We must admit, we did a double-take when we saw the pedigree line for the Malibu Stakes (gr. I) winner, M One Rifle, as the name of his sire, One Man Army, rang absolutely no bells whatsoever. It turns out that we weren’t having a senior moment, as One Man Army has very much been flying under the radar...
by
Alan Porter 1
on
12-29-2009
There was a 'lucky' ending to the last major two-year-old contests of the year with Looking At Lucky taking the Cashcall Futurity (gr. I) and Blind Luck the Hollywood Starlet Stakes (gr. I). Lookin At Lucky is a son of Smart Strike ( TrueNicks , SRO ) , who won’t repeat his Leading Sire titles of 2007...
by
Alan Porter 1
on
12-22-2009
We were interested to note the victory of Apapane in the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (gr. I), the most important contest for two-year-old females in Japan. The race has been won in recent years by such stars as Buena Vista and Vodka, and Apapane was scoring for the third straight time in four starts. Apapane...
by
Alan Porter 1
on
12-17-2009
Out of the Silver Deputy mare, Silvery Swan, El Corredor ( TrueNicks , SRO ) (by Mr. Greeley ( TrueNicks , SRO )) was the second grade I winner inbred to Mr. Prospector when he took the 2000 edition of the Cigar Mile (gr. I). He was also the first notable runner with such inbreeding to retire to stud...
by
Alan Porter 1
on
12-08-2009
It might seem hard to believe, but only a handful of years ago, Sadler's Wells' legacy as far as the extension of his male-line appeared to be in severe doubt. That is no longer the case, and we were treated to a number of reminders of over the weekend. Sadler's Wells' son, High Chaparral has been rather...
by
Alan Porter 1
on
10-27-2009
The juvenile filly grade I races over the weekend (including Friday) both went to stallions who made their names in a regional market before moving to Kentucky. The Frizette Stakes (gr. I) went to Devil May Care, who was making only her second start. She is by Malibu Moon ( TrueNicks , SRO ), who initially...
by
Alan Porter 1
on
10-14-2009
The surprising Pollard's Vision ( TrueNicks , SRO ) had leapt to the head of the Freshman class following the victory of Blind Luck in the Oak Leaf Stakes (gr. I) last weekend. That lead was short-lived, however, and Hill 'n' Dale's Roman Ruler ( TrueNicks , SRO ) now has the top spot after his son Homeboykris...
by
Alan Porter 1
on
10-13-2009
Sea the Stars has rightfully dominated the headlines from Europe but the other story of the weekend was the remarkable performance of horses bred and owned by the Aga Khan. We'll start with the 2½ mile Prix du Cadran (gr. I), which went to Alandi (TrueNicks A ), who is by Galileo out of the stakes winning...
by
Alan Porter 1
on
10-07-2009
There were several stakes for juveniles last weekend and two freshman sires, Kitten’s Joy (who also had the Summer S. (gr. III) runner-up Becky’s Kitten) and Roman Ruler ( TrueNicks , SRO ) put stakes winners on the board. Kitten’s Joy, who now has 11 first crop winners, was represented by Sunday Silence...
by
Alan Porter 1
on
09-23-2009
Last week we wrote that Careless Jewel had put up a Rachel Alexandra-like effort in crushing the Alabama Stakes (gr. I) field. Fast forward a week, and we find four-year-old Icon Project, delivering her Personal Ensign Stakes (gr. I) rivals a 13½ lengths drubbing. Icon Project (TrueNicks A++ ) is the...
by
Alan Porter 1
on
09-02-2009