A half-dozen years ago, a chestnut colt named Solomini (by Curlin) finished first in the (then) Grade 1 Los Alamitos Futurity. In the 2017 race, the first two home were trained by Bob Baffert, and the margins were small, as Solomini prevailed by three-quarters of a length over McKinzie (Street Sense), who had a head advantage over Instilled Regard (Arch).
After a stretch drive notable for its contentious nature, the stewards disqualified Solomini from first to third for interference, and this past Saturday, Dec. 16, Solomini's son Wynstock won the 2023 Los Alamitos Futurity (G2) by a half-length from Stronghold (Ghostzapper), who was a half-length ahead of the odds-on favorite, Coach Prime (Quality Road). Like the 2017 renewal, there was a stewards inquiry, but this time the original result was allowed to stand.
Wynstock is the third stakes winner and first graded stakes winner from the first crop of foals by Solomini, and the irony of the situation is that, after the 2017 Futurity, Solomini never again finished first in a stakes.
Prior to the 2017 Los Alamitos Futurity, Solomini had been second in the G1 FrontRunner to Bolt d'Oro (Medaglia d'Oro) and second again in the G1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile to subsequent divisional champion Good Magic (Curlin), with Bolt d'Oro third. Coming into the fourth renewal of the Futurity staged at Los Alamitos, Solomini would have been reckoned one of the very best of his crop of juvenile colts (he was one of the three finalists for the Eclipse Award in the division), but he started second favorite to the unbeaten McKinzie, who had won his debut by 5 ½ lengths the previous month.
Solomini lost little regard with his defeat to the stewards, but the colt's failure to continue improving and win a major race became a major hurdle for him as a stallion prospect. Although he finished second in the G2 Rebel Stakes and third in the G1 Arkansas Derby, his first two starts at 3, Solomini placed in only one subsequent stakes.
Racing through the end of his 4-year-old season, Solomini was the forgotten horse among the stars of the crop. Whereas Justify sold to stand at Ashford, Good Magic went to Hill 'n' Dale, and McKinzie came to Gainesway, Solomini went to stud in New York.
The handsome chestnut was acquired to stand at the McMahon family's McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds, which stands some of the most successful stallions in New York, including this year's top state sire, Central Banker (Speightstown).
Ranking eighth overall among all New York sires, Solomini has stepped to the front of the class with three stakes winners from his freshman crop. Among the national freshmen of 2023, Solomini ranks seventh behind the Spendthrift quartet (Mitole, Maximus Mischief, Vino Rosso, and Omaha Beach), Flameaway (Darby Dan), and Audible (WinStar).
Solomini's son Wynstock is the 14th winner of the Futurity for trainer Bob Baffert. He has trained the winner of the Futurity at Los Alamitos eight times from the 10 renewals at the track; previously contested as the Hollywood Futurity, the race had six times been won by racers conditioned by Baffert when run at Hollywood Park.
When Solomini went to stud at the McMahon family operation, “We had very high expectations for him because he was a son of Curlin and beat some really nice horses,” said John McMahon. “But this weekend has brought tons of interest in the horse and inquiries about breeding to him.
“From the way his 2-year-olds were training and the maiden special winners, we knew he was in a good position,” John said. “We were hoping December was going to be a big month, and it all came together really well this weekend.”
In addition to the Los Alamitos Futurity, Solomini's offspring won the New York Stallion Stakes (filly division) with My Shea D Lady on Saturday and got second place in the colts' division with Heavyweight Champs after the disqualification of the original runner-up.
Bred in New York by Empire Equines LLC, Wynstock is out of the Flatter mare Timberlea. She had been a $50,000 September yearling at Keeneland in 2016, but from eight starts at 3 and 4, she managed only a third-place finish and earnings of $11,554.
So, she must have been a more than satisfactory individual when presented as a broodmare prospect in the Keeneland January sale of 2020, because she brought $10,500 as a young mare suitable for mating.
The buyer was McMahon and Hill Bloodstock, agent for Empire Equines, “which is the entity of John and Sandy Crowe,” Mike McMahon said. “They are longtime clients and keep the mare at my parents' farm in New York.”
John Crowe said, “We bought a share in Solomini, and looking back, I wish we'd bought two. Then we needed a mare for him. Mike and I had jointly decided that an A.P. Indy-line mare would suit Solomini quite well and ended up buying two Flatter mares, with both going to Solomini.”
Wynstock was the first foal of the mare, Timberlea, who was barren for 2022 but has a Mo Town filly of 2023. She was bred back to Solomini for a 2024 foal.
That prospective foal is now a full sibling to a graded stakes winner and won't be shuffled into the third thousand of the Keeneland September sale, like Wynstock, who nonetheless sold for $50,000 as a yearling to Gerardo Barragan and then resold for $700,000 as a juvenile in training at this year's OBS April sale, where he was consigned by Caliente Thoroughbreds. Los Alamitos owner Dr. Edward Allred and track executive F. Jack Liebau were the buyers.
At the preview for that auction, Wynstock breezed a furlong in :09 4/5 and showed a stride length of slightly more than 27 feet, one of the longest strides of the breeze season, and earned a BreezeFig of 80, which is a massive number for a 2-year-old sales horse.
With Wynstock and other promising performers from his first crop, “Solomini's first crop has put him in the national spotlight,” John McMahon said, “and we're very excited about his prospects for the future.”
Frank Mitchell is author of Racehorse Breeding Theories, as well as the book Great Breeders and Their Methods: The Hancocks. In addition to writing the column “Sires and Dams” in Daily Racing Form for nearly 15 years, he has contributed articles to Thoroughbred Daily News, Thoroughbred Times, Thoroughbred Record, International Thoroughbred, and other major publications. In addition, Frank is chief of biomechanics for DataTrack International and is a hands-on caretaker of his own broodmares and foals in central Kentucky. Check out Frank's Bloodstock in the Bluegrass blog.
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