Tag: Bloodlines

The top events at Epsom Downs produced three outstanding performances, with Auguste Rodin (by Deep Impact) winning the Group 1 Derby with a powerful performance, Soul Sister (Frankel) taking the Oaks, and Emily Upjohn (Sea the Stars) defeating colts in the Coronation Cup.

Of the three, Auguste Rodin drew the most praise and commentary by the reversal of his form after an eventful run in the 2,000 Guineas last month at Newmarket, where he finished a very disappointing 12th.

Bred by Coolmore and racing for Tabor, Smith, Magnier, and Westerberg, Auguste Rodin is simply the latest evidence that Coolmore is the mightiest breeding operation in the land. It has benefited immensely by standing the greatest European sires of our time, Sadler's Wells (Northern Dancer) and his son Galileo, as well as Sadler's Wells's other superb sire son Montjeu and Danehill (Danzig).

All these, and many other good Coolmore sires as well, hail from the line of Northern Dancer, and it has long been evident that Coolmore was searching for an outcross (or an in-cross in the case of Danzig's son War Front) that would allow them to broaden the genetic base of their sire battery.

Therefore, it is not a surprise that the organization has proven itself the most active and adept in using the greatest line of racers from Japan, in especial the great racer and sire Deep Impact, who proved himself such a splendid successor to his sire Sunday Silence (Halo), the greatest sire in the history of Thoroughbred breeding in Japan.

Prior to Auguste Rodin, who proved a top-class juvenile last fall, Coolmore had already earned the credit for 2,000 Guineas winner Saxon Warrior and the 2021 Oaks winner Snowfall, who subsequently won the Irish Oaks and Yorkshire Oaks. All three of these are out of elite daughters of Galileo.

A further common element in all these pedigrees, and many others besides, is the presence of a singular chestnut mare by the name of Urban Sea (Miswaki).

A Kentucky-bred foal of 1989, Urban Sea scored her single G1 victory in 1993 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, although she placed in others. Although she wasn't the greatest of the great on the racetrack, Urban Sea had proven a marvelous producer even before her death at age 20 in 2009, when her second top-class son, Sea the Stars (Cape Cross), won the Derby and Arc de Triomphe, among other top-level triumphs.

Eight years before Sea the Stars, Urban Sea had produced a striking bay colt by Sadler's Wells who was subsequently named Galileo, who became the first son of that great sire to win the Derby. An excellent racehorse, Galileo became an even greater stallion, in part due to the broodmare band and bloodstock acumen of the Coolmore complex.

Sea the Stars has joined his older sibling as one of the elite sires in the breed, and through their widespread influence, Urban Sea is one of the most common influences in the breed at present. For a mare to be this widely present in pedigrees is a relatively uncommon occurrence, with most notably Plucky Liege (Spearmint) having also achieved a similar status through her stallion sons Sir Gallahad III, Bull Dog, and Bois Roussel.

Plucky Liege's full siblings by Teddy (Sir G and the Dog) both stood in Kentucky, but their highly successful presence at the time was not a full-blown overabundance of the same blood because the mare books of the mid-20th century were minuscule compared to those of today.

Coolmore's conundrum is that it has exploited Sadler's Wells, and other sons of Northern Dancer, so well, and that great sire has bred on with such effect in Europe. Even by turning to the great opportunity of Deep Impact, their premium results are still out of daughters of Galileo.

The best horses and mares from this cross are going to be quality stock to breed from, as Saxon Warrior has indicated with a first-crop G1 winner, but the goal of finding a functional outcross is still elusive.

The evidence, however, from insightful breeders such as Juddmonte indicates that the problem may have a solution in the glowing abundance of Galileo and Sadler's Wells. By selecting the better prospects of these great sires and inbreeding them, while using good judgment and sound horsemanship, the results may be exceptional.

This was the case with Marcel Boussac's endeavor in close inbreeding earlier in the 20th century, but he probably needed a larger pool of stock to use. There are already some quite good examples of inbreeding, especially to Sadler's Wells, and why shouldn't this hold true of inbreeding to his best sons and grandsons?

Enable is the grandest example of this inbreeding pattern so far, being 3×2 to Sadler's Wells, but with the number of quality stock to use for inbreeding the best to the best, the results might well outstrip what has gone before and push the Thoroughbred past the genetic plateau that some believe is limiting the improvement of the breed.

The post Bloodlines: How Urban Sea Laid Out The Roadmap For Coolmore’s Racing, Breeding Programs appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Perched in time, as we are, between the second and third classics of the American Triple Crown, and within sneezing distance of the Derby at Epsom, racing fans can look back in wonder at one of the greatest broodmares in the breed, Maggie B.B. (by Australian), who produced a winner of each of these races.

A chestnut foal of 1867, Maggie B.B. is the dam of 1879 Preakness winner Harold (Leamington) and of the 1884 Belmont Stakes winner Panique (Alarm).

In between those U.S. classic winners, Maggie B.B. achieved her greatest fame from her sixth foal, Harold's full brother Iroquois. He became the first American-bred winner of the Derby Stakes at Epsom and the St. Leger at Doncaster in 1881. Winner also of the Prince of Wales's Stakes at Ascot and of the St. James's Palace Stakes, Iroquois was a versatile and high-class racer owned by Pierre Lorillard.

The proud owner brought his star racer back to his homeland, and Iroquois stood initially at Lorillard's Rancocas Stud in New Jersey. Then, in 1886, Lorillard dispersed most of his bloodstock, and for $20,000, Iroquois was sold to William H. Jackson and moved to his Belle Meade Stud in Tennessee. There, Iroquois achieved his greatest successes at stud and became leading general sire in 1892; the stallion died there in 1899 at age 21 and was buried at Belle Meade.

Iroquois's dam was foaled in Kentucky, and Maggie B.B. was bred by James B. Clay Jr., a grandson of Kentucky statesman Henry Clay. The filly was a stakes winner at two and three. At the close of her racing career, she was sold for $1,800 to Aristides Welch in 1870 and moved to live at his Erdenheim Stud, located at Chestnut Hills near Philadelphia. There, Welch bred each of Maggie B.B.'s three classic winners, and the first two were sired by Leamington, whom Welch had purchased in the fall of 1869 and moved to Erdenheim. There, Leamington became the leading general sire in America in 1875, 1877, 1879, and 1881.

The mare's first foal of note was Harold, owned by George Lorillard, Pierre's brother. Harold's trainer Wyndham Walden said the colt was the most talented racehorse he ever had. Harold was a fast and precocious juvenile, winning multiple stakes at two, then training on to win the Preakness at three. Afterward, however, Harold began to bleed when he raced and won only once more, although he was second in the Lorillard Stakes and third in the Travers.

Sent to stud, Harold died in 1881 at age five after only one full season at stud.

A dark brown colt with a striking blaze, Iroquois was sold privately as part of a group of Erdenheim yearlings to both George and Pierre Lorillard. They divided the yearlings between themselves, and Pierre Lorillard shipped Iroquois and others to England for racing, where he won four of his races at two, then trained on to place second to Peregrine in the 1881 2,000 Guineas. The great jockey Fred Archer got the ride on the Lorillard's colt for the Epsom classic and rode Iroquois to victory in the Derby.

The degree and breadth of fame that Iroquois earned with his victories abroad is difficult to fathom today, when international accomplishments are relatively commonplace. Iroquois was the first; he broke the ground so coveted by others. And the horse was paid with lasting fame.

There is even an Iroquois Stakes run at Churchill Downs for juveniles. Maggie B.B.'s fame was scarcely less than her famous son's. And when the mare was barren in 1882, she and her yearling son by Alarm (Panique), as well as the entirety of Welch's stud, were sold to the Kittson Brothers, Norman and James.

The Kittsons raced Panique successfully, then sold him to the Dwyer Brothers, Phil and Mike, for $14,000 on the eve of the 1884 Belmont Stakes. The dashing chestnut colt won the race, becoming the third classic winner for his dam. He became increasingly difficult to manage, however, and was retired in 1885. Panique went to stud, but, aside from a reputation for being difficult to handle, he accomplished little.

The same cannot be said for his older full sister, Red and Blue, who was a winner but achieved her true measure of fame as a broodmare. The lovely chestnut mare became the conduit to the future for most of Maggie B.B.'s female line.

From Red and Blue came Sallie McClelland (Alabama Stakes), Handicap Triple Crown winner Whisk Broom, champions Top Flight and Blue Peter, classic winners Crusader (1926 Belmont) and Timber Country (Preakness), as well as more recent international stars Dubai Millennium and Enable.

Welch bred Red and Blue, as well as Maggie B.B.'s classic winners, the Hall of Fame racer Parole (a winner of 53 races and also a son of Leamington), and stood the great sire Leamington. From the latter important sire comes one further piece of the breeder's historic legacy. Welch's fellow sportsman H. Price McGrath named a chestnut son of Leamington for his friend, and in 1875, McGrath's colt Aristides became the winner of the first Kentucky Derby.

The post Bloodlines Presented By No-No Cribbing Collar: Maggie B.B. Was An All-Time Classic-Producing Broodmare appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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The family that produced the 2023 Preakness Stakes winner National Treasure has been owned by breeder Peter Blum since Moses was wearing diapers.

Over the past seven generations of this family, from sixth dam Mono (by Better Self) to breeding and selling the Preakness winner through the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale consignment of Bridie Harrison, whose family farm operation foaled and raised the colt, Blum has concentrated on quality. Quality and classic athleticism.

But the mare that began this saga and that Peter Blum acquired a while back was the Better Self mare Mono, out of Sin Iqual. Mono was a good-looking mare, and this is a family with good looks and attractive physicality. Broad and thick-bodied, Mono wasn't the very best racing type, not being especially tall and scopey, but she was much better than average as a producer, and her family continues on to the present with such as this year's Preakness winner.

Bred in Kentucky by King Ranch, Mono proved a winner and was six times second or third from 14 starts, earning $3,752. Judged surplus to requirements for King Ranch, Mono went on to produce three stakes winners, including Rare Performer (by Mr. Prospector) for Blum, and the bay son of Mr. Prospector went to stud in Kentucky at Murty Farm, then moved to Prestonwood Farm (now WinStar) in the late 1980s.

Rare Performer was a fast son of Mr. Prospector who sired a powerful, chunky type in the mold of this family. And Blum bred a full sister to Rare Performer whose physique followed the family type (just a bit chubby) but whose racing success was limited.

Like her dam, Mine Only proved a winner on the racetrack but a dazzling success as a broodmare. That has been the common thread among the broodmares of this line that Blum has retained. Only one has done more than win a maiden, National Treasure's second dam Proposal (Mt. Livermore), who won at two and four and placed in a stakes.

Retired to stud, Proposal produced four stakes winners. Each of the dams tracing backward, even beyond the ownership of Blum, show a perplexing laxity on the point of racing performance, but they are dynamite broodmares.

Each has produced at least one stakes winner; most went for multiples.

Another facet to the breeding story of National Treasure is the repeated addition of classic quality to these rugged, fast, strong mares. In particular, the sire and broodmare sire of National Treasure, Quality Road and Medaglia d'Oro, are dominant for adding scope and classic stamina to pedigrees; their addition to this fast, sturdy family resulted in National Treasure. Last season, the bay colt could fairly have been called the third-best juvenile after a second-place finish to Cave Rock (Arrogate) in the American Pharoah and then a third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile behind Forte (Violence) and Cave Rock again.

Thus, the step forward to compete in the classics was not a long one from National Treasure's standing at two, although his level of success was a major elevation for his dam, the Medaglia d'Oro mare Treasure. She placed six times from seven starts, earning $63,180, and the Preakness winner is her fourth foal.

In addition to the current Preakness winner, this is the family line of the 1946 Preakness (and Triple Crown) winner Assault (Bold Venture), and National Treasure's seventh dam is Sin Igual (Bold Venture), a full sister to Assault foaled in 1952. They are both out of the unraced Equipoise mare Igual.

As a mate for Bold Venture, Igual delivered for King Ranch, getting a Triple Crown winner and other talented racers. Bold Venture, whom King Ranch had acquired after his racing career was finished, proved a mixed blessing for the breeding operation. The 1936 Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner sired a Triple Crown winner for them, plus Middleground, who won the 1950 Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes.

In the loss column, however, Bold Venture wasn't the most fertile stallion, and his sons were somewhat worse. Assault was effectively sterile, and Middleground was noted as a “patchy foal-getter.”

That doesn't seem to have been a problem with the fillies in the family, however, and the line continued on.

Nor are Assault and his sire the only other Preakness winners related to this distinguished family. Igual's dam is the Chicle mare Incandescent, bred in Kentucky by C.V. Whitney and a minor stakes winner out of the Fair Play mare Masda. The latter is the elder full sister to 1920 Preakness winner Man o' War.

If you breed to real quality, it keeps coming back.

The post Bloodlines Presented By No-No Cribbing Collar: Blum Does It Again (And Again, And Again) With Preakness Winner National Treasure appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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When Arrogate died in June 2020, his oldest foals were only yearlings. None had gone into training; nothing substantial was known about their potential or prowess.

The best-known racer from that first crop is 2022 Kentucky Oaks winner Secret Oath, also winner of the Grade 2 Azeri this season and second in the G1 Apple Blossom and La Troienne. The first crop also included Grade 1 winner Fun to Dream (La Brea Stakes).

Although a stakes winner did not emerge from Arrogate's first crop until New Year's Day of their second season, the black type popped up earlier with the racers from the second crop, including the 2022 Grade 1 winners Cave Rock (Del Mar Futurity, American Pharoah Stakes), as well as And Tell Me Nolies (Del Mar Debutante).

The gray champion's second crop has continued to add graded stakes winners this season with Affirmative Lady (G2 Gulfstream Park Oaks) and most recently with Arcangelo, who won the G3 Peter Pan Stakes at Belmont Park on May 13.

The nine-furlong event around the sweeping turns of Belmont Park is typically seen as a significant prep for the Belmont Stakes over 12 furlongs, and there is more than a hint of classic quality to the pedigree of this season's winner, Arcangelo.

He is, for one thing, out of a mare by multiple leading sire Tapit (Pulpit), who has sired four winners of the longest classic: Tonalist (2014), Creator (2016), Tapwrit (2017), and Essential Quality (2021).

In addition, Arcangelo's dam, the Tapit mare Modeling, is out of Teeming (Storm Cat) and is a half-sister to a pair of Belmont Stakes winners: Jazil (Seeking the Gold), winner of the classic in 2006, and Rags to Riches (A.P. Indy), the Belmont winner in 2007 over subsequent Horse of the Year Curlin.

In addition to her relationship to these elite performers, Teeming is the dam of three stakes winners and two stakes-placed racehorses, along with the elite producer Achieving (Bernardini), who is the dam of three stakes winners, including Grade 2 winner Cezanne (Curlin) and Arabian Hope (Distorted Humor).

Bred by Hill 'n' Dale Equine Holdings and Edward McGhee, Teeming's daughter Modeling was unraced and was covered as a 2-year-old and sold at the 2014 Keeneland November sale to Don Alberto for $2.85 million, in foal to Distorted Humor (Forty Niner). The resulting foal was the maiden special winner Montmartre.

Bred in Kentucky by Don Alberto, Arcangelo sold for $35,000 at the 2021 Keeneland September sale to Jon Ebbert and races for Blue Rose Farm.

A May 11 foal, the scopey gray did not race until the closing weeks of 2022, finishing second on debut at Gulfstream on Dec. 17. Arcangelo won his third start, a maiden special at Gulfstream on March 18, when he raced a mile on dirt in 1:34.82. The colt's next start was the Peter Pan.

The classic prep was a major step up for a maiden winner, but Arcangelo handled the escalation in class and won by a head over Bishops Bay (Uncle Mo), who was the undefeated favorite coming into the Peter Pan. The third horse, Henry Q (Blame), was 8 3/4 lengths back in third after nine furlongs in 1:49.71.

The effort suggests that the first two in the Peter Pan may possess the required quality to challenge for the classic prize next month in the Belmont Stakes. A good showing would be a compliment to the namesake of their prep race because Peter Pan won the Belmont Stakes more than a century ago.

The Peter Pan Stakes was named for the son of Commando (Domino) and Cinderella (Hermit) who won 10 of his 17 starts, including the 1907 Belmont Stakes. At stud, Peter Pan the horse became an even more important influence in American breeding in the first half of the 20th century. His most important sons were Black Toney, the sire of Black Gold, winner of the 1924 Kentucky Derby, and Bimelech, winner of the 1940 Preakness and Belmont Stakes; and Futurity winner Pennant, the sire of the top racehorse and sire Equipoise, whose son Shut Out won the 1942 Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes.

What a classic tradition that is!

The post Bloodlines Presented By No-No Cribbing Collar: The Classic Tradition Of Arcangelo appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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