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We've always thought that having the right stallion for the prevailing environment is a major key to success, and that's well illustrated by Cause to Believe, who is tearing it up in British Columbia this year. Cause to Believe was represented by only nine first-crop foals in 2010, but seven of them have reached the track and all seven are winners. It's Cause...
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One can't look at the leading Australian and New Zealand freshman sire lists for 2012-13 without an intense sense of loss over Northern Meteor, who died as a result of a colic attack on the very eve of the day that would see him crowned champion freshman sire. Nicknamed "racing's Usain Bolt" for his brilliant sprinting performances, the son of Encosta de Lago...
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While Redoute's Choice (AUS) ( TrueNicks , SRO ) has rapidly stamped himself as a sire of sires, his fellow Danehill son and erstwhile stud companion Flying Spur has been awaiting an heir. It now appears as if one may arrived in the shape of Casino Prince (AUS) ( TrueNicks ), who heads the Australia second-season sires list. He already has a star in the shape...
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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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There is a French saying that translates as something like "the more things change, the more they say the same." Plenty has changed in the macro- and micro-economic climates since last year's Fasig-Tipton Saratoga yearling sale, but despite the various undercurrents, as far as numbers sold, totals, and average, we ended up more or less in the same spot as 12...
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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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Unbeaten filly Stopshoppingdebbie, a daughter of Curlin ( TrueNicks ), will try to become the first horse to sweep the Emerald Downs 3-year-old filly stakes division in tomorrow's Washington Oaks. She's bred on the emerging nick of Smart Strike ( TrueNicks ) and his sons over Wild Again mares. Photo: Erin Palmer/Emerald Downs Stopshoppingdebbie (right) wins the...
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Wherever in the world you're breeding, the search for value goes on, and like we did yesterday with New Zealand sires , today we'll take a look at some Australia sires that we think fall into that category. Choisir (AUS) ( TrueNicks ) (by Danehill Dancer) strikes us as incredible value at Aus$27,500 when compared to some of the unproven, or barely proven, sires...
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Azamour is an undervalued stallion in Europe, and at NZ$12,000 looks remarkable value in New Zealand. A champion older horse in England and a group I winner at a mile, 1 1/4 miles, and 1 1/2 miles, he has 18 stakes winners in his four crops, including English champion 3-year-old filly Shankardeh, French Oaks (Fr-I) victress Valyra, and eight stakes winners. There...
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You could name many expensive sales horses, brilliant racehorses, or top commercial sires, but it's not often that one horse manages to do everything. Unbridled's Song ( TrueNicks , SRO ) was that horse, but even better, he did it all with a measure of drama. He was a trendsetter in the sales ring. A $200,000 yearling from the first crop of Unbridled, the colt...
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Australian media outlets have reported that undefeated two-time Australian Horse of the Year Black Caviar's first mating will be to Darley stallion Exceed And Excel (AUS) ( TrueNicks , SRO ). Photo: Darley Exceed And Excel (Danehill—Patrona, by Lomond) Exceed And Excel was, like Black Caviar, a sprinter. His first of two group I wins at 3 came in the seven-furlong...
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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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This week we have a guest post from Michelle Kinane ( @MichelleKinane ) on the wonderful Jacobs family stallion Silvano. Michelle is a young pedigree enthusiast based in Ireland and has her own blog which can be found here . Photo: Maine Chance Farms Silvano (Lomitas—Spirit of Eagles, by Beau's Eagle) Owned and bred by Dr. Andreas Jacobs' Gestüt Fährhof, Silvano...
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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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Photo: Three Chimneys Flower Alley , who is inbred 3x3 to Mr. Prospector, has had success with mares carrying Mr. Prospector or Raise a Native. There are plenty of examples in racehorse breeding when popular opinion turns out to be wrong. I was looking through an old racing book, The Spell of The Turf (1926) by Hildreth and Crowell, and found an interesting passage...
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Photo: Daehling Ranch Peppered Cat Not many people outside Northern California have heard of the stallion Peppered Cat , but with current earnings per starter of $36,400 compared to a 2013 stud fee of $2,000, the 13-year-old son of Tabasco Cat is starting to get some attention. Granted, he's had just 16 starters, but that group includes 10 winners and three stakes...
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TrueNicks' Ian Tapp sits down with Alan Porter, the creator of the TrueNicks rating, to discuss strategies and commercial considerations for using the new Key Ancestors Report. Up for discussion is Oregon Lady ( click for report ), a graded stakes-winning Shamardal mare who recently sold for $475,000 at Keeneland January in foal to Elusive Quality ( TrueNicks...
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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 today's news that Frankel's three-quarter brother Bullet Train (GB) ( TrueNicks , SRO ) is heading to Wintergreen Stallion Station for the 2013 season, it means that the siblings will begin their stud careers under very different circumstances. Frankel (by Galileo) will stand for £125,000 at Juddmonte's Banstead Manor Stud in England, while Bullet Train...
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Checking the TrueNicks website, we were somewhat shocked to find just how many new sires have already been declared for the 2013 breeding season. There is quite a lot to keep track of, so to try and ensure none get overlooked when making breeding plans for 2013, here is a very quick overview of the new sires of 2013 that are currently enrolled on the TrueNicks...
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The weekend saw New Approach (IRE) ( TrueNicks , SRO ) become the first European-based freshman sire of 2012 to be represented by a group I winner when his son Dawn Approach took the Vincent O'Brien National Stakes (Ire-I) by 4 3/4 lengths. This was the fifth win in five starts for Dawn Approach, who had taken the Coventry Stakes (Eng-II) at Royal Ascot on his...
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