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The summer of 2017 saw the publication of a scientific paper titled "Y Chromosome Uncovers the Recent Oriental Origin of Modern Stallions" with the outcomes found in this paper covered by Eric Mitchell in the Blood Horse that year. The paper at the time, while generally a broad discussion about the origins of the equine breed, did raise some questions about our...
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The battle for the leading freshman sire crown in Australia and New Zealand for 2014-15 may well come down to Fastnet Rock vs. the rest. Fastnet Rock While there is plenty of interest among the current freshman crop, there is no doubt that one of the more intriguing developments to watch will be the progress of the first contingent of sons of Fastnet Rock ( TrueNicks...
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It hasn't taken long for the second-season sires of 2014 to make their presence felt, and already four of them have been represented grade I winners. The leader among horses who began their careers in the U.S. is Kingmambo's much-traveled son Thewayyouare ( TrueNicks ), who now stands in Ireland. He has 16 winners from 37 runners, and had a big earnings boost...
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From time to time on this blog, we've looked at what we might call "super nicks," or crosses calculated on immediate ancestors (like, say, the sire and broodmare sire) that are particularly notable for the numbers and class of stakes winners they are providing. In the current era, none would surpass a cross we've considered in detail before, that of Galileo with...
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Given that the common perception of U.S. commercial breeding would be that the most prized performer is one that is at its best between seven and nine furlongs on dirt, it might be considered something of a paradox that the title of 2013 leading sire came down to a hard-fought battle between a champion turf horse and a champion sprinter. The lead could have changed...
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We've reached back into the time vault and unearthed a TrueNicks webinar that we filmed back in 2009. While it is over three years old, much of what we talked about back then is still relevant today. Enjoy! Click here to download the "Top 10 Myths About Nicks in Thoroughbred Breeding" whitepaper .
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While there is no doubt that nicks tend to run in sire lines, we've also often found it profitable to consider the dam of a stallion when attempting to predict potential crosses. For example, when Smart Strike ( TrueNicks ) retired to stud, we noted that he was a half brother to champion Dance Smartly, a daughter of Danzig. Since Smart Strike was a Mr. Prospector...
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With the first two major summer yearling sales in the books, we'll take a quick look at the top 10 commercial sires of 2013 by yearling average and ponder on the potential for them to extend their lines. The millennial stallion crop, whose first foals were born in 2000, included Awesome Again ( TrueNicks , SRO ), Indian Charlie, Elusive Quality ( TrueNicks ,...
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On June 30, 1996, Devon Lane made his racing debut against two other Thoroughbreds and six Quarter Horses. He finished third in the 870-yard "around the hook" event at New Mexico's Ruidoso Downs. A Quarter Horse won the race. The runner-up, a Thoroughbred, was by a stallion with an advertised stud fee of $500. Devon Lane's sire, Storm Cat, had stood the 1996...
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A little over two years ago, we looked at the cross of Galileo with mares by Danehill . This was fast becoming a European mega nick, having—in the space of three weeks—been represented by Frankel, who had just taken the Two Thousand Guineas (Eng-I) in breathtaking style; Golden Lilac, successful in the French One Thousand Guineas (Fr-I); and Roderic O'Connor...
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Discreet Cat ( TrueNicks , SRO )'s stud career may not yet have matched the scintillating racetrack performances that saw him rated as a world champion at 3, but he's having a very strong year in 2013, standing second only to stud-mate Hard Spun ( TrueNicks , SRO ) among U.S.-based third season sires. Photo: Darley Discreet Cat (Forestry—Pretty Discreet, by Private...
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While he is now considered an "elder statesman" of the Coolmore Australia stallion roster, there can be no doubt that Encosta de Lago (AUS) ( TrueNicks , SRO ) is one of the premier stallions standing in Australia this year. The son of Fairy King has amassed a sensational record at stud with 6.3% stakes winners to foals and 7.6% stakes winners to runners (up...
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It's no secret that the late German stallion Monsun, who died last September at the age 22, was an outstanding sire. However, even by his standards, he had exceptional day May 26, with 5-year-old Maxios taking the Prix d'Ispahan (Fr-I) and 3-year-old filly Silasol capturing the Prix Saint-Alary (Fr-I), both at Longchamp; and in Milan on the same afternoon, Charity...
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The wins of Orb in the Kentucky Derby (gr. I) and Princess of Sylmar in the Kentucky Oaks (gr. I) further solidified the pensioned Lane's End stallion A.P. Indy as the premier sire line source of classic speed in the North American Thoroughbred. Indeed, with Normandy Invasion (by Tapit ( TrueNicks , SRO )), Dreaming of Julia, and Revolutionary (out of an A.P...
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Photo: Anne M. Eberhardt Storm Cat (1983-2013) News today of the passing of Storm Cat at the age of 30 gave pause to reflect on how a stallion can be a constant presence for half a lifetime (indeed, if you are a member of a younger generation, it must seem as if he's always been there). I first saw Storm Cat back in July 1987 at Overbrook Farm when the then 4...
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Sunland Park's big day turned into a benefit for Bob Baffert and Mike Pegram, who took the Sunland Park Derby (gr. III, VIDEO ) with Govenor Charlie (also bred by Pegram) and the Sunland Park Oaks ( VIDEO ) with Midnight Lucky (owned by Pegram in partnership). The duo—who both scored in track record time—are both from the first crop of the Baffert-trained/Pegram...
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This morning I spoke briefly with Brereton Jones of Airdrie Stud, who alerted me to a homebred filly of his with a very clever name. She is by Airdrie stallion Proud Citizen ( TrueNicks , SRO ) out of the winning Langfuhr ( TrueNicks , SRO ) mare Saramar—the exact same cross as Mr. Jones' Kentucky Oaks (gr. I) winner and champion 3-year-old filly Proud Spell...
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December 6 brought the news that Pulpit, a leading commercial sire for almost a decade and a half, had died in his paddock. The 18-year-old stallion was bred by Claiborne Farm, raced in the Claiborne colors, and stood his entire stud career at the Paris, Ky., nursery. A member of the first crop of A.P. Indy, Pulpit was in several ways a trend-setter for his sire...
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With all the attention currently (and deservedly) lavished on Frankel , it's probably worth giving a perspective on Brigadier Gerard, the horse that he's supplanted as miler of a lifetime. "The Brigadier" had more humble beginnings than Frankel. Bred by John Hislop (an outstanding amateur jockey and noted breeding and racing writer), was by Queen's Hussar (a...
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The astonishing start to his stud career made by Japanese sire Deep Impact continued last weekend when he enjoyed a group stakes double that included a victory by his son Deep Brillante in the Japanese Derby (gr. I, video below). Deep Impact is a son of the Halo stallion Sunday Silence, whose status as not only the greatest Japanese stallion of his era, but arguably...
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Pedigree historians have long been suspicious about the exact parentage of the 1880 Epsom Derby winner. The record books will tell you that the winner was Bend Or , a son of Doncaster out of the Thormanby mare Rouge Rose, bred and owned by the 1st Duke of Westminster. However, not long after the 1880 running of the Derby, the owners of the runner-up, Robert the...
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Last week was a very tough one for the mighty Coolmore/Ashford stallion operation. On March 29 came the news that Montjeu had died in Ireland at the age of 16 after a short illness caused by septicemia, an infection in the bloodstream. Just two days later at Ashford, 17-year-old Grand Slam, who had been enjoying an excellent start to 2012, died as a result of...
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More Than Ready Photo: Vinery Hindsight is always 20/20, but when the Vinery Stud stallion More Than Ready ( TrueNicks , SRO ) shuttled to Australia, he looked to be a ‘lock’ to suit mares by then-leading sire Danehill. Invariably within breeding populations, the next great sire establishes himself with the daughters of a previously great sire. Just as Danehill...
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Ron the Greek looked like a horse who could develop into a genuine classic prospect when closing late to take the 2010 renewal of the LeComte Stakes (gr. III) by 1½ lengths. At that point, the Florida-bred was a winner of three of his four starts, but rather surprisingly, it would take another 22 months and ten races before he revisted the winner's circle. That...
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Union Rags, who remained winter favorite for the Kentucky Derby (gr. I) despite a narrow loss to Hansen ( TrueNicks ) in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I), made his keenly-awaited seasonal debut in the Fountain of Youth Stakes (gr. II, video ) at Gulfstream Park. The wait proved worthwhile, as Union Rags could hardly have been more impressive, settling behind...
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