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Last year’s Frizette Stakes (gr. I) captress, Devil May Care re-established herself near the top of the division with a 2¾ lengths win in the Bonnie Miss Stakes (gr. III). She’s a Pedigree Consultants recommended mating (for Diamond A Racing Corp) and is by the A.P. Indy (TrueNicks,SRO) son [Malibu Moon] out of the Red Ransom mare, Kelli’s Ransom (rated A++ by TrueNicks). The pedigree has some intricate plays on the Mr. Prospector/Northern Dancer combination: Malibu Moon’s dam, Macoumba, is by Mr. Prospector out of a Northern Dancer line mare; Devil May Care’s granddam is a Northern Dancer/Mr. Prospector cross, and the third dam is by Mr. Prospector out of a Northern Dancer mare. This Mr Prospector/Northern Dancer combination also finds itself in the pedigree of Malibu Moon's other top class three year old Odysseus with his dam being bred on the Mr Prospector/Northern Dancer mix also.
 
In New York, the late Horse of the Year, Saint Liam, was represented by the second stakes winner from his first crop when Liam’s Dream (TrueNicks rated B) won the Cicada Stakes (gr. III). Out of a half-sister to Distorted Humor (TrueNicks,SRO) , she is particularly notable for having inbreeding to Fappiano, this coming through Quiet American (TrueNicks,SRO) (broodmare sire of Saint Liam), and her own broodmare sire, Rubiano. This pair is an interesting combination, as Quiet American is inbred to Dr. Fager and to Fappiano’s third dam, Cequillo (through three-parts-sisters), and Rubiano is linebred to Dr. Fager’s sire, Rough’n Tumble. This is an encouragement for something we’ve been cautiously suggesting, trying Bernardini (TrueNicks,SRO) (dam by Quiet American), with mares descending from Fappiano through Unbridled (inbred to the dam of Dr. Fager, and linebred to Rough’n Tumble), although Rubiano would obviously also have potential.

Still with Fappiano and background, Unrivaled Belle (TrueNicks A++) gained a first stakes win in the Rampart Stakes (gr. III). She’s by Unbridled's Song (TrueNicks,SRO) out of the Bertrando (TrueNicks,SRO) mare, Queenie Belle. What is interesting here, is that Bertrando is a grandson of Relaunch (by In Reality). It’s old news that Fappiano (grandsire of Unbridled’s Song) and his descendents have had an extended affinity for the In Reality line, but close up, Relaunch (a somewhat physically untypical In Reality) wasn’t one of the prime choices. This is a cross that’s actually begun to work better as it’s receded into pedigrees, particularly for the Unbridled branch, with three Unbridled line stakes winners from 36 starters with Relaunch as sire of the broodmare, and two stakes winners from just seven starters with Relaunch as grandsire of the broodmare sire. We suspect that at times there are crosses that are good on genotype, and not so hot on phenotype, that are worth trying further back, when the initially non-matching physical types have become less so.

Super-consistent City Zip (TrueNicks,SRO) , had another good Saturday with Romantic Hideaway second in the Cicada Stakes (gr. III) and Unzip Me winning the $100,000 Irish O’Brien Stakes at Santa Anita. Unzip Me is out of a mare by Arazi, and the dam is a Blushing Groom/Nijinsky II cross, just like the dam of City Zip’s sire, Carson City. A quick look shows that City Zip has only 12 starters with Blushing Groom in the first four generations of the dam, and four of those horses are stakes winners (33% stakes winners to foals!).
 

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