MarketWatch Blog : Undervalued sires

Dynaformer Dynasty

sgillies — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 20:25:00 GMT

(By Lizz Kunz)

Dynaformer, who will be 27 when the 2012 Northern Hemisphere breeding season commences, has consistently sired winners of races all across the world since first retiring to Wafare Farm in 1990. While it's no secret that this big bay with an "I'm boss" attitude knows how make a determined runner, many in the Thoroughbred market overlook or underestimate Three Chimneys Farm's elder stallion. Even as he ages and his book size becomes increasingly selective, the quality of his progeny has not diminished. Wise buyers will be prepared to take advantage of what this stallion has to offer in his final crops.

At the end of this past summer, Dynaformer had only five yearlings offered in the select sessions of Keeneland's September yearling sale. While the Dynaformers sold better than they had last year, none broke the $1 million mark. His sales topper was the second foal out of grade I-winning mare Bohemian Lady (a half to Any Given Saturday), a colt that showed potential to his breeders even as a foal. He sold for $725,000 to Shadwell Estate Company after impressing with his pedigree and attractive conformation. It's hard not to question: If this colt had been by A.P. Indy, would he have brought more money as he passed through the the ring? Dynaformer doesn't tend to throw the most attractive and well put together yearlings--a reality that has always affected his sale prices--but he sure knows how to make a runner. His ability to get winners has not waned with age, either. Let's have a quick look at some of Dynaformer's big runners from the past few years.

One great example would be a filly that sold for only $200,000 at Fasig-Tipton's 2009 Saratoga yearling sale, yet has won $1,066,879 so far in her career. Blue Bunting's most recent success came October 30 when she won the Bet365.com E.B.F. Montrose Fillies' Stakes following three group I victories and a fourth place finish in the Investec Epsom Oaks (Eng-I). While she failed to defeat the males in the Ladbrokes St. Leger (Eng-I), her other tries this year have more than proven her ability to run. Impressively, these group I efforts took place on five different courses.

Dynaformer's filly Rainbow View was champion 2-year-old filly in Europe in 2008 after winning the Meon Valley Stud Fillies' Mile (Eng-I). She went on to win the Coolmore Fusaichi Pegasus Matron Stakes (Ire-I) and was named highweighted filly in Ireland for 2009. Throughout her career she earned $1,129,814. Rainbow View's pedigree is phenomenal. Her dam, No Matter What (by Nureyev), was the winner of the 2000 Del Mar Oaks (gr. IT) and went on to produce graded stakes winners Winter View and Just As Well, the latter also grade I-placed in the Arlington Million and Woodbine's Northern Dancer Turf Stakes.

Another horse that reinforces Dynaformer's international credibility as a stallion is Americain, winner of $5,181,240, the majority of which he earned in the two-mile 2010 Emirates Melbourne Cup (Aus-I). He recently added to his resume the Drake International Moonee Valley Gold Cup and the Zipping Sandown Classic (both Aus-II).

Any discussion of Dynaformer's success as an older stallion has to include the ill-fated Barbaro, winner of the 2006 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I). A good stakes winner at 2, Barbaro was a perfect 6-for-6 leading up to his injury in the Preakness (gr. I). Other recent millionaires by Dynaformer include Dynaforce, winner of the 2008 Flower Bowl Invitational (gr. IT) and the Beverley D Stakes (gr. IT) a year later, and Brilliant Speed, winner of the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (gr. I) in April. Keeneland September grad Gozzip Girl sold for $60,000 and went on to win $814,194, with a signature victory in the 2009 American Oaks Invitational (gr. IT). The list of Dynaformer's top-level latter-day progeny continues....

It is hard to pin specific accolades on this stallion. It seems that he is more successful through his fillies, but he has the ability to produce colts that can compete internationally in the classics. While he is celebrated for his turf runners, his offspring have proved their ability on synthetics and dirt. Dynaformer's runners can cover a vast range of distances: Though they tend to be stayers, they can fall back to score at a mile or stretch out to win routes like the Melbourne Cup. The typical Dynaformer develops as a 3- or 4-year old, but it's not unusual to see his sons and daughters succeed in graded or group races as juveniles. With this level of success, one would expect his offspring to command big money at the sales, yet they never seem to make the headlines until they hit the track. Maybe it's the lack of flair in their appearance, or the fact that he doesn't have the reputation of being a sire of sires.

Dynaformer may be getting older--it can be predicted that his breeding years are numbered--yet his offspring never lack in talent. Offspring of the Three Chimneys stallion tend to have outstanding pedigrees and provide more value for their price than almost any other stallion on the market today. He's not to be overlooked in his final years at stud.

So--who's your favorite Dynaformer? Which son has the best opportunity to carry on the Dynaformer legacy at stud? What type of mare would you like to send to Dynaformer in his final years?

Undervalued Sires in 2011

sgillies — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 13:00:00 GMT

Last year, Alan, Tom Hall, and I (Scot Gillies) shook up the format of our annual "Undervalued Sires" feature to include stallions that offer noteworthy value to commercial breeders and breed-to-race operations in addition to studs that look to offer value at the Keeneland September yearling sale.

As the 2011 edition is now approaching, I'd like to ask our readers again to be part of the process. Which stallions do you believe are undervalued in today's market?

Here's last year's Undervalued Sires feature -it's a free PDF download for our blog followers. Read it and then tell us who you think needs to be included on this year's list. Convince us, and we just might include your stallions in the August feature!

Watch for the Undervalued Sires story in the August issue of MarketWatch. (Not a subscriber? Learn why you should be!)

We're looking forward to your comments (below).

Who are the Most Undervalued Thoroughbred Sires in 2010? -- by Scot T. Gillies

sgillies — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 15:30:00 GMT

When The Blood-Horse MarketWatch purchased the publication Owner-Breeder International a few years back, we were excited to expand our editorial reach. Alan Porter's "Undervalued Sires" updates were one of OBI's most popular features, and we've carried forward the concept in our August issue each year. The timing is not random: with the yearling sales season upon us, it is useful information for potential buyers (in fact, the original OBI series was titled "Undervalued September Sales Sires.")

Alan, Tom Hall, and I (Scot Gillies) are gearing up for the 2010 edition of "Undervalued Sires," and I thought I'd ask you to join in the planning phase this year. As always, we'll refer to our internal research to identify stallions whose progeny performance records have outperformed their stud fees or sales averages. For the first time, though, I'd like to get your input before we make our final selections.

Is there a stallion you like who doesn't get the respect he deserves? Is it a $10,000 stud whose progeny are well-represented in stakes races, or a stallion whose progeny haven't fared well at the sales despite being consistently strong runners? Maybe it's a stallion who's overlooked because he's standing in a state where he doesn't attract the right mares, or a good sire whose book of mares is just too small.

Take a look at last year's Undervalued Sires feature -- it's a free PDF download -- and then tell us who you think should be on the list in 2010. Make your argument compelling and you might just sway the editorial team to take a closer look for the August feature!

This year I've increased the feature's length by 60% so we'll have plenty of room to analyze which stallions are breeders' and yearling buyers' best bets. Watch for the Undervalued Sires story in the August issue of MarketWatch. (Not a subscriber? Learn why you should be!)

We're looking forward to your comments (below).