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Rule, was expected to get his classic campaign off to a bright start in the Sam F. Davis Stakes (gr. III) and he accomplished this with aplomb.

Rule certainly has a classic pedigree. He is from the first crop of Roman Ruler (TrueNicks,SRO) (by Kentucky Derby (gr. I) winner, Fusaichi Pegasus (TrueNicks,SRO)), who had a good weekend with his daughter Roman Chestnut (3 x 2 to Silver Deputy) becoming his fifth stakes winner with a score in the Busher Stakes at Aqueduct. Rule (TrueNicks B) is out of Rockcide, a Personal Flag, half-sister to Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes (gr. I)  victor, Funny Cide. Interestingly, Funny Cide’s sire, Distorted Humor (TrueNicks,SRO) , has three stakes winners, two graded, out of Personal Flag mares, and he and Roman Ruler are both Mr. Prospector/Northern Dancer crosses. It will be interesting to see if they develop more shared affinities. Rule himself is an outcross at five generations, but his sire is inbred 2 x 4 to Mr. Prospector and his dam 4 x 4 to Buckpasser, with a 5 x 5 cross of Ribot one generation. Interesting that of Roman Ruler’s two weekend stakes winners, one has intense inbreeding, and the other is an outcross.

If the Sam F. Davis had a predictable outcome, the same can’t be said for the Robert B. Lewis Stakes (gr. II), which fell to Caracortado, a Cal-bred gelding who started his career in a $40,000 maiden claimer. He’s now five-for-five. Caracortado’s sire, Cat Dreams, may not ring too many bells, but he is a son of Storm Cat out of millionaire J J’sdream, and at two won a maiden special weight at Churchill Downs by eight lengths, in what turned out to be his only start. Cat Dreams began his career in California, but last year was purchased by Pedigree Consultants client Triple ‘R’ Thoroughbreds, and moved to Still Creek Farms, Brookville, Illinois.

Rated A++ by TrueNicks, Caracortado is the fourth stakes winner by a son or grandson of Storm Cat out of a mare by Maria’s Mon, not bad considering there are only eight stakes winners to date from daughters of that horse.

Macias, who was due to contest the Robert B. Lewis when it was originally carded for the previous weekend, sidestepped the race for the 6½ furlong Baffle Stakes on the undercard, scoring by a convincing 2½ lengths. Macias is a member of the first crop of Purge (TrueNicks,SRO) (by Pulpit (TrueNicks,SRO), who now has at least seven sons who have sired stake winners).

Macias has a rather unusual pedigree, as his dam, Azelna, is a French-bred daughter of Tropular (French raced son of Troy, also broodmare sire of Street Cry). It’s when we get to Macias’ second dam, La Miserable, that things get really interesting. She is by Miswaki (a son of Mr. Prospector) out of the Nijinsky II mare, Baranova. Purge’s sire, Pulpit, is out of Preach, who is by Mr. Prospector, out of a daughter of State, a three-parts-sister to Baranova. So Macias has close genetic relatives 3 x 2 in his pedigree. Macias is the first stakes winner under the first two dams, so the intricate linebreeding seems to have been a major factor for upgrading. It also strongly suggests trying Purge with mares by Tale of the Cat (TrueNicks,SRO) , Johannesburg and Minardi, who would all give very similar patterns, going back to Yarn a sister to Preach.
 

Filed under: Recent Winners, Mares, Emerging Nicks, Sires, Pedigree Elements