Farm owner Eduardo Terrazas reported that the foaling was normal and that as the leggy filly has flourished in her first few weeks of life, she seems to have adopted her sire's physical and her dam's personality.

“Her mama is a very secure type of mare, very sure of herself, and the baby definitely shows that,” he said. “Ever since day one, she'll come straight to you. She's very independent and curious. She's a little bit of a handful. I think my night crew spends a little too much time with her, but my daughter is the night watchman and she likes to play with all her kids, so it makes sense.”

It's fair to say that everyone at Terrazas Thoroughbreds gives just a little bit of extra attention to the talented Letruska and now her young daughter.

While Terrazas did not foal Letruska, she was raised on their farm and spent well over a year growing up there before she was sent to race in Mexico, where she would be named champion 3-year-old filly. The St. George Stable homebred made the move to America with trainer Fausto Gutierrez in 2019 and soon rose to the top of the game in the U.S. Some of her more memorable wins came in a battle against champion Monomoy Girl (Tapizar) in the 2021 GI Apple Blossom H. and her near six-length victory in the 2021 GII Fleur de Lis S. The winner of 19 races from 28 lifetime starts, Letruska retired in 2022 with over $3.05 million in earnings.

Sara Gordon

Terrazas Thoroughbreds is also home to several of Letruska's family members, including her dam Magic Appeal (Successful Appeal), who was purchased by St. George Stable for $100,000 in 2015 with Letruska in utero. This year Magic Appeal has an Into Mischief yearling filly and is in foal to Gun Runner. Letruka's half-sister Mixteca (Tapizar) also resides at Terrazas and she recently produced a Charlatan filly.

“We have always been attached to Letruska's siblings, but we get attached to everything,” Terrazas admitted. “With all of her brothers and sisters that we have had, we know them like family. Having Letruska here is great, just to be able to say that you had something to do with a horse of that quality.”

Terrazas said they are in conversation with St. George Stable as they close in on their choice for which stallion Letruska will visit in 2024.

St. George Stable is owned by Mexican billionaire businessman Germán Larrea. His racing and breeding operation has a massive presence in Mexico and up until recently, he would race only a handful of his best horses in the U.S. Terrazas said those numbers have grown substantially over the past few years now that St. George Stable's trainer Fausto Gutierrez has planted a base in the U.S.

“In the past Mr. Larrea would probably breed around 10 or 12 mares here and most of them would be used to race in Mexico,” Terrazas explained. “Nowadays we are producing roughly 20 to 22 foals for them each year and the vast majority of them are staying here to race.”

St. George Stable has been active at the Kentucky breeding stock sales in recent years. At last year's Keeneland November Sale they bought nearly a dozen mares, including the $300,000 purchase of Ambassador Kelly (Pioneerof the Nile), a daughter of GISW Rachel's Valentina (Bernardini).  At the 2022 Keeneland January Sale they went to $390,000 for Siempre Mia (Scat Daddy), the dam of MGSW Consumer Spending (More Than Ready).

The operation will also send mares who were successful in Mexico north to breed in Kentucky. Jala Jala (Mex) (Point Determined) and Malinche (Fast Anna) were both champions in Mexico before they joined St. George Stable's broodmare band at Terrazas Thoroughbreds.

Terrazas said it is a privilege to work with a client like St. George Stable that breeds exclusively to race.

“There are not a lot of people like that anymore,” he noted. “Everybody is so gung-ho on the market. This allows us to cater to him from a different perspective. Over the past few years, he has accumulated a really strong group of quality mares. We spend normally in the $250,000 to $300,000 range. That makes me really think high for the future. He's the type of owner that we need in the industry.”

Terrazas decided to launch his own boarding operation because of the changes in the commercial breeding industry. He served as stallion manager for Overbrook Farm and Taylor Made Farm for almost 30 years before opening Terrazas Thoroughbreds in 2005.

Eduardo Terrazas | Sara Gordon

“Frank Taylor is the one who talked me into going on my own,” Terrazas said. “At the time I decided that I needed a bit of a break. As a stallion manager there is a lot of pressure. I started noticing that the books for the stallions kept getting bigger and bigger. All of that pressure comes to you. When you're a stallion manager, you have to find a happy medium between the horse and the business side of it. We started stressing more about [the book sizes] and I said, 'Well, maybe I don't want to do this for the rest of my life. It's not fun anymore.' That's when I decided to try it on my own. I never had any big plans and I still don't. We all know this is a finicky business. We're fine today. Tomorrow, who knows?”

But Terrazas Thoroughbreds had found plenty of successes over the years. Along with St. George Stable, their client list has included White Fox Farm and Corser Thoroughbreds, who recently bred 2023 GI Pacific Classic S. winner Arabian Knight (Uncle Mo).

Terrazas credits their operation's success to keeping things simple and hands on. He and his daughter, Jenny, take their time with each and every horse.

“My daughter and I do all the dirty work,” he said. “We foal every single horse. When we are raising horses, we just try to stay out of their way. Our horses come in each morning, eat, and an hour later they go back outside.”

Terrazas Thoroughbreds will consign horses, but only those that they foaled and raised themselves. Terrazas said he wants buyers to have the confidence factor of speaking to a consignor that has known the horse for his entire life.

“I've never run an ad; it's all by word of mouth,” he shared. “I turn down mares every year because I'd rather say no than do a bad job.”

Terrazas said that being able to share his passion for the business with his daughter is what gets him out of bed for those late night foalings and the early morning feedings.

“I've always joked to people that if it wasn't for my daughter, I probably would have quit a while ago and just gotten a real job,” he admitted. “I tried to steer her away from a young age, but it didn't work out. She loves it. She's a very hard worker. She's a lot like me. You can be out here with triple pneumonia or whatever and still show up. I'm very proud of her. To see these horses doing so well is just unbelievable and to see our clients do good is really what we're here for.”

The post Letruska the Star of Terrazas Thoroughbreds appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

“It's really a blessing to have such a well-bred horse here,” said Frank Taylor. “She's got a great attitude and she is strong and healthy. Everything is going great so far. The mare is by Liam's Map, who is a half-brother to Not This Time. Those are two of the best horses we ever raised, so it's really exciting to have this filly on the farm.”

Bred by Fred W. Hertrich III, Juju's Map was a $300,000 Keeneland September purchase for the Albaugh family. She broke her maiden in her second start for Brad Cox and went on to claim the 2021 GI Darley Alcibiades S. and run second to Echo Zulu (Gun Runner) in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies. A winner and three times graded stakes placed at three, Juju's Map was sent through the ring at the Keeneland November Sale in 2022, but she RNA'd for $1.9 million and stayed with the Albaugh family.

Taylor said the mating of Flightline and Juju's Map produced a good blend of both Grade I-caliber horses.

“The filly has the looks of Flightline, but she also has some of the mare,” he explained. “The mating matches up well physically and pedigree-wise, and you're just breeding the best to the best and hoping for the best.”

Taylor added that Juju's Map will visit Curlin in 2024.

Sara Gordon

As for the foal, Taylor hypothesized that for now, it's a coin toss as to whether the youngster would one day see the sales ring or race in the Albaugh silks. The filly's broodmare sire and his family carry a well-known story on just that subject.

“We had Liam's Map here as a yearling and the Albaughs really never sold many of their horses,” Taylor recalled. “He was by Unbridled's Song and he was the best yearling on the farm, so we talked them into selling him. He brought $800,000 and we were all very excited about the way he sold until he won the GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile and they syndicated him for a lot more than $800,000. Then fast forward and Mr. Albaugh was back here and we were showing him the Giant's Causeway colt out of same mare and we said, 'Man, this one could bring maybe $1 million or $2 million.' His response was,' Not this time.'”

Not This Time, who was runner-up in the 2016 GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile for Dennis Albaugh and his family, stands for $150,000 this year as a fifth-crop sire at Taylor Made and is now embarking on a career as a sire of sires with 3-year-old champion Epicenter beginning his second year at Ashford Stud and MGISW Up to the Mark debuting at Lane's End.

Plenty of superbly bred horses will hit the ground at Taylor Made in the coming weeks, but Taylor said there is no denying that having the first foal by a horse like the undefeated Flightline–who stood for $200,000 and covered 152 mares in his debut season–is a special honor.

“You dream about these horses become great racehorses and this filly is really bred to go a distance, so maybe someday we'll see her in the Oaks,” he said. “That'd be a dream come true.”

The post Taylor Made’s Foaling Season Starts with Flightline’s First Foal appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

With five years now under her belt in the role, Adam is pleased with the strides that have been made in fostering relationships with the equine community–particularly within the Thoroughbred business in Central Kentucky–and she is optimistic that those connections will lead to further advancements in the coming years.

While Adam's role encompasses outreach for both UK's Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center and the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, she said the Diagnostic Lab has always been more outward facing by nature so her initial goal was to bring more external emphasis to the research center.

“Our entire community wants to be better connected with our industry stakeholders, but bandwidths can limit that reality,” Adam explained. “I think everyone recognized the need for someone who had practice and industry experience and could bring that to the Gluck Center to connect it with what we do within the building. Researchers are so busy trying to fund their projects and write papers that the time available to get out there and interact with our industry was getting less and less. We needed to take a step back and say, 'What do we need to do to remain connecting  what is happening in our industry with what is happening in our academic community and vice versa, so that we can help each other?'”

Adam's background in racing has served her well in her position, which was spearheaded by Nancy Cox, UK's Vice President for land-grant engagement and Dean of Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment. A native of Newmarket, England, Adam was immersed in the racing and breeding industry from a young age as she grew up on a commercial farm and was first familiarized with the racing side of the business when she worked for champion trainer Sir Michael Stoute. As a practicing veterinarian, she worked in various racing and breeding-related positions around the globe before deciding to return to academia and earn her PhD at UK's Department of Veterinary Science. From there, she stepped into her current role.

Making connections with farm managers and veterinarians has proven to be invaluable as Adam has worked to get the word out on the Gluck Center's mission and increase awareness among owners and breeders on the resources that the research center has to offer.

“Our research community is brilliant, but reaching them is sometimes difficult,” Adam admitted. “We have a fantastic network here through the Consignors and Commercial Breeders Association, the Kentucky Thoroughbred Farm Managers Club and our veterinary community. While we'd always love for it to be bigger, we're developing a stronger network of people that know we're here to help.”

Dr. Emma Adam | photo courtesy Emma Adam

When breeders have issues arise, such as pregnancy loss, the Gluck Center's team coordinates with the Diagnostic Lab, veterinarians and farm managers to investigate those problems.

“We will go through lots of different parameters with the veterinarian and the farm manager and take some colleagues that might help with such things as examining the pastures,” Adam explained. “We'll do hay, soil and water analysis, and examine records for each mare. We'll work closely with our colleagues in the Diagnostic Lab so we can connect any dots that might be available to look at from the perspective of those unfortunate pregnancy losses.”

“We may not always arrive at an answer, but along the way we'll have often found out some other things that we can be more vigilant for,” she continued. “Those things might include checking to make sure that we're testing our pastures for things like tall fescue or trying to avoid stress when moving mares to different pastures. Everybody brings something to the table and we chew it all over and see if we currently have what we think is the best possible plan for that farm and then offer help to implement it if we can.”

Adam stressed that confidentiality and trust are important aspects of the work they do with commercial breeding farms.

“We have very strict confidentiality obligations and we take them very seriously,” she said. “All samples and veterinary and farm interactions are completely confidential. We recognize that it is vital that people can trust everything we do, not only with the quality of our science but in how we handle those interactions. We're very fortunate that people are generous with their information and we respect that they have entrusted us with it.”

Building relationships with more breeding farms throughout Central Kentucky has been an ongoing goal that Adam said she believes will lead to mutually beneficial results for both the research center and breeders.

One example of how this reciprocity has led to research findings is in the Gluck's studies on nocardioform placentitis, a cause of late-term abortions and perinatal deaths. Recent studies on this disease have been made possible in large part by the samples researchers have received from local farms. Efforts are ongoing with the goal of developing an early-warning diagnostic test for the condition and better understanding how and when mares are exposed.

The breeding industry supports the Gluck not only in supplying samples, but on occasion, in providing much-needed financial support. When a rash of neonatal foal diarrhea broke out in the spring of 2021, the general consensus was that the cases behaved like Equine Rotavirus A, however diagnostic tests were coming back negative. Upon closer examination, UK virologists Drs. Feng Li and Dan Wang were able to perform genomic sequencing on samples to determine that a new strain of Rotavirus had emerged.

The Kentucky Thoroughbred Association, Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Foundation, The Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation, Coolmore America, Consignors and Commercial Breeders Association and the William S. Farish Fund provided gifts to develop a research plan to develop a vaccine. This summer, work is being done to test new vaccine candidates that are hoped will provide protection to foals against Equine Rotavirus B.

“That is a perfect example of how our industry is really trying to help itself by helping us,” said Adam. “We're very fortunate to have a relationship where they recognize that we're here and trying to help and where they support us in that effort because there is so little money for equine research. When it comes to things that are a bit more niche like foaling mares, it is even harder to get funds to do the kind of work that is relevant to our industry.”

Adam explained that the concentration of mares bred and foaled in Central Kentucky can oftentimes lead people to falsely believe that the area has more problems than other places. Instead, she described how the community's outstanding veterinarians and farm managers endow the region with a culture of constant vigilance and a drive to understand every problem encountered.

“Everything is so close here,” she shared. “You don't have to drive more than an hour from any of these farms to get to our world-class Veterinary Diagnostic Lab that sees probably more horses and horse samples than any lab globally. What that means is we're able to, as best as we possibly can, explore and understand what happened and how can we might prevent it in future. That is not something that a lot of other places can access so easily.”

Moving forward as a growing number of local farms have started utilizing the Gluck's resources, Adam's next goal is to develop ways to gather data each year from surveys and surveillance sampling.  These findings will be used to build profiles of how data is changing over time. The Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory website collates some of these data, but Adam said she wishes to extend the survey to the farm level.

“We can take that data gathering further in asking our stakeholders to help us generate information on the things we deal with on a farm level–for example, pregnancy losses, red bag deliveries, foal diarrhea cases, yearling respiratory disease and so the list goes on,” she explained. “These data are absolutely essential to inform and direct our research not just at the local level here in the department, but from the perspective of being able to go out there and fight for the funding from the grant agencies to get that research done.”

Embarking on such a project is only possible with the collaboration of the entire Thoroughbred breeding industry in Central Kentucky, but Adam said she is counting on both the relationships that are newly formed and in others that have flourished over the years.

“The Department's footprint in our community continues to grow and that is a culture all of us in the University are keen to expand,” she said. “Taken together we have extraordinary natural and human resources here in Kentucky to serve and support our industry locally and worldwide.”

The post Symbiosis of Breeders, Gluck Equine Research Center Reaches New Heights appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

The octogenarian knew she had accomplished the mission when she spotted Belle's Finale, an unraced 3-year-old out of GISW Capote Belle (Capote) carrying her first foal by Not This Time, and she secured the winning $70,000 bid.

Mary Leigh's son Clay Patrick, an attorney in their home town of Frankfort who also works alongside his mother to oversee the daily operations of Ramspring, has spent decades observing his mother's knack for scoping out value at the breeding sale.

“She just loves horses, period,” he explained. “She could look at horses all day long, 24/7. She goes into the sales and waits until the last one sells, making sure they don't slip through the cracks. She's very good at spotting a good-looking horse and finding a new mare that might be a good addition for the broodmare band.”

While the acquisition of Belle's Finale exemplifies her purchaser's bargain buying routine, the mare's accomplishments since she arrived at Ramspring have been far from ordinary as her son Up to the Mark (Not This Time) has emerged as one the top turf horses in the country.

When the Patricks were impressed with Belle's Finale's first foal, they sent the mare back to Not This Time and the resulting foal was Up to the Mark. The February-foaled colt was a standout throughout his time at Ramspring.

Clay Patrick recalled how their team, along with Taylor Made advisor Stuart Angus, always thought highly of the youngster.

“Stuart comes out frequently and inspects the horses and the foals and he gives them a grade,” Patrick explained. “I think the colt was one of the few horses that he's ever given an A- grade to on every occasion that he saw him. He was very handsome, a very good-looking young foal from the day he was born until he went to the sales ring.”

While Patrick described sending the colt through the Keeneland September ring to sell for $450,000 as a thrill, he said it has been even more gratifying to watch Up to the Mark's rise to the top of the sport this year.

Up to the Mark gets a second Grade I victory in the Manhattan S. | Sarah Andrew

The Todd Pletcher-trained, Repole Stable and St. Elias Stables-campaigned 4-year-old has made a name for himself after switching to the turf, recently reeling off masterful performances in the GI Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic S. and the GI Resorts World Casino Manhattan S.

“When he turned for home, it was just a thrill,” Patrick said of the recent victory on Belmont weekend. “The hair stood up on the back of my neck when he got loose. Just seeing the horse that you nurtured and took care of from conception to the day he was a mature athlete ready to run was something. Todd Pletcher and the owners have done a super job with him.”

Up to the Mark was one of the 12 to 15 foals Ramspring Farm breeds every year. The breed-to-sell operation focuses on quality over quantity and has been a family business from the beginning.

Mary Leigh and her husband Mac, a surgeon and businessman deeply involved in the Frankfort community, purchased the 200-acre farm in 1976. They named it after the spring located on the property that once had a ram pump system used to send the spring water uphill for livestock.

“I think it was something that they always wanted to do,” Patrick explained about his parents' desire to get involved in the horse business. “They had it in their mind that they wanted to and then once they took the plunge and got into it, it was in their blood.”

Bail Out Becky (Red Ransom) was one of the first horses to gain the Patricks recognition in the Thoroughbred world when she won the 1995 GI Del Mar Oaks and earned over $700,000 for Ken and Sarah Ramsey. Other standouts among the stakes winners to come off the farm over the years include MGSW Lead Story (Editor's Note), 2012 GI Florida Derby runner-up Reveron (Songandaprayer), the MGISP 2017 GIII Turnback the Alarm H. winner Eskenformoney (Eskendereya) and GSP Winning Envelope (More Than Ready).

Ramspring Farm sits alongside the Kentucky River and as the crow flies, is just over a mile from where Dr. James Crow is said to have perfected the sour mash fermentation process used to produce bourbon. Appropriately, the farm is in the early stages of launching their own Ramspring Farm Kentucky Bourbon.

As a teenager growing up at Ramspring, Patrick–who is the youngest of three children–developed his own admiration for the land, the horses and the business.

Unique outbuildings at Ramspring Farm | Katie Petrunyak

“I've always enjoyed being out here and have spent a ton of my time on the farm,” he explained. “The most exciting part for me was to see the foals grow up here and make their way to the sales and hopefully do well on the racetrack. I've moved out here and built a house on the farm.”

Last summer the farm's patriarch, Dr. Patrick, passed away at the age of 87. Mary Leigh continues to oversee the operation from their home that overlooks several of the farm's main pastures, but she now has two more generations of Patricks who have developed their own passion for the land.

“My mother has always taken care of most of the aspects of the farm and is continuing to do so,” Patrick said. “I have three boys and they all enjoy the farm and we combine to take care of it, along with all of the good people that we have working out here. I think the fact that it's a family affair is the most special part of it. We've had a lot of special events and family outings out here. To have the whole family enjoy it is special.”

The farm's star broodmare Belle's Finale has a pipeline of foals that has the Ramspring team excited for the future. While her foal of 2021 died of colic complications, she has two youngsters on the ground and she recently checked in foal to Not This Time.

Her yearling colt by McKinzie is pointing for the Keeneland September Sale.

Belle's Finale and her Maxfield colt | Katie Petrunyak

“He's got a lot of his sire in him and is a big, strong colt,” Patrick shared. “He's got a very powerful motor on him and looks like he's going to be a runner.”

This spring, Belle's Finale foaled a colt from the first crop of Maxfield on April 12.

“The Maxfield is a stoic individual who has a good head on his shoulders and looks great,” said Patrick. “He looks like an A physical to me.”

Until those youngsters hit the sales ring, the Patrick family will await news of Up to the Mark's next challenge as his connections point for a bid in the Breeders' Cup this fall.

“I would say he's definitely the best that we've ever had here,” Patrick said. “That hair-raising experience of seeing him turning for home and giving that final kick, it's something to behold.”

The post Ramspring Farm Hits the Mark with a Top-Class Turfer appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

According to Zenyatta.com, the champion's co-owner Ann Holbrook (Moss), as well as Lane's End managers Todd Claunch and Jenn Laidlaw, were present for the successful foaling of the newborn, who sports a prominent blaze quite reminiscent of her dam's recognizable markings.

The post also stated that this will be Zenyatta's last foal as the 19-year-old mare enters into retirement.

The winner of 19 of 20 starts and the 2010 Horse of the Year, Zenyatta retired to the breeding shed in 2011 following her only career defeat after a famed battle with Blame in the 2010 Breeders' Cup Classic. Unfortunately the history-making racemare had a troubled career as a broodmare and only four of her offspring have made it to racing age thus far.

That blaze sure looks familiar! | Lane's End's Jenn Laidlaw

Her first two foals Cozmic One (Bernardini) and Ziconic (Tapit) both reached the starting gate. Cozmic One was unplaced in five starts, but forged his own path in the show ring. Watch the TDN's 'Catching Up with Cozmic One' here. From 12 starts, Ziconic earned two second-place finishes and followed in his elder half-brother's path when he too went on to become a successful show jumper.

Zenyatta's 2017 foal, a Medaglia d'Oro filly named Zellda, did not make it to the starting gate, but she went on to a breeding career and just produced her first foal this year. The colt by Twirling Candy was foaled April 27.

Zenyatta's 3-year-old Zilkha (Candy Ride {Arg}) also did not make the starting gate, but she did spend time in the John Shirreffs barn at Santa Anita last year (TDN checked in with her here).

In a TDN visit to Lane's End in 2020 when Zilkha was a foal, the farm's broodmare manager Jenn Laidlaw spoke on the personality of the gifted, brilliant, unforgettable Zenyatta.

“Zenyatta is probably the most intelligent horse on the farm,” she said. “She knows that she's important and she knows who she is. She has a real presence about her.”

Although her chapter as a broodmare now comes to a close, Zenyatta will continue to be an ambassador for the sport. Laidlaw told TDN how much of an impact the spotlight-loving mare has had on visitors to Lane's End.

“When the fans get the opportunity to meet her, they'll just start crying,” she explained. “It's really heartwarming to see how much she affected people's daily lives and how much they love her. There are stories people tell you about how she's helped them through situations or how she gave them motivation.”

The post Zenyatta Foals War Front Filly, Set to Retire as Broodmare appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

The global racing powerhouse is coming off back-to-back Eclipse Awards for Outstanding Owner and Breeder, but Godolphin USA's Director of Bloodstock Michael Banahan said that this year's Derby weekend ranks near the top of the list of great weekends for the American branch of Sheikh Mohammed's international operation.

“We've been lucky enough to hit some highlights, for example when Bernardini won the Preakness, or the Travers with Essential Quality or Cody's Wish last year at the GI Breeders' Cup, but to have a domestic triple Grade I weekend, I don't think we've done that before,” he said. “Obviously we've had a couple of great Breeders' Cups, but that was on the coattails of our English colleagues who helped us out big time. For us to do it here domestically, it was an amazing weekend and it meant so much to the team all across the board. Our expectations were pretty high, but we know the way the game goes. It couldn't have gone any more perfect.”

Each of the three Godolphin homebreds made a Grade I statement on Derby weekend, with Pretty Mischievous getting her first Grade I score in the Oaks, Matareya earning her second at the top level in the Derby City Distaff S., and Cody's Wish with his third in the Churchill Downs S.

Just as each member of the talented trio forged their own path to the winner's circle, the dams of each of the top-level performers had very different journeys into the Godolphin broodmare band. Each mare's story reflects Godolphin USA's evolution as a leading buyer in the sales pavilion to now a leading breeder with an inimitable broodmare band and a star-studded group of homebred performers.

Pretty City Dancer at Stonerside Farm | Sara Gordon

PRETTY CITY DANCER (Tapit – Pretty City, by Carson City). Dam of GI Kentucky Oaks winner Pretty Mischievous (Into Mischief)

While Godolphin has been markedly less active at the fall breeding stock sales in recent years, they came home with two purchases at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton November Sale with GSW Champagne Problems (Ghostzapper) and Pretty City Dancer (Tapit).

“We're very fortunate in that we haven't had to dip into the pool very often over the last seven or eight years and so Pretty City Dancer is one of the few mares we've bought over the last half a dozen years or so,” Banahan explained. “We're conscious of wanting to try to get in there and maybe get some mares that complement the broodmare band that we have at the moment.”

Pretty City Dancer was a standout at the auction as the winner of the 2016 GI Spinaway S. and a half-sister to another Grade I winner in Lear's Princess (Lear Fan). The daughter of Tapit was offered carrying her first foal by Medaglia d'Oro and sold to Stroud Coleman Bloodstock on behalf of Godolphin for $3.5 million.

“She's a beautiful-looking mare, great quality to her and well balanced,” Banahan noted. “She's the type of mare that you can breed to a lot of different stallions from a physical standpoint.”

While that first Medaglia d'Oro filly named Ornamental took six tries to break her maiden, Pretty City Dancer's second foal Pretty Mischievous was a standout from the beginning.  A 'TDN Rising Star' on debut, the bay went on to get a first Oaks score not only for Godolphin, but also for trainer Brendan Walsh and jockey Tyler Gaffalione.

Pretty City Dancer, who resides at Godolphin's Stonerside Farm in Paris, Kentucky, does not have a 2-year-old this year, but she has a Medaglia d'Oro yearling filly and a Street Sense filly foaled Mar. 28 this year. The 9-year-old mare has been bred back to Into Mischief.

Dance Card and her Gun Runner filly | Sara Gordon

DANCE CARD (Tapit -Tempting Note, by Editor's Note). Dam of GI Churchill Downs S. winner Cody's Wish (Curlin)

Dance Card was purchased by John Ferguson for Godolphin in 2011 at the Fasig-Tipton Florida Select 2-Year-Old in Training Sale as a $67,000 yearling-turned-$750,000 juvenile.

“At that time, we did buy a few 2-year-olds,” Banahan explained. “Not many, but we bought a few and she was part of a pair that we bought that year. We haven't been very active in the sales pavilion for a while and obviously it was a change from a good few years ago where we were the most active buyer at the Saratoga and the Keeneland September sales, but the majority of those horses ended up racing in Europe. Not many of them really stayed here.”

Dance Card was one of those Godolphin purchases that did stay in the U.S. and she proved to be a talent on American soil for Kiaran McLaughlin. The daughter of Tapit did not make her first start until three, but she claimed the Belle Cherie S. and the GI Gazelle S. as a sophomore and came back at four to run third in the 2013 GI Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint.

The mare's early offspring performed well. Her first foal Bocephus (Medaglia d'Oro) was stakes placed and her second foal Endorsed (Medaglia d'Oro) has been competitive at the graded level for years–having just earned his first two graded stakes wins this year at age seven–but it was Dance Card's fourth foal, by Curlin, that was destined to be a star.

“Cody's Wish was by far her best-looking foal that she produced at that stage,” Banahan recalled. “He was probably ranked in the top five yearlings that we had that year and we had high, high expectations for him.”

Dance Card's yearling filly by Street Sense | Sara Gordon

Unquestionably one of the most inspirational stories in racing this year, Cody's Wish validated Godolphin's decision to bring the champion back as a 5-year-old when he came in off a layoff to extend his winning streak to five straight scores in the GI Churchill Downs S.

“I think that on Saturday, Cody's Wish showed that he's probably even a better horse this year than last year,” Banahan said. “To me, it was his most impressive race yet thus far. We knew there was a great lineup this year for him with the Churchill Downs S., then going for the GI Metropolitan H., back to the GI Forego S. and on to the Breeders' Cup. We're hoping that maybe he can have a special campaign this year and hit some of those great races.”

At the age of 14, Dance Card has a quality lineup of progeny in the pipeline. Her 2-year-old Into Mischief colt named Hunt Ball just arrived at Bill Mott's barn and she also has a Street Sense yearling filly that Banahan said their team is particularly high on. She recently foaled a Gun Runner filly and she has been bred back to Curlin.

INNOVATIVE IDEA (Bernardini – Golden Velvet, by Seeking the Gold). Dam of GI Derby City Distaff winner Matareya (Pioneerof the Nile)

While Pretty City Dancer and Innovative Idea both wound up under the Godolphin banner later in life, Innovative Idea is a second-generation homebred for the organization and she hails from their prolific producer Caress (Storm Cat).

A three-time graded stakes winner, Caress was purchased by John Ferguson Bloodstock for Godolphin for $3.1 million at the 2000 Keeneland November Sale a few months after she produced future Grade I winner Sky Mesa (Puplit). Her daughters include Velvety (Bernardini), the dam of Grade I winner and Darley sire Maxfield (Street Sense), and MGSW Golden Velvet (Seeking the Gold), the dam of Innovative Idea (Bernardini).

Innovative Idea was a productive race filly for Godolphin and Eoin Harty, breaking her maiden on debut at two and later claiming the Iowa Distaff S. and the GIII Groupie Doll S. as a 4-year-old. Her first foal, Business Model (Candy Ride {Arg}), is a winner at three and four and he is in training with Brendan Walsh this season as a 5-year-old for Qatar Racing and Marc Detampel.

Another star in the making This Curlin filly out of Innovative Idea (Bernardini) is the newest half-sister to Grade I winner MATAREYA (Pioneerof the Nile).

TDNtv feature coming soon! pic.twitter.com/B8nSjs2HW4

— TDN (@theTDN) May 12, 2023

Matareya was the mare's second foal and she was one that Banahan said he noticed from the start.

“Matareya was an absolutely beautiful yearling and I think she was my favorite of that year,” he said. “A lot of guys give me a hard time because I'm so hard grading them, but she got one of the highest grades I would give and I was in love with her as a yearling. I was always excited to see what she was going to do on the racetrack.”

To be able to celebrate the achievements of a third-generation homebred like Matareya, Banahan said, is a uniquely rewarding experience.

“It has been a great family for us,” he said. “To get it from a homebred is extra special. We've been very fortunate the last couple of years that all our stakes winners have happened from the broodmare band and that makes it all the more rewarding.”

Innovative Idea, now 11 years old and thriving at Godolphin's Gainsborough Farm in Versailles, has added three foals by Uncle Mo to her produce record. Her 3-year-old filly named Methodology is in training with Brad Cox and preparing for her debut in the next few months. She also has a 2-year-old colt and a yearling colt both by Uncle Mo. This year, she produced a filly by Curlin and is being bred back to the Hill 'n' Dale sire.

Innovative Idea's Curlin filly | Sara Gordon

Examining Success and Looking Ahead

What do the three Grade I producers have in common? Banahan said it starts with noting that each of them were graded stakes-winning racehorses.

“That's a quality that we love to have in any broodmare that we have, that they're successful on the racetrack,” he said. “All three are also nice, medium-sized mares. I struggle with big mares to try and make it work properly and I think it gives you a lot more options to stallions that you can breed to when you have those quality, athletic, medium-sized mares.”

Banahan noted that all three mares also hail from A.P. Indy, with two daughters of Tapit and a daughter of Darley's late sire Bernardini.

There is an immeasurable quality too, Banahan said, that he credits for Godolphin USA's growing list of achievements.

“We've been very fortunate that we have some beautiful land–some of the best land, we feel, in Central Kentucky,” he said. “I also think the personnel that we have are second to none. From Gerry Duffy at Stonerside, Danny Mulvihill at Gainsborough and Rafael Hernandez at Jonabell, they have been involved in all our recent success from the foaling end of it. Paul Seitz and Benji Amezcua are our yearling managers and they do a great job raising those horses. We have a really strong team and they all play a big, big role in getting us to the winner's circle.”

Banahan said that one of the next goals he hopes that their organization can achieve is to come up with a broodmare for the record books.

“We're happy with the way it's going and I think the quality is very good,” he said. “We're fortunate that we have a lot of really young broodmares as well that have hit with some good runners at the moment. We're hopeful that maybe we can turn one of those mares into a blue hen.”

Looking ahead to Preakness weekend, Godolphin has the opportunity to make another run and maybe take one step closer to that latest goal. First Mission (Street Sense) will be a leading contender in the GI Preakness S. for Brad Cox coming off a win in the GIII Lexington S. The operation will also be represented by Comparative (Street Sense) in the GII Black-Eyed Susan S. and Prevalence (Medaglia d'Oro) in the GIII Maryland Sprint S.

The post Three Grade I Winners Reflect Godolphin’s Evolving Program appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

“She's very sassy, that's for sure,” said Florent Geroux, who teamed up with the chestnut daughter of Tapizar for 16 of her 17 lifetime starts. “She's not really a 'people horse' who likes to hang out with people. She likes to be on her own. If you bring her some treats, she might come see you for a bit. Although if you come empty handed, it's not very good to visit her.”

Two years ago, Monomoy Girl retired to Spendthrift Farm. The operation's General Manager Ned Toffey can attest that the seven-time Grade I winner has maintained that same sure-of-herself personality.

“Ever since she came to Spendthrift, and I think during her training days as well, she has been a pretty tough mare,” he said. “She's definitely not so much of a pet as she is sort of a tough, athletic race mare. She's more settled into a routine now, but she still has her preferences. There are things she likes and things she doesn't like and you still see that fire pop up in her from time to time.”

Despite her seemingly tough nature, Monomoy Girl has revealed a softer side over the past two months. Early on the morning of Feb. 17, her first foal arrived at Spendthrift. While there is always concern for how any mare will take to a second career as a broodmare, in this case all worries were eased as soon as her Into Mischief colt took his first steps.

“She has done everything right,” said Toffey. “She's a very settled mare when she goes outside and she takes good care of her foal. Sometimes you'll run into things with race mares where you may even have to go so far as to have to put the foal on a nurse mare. That has been far from the case with Monomoy Girl.”

As for the foal, Toffey said they couldn't be happier with the new arrival.

“He's a medium-sized foal, which is really what we like to see. He's very well-made, very put together. He's got great bone and is very balanced and athletic .”

Monomoy Girl's first foal by Into Mischief | Sara Gordon

The team at Spendthrift was so enamored with this Into Mischief colt that Monomoy Girl was bred back to the farm's same supersire and she recently checked in foal.

Just as spring brings new foals to the Bluegrass each year, many of the nation's best jockeys are welcomed to Lexington every spring for the Keeneland meet. On a light day of racing, Florent Geroux stopped in to visit an old friend at Spendthrift and meet her first foal. The seasoned jockey has sat aboard countless top-class horses, but it's not every day that he gets near one of their offspring.

Geroux was blown away by how well the champion seems to have taken to retirement.

“She looks great and she has a beautiful colt,” he said after peppermints had been distributed and the mare and foal were turned out for the morning. “I think everything is going very well for her. It makes me happy to see her here and she looks amazing. Her coat is beautiful and she looks super healthy, all dappled out.”

There is no question that Geroux's top earner, Gun Runner, has gone on to do great things after the racetrack. Now he is hoping that his second-highest earning performer can share similar success.

The sky has always seemed to be the limit for Monomoy Girl, who has a knack for setting the bar throughout every step of her career.

Purchased as a yearling by Liz Crow for only $100,000 and originally campaigned by Michael Dubb and Sol Kumin's Monomoy Stables, the Brad Cox-trained filly was a stakes winner at two and her Eclipse Award-worthy sophomore season was highlighted by six graded stakes wins from seven starts, including the Kentucky Oaks and the Breeders' Cup Distaff.

While she missed her 4-year-old season due to colic and a hamstring injury, the chestnut came back the following year and claimed another Breeders' Cup Distaff-Eclipse Award double. At the end of her 5-year-old campaign, she was sent through the ring at Fasig-Tipton's Night of the Stars Sale, where she brought $9.5 million from Spendthrift Farm. MyRacehorse joined in on the partnership along with one of her original owners Sol Kumin under his Madaket Stables banner. She was a graded stakes winner again at six in the GIII Bayakoa S. before entering retirement.

Flo knows to come bearing peppermints when visiting Monomoy Girl | Sara Gordon

Reflecting on Monomoy Girl's career, Geroux said that her Kentucky Oaks victory over fellow champions Wonder Gadot and Midnight Bisou, as well as her victorious return to the Breeders' Cup in 2020, are two of his fondest memories with the talented filly.

Monomoy Girl's intelligence, he added, is another trait he will never forget from their many rides together.

“She's extremely smart,” he said. “Probably one of the smartest horses I've been around.”

While it remains to be seen if this first foal has inherited his dam's athletic abilities, there is already no question of his paternal heritage. A flashy light bay with varying degrees of white on all four legs, the colt has a prominent blaze that is unquestionably Into Mischief.

At just two months old, the youngster has already grown to love the spotlight.

“He could not be a more personable foal,” Toffey explained. “He loves people. You try to get a picture of him and he'll come over to the fence. Everything looks like a selfie with him because he just comes up and wants to get in your face.”

Toffey said that while plans can always change, their goal is to keep the foal under his existing ownership.

“I think he's one that we're likely to keep right here in house,” he explained. “There is a lot of time between now and next year when he would potentially sell as a yearling, but there is so much stallion potential there. It's a wonderful pedigree and he looks like an athlete. If he has ability that comes anywhere close to his looks and pedigree, he'd be a horse that we could hope to one day have in our stallion barn. That's really one of our big goals here at Spendthrift. We're breeding for the stud barn and the broodmare band. Obviously first comes athleticism, but if they can do the job on the track, our goal is to get them back here and stand them at stud.”

No matter where the youngster ends up some day, 'Flo' said that he would like to put his name in the hat to be the colt's future jockey.

“I would have to talk to the owners and maybe the future trainer,” he said with a smile. “Hopefully they can arrange that for me. It would be special.”

The post The It Girl: Monomoy Girl Shines at Spendthrift Alongside First Foal appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

“We've been excited to see the foals for our homebred Lexitonian and are delighted that the first one is born at Calumet,” said Eddie Cane, general manager of Calumet. “She has a lot of leg, good bone, and is well balanced.”

Lexitonian stands at Lane's End for a fee of $7,500.

The post GISW Lexitonian Represented By First Foal appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Casuarina (GB) (Sea The Moon {Ger}) is a sister to G1 Caulfield Cup winner Durston, as well as a half-sister to dual Group 3 winner Cubanita (GB) (Selkirk). The 4-year-old will be offered carrying her first foal by Study Of Man (Ire).

Another entry is G2 Lowther S. heroine Infamous Angel (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}). She is the granddam of the Group 3-winning Poptronic (GB) (Nathaniel (Ire), and is in foal to Classic sire Aclaim (Ire). First Destinity (Fr) (Lawman {Fr}), is a listed-placed half-sister to Group 1 winner and young sire Lightning Spear (GB) (Pivotal {GB}), and she is also part of the early entries.

The sale will include a selection of breeding rights, mares, foals, horses-in-training and yearlings. Entries will remain open until Friday, Dec. 2.

The post Havana Grey Breeding Right And A Sister To Durston To Be Offered At Tattersalls Online appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

“I didn't really want to sell her,” Gunther said with an acquiescing smile. “Most of our yearlings do go to the sale, but I was a bit sad when we let her go.”

Bred by Tanya's father John Gunther in partnership with Eurowest Bloodstock, Justique is the sixth foal out of the Gunthers' graded stakes-producing homebred mare Grazie Mille (Bernardini). When the dark bay foal arrived in March of 2020, the Gunthers were caught on the other side of the Atlantic at the start of the pandemic.

Tanya Gunther received regular photo updates of Justique throughout the year. When she finally returned to Glennwood, she made up for lost time with the youngster as she worked with the filly throughout the summer of her yearling year.

“I was down in our filly barn a lot through our prep season, so I spent a lot of time with her,” Gunther explained. “I got to know her very well and she was a favorite of mine. She had a very athletic look about her, sort of the Scat Daddy and Justify aspect coming through.”

Justique would sell for $725,000 at the Keeneland September Sale before joining the John Shirreffs barn to race for C R K Stable.

“I really hoped that she would be something special and so far, she looks pretty interesting,” Gunther said.

Smarty pants filly foal by Justify?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Justify out of Grazie Mille reminding her peeps #sixfeetawayplease She's all over it #socialdistancing (with essential care exclusions) & gets her temp taken daily as well w gloves used #glennwood @johndgunther pic.twitter.com/ReEeNybGMT

— Tanya Gunther (@tanyagun) March 23, 2020

While Gunther may have had to part with Grazie Mille's first daughter of Justify, Justique's full-sister arrived at Glennwood in March this year and Gunther said that this filly will almost definitely stay with their operation.

“She's an exceptional individual,” Gunther reported. “She is very pretty, leggy and has great scope on her. She's just a beauty, much like Justique was as a foal.”

A shiny chestnut with a touch of chrome, this youngster has the definite stamp of her sire who once meandered the very same paddocks at Glennwood before achieving Triple Crown glory. Glennwood Farm is an enthusiastic supporter of the Coolmore sire and Gunther said that she is finding common trends in Justify's progeny.

“I have found that while his offspring may not always be chestnut with the blaze, they definitely have a physique that I see a resemblance of him,” she explained. “While [Justique and her sister] are different colors, they are very much of a similar model.”

Each of these daughters of Justify represent their breeder on both sides of their pedigree. John Gunther purchased their second dam, Molto Vita (Carson City), for $24,000 in 2000. She won the 2004 GIII Thoroughbred Club of America S. and collected over half a million in earnings before retiring to stud. Her third foal, Grazie Mille, broke her maiden impressively for Chad Brown, but was forced to retire prematurely.

“She was a very talented racehorse, but she chipped a knee and we had to retire her early,” Gunther recalled. “I think she would have been a stakes horse and her trainer did as well.”

Grazie Mille's first foal Mo Town (Uncle Mo) earned the 'Rising Star' nod at two and went on to dual-surface success in the GII Remsen S. and GI Hollywood Derby before joining the roster at Ashford Stud. Along with studmate Justify, he is represented by his first crop of runners this year.

With immeasurable upside potential for Grazie Mille and her growing produce record, Gunther has high hopes for the accomplished homebred mare.

“We had the fortune of breeding her to Uncle Mo early on before he had runners and that was how she got rolling as a broodmare with progeny behind her name, so now it's hopefully onward and upward from there.”

The post Tanya Gunther on Justique and Her Full-Sister at Glennwood appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post