5 g Nicconi - Strikeline by DesertAlthough Sun) tookobviously his recordI would would have loved loved to 11 wins and two placings from 18 starts for prize-money of $1,879,285. to have taken the Cup back to Newmarket, I Nature Strip is one of three winners for the Group think the3-winning result wasmare very, very important for
“We’ve been fortunate enough to takeover a very fast horse and we’ve added a bit of our own fine tuning. “I’m not to sure where he will have his next starts but I know the team are keen to take him to Royal Ascot in June but there will certainly be a few races before then.” Sam Freedman said favourite Santa Ana Lane would enjoy an
Yearling
The result was exactly SPORTPIX what the race needed
Melbourne
horse and that takes them a long way,” he said.
Premier
Nature Strip
Trainer Chris Waller revealed plans of tackling Royal Ascot next year.
Strikeline (Desert Sun), making him a half-brother to Fernhill Handicap (Listed, 1600m) winner The Barrister (Star Witness), now racing as High Volatility in Hong Kong. Strikeline is herself a half-sister to fellow Group 3 winner Bashful Girl (Perugino), with the pair being out of Listed winner Strike High (Pre Emptive Strike).
Thursday, November 7, 2019
Japan or Hong Kong in the pipeline
would want to win the ultimate Australian race. would
been, as everything went our way. I’m not even just talking about Tuesday either, really since Goodwood we could could not have had Goodwood had a more perfect preparation into the race. I have said
Wednesday, W November 6, 2019 outside fence I thought he'd
“I’m thrilled for the horse and thrilled for the connections, he has gone to a
“He was airborne, floating across the ground, I slipped him a bit more
extended spell after a hectic 2019.
| 15 |
But you also have to put Vow And And Declare in
we just weren’t good enough on the day.
only got beaten a head, so we can’t come away a quarter
from Nature Strip in sixth. new level this preparation, he hashad onlyonereal disappointment and that was at his first start, apart from that he’s been faultless, he’s a star,” McDonald said. rein at the 300m and I looked at the big screen and thought ‘oh no’, it felt
@GreatBritishRacingInternational
Brought to you by
| 14 |
Brought to you by our way, the race played into our hands and But he ran his heart out and and there really is
|2|
Brought to you by An emphatic three and
length win was the result, with Loving Gaby (I Am Invincible) and In Her Time (Time Thief ) filling the minor placings. Hot favourite Santa Ana Lane (Lope De Vega) was uncharacteristically flat, finishing six lengths
|2|
| 17 |
BACKING BRITIAN’S TRAINERS ON THE WORLD STAGE
@GBRI_UK
set an impossible task for the
YESTERDAY'S STAKES RESULTS | PAGE 16 Charlie Fellowes' Melbourne Diary
|1|
Nicconi gelding a freak of Nature
<< Continued from page 1
Vow And Declare takes out Melbourne Cup for Australia
are also four
The bottom line is that everything went
more infusions of Northern Dancer (Nearctic) in the sixth and and seventh
was quick to
find the outside rail on Nature Strip and
Vow And Declare
in his fifth
generations of Vow and Declare’s genetic background.
yesterday’s Darley Sprint Classic (Gr
James McDonald
Race Record: 13 Starts 4-3-2 A$5,722,690. 4 wins from 1800m to 3200m, A$5,722,690, to 2019-20, VRC Melbourne Cup, Gr.1, Qld Tatt's RC Tattersall's Cup, Gr.3, VRC TCL TV S., L, 2d MRC Caulfield Cup, Gr.1, BRC Queensland Derby, Gr.1, 3d VRC Flt Lt Peter Armytage H., 4th VRC Turnbull S., Gr.1.
he’s ever given him, but although we didn’t win,
pair sizzled home in 33.08 seconds which chasing pack.
3rd dam YOUNG VIC, by Old Vic. Raced once. Half-sister to NURYANA (dam of REBECCA SHARP, MYSTIC KNIGHT, HIDDEN HOPE HOPE), Digger's Rest, Cowley, Littlewick (dam of FONTANELLA BORGHESE BORGHESE), Wild Pavane (dam of DUKE OF GREEN). Dam of 12 foals, 11 to race, 7 winners, inc:WALKING OR DANCING (Falvelon). 8 wins-1 at 2-from 900m to 1600m, A$611,425, Newcastle JC Newmarket H H., Gr.3, GCTC Magic Millions Cup, AJC Octagonal H., STC Angostura Bitters H., 2d AJC Bill Ritchie H., Gr.3, 3d Newcastle JC Newmarket H., Gr.3, STC CCIA Supershow H., 4th STC Phar Lap S., Gr.2, QTC Brisbane P., L. Sire. IRONGAIL (Canny Lad). 7 wins from 1200m to 1800m, A$322,950, MRC Summoned S., L, AJC Capital Finance H., Graysonline.com.au H., Wyong RC Mona Lisa P., 2d Wyong Cup, L, 3d STC Shannon H., Gr.2, VRC Maybe Mahal P., L. Producer. Aim for Gold (End Sweep). Winner Winner. See above. Youthful Presence. Unraced. Dam ofHAURAKI (Reset). 5 wins from 1400m to 2000m, A$2,546,660, ATC Epsom H., Gr.1, Tulloch S., Gr.2, NSW Tatt's RC Tramway S., Gr.2, ATC Membership on Sale H., 2d Australian Derby, Gr.1, VRC Emirates S., Gr.1, ATC Ranvet S., Gr.1, George Main S., Gr.1, BRC Doomben Cup, Gr.1, ATC Phar Lap S., Gr.2, GCTC AD Hollindale S., Gr.2, ATC Craven P., Gr.3, 3d ATC Chipping Norton S., Gr.1, Canterbury S., Gr.1, Apollo S., Gr.2. KIDNAPPED (Viscount). 5 wins-1 at 2-from 1400m to 2500m, £187, A$715,427, 19,320Dhs, South Australian Derby, Gr.1, MRC Sandown Guineas, Gr.2, VRC Carbine Club S., Gr.3, MRC Gothic S., L, VRC Bruce Gadsden H., 2d Ballarat Cup, L, STC Theraces.com.au 2YO H., 3d SAJC Chairman's S., L, MRC Star Shower 2YO H. ACADEMUS (Lonhro). 4 wins at 1200m, 1600m, A$593,800, Western Australian Guineas, Gr.2, Gold Coast Guineas, Gr.3, BRC Daybreak Lover S., L, 2d BRC Sires' Produce S., Gr.2, Champagne Classic, Gr.2, MRC Heading Out Hair & Beauty S., L, Hawkesbury RC Inglis Bonus 2YO H., 3d BRC TJ Smith S., Gr.1, BTC Classic, Gr.3, 4th BRC Queensland Guineas, Gr.2, VRC Hilton Hotels S., L. DELEDIO (Testa Rossa). 6 wins wins-2 at 2-from 1400m to 1800m, A$143,375, SAJC Hill Smith S., L, Allan Scott Park Morphettville H., MRC Andelosia 2YO H., SAJC Irish Day H., Carlton Draught H.
of Danehill’s sire Danzig (Northern Dancer) while he carries two sons I think Tuesday’s was just as good. He had him
down the Flemington straight.
Cont. on pageeffectively 2>>
1st dam GEBLITZT, by Testa Rossa. 5 wins to 1400m, A$96,950, ATC Bowermans Furniture H., BRC Coca-Cola Amatil P., Leighton Contractors H., Brc.com.au H., 2d BRC Subiaco Hair P., Tim Ryan Go Hard or Go Home H., Ambassador Travel H., 3d ATC Central Coast Tourism H., 4th Qld Tatt's RC Falvelon H., L. Three-quarter-sister to DELEDIO, half-sister to Wealth. Dam of three named foals, all raced, two winnersMadibagold, Sudden Wealth VOW AND DECLARE (g. by Declaration of War). 4 wins. See below. LYCURGUS (g. by Star Witness). 6 wins-1 at 2-from 1100m to 2500m, A$442,665, MRC Galilee Series Final H., L, L VRC High Country H., MRC Ladbrokes Odds Boost H.-twice, 2d VRC Trevor Clarke H., Happy Holidays H., ATC Tab.com.au H., MRC Ladbrokes Challenge H., 3d MRC Inglis Cup, VRC Banjo Paterson Series Final H., Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation H. Blitz 'n' Magic (f. by Magic Albert). Placed at 3 in Aust.
said after the Geelong Cup that was his best ride The pedigree of Vow and Declare up close is dominated by a 3 x 4 cross
ride sort of horse which means that he really
can sit wherever you want, whereas if you
speed Prospector a Native), speed in suchMr. a good position the(Raise whole way through have influence, have a horse that getsofa another bit lit up they to
by a big syndicate of owners and it was just a really, really good good story for the race and and of all
But the love for Prince Of Arran has been lovely and and it’s very touching - they seem to have taken him under their wing and clearly have a lot of affection for him. But that really is the kind of horse he is, he’s got a wonderful
Japan Cup
JRA
So the immediate plan for Prince Of Arran is either the Japan Cup or the Hong Kong Vase. We were invited to Japan immediately after the race and then overnight were invited to Hong
personality. They also love the story of Tash and
Kong as well which is great. I feel like Japan
her affection for the horse and and he’s become a
is unbelievably tough - the ground is always
Foaled in 2015 Northern Dancer Rubiano Blushing Groom Gone West Danzig Sir Dapper Forty Niner Old Vic
2nd dam Aim for Gold, by End Sweep. Winner at 1200m, A$203,750, STC Winning Edge Presentations P., 2d AJC Champagne S., Gr.1, 3d AJC Reginald Allen H., L, Heroic 2YO Championship S., Oz Eco Resorts 2YO H., 4th STC Magic Night S., Gr.2, AJC PJ Bell H., L. DANCING IRONGAIL, Youthful Presence (dam of Half-sister to WALKING OR DANCING, ACADEMUS DELEDIO). Dam of 8 named foals, 7 to race, 5 HAURAKI, KIDNAPPED, ACADEMUS, winners, inc:Sudden Wealth (Time Thief). 5 wins to 1400m, A$162,670, SAJC Holdfast Insurance H., Horsman's Plumbing & Gas H., Zonte's Z Force H., David Tootell 40yrs Anniversary H., 2d SAJC Manihi Classic, L L, Dennis & Janet Small H., 3d SAJC City of Marion S., L. Madibagold (Johannesburg). 5 wins to 1400m, A$299,750, AJC Coogee Welter H., Juggler H., STC Cadbury Bubbly H., Theslipper.com.au H., 2d ATC Civic S., L, AJC Centennial Park H., Filante H., STC Solo Strong H., 3d ATC Winter S., L, STC Civic S., L, ATC Bowermans Office Furniture H., Bridie Sp Sparkes H., Cleanevent a Spotless Company H., Blackwoods Gearwrench H., Blackwoods H., 4th STC Winter S., L. Geblitzt. 5 wins. See above. Eighteen Carrot. Winner at 1300m in 2018-19, MRC Le Pine Funerals P., 2d ATC Star Turn at Vinery H.
fortune and luck with his versatility and the way
advantage. But the way run really Michael Walker’sHorn’s ride wasthird just perfect. it was (Gr Stakes 1, 1msuited 2f). Loralane is Golden dam. I Prince Of Arran – he is such a relaxed, easy to
establishing an unchallenged lead, the breeding the winner of the $8 million cup forafter just
the second time in a decade.
Testa Rossa Aim for Gold
DECLARATION OF WAR (USA) (Bay 2009-Stud 2014). 7 wins-2 at 2, Royal Ascot Queen Anne S., Gr.1. Half-brother to SW War Correspondent. Sire of 326 rnrs, 186 wnrs, 24 SW, inc. Vow and Declare (VRC Melbourne Cup, Gr.1), Warning, Olmedo, Winning Ways, Decorated Invader, Assiro, Actress, Peace Achieved, Valdermoro, Opry, Declarationofheart, Speed Franco, Vigor Winner, Mr. Hustle, Uncle Benny, Armistice Day, Lucky Stride, Agincourt, Bayshore Freeway, etc.
its most recent superstar being Golden Horn (Cape Cross), whose seven SPORTPIX
close we actually were. I am incredibly proud of
his mark during his two-year stint Down Under,
'I’M THRILLED FOR THE HORSE AND THRILLED FOR THE CONNECTIONS'
Dam GEBLITZT (AUS) 2006
Danzig Starry Dreamer Rahy Tempo Perugino Bo Dapper End Sweep Young Vic
the Coral-Eclipse (Gr 1, 1m 2f and the Irish Champion 1, 2400m), 2f)) and he runsStakes his races. were massively at an meant those on the pace
him for running another fantastic race.
Of War, now domiciled in Japan, certainly left
not least of which allows Australia to lay claimRider to
WHAT THE JOCKEY'S SAID - PAGE 9
VOW AND DECLARE (AUS)
Sire War Front DECLARATION OF WAR (USA) Tempo West 2009
wins included the Derby (Gr 1, 1m 4f ), the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (Gr 4f),
gallop and turned turned it into a bit of sprint which
I always knew we were just held held by Master
BY TOM WALTER | @ANZ_NEWS It was a very strong renewal with a lot of
S
very strong branch of this wonderful Mumtaz Mahal family in Europe, Prince Of Aarran
And Declare. It probably Of Reality and Vow And realised how wasn’t until right on the line I realised
country’s biggest race. The former Coolmore stallion Declaration
Loralane (Habitat), fourth dam of Vow and and Declare, established established a
I was going to win
Declaration Of War (War
Front) who twice won on turf at the highest
Thursday, November 7, 2019
Vow And Declare Chestnut Gelding
Brought to you by
A closing type, Yoshida registered his most prestigious successes as a four-year-old when he won the G1 Old Forester Turf Classic on grass at Churchill Downs in decisive fashion before overcoming a strong field for an impressive victory in the G1 Woodward at Saratoga on his dirt debut. Having recorded five triple-digit Beyers altogether, he retired with $2.5m in career earnings after making
his second appearance in the Breeders’ Cup Classic; he also ran at Royal Ascot (on turf over a mile) and Meydan (over a mile and a quarter on dirt). Purchased as a yearling for ¥94m ($765,000) at the 2015 JRHA Select Sale in Japan, Yoshida represents the return of a notable bloodline to North America as he is by Heart’s Cry, an Arima Kinen/Dubai Sheema Classic-winning son of the legendary
Sunday Silence. His G1-winning dam is a track record-setting sprinter from the Gone West line. “We’re excited about his next chapter,” said WinStar president Elliott Walden. “He competed with the best of the best on both surfaces. He ran against Bricks And Mortar four times and beat him twice. He was Grade 1 class on both surfaces, and not many horses are able to do that.”
12
Thursday, December 12, 2019 racingpost.com
CATALINA CRUISER Union Rags – Sea Gull, by Mineshaft
NEW FOR 2020
5X GRADED STAKES WINNER “This horse has raw talent. He’s always been a ‘Wow’ horse. He’s shown it from the very beginning and has proven it on the racetrack.” JOHN SADLER TRAINER
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