David O'Farrell is outspoken in his belief that their Grade I-winning trio of new stallions makes for a special group. Two-time GI Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational S. winner Colonel Liam (Liam's Map) recently joined the roster alongside newcomers Roadster (Quality Road), another eye-catching dappled gray who did his best work on dirt, as well as  Gretzky the Great, a precocious son of leading fourth-crop sire Nyquist.

“I think these are three of the most exciting stallion prospects that we've stood for a really long time,” O'Farrell stated. “I think there is a really nice variety to offer Florida breeders with sire power, good race records and very good physicals. They all have the qualities to be leading sires and I think it's a great opportunity for everybody here in Florida.”

Roadster, a 'TDN Rising Star' as a debuting juvenile and the winner of the 2019 GI Santa Anita Derby, makes for an interesting stallion prospect in part because of the powerhouse group of supporters already backing the new sire. His breeder Stone Farm and campaigner Speedway Stable will both be supporting the son of Quality Road, as will Rustlewood Farm and Airdrie Stud.

Ocala Stud and Airdrie already have a promising track record with partnering on stallions. Last year's fast-starting freshman sire Girvin launched his career at Ocala Stud and relocated to Airdrie this year with five stakes winners already to his credit.

Roadster bests juvenile champion Game Winner in the 2019 GI Santa Anita Derby | Benoit

“We had been competing with Airdrie for years on the same stallion prospects and we kind of have the same mentality when it comes to picking stallions,” O'Farrell explained. “So rather than competing with one another, we've started to partner up on certain stallions. We had Girvin, and now we have Win Win Win (Hat Trick {Jpn}) and we're adding Roadster. We both support the horses with nice mares and it's been a great partnership. We couldn't be more excited to partner with this group with Roadster and get him off to a really good start.”

During his career, Roadster came just short of reaching one million in earnings, defeating juvenile champion Game Winner in the Santa Anita Derby and coming home with additional Grade I placings in the Del Mar Futurity at two and the Malibu S. behind Omaha Beach at three.

“To have a top-level son of Roadster is really exciting,” said O'Farrell. “He has a lot of pedigree, was a tremendous racehorse and has a very good physical. He's a typical Quality Road–kind of long and lean, but with a lot of quality. He's very athletic and well-balanced.”

Roadster is out of stakes winner Ghost Dancing (Silver Ghost), who is also the dam of GI Manhattan S. victor Ascend (Candy Ride {Arg}).

O'Farrell said that Roadster, who launches his career at $7,500, has been received enthusiastically by Florida breeders and will be booked full in just a few weeks.

Colonel Liam's retirement was announced just three weeks ago, but the millionaire has brought a steady stream of interested breeders since his arrival.

“The Colonel Liam deal came together really quickly for us right at the start of the breeding season,” O'Farrell explained. “It's giving us a boost coming into the season. A lot of breeders in Florida book their mares a little later, but we've had a lot of traffic and a lot of good feedback. People are really excited about him standing here in Florida.”

Colonel Liam did his best work in the Sunshine State, winning his first start on the Gulfstream dirt before switching to the turf and taking the Tropical Park Derby and back-to-back editions of the GI Pegasus World Cup Turf. His resume also includes victories in the 2021 GI Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic S. and the GII Muniz Memorial Classic S.

Gretzky the Great takes the 2020 GI Summer S. | Michael Burns

“I think that he's probably the best racehorse that we've stood at stud as far as accomplishments in a really long time,” O'Farrell said. “He's a three-time grade I winner on the turf, but he has a dirt pedigree. He's by champion dirt miler Liam's Map and is out of a Bernardini mare, so it gives you confidence that he could throw top-level runners on any surface. Even though he didn't run at two, he did have speed. He worked :20 4/5 at the OBS April Sale, so we have confidence that he could sire 2-year-olds and a lot of quality dirt runners.”

A $1.2 million juvenile for Robert and Lawana Low, Colonel Liam's second dam Wonder Again (Silver Hawk) was also a millionaire and multiple Grade I winner.

O'Farrell reported that the Lows are busy buying mares to support their new stallion, who will launch his stud career at a fee of $6,500.

The third member of Ocala Stud's new roster, Gretzky the Great, is another Grade I-winning turfer with a dirt pedigree. The 5-year-old is the first son of GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner and leading fourth-crop sire Nyquist to go to stud. He is out of the stakes-placed Bernardini mare Pearl Turn.

Campaigned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Gary Barber, Gretzky the Great won the Soaring Free S. and GI Summer S. at two, earning the Sovereign Award for champion 2-year-old male in 2020. He went on to further stakes success in the Greenwood S. at three.

“He was a precocious, very classy individual,” O'Farrell said. “He has a dirt pedigree, which leads us to believe that he could be a very good sire of runners on either surfaces. He's a really good-looking horse and is by a sire line that I believe in. I think he's a really neat prospect for Florida breeders.”

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Ryan Norton, who joined Gainesway as the farm's new stallion director a few weeks before the Breeders' Cup, explained how Olympiad's performance at Keeneland over fellow Grade I-winning Classic contenders Taiba, Rich Strike, Life Is Good and others led to a busy stretch of open houses at Gainesway as breeders were eager to inspect the multi-millionaire.

“The Breeders' Cup was the pinnacle of Olympiad's career,” Norton said. “It was a race that had breeders look at him and say, 'This is a real-deal horse.' I think that was the reason why he was such a success when he retired here. He had hundreds of people coming to view him and he was booked full within three weeks of his arrival.”

Certainly the campaign that Olympiad put together throughout his 4-year-old season was further incentive for inquiring breeders. A lightly-raced winner at both two and three, the Bill Mott trainee strung together five graded stakes scores in 2022, starting with a track-record setting win in the GIII Mineshaft S. and then continuing on with further victories in the GII New Orleans Classic S., the GII Alysheba S., the GII Stephen Foster S. and the GI Jockey Club Gold Cup S.

“Olympiad had a mix of speed and stamina,” Norton explained. “He won at seven furlongs and he won at a mile and a quarter. He ran eight triple-digit Beyers up to 111, so he was definitely a very fast horse and he could carry his speed. He had six wins from eight starts at four, plus a second in the Breeders' Cup Classic. To do that in this day and age with such a deep field of older horses in 2022 really showed the quality and perseverance that this horse had.”

Norton said that the members of Olympiad's partnership – Robert Clay's Grandview Equine, Everett Dobson's Cheyenne Stable and LNJ Foxwoods – have all submitted some of their best mares to Olympiad and that the new Gainesway stallion will breed between 185 and 200 mares in 2023.

With an initial stud fee of $35,000, Olympiad is one of seven stallions by Speightstown standing in Kentucky, but Norton explained that this particular son of the WinStar stalwart offers a unique opportunity for breeders.

“One of the main things that breeders have been saying is that he has a lot more size and a lot more scope that the typical Speightstown. That was something that I think they were very intrigued with. The mating can produce something that's going to be a little bigger and a little rangier, a horse that is going to be able to run short or long. He's 16'1, so you see a lot of Medaglia d'Oro, his broodmare sire, coming out.”

The Speightstown-Medaglia d'Oro cross has been a rewarding mating. Along with Olympiad, Speightstown's Grade I winners out of Medaglia d'Oro mares include Rock Fall and Competitionofideas. The cross has also produced Grade III victors Strike Power and Souper Stonehenge.

“It works well because you get the speed of Speightstown with the stamina of Medaglia,” Norton noted.

With a pedigree tracing back to Emory Hamilton's foundation mare Too Chic, Olympiad's extended family features a host of Grade I winners including sires Preservationist, Keen Ice, and Verrazano. His dam Tokyo Time, herself a turf success with a runner-up placing in the GIII Herecomesthebride S., is a half to MGSW Hungry Island (More Than Ready) and GSW Soaring Empire (Empire Maker).

“It's a very deep family which is why, between his looks and that female family, he was a $700,000 Keeneland September yearling,” Norton said. “Solis/Litt Bloodstock bought him and they're known for picking out very attractive horses, so breeders are aware when they come here that he is going to have a certain look that they are going to like. He's a great walker. He drops his head, really extends and has a nice overreach. Looking at the horse and how he moves, you understand exactly how he was such a good racehorse.”

Along with Olympiad, Gainesway also welcomes Drain the Clock (Maclean's Music – Manki, by Arch) to their roster for 2023. The speedy sprinter earned three graded stakes wins over his three-year career, including a victory over champion Jackie's Warrior in the 2021 GI Woody Stephens S. He will stand for $10,000 in his debut season.

For more on this year's class of incoming stallions, click here. 

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The Three Diamonds Farm runner broke his maiden at second asking in Saratoga's With Anticipation S. at two while on the main track and quickly made it three in a row, taking the GII Pilgrim S. on Belmont's lawn prior to his victory in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf at Keeneland. He won the latter by three lengths, propelling him to the Eclipse Awards as a finalist for the 2-year-old champion male, eventually won by Essential Quality (Tapit).

“[Fire At Will] is absolutely the fastest 2-year-old I have ever trained on the turf,” said conditioner Mike Maker.

Fire At Will switched to the dirt again for his first start at three, finishing off the board in the GII Fountain of Youth S., then quickly rebounded to a third-place finish in Keeneland's GIII Transylvania S. on the grass. Fire At Will retires with a record of 6-3-0-1 and earnings of $675,932.

Bred in Kentucky by Troy Rankin, Fire At Will was purchased as a yearling at the 2019 Keeneland September sale by Three Diamonds Farm for $97,000. His dam is a half-sister to GISW Decorated Invader (Declaration of War) and they hail from the same family as successful sire Stormy Atlantic. Bidding for Fire At Will's digital sale closed Jan. 11.

“Recent Fasig-Tipton Digital sale graduate Fire At Will presents a great opportunity to breeders in New York,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning. “He was a brilliant Breeders' Cup winner at two and has an outstanding pedigree. Becky Thomas and her team at Sequel have added another really exciting stallion prospect for the 2023 breeding season.”

Fire At Will will be available for inspection at Sequel, along with fellow Sequel stallions Keepmeinmind, Honest Mischief, Freud, and Mission Impazible, this coming Saturday, Jan. 21, from 11 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. His fee for the upcoming season will be $6,000.

The post GISW Fire At Will to Sequel New York for 2023 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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With breeding shed doors opening soon, what has this newcomer's initial reception been like with breeders?

“A lot more positive than the Oscar Performance reception was,” said Price Bell with a laugh.

These days, Mill Ridge Farm's general manager is happy to joke about the challenge of launching an American turf horse's stud career if it means talking about Oscar Performance, who just received a fee bump from $12,500 to $20,000 after he wrapped up 2022 as the leading sire of all 2-year-olds on the turf by progeny earnings with his first crop.

As for Aloha West, the champion has drawn a steady stream of visitors at Mill Ridge after he retired to stud following this year's Breeders' Cup.

A son of Hard Spun, Aloha West is out of the Speightstown mare Island Bound, who won the 2012 GIII Winning Colors S. Bell said the new stallion has a physical that reflects both sides of his pedigree and will fit a variety of mares.

“Physically, he's a beautiful horse. Hard Spun is a son of Danzig, who is as influential of a sire line as there exists. Aloha West it from the family of Fappiano and then within that, you've got Speightstown, who is a son of Gone West out of a Storm Cat mare. I think the Speightstown side has really balanced him and polished him up. ”

Aloha West fulfills an important roll at Mill Ridge in carrying out the legacy of breed shaper Gone West, who joined Mill Ridge's first stallion Diesis at the farm in 1988 and went on to produce 98 stakes winners.

After the remarkable success of Gone West, whose sons and grandsons are influential on a global scale today, the farm added several more stallions that failed to follow in their predecessors' achievements.

“We were more active in the stallion business through the 1990s and the 2000s,” Bell explained. “We took on a strategy–and not a unique one–that we needed to retire a stallion every year. We stood Bien Bien, Valiant Nature, Binalong, and really a series of stallions that didn't work. I think at times we might have gotten over our skis in feeling like we had to stand a stallion and we got away from believing in a stallion. As the dust settled, our strategy changed because we couldn't afford to make mistakes. So we never felt like we were out of the stallion business, but rather that we were waiting for the right opportunity.”

That first opportunity came with Oscar Performance, who is the product of a Nicoma Bloodstock mating suggestion and was foaled and raised at Mill Ridge. Next came Gone West's descendant Aloha West.

“Our belief in him was the fundamental driver,” Bell said. “I think if we were to have learned anything after Gone West with the other stallions that we tried, it is that we have to get back to believing in the horse, his ability, his ability to become a stallion and the team around that horse.”

One chapter of Aloha West's story that Bell said they aim to impress upon breeders is that while the Maryland-bred did not race until he was four due to an injury that required surgery, he did have all the potential to be a top-class juvenile.

“Although he didn't race at two, you can look back at his works and see that he was putting in bullets at San Luis Rey and Santa Anita. So it would be easy to bypass that, but when you understand that he was a very good 2-year-old, and then he breaks his maiden at Oaklawn Park by making this big move passing horses around the turn, you think, 'Wow, that's a serious racehorse.'”

Purchased by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners shortly after that debut win, Aloha West won five of his nine starts in 2021. He was the runner-up in the GII Phoenix S. at Keeneland and then got his signature win in the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint, where he defeated the likes of champion Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) and MGISW Dr. Schivel (Violence). He furthered his success at five with a win in the Kelly's Landing S.

“He had a tremendous desire to win,” Bell said. “He was tough and fast and wanted to get to the finish line first. He ran speed figures comparable to Munnings and other great stallions, so that gives us the belief that he can pass that on to his offspring.”

Aloha West will stand for a fee of $10,000 in 2023. Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners has stayed in on the stallion and recently signed tickets on several mares at the Keeneland January Sale.

“Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners are our friends and clients that we hold in the highest regard,” Bell said. “Their motto is to believe big and he certainly achieved the highest results for their partners. For me, he is as exciting a sire at this price point that has come out in the last few years and we've had a positive reception not only from previous clients, but also from new clients. We feel so blessed because this is a game of hopes and dreams and we want to share it with as many people as possible. We're all in this together and we hope that we can launch a successful stallion career.”

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Jack Christopher is also the first son of Munnings to join his sire at Ashford Stud. After carrying the Coolmore silks to a trio of graded stakes wins, Munnings stood his first five seasons at Ashford for under $15,000, but steadily produced one elite runner after another. A top 10 North American sire in 2022, Munnings will stand for his highest fee yet this year at $100,000 while his highest-earning son Jack Christopher is advertised at an introductory fee of $45,000.

“It's always very fulfilling when you have a stallion and are able to stand one of his sons,” said Ashford Stud's Adrian Wallace. “I think that is particularly true of a horse like Munnings, who was really a rags-to-riches story. He was a very fast horse over six and seven furlongs and I think you see that with a lot of the Munnings stock including Jack Christopher.”

Earning the 'Rising Star' nod with a 8 3/4-length debut score at Saratoga, Jack Christopher followed that effort with an easy win in the GI Champagne S. Owned in the partnership of Jim Bakke, Gerald Isbister, Coolmore Stud and Peter Brant, the Chad Brown trainee scratched from the GI Breeder' Cup Juvenile due to a shin problem, but returned to the track at three to remain undefeated in the GII Pat Day Mile S. and GI Woody Stephens S. He ran third in his lone defeat while stretching out in the GI Haskell S., but got back to his winning ways at seven furlongs in the GI H. Allen Jerkens in his final career start.

“The thing about Jack Christopher is that he's all about speed,” Wallace explained. “He was quick out of the gate. He could get to the front and dominate his races. He was also very tactical in the way he raced. Chad Brown is quoted as saying he's one of the fastest horses he has ever trained.”

“He is very like his sire Munnings,” he continued. “He's a balanced horse and a good mover. He's probably a better-looking horse than his sire, so if he can become as good a sire as Munnings, we'll be very happy.”

Jack Christopher's grandsire Speighstown jumps out on the pedigree of another new Ashford resident, Early Voting. The Classic winner was bred by Three Chimneys Farm and his dam Amour d'Ete is not only a sibling to Speightstown, but also to MGSW Irap (Tiznow).

Early Voting stands out among this year's class of incoming stallions as one of the first two sons of remarkably fast-starting sire Gun Runner to go to stud. Along with Early Voting, Gun Runner's six Grade I winners include Cyberknife, who will stand at Spendthrift Farm after making his career finale in the GI Pegasus World Cup on Jan. 28.

“With Early Voting being one of the first sons of Gun Runner to stand at stud, it's a huge privilege to be able to get his career off to a good start,” said Wallace. “Gun Runner is widely perceived as one of the best young stallions in America and now we're excited to stand one of his best sons. I think Early Voting has the size and balance of Gun Runner, but in many ways he looks like his damsire Tiznow. He's got the big hip and shoulder.”

On the racetrack, the Klaravich Stables-campaigned colt made a good impression in his winning debut late in his juvenile season and then returned to the winner's circle in the GIII Withers S. He ran second to future GI Belmont S. winner Mo Donegal (Uncle Mo) in the GII Wood Memorial S. before scoring his signature victory in the GI Preakness S., where he earned a 105 Beyer as he defeated his eventual studmate Epicenter (Not This Time), a leading consideration for top 3-year-old of 2022.

“Early Voting had speed and he was able to carry that speed,” Wallace noted. “He also had great heart and there was no better reflection of that than his race in the Preakness. He ran a superb race that day. His speed took him to the front and he kept going. His form was very strong throughout the year and a horse like him has been very popular with breeders so far.”

Early Voting will stand for $25,000 and was awarded the silver medal on Chris McGrath's Value Podium for new sires in 2023.

Find our feature on Ashford Stud's other new residents, and more on this year's class of incoming stallions, here.

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Mo Donegal (Uncle Mo – Callingmissbrown, by Pulpit) took home a hard-fought win in the 2021 GII Remsen S. and went on to claim a Classic victory this year. His new studmate Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music – Unicorn Girl, by A.P. Five Hundred) came close to an undefeated season at two, but upped his game at three to be named Eclipse Champion Sprinter in 2021.

Jackie's Warrior's remarkable career highlighted by five Grade I scores started off with his domination of New York's juvenile division in 2020. Spendthrift's Mark Toothaker admits that ahead of the colt's stakes debut in the GII Saratoga Special S., their stallion nominations team was eyeing a different race contender. But after a call in to Steve Asmussen's assistant Scott Blasi, who said that Jackie's Warrior was the one they needed to look out for, they turned their attention to the bay son of Maclean's Music.

“The next thing you know, the horse does just what Scott said he was going to do and I'm on a plane headed up there trying to get a deal done,” Toothaker recalled with a laugh. “We were very fortunate to be able to get involved with him early.”

After his three-length win in the Saratoga Special, Jackie's Warrior established a new stakes record in the Hopeful and then earned a 100 Beyer Speed Figure in his 5 1/2-length Champagne win.

“It takes a special 2-year-old to be able to do what he did,” Toothaker explained. “What was amazing was how big and strong he was. He is a heavily-muscled horse with a lot of bone. When you first saw him as a 2-year-old, you're thinking that this is the biggest kid on the playground.”

During his Eclipse-worthy sophomore season, Jackie's Warrior reeled off four graded stakes wins highlighted by the GI H. Allen Jerkens Memorial S., where he went head-to-head with MGISW Life Is Good (Into Mischief). His four graded stakes wins at four included his fifth straight win at Saratoga in the GI Alfred G. Vanderbilt H., where he became the first horse in the storied track's 159-year history to win a Grade I in three consecutive seasons.

Toothaker recalled visiting Jackie's Warrior one morning during Derby week ahead of the sprinter's win in the GI Churchill Downs S. The backside was hectic and the Asmussen team had several high-profile contenders entered for that weekend, but the quietly composed Steve Asmussen spent over half an hour talking about his superstar trainee.

“He was so proud that he had bought the horse for $95,000 at the Keeneland Sale,” Toothaker said. “He said, 'Tooth, where were all the experts? Did they all go to lunch when he sold?' He was very proud that he had picked out the horse for the Robisons, who are wonderful people. Getting to meet Kirk and Judy Robison and develop a friendship with them and their children and grandchildren over the last three years has just been amazing.”

Jackie's Warrior, the highest-earning son of Maclean's Music, will stand for $50,000 in 2023. The champion has been in high demand with breeders and has already amassed a high-quality book to kick off his stud career.

“I've had so many people come out to the farm and say that he might be the best one they've seen of all the new [stallions],” Toothaker said. “Almost every mare that he got was a stakes winner or a stakes producer, so he's going to get every opportunity.”

Spendthrift's Mo Donegal has been received by breeders with similar enthusiasm.

“We love to have sons of Uncle Mo because that is what our breeders want,” Toothaker explained. “Last year [Spendthrift sire] Yaupon was the second most-popular horse in North America. Mo Donegal is a big, stretchy horse. What I love about him is that even though he stands over a lot of ground at 16'2 and a half, he's got a beautiful frame on him and a really nice hip.”

Going two for three as a juvenile, Mo Donegal claimed an exciting edition of the GII Remsen S. when he battled future Grade I winner Zandon (Upstart) down the stretch and survived a stewards' inquiry to get the win by a nose. The Todd Pletcher pupil ran third in this year's GIII Holy Bull S. before adding a win in the GII Wood Memorial S. over eventual GI Preakness S. winner Early Voting (Gun Runner). In the GI Kentucky Derby, he drew the rail and raced 10 wide in the stretch to get up for fifth.

Mike Repole obtained a minority interest in Mo Donegal shortly before his Kentucky Derby bid and was rewarded in the colt's next and final start in the GI Belmont S., where he finished three length ahead of the runner-up, fellow Ashview Farm/Colts Neck Stables-bred Nest (Curlin), who is also co-owned by Repole Stables.

“I know that was a very special day for Mike and his family, the Lyster family and for Todd,” said Toothaker. “With Mo Donegal, one of the biggest factors for us has been that Mike Repole is our partner. Mike brings so much energy and when you've got a guy that buys 71 yearlings at the Keeneland Sale, that was a huge thing for us to know that we had his support like we have on Vino Rosso.”

One of Uncle Mo's top three leading earners along with fellow Classic winner Nyquist, a top third-crop sire this year, as well as champion Golden Pal, who is also set to begin his stud career in 2023, Mo Donegal will stand for $20,000. His dam Callingmissbrown, a daughter of GI Acorn S. victress and GI Kentucky Oaks runner-up Island Sand (Tabasco Cat), has produced two others winners including her 2-year-old daughter Prank (Into Mischief), who was named a 'TDN Rising Star' after her 9 3/4-length debut win at Saratoga this summer.

“For Mo Donegal to win a graded stake at two in the Remsen, which is a tough, grueling race at a mile and an eighth, but yet be able to do what he did as a 3-year-old in the Wood Memorial and top it off in the Belmont, it takes a very good horse to be able to do that,” Toothaker noted. “Mo Donegal was one of the absolute best of his class. It's a lot to offer breeders, especially for $20,000.”

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The newcomers hail from impressive Godolphin families. Speaker's Corner, who will command an initial stud fee of $20,000, is out of a daughter of GI Breeders' Cup Distaff victress Round Pond (Awesome Again), while Mystic Guide, a 'TDN Rising Star' who will stand for $15,000, is a son of five-time Grade I winner Music Note.

“We couldn't be more excited to have Mystic Guide and Speaker's Corner join our stallion ranks,” said Darley Sales Manager Darren Fox. “Speaker's Corner is a horse that has been held in the highest esteem right from the get-go. In the mold of a lot of the Street Senses and Street Sense himself, he has a great mind. He wanted to train and was very straightforward. Mystic Guide was another one that showed a lot of talent from the start. [Trainer] Mike Stidham was high on this horse from the early days of his 2-year-old season, so it was very satisfying to see him live up to the potential and the esteem in which he was held from the early stages of his career.”

Trained by Bill Mott, Speaker's Corner broke his maiden as a juvenile at Belmont against a field of five additional future stakes winners. He made two trips to the winner's circle as a lightly-raced 3-year-old, but then blossomed at four when he cut back to a mile. The bay dominated in this year's GIII Fred W. Hopper S. and GII Gulfstream Park Mile S. before getting his signature victory in the GI Carter H., where he earned a 114 Beyer Speed Figure. Also in 2022, Speaker's Corner ran third behind Flightline (Tapit) and Life Is Good (Into Mischief) in the GI Metropolitan H. and second to Life Is Good in the GII John A. Nerud S. In 13 career starts, he collected seven triple-digit Beyers.

Out of the unraced Bernardini mare Tyburn Brook, Speaker's Corner is bred on the same cross as fellow Darley sire and Grade I winner Maxfield. The Street Sense-Bernadini mating also produced Godolphin's MGSW Shared Sense.

Fox said that the Speaker's Corner reflects the best of both sides of his pedigree.

“He has a good shoulder and good depth like we've come to know and expect from the Street Sense and Street Cry (Ire) sire line. He's a correct horse with plenty of quality to him and he has been extremely popular with breeders these past couple of months.”

Street Sense has been one of Darley America's top stallions in recent years, but from his early crops, his first five Grade I winners were all fillies. Now, the Jonabell Farm resident has the opportunity to make his mark as a sire of sires. In the past three consecutive years, he has had a new Grade I-winning son take up stud duty. Street Sense's leading earner McKinzie stands at Gainesway Farm and will be represented by his first yearlings in 2023, while Maxfield will see his first foals next year as his studmate Speaker's Corner begins his own stallion career.

Jonabell Farm's other new resident Mystic Guide has been a popular addition to Darley's roster. Fox said that much of the G1 Dubai World Cup winner's appeal is in his elite racing pedigree.

Mystic Guide's dam Music Note raced to Grade I victories in the Mother Goose S., Coaching Club American Oaks and Gazelle S. as a 3-year-old and then added the GI Ballerina S. and GI Beldame S. at four. The daughter of A.P. Indy is a half-sister to multiple Grade I winner Musical Chimes (In Excess {Ire}). Their second dam It's In The Air (Mr. Prospector) was a champion 2-year-old filly and a five-time Grade I winner.

“It is rare to have a stallion that is a direct son of an elite race mare like that,” Fox explained. “A lot of times a stallion may profile as being out of a winning or an unraced daughter of such a mare, but it is not often that you get an elite-performing stallion who is a direct son of an elite mare. This female family is so deep and there really is nothing but blacktype all the way down his pedigree page.”

On the racetrack, Mystic Guide followed in the footsteps of the many talented performers on his pedigree page. He earned 'TDN Rising Star' status in his second start as a 3-year old and later that year, scored his first stakes victory in the GII Jim Dandy. Also at three, he finished less than a length behind Happy Saver (Super Saver) in the GI Jockey Club Gold Cup S. and placed in the GIII Peter Pan S. At four, he earned a 108 Beyer in the GIII Razorback H. before going on to win the G1 Dubai World Cup.

That win marked the ninth Dubai World Cup score for Godolphin, but the first one earned from their U.S.-based racing stable. It was also the first winner outside of the U.S. for trainer Michael Stidham.

“For Godolphin to win the Dubai World Cup with a homebred and with a horse shipping over from the United States was extra special,” Fox said. “It was Michael Stidham's first time with a horse for Godolphin shipping to Dubai, so that was extra special for him to come away with the big win on his first attempt. Mystic Guide has done us proud at every step of his career and the Dubai World Cup was certainly the pinnacle of that.”

Fox added that he believes that Mystic Guide has all the qualifications to reproduce his own success on the racetrack with his future progeny.

“It's fair to say that Mystic Guide was bred for the dirt, being by Ghostzapper out of an A.P. Indy mare, and it was certainly very pleasing to watch him on the track. He had a very efficient way of going, a real daisy cutter action. He's a big, flashy chestnut with a good length of body and a good hip to him. He certainly looks like he has all the attributes to be a top dirt sire.”

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“For Juddmonte to bring in a horse like Mandaloun is very special,” said Aaron West, who joined Juddmonte USA this fall as Nominations Manager. “He was born and raised at the farm and got his early lessons here. Mandaloun reflects 40 years of work, and while there have been plenty of other horses along the way, to have a Classic-winning homebred here has always been the dream for Juddmonte.”

Seven years after Prince Khalid purchased his operation's American division in 1982, Juddmonte bought Queen of Song (His Majesty) for $700,000 in foal to Seattle Slew at the Keeneland November Sale. The Grade II winner was a full-sister to dirt Grade I winner and Classic sire Cormorant.

Queen of Song's stakes-placed daughter Aspiring Diva (Distant View) produced three stakes winners by Juddmonte sire Dansili (GB) in Irish Highweight Emulous (GB), Group victor First Sitting (GB), and Daring Diva (GB), the dam of blacktype winners Caponata (Selkirk) and Brooch (Empire Maker).

Trained by Dermot Weld, Brooch debuted at three and was undefeated in her first four starts including the G2 Lanwades Stud S. as a 4-year-old. Retired to stud back in Kentucky, Brooch produced Mandaloun as her second foal.

West reflected on Mandaloun's storied female family and said, “His pedigree is unique for us in that it's 11 generations of blacktype horses. In the first four generations on his female side, it's a Juddmonte mare to a Juddmonte stallion. It's a Classic dirt pedigree from the fourth generation all the way through now to Mandaloun.”

Making his juvenile debut going six furlongs for Brad Cox at Keeneland's fall meet, Mandaloun came from near the back of an 11-horse field to fight his way to a half-length victory and earn the 'Rising Star' nod. The next three finishers included future Grade III victor Bob's Edge (Competitive Edge) and 2021 GI Cigar Mile H. winner Americanrevolution (Constitution).

West points to that promising debut, as well as the GI Kentucky Derby and the GI Haskell–both of which Mandaloun was elevated to first place–as the colt's three most impressive races.

“You go down the list of the horses that finished behind him in the Derby–Essential Quality, Hot Rod Charlie, Midnight Bourbon–it's a who's who of that 3-year-old crop,” West said. “Then he came back in the Haskell to be right there and beat that same group again.”

Mandaloun's resume also includes the GII Risen Star S. and the Pegasus S. at three, plus the GIII Louisiana S. at four.

“He has always been the same horse that we have here today,” West said. “He was very sound throughout his career and is a classy individual with a good mind. He is easy to be around and always does his job. When you see foals like that and you start training them, you hope they turn out to be a horse like Mandaloun.”

Mandaloun will stand for an introductory fee of $25,000. He is one of four sons of leading sire Into Mischief to enter stud this year and is the only incoming stallion in Kentucky out of a mare by Juddmonte homebred Empire Maker, who passed away nearly three years ago. When Mandaloun got his first graded score in the GII Risen Star, he became the 24^th graded winner out of a daughter of the influential stallion.

The Into Mischief-Empire Maker cross has produced four additional stakes winners including Laurel River, another Juddmonte homebred who won the GII Pat O'Brien S. this year, and Grade III victor Center Aisle.

West said that Mandaloun reflects the best of both sides of his pedigree.

“He brings out the power and strength of Into Mischief with the elegance, stretch and scope of Empire Maker. He had the precocity and the ability to show speed and win early, as he did at six and seven furlongs, but then also stretch out and carry that speed a route of ground. He's a perfect blend of the two [stallions] and I think that has been the biggest selling point for breeders.”

Juddmonte has a roster of five stallions led by champion Frankel (GB) at Banstead Manor Stud in Newmarket, but Mandaloun will stand as the operation's lone representative in its stud barn in Kentucky for 2023.

Following a time of great loss for Juddmonte's American division after the death of Arrogate in 2020, but then an immeasurable loss for the Juddmonte dynasty in its entirety with the passing of Prince Khalid last year, Mandaloun represents the legacy of the many accomplished generations to go before him, as well as the next chapter in a renowned international operation's history, as he picks up the torch for Juddmonte USA.

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Among the quartet, two of the new additions hold Breeders' Cup titles, and breeders have fervently responded to that prized piece of resume. While turf sprinting superstar Golden Pal (Uncle Mo – Lady Shipman, by Midshipman) boasts the rare distinction of taking home two Breeders' Cup trophies, his new studmate Corniche (Quality Road – Wasted Tears, by Najran) justified his 'TDN Rising Star'-worthy debut last fall when he claimed the 2021 GI TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

According to Coolmore's Adrian Wallace, Golden Pal in particular has seen demand almost unlike what the Coolmore team has ever seen before as the son of Uncle Mo joins his sire at Ashford.

“Golden Pal is getting inquiries from every type of breeder around,” Wallace said. “He's getting a really good book of mares behind him with graded stakes winners and graded stakes producers. He's going to be one of the most popular horses that we've ever stood. He really is electrifying–both on the racetrack and in breeders' minds.”

Wesley Ward, who trained Golden Pal to graded stakes wins at two through four, has shown no hesitation in describing the champion as “the fastest of the fast.”

“Wesley Ward leaves you under no impression that he was the best horse he's every trained–the fastest horse he's ever trained– and Wesley has trained some pretty good horses,” Wallace said. “I think Golden Pal holds a very special place not only in Wesley Ward's heart, but in his breeder Randy Lowe's heart and in Coolmore's heart.”

After running second in the G2 Norfolk S. at Ascot as a juvenile, Golden Pal broke his maiden in the Skidmore S. at Saratoga and from there, remained nearly undefeated on American soil throughout his three-year career. The 2020 GII Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, 2021 GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, and back-to-back wins in the GII Woodford S. at Keeneland are a few highlights from his list of seven graded stakes victories.

Golden Pal's dam Lady Shipman earned close to $1 million and ran second in the 2015 GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint. While her son followed the successful racemare's lead as a turf sprinting specialist, Wallace said he believes Golden Pal will emulate his sire in producing versatile offspring.

“The great thing about Uncle Mo is that you've got the options of dirt and turf,” he explained. “To me, Golden Pal doesn't really look like a sprinter. I think he was fast because he was brilliant. I think the horse could have been very effective over a mile and on both surfaces. That's the great thing about Uncle Mo is that [his progeny] are so versatile. They get going early at two and they get better as they get older, and they also seem to work both here and in Europe.”

Golden Pal and 2022 GI Belmont S. hero Mo Donegal are both sons of Uncle Mo joining the Kentucky stallion ranks next year.

Corniche | Sarah Andrew

Ashford's other Breeders' Cup-winning addition Corniche has been well-received by breeders for many of the same reasons as Golden Pal.

“I think everyone wants speed and horses like Corniche and Golden Pal offer that,” Wallace said. “That's the greatest selling point for any stallion. They're the ones that will get you to the races early and hopefully get you to the racetrack on the big stage.”

Corniche displayed his brilliance well before he made it to the starting gate when he breezed in :10 flat at the 2021 OBS Spring Sale and then sold for $1.5 million to Speedway Stables.  He earned 'Rising Star' honors in his debut for Bob Baffert and then remained undefeated in the GI American Pharoah S. and GI TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

“I don't think we'll ever forget the display that Corniche put on in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile,” Wallace said. “He was favored going into the race, but people were asking if he would be able to overcome the wide draw. He left us under no illusion of who the best horse was that day as he romped to a juvenile championship.”

After sustaining a career-ending injury at three, Corniche retired to Ashford, where his book is now filling quickly as breeders see the talented chestnut up close.

“When you look at Corniche, you think Quality Road and you think speed,” Wallace said. “He's very much like his sire in that he's got the same sort of physique and structure to him. He's a balanced horse with a good hip and shoulder on him. He's a good mover and is very easy to be around.”

Bred by Bart Evans and Stonehaven Steadings, Corniche is out of six-time graded stakes winner Wasted Tears.

Both Corniche and Golden Pal will stand for a fee of $30,000 in their debut seasons at Ashford Stud.

Click here for previous video features on the incoming class of new stallions and watch for future editions from the series in the coming weeks.

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“We are delighted to have Jack Christopher now here at Ashford standing alongside his sire Munnings,” said Coolmore's Dermot Ryan. “He's a striking horse with great presence and a lovely temperament. Horses like him are what makes racing exciting to watch.”

Owned by the partnership of Jim Bakke, Gerald Isbister, Coolmore Stud, and Peter M. Brant, Jack Christopher debuted with an 8 3/4-length win at Saratoga at two and was immediately tabbed a 'Rising Star' off the performance. Sent next to the GI Champagne S. at Belmont, he scored by daylight again off 8-5 odds. Made the 9-5 morning-line favorite for last year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Del Mar before being scratched the day prior to the race, Jack Christopher underwent a procedure and returned this spring on Derby Day with a comeback victory in the GII Pat Day Mile S. A blowout 10-length score in the GI Woody Stephens S. followed before his lone career loss–a third to Cyberknife (Gun Runner) in the GI Haskell S. in his first time stretching out–and finally a return to the winner's circle in his last start, the GI H. Allen Jerkens Memorial S. Jack Christopher retires with a record of 6-5-0-1 and earnings of $1,216,400. He was unbeaten around one turn.

“Jack Christopher was an exceptional talent,” said trainer Chad Brown. “I've never had a dirt horse with such brilliance. He never disappointed us in a workout or a race and was just a pleasure to train.”

From the family of Running Stag (Cozzene)–who was a MGSW in the U.S. and a GSW in France, in addition to being GISP in the U.S. and G1SP in Hong Kong–Jack Christopher is out of a half-sister to MGISW and sire Street Boss (Street Cry {Ire}).

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