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The thrilling finish of the Breeder's Cup Classic (gr. I) saw Blame spoil the undefeated record of Zenyatta, and the supermare's storyline instantly became reminiscent of another champion—Seattle Slew. Like Zenyatta, Seattle Slew started his career undefeated. He won his first nine races, which included six grade I's and the Triple Crown. Also like Zenyatta,...
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While the strength of the current European stallion community means that Galileo is unlikely to emulate his sire’s string of championships, there is no doubt that he is going a long way to replacing Sadler’s Wells. In one respect – his ability to get top two-year-olds – he may even have an edge over his legendary sire. If we credit Frankel with the crown that...
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Despite the very soft ground that prevailed over ‘Arc’ weekend, there was plenty to engage from a pedigree perspective. In the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (gr. I) itself, the Epsom Derby (gr. I) winner Workforce redeemed his reputation following a disappointing outing in the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth II Stakes (gr. I). This was a triumph more for courage...
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In the race briefly known as the Zenyatta Stakes, Zenyatta herself used her patented late move to claim her 19th victory Saturday at Hollywood Park. Odds are that the 2011 renewal of the Lady's Secret Stakes (gr. I) will be renamed once again for the unbeaten Street Cry (IRE) ( TrueNicks , SRO ) mare. But let's not forget 1986 Horse of the Year Lady's Secret...
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Lookin At Lucky apart, it’s been a strange season for three-year-olds with very few being able to separate themselves from the pack. The most recent weekend, with a purse totaling $1,500,000 for the two event, the Pennsylvania Derby (gr. II) and Super Derby (gr. II) might have seen some pretenders consolidate their position. Instead it revealed a pair of potential...
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The third of a triumvirate of young classic-winning sons of Sadler’s Wells – following Montjeu and Galileo – High Chaparral was a little slow to get underway in his stud career, but has made considerable progress in the last two seasons. This was underlined by a stellar international weekend that saw him represented by three graded stakes winners, two of them...
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In an era when Mr. Prospector, Northern Dancer, and A.P. Indy ( TrueNicks , SRO ) are the dominant forces in U.S. racing, it comes as a pleasant surprise that currently the leading two-year-old colts on either coast are male-line descendents of Man o’ War through In Reality . On Monday, the much-vaunted Boys At Tosconova (TrueNicks A++ ), impressed while winning...
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At the time the exportation of Trippi to South Africa looked to be a major loss to the Florida breeding industry, and he’s continued to underline the point since. In fact, that point became an exclamation mark after his daughter R Heat Lightning scored an impressive win in the weekend’s Spinaway Stakes (gr. I). R Heat Lightning is the first stakes winner under...
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Leading Second Crop Sire Afleet Alex ( TrueNicks , SRO ) moved further clear of the chasing pack – headed by Florida’s Wildcat Heir ( TrueNicks , SRO ) and Blind Luck’s sire Pollard’s Vison – at the weekend with a pair of stakes winners, headed by Afleet Express , who timed his bob of the head to take the Travers Stakes (gr. I) from Fly Down (by Mineshaft ( TrueNicks...
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Dada, dada, dadaa, da, da, daa….Who's the horse with hot three-year-old crop? Shaft! Mine Shaft!. With due apologies to the late Isaac Hayes, we think there are plenty of reasons to be "talkin' 'bout" Mineshaft ( TrueNicks , SRO ), who missed an historic double at Saratoga on Saturday by about an inch. The only Horse of the Year by A.P. Indy ( TrueNicks , SRO...
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Having finally cleared some matings – late Southern Hemisphere and very early Northern Hemisphere – off the desk, and taken our nose out of the middle of the 1300 or so strong catalog two of Keeneland September, we realized that we ought to take a quick look back at the pedigrees of some of the winners of major U.S. stakes events last weekend. The first thing...
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We mentioned in an earlier post that the crack two-year-old and sprinter Oasis Dream has several talented middle-distance runners, including top four-year-old filly Midday. However, he can still get the kind of two-year-old that his race record and pedigree would lead one to expect, and he had a pair of juvenile stakes winners last week in Approve (TrueNicks...
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After a deliberately low-key start to a season timed to peak for late summer and fall, Rip Van Winkle returned to his best to win a very strong renewal of the Juddmonte International (gr. I) over the title sponsor’s duo of Twice Over and Byword. Off the board behind Goldikova on his seasonal debut in the Queen Anne Stakes (gr. I), Rip Van Winkle stepped up on...
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Despite the colossal natural talent that he obviously was, the pedigree of Bellamy Road ( TrueNicks , SRO ) didn’t make him a natural commercial sire, nor an obvious sire of precocious two-year-olds (he's by Concerto, a son of Chief’s Crown and useful sire in Florida, but not exactly at the head of anyone's "sire of sires" list, out of a mare by Deputed Testamony...
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It was only by a nose, but Wasted Tears took her most recent winning streak to seven in the John C. Mabee Handicap (gr. II). Taking out one unplaced effort on the dirt, she actually has a ten race undefeated run on the sward stretching back to May, 2008. You'd have to credit a significant proportion of that to courage and toughness as well as talent, as her last...
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Dubawi (IRE) ( TrueNicks , SRO ) was a horse very well-suited by some give in the ground, a point underlined by his win in the 2005 renewal of the Prix Jacque Le Marois (gr. I) at Deauville. That the same is true of his offspring is evident by their efforts at Deauville on August 15. Five years on from his sire's victory in the same race, the English 2,000 Guineas...
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Other work pressures have kept us off the blogosphere for most of this week, but we've finally found a minute or two for some pedigree notes on last week's stakes winners. Last year, after his win in the Fayette Handicap (gr .II) at the end of October, we noted that Blame was developing a career arc very similar to that of his sire, Arch ( TrueNicks , SRO ),...
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Judging by the style of his victory in the Haskell Invitational Handicap (gr. I), Lookin At Lucky (by Smart Strike ( TrueNicks , SRO ) out of Private Feeling by Belong to Me ( TrueNicks , SRO ), and TrueNicks rated A++ ) will be tough to dethrone by any other three-year-old, with possibly only Super Saver a threat should he find himself back in the winner's circle...
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Having established himself as the dominant horse in Macau – where he became the first Triple Crown winner – Luen Yat Forever is set to return to his homeland, Australia, to tackle top-class opposition. The announcement was made following his win in last Saturday’s Star of The Sand Stakes (Macau gr. II event), and the plan calls for his homecoming to be in the...
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Following on from Alan Porter's post on the continued success of Dansili , here is a look at his offspring's stakes results over the last two months. Winning distances range from six to 16 furlongs and include grade/group I winners Proviso and Harbinger . In his current crop of 148 two-year-olds, Dansili has seven winners, highlighted by group III winner Zoffany...
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Of the first six foals produced by the great mare Hasili , only one did not capture a group or grade I event. However, that one, Dansili , may well turn out to be the most influential of all of his dam’s offspring, at least in the foreseeable future. Of course, although Dansili never captured a group I event, the son of Danehill was a very accomplished runner...
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We’ve mentioned before that it’s not exactly clear what constitutes the Filly Triple Crown. The Kentucky Oaks (gr. I), Acorn Stakes (gr. I), Mother Goose Stakes (gr. I), and Coaching Club American Oaks (gr. I) would seem to be the primary candidates, which might place the Alabama Stakes (gr. I) as a filly counterpart to the Travers Stakes (gr. I). It certainly...
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The last three months have been incredible for offspring of the late Maria's Mon . Sire of two Kentucky Derby (gr. I) winners in Monarchos ( TrueNicks , SRO ) (2001) and Super Saver (2010), and 2006 Champion Three-Year-Old filly Wait a While , Maria's Mon died in 2007 at the young age of 14. His final crop includes 100 two-year-olds of 2010. Date Runner Broodmare...
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Marlang had not won a race since capturing the Saranac Stakes (gr. III) in August, 2008, but the now five-year-old returned to the winner’s circle at the weekend leading throughout to take the Sunset Handicap (gr. III). Marlang is by Langfuhr ( TrueNicks , SRO ), and he’s not the first son of his sire we recall pulling a similar trick. Last year, the then seven...
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Breeding a mare by a stallion whose only group wins came at six furlongs, to a stallion whose two group wins came at five furlongs is not exactly the usual way of getting a 1½ mile classic winner. But when the stallions in question are Danehill and Pivotal , normal principals don’t always apply. Thus we have the 2010 Deutsches Derby (gr. I) hero, Buzzword , who...
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