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A Way-Too-Early Look At The First-Crop Weanling Sire Race At Kentucky’s November Sales

Any reasonable person would acknowledge that it's far too early in the game to be declaring winners and losers in a first-crop stallion race among those with first weanlings this year.

There have been exactly two days of selling at the major Kentucky fall mixed sales, prefaced by a few smaller sales around the country – hardly enough to provide an accurate projection of long-term commercial or on-track success for this year's class of young stallions.

However, the context behind those two days of selling in Kentucky make it worth noting who performed well.

The Fasig-Tipton November sale and Book 1 of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale are the pinnacle of North America's mixed auction calendar. The quantity of foals cataloged in each session says a lot about a first-year stallion's perceived spot on the high-end pecking order, and the performance of their foals when the hammer falls is a major dress rehearsal for the elite yearling sales to come. How a new stallion performs in these boutique sessions won't make or break a commercial legacy, but it's good information to have.

By that standard, the first jump out of the gate went to Spendthrift Farm's Omaha Beach, who was the leading first-crop weanling sire by average sale price, combining the Fasig-Tipton November sale on Tuesday and Book 1 of Keeneland November on Wednesday.

The Grade 1-winning son of War Front had five weanlings change hands through the ring over the two days for an average of $160,000.

Leading the way for Omaha Beach was a colt who sold Wednesday at Keeneland to Freya Stables for $300,000.

The dark bay or brown colt, offered as Hip 176, is out of the unraced Bellamy Road mare Achalaya, whose three foals of racing age are all winners, including Grade 1 winner Casa Creed and Grade 3 winner Chess's Dream. Gainesway consigned the colt, as agent.

Omaha Beach sent the most expensive first-crop weanling through the Fasig-Tipton ring on Tuesday, when Hip 46, a filly out of the Medaglia d'Oro mare Glory Gold, sold to Sewanne Investments for $220,000.

The New York-bred filly is a sister to stakes winners Espresso Shot and Venti Valentine, and she was consigned by Ballysax Bloodstock, agent.

Spendthrift Farm general manager Ned Toffey said he knew expectations were high for Omaha Beach's first foals. When an incoming stallion enters the marketplace with a $45,000 stud fee, a strong commercial reception is supposed to be a feature, not a pleasant surprise. Toffey said he was satisfied with how the Omaha Beach weanlings met their first challenge.

“They're just classy, elegant looking foals, very much like him,” Toffey said. “They're really good mentally. The stallion is wonderful mentally, and that's something that we're hearing from breeders is how good-minded these foals are.”

A fellow Spendthrift Farm resident wasn't far behind Omaha Beach among the early leaders in the first-crop race.

Champion Vino Rosso had five weanlings bring an average of $135,000, led by the most expensive first-crop weanling of Keeneland November's first book.

That was Hip 112, a dark bay or brown colt out of the unraced Tiznow mare Fair Huntress who sold to Bolter Bloodstock for $340,000.

The colt hails from the family of Grade 1 winner Competitionofideas and Grade 3 winner Devil by Design.

He was consigned by Glennwood Farm, which also bred Vino Rosso and consigned the Breeders' Cup Classic-winning son of Curlin as a yearling.

Vino Rosso's second-leading weanling came at the Fasig-Tipton November sale, when BW Stables went to $150,000 for Hip 114, a colt out of the Bodemeister mare Storm Raven. Ballysax Bloodstock consigned him, as agent.

“He's just been incredibly consistent,” Toffey said about Vino Rosso. “We get one breeder after another giving us this great feedback on how much they like their foal; things like 'best foal this mare's ever thrown,' 'best foal on the farm.' The rest of the market's starting to see that as well. They're very athletic, very well-balanced, everything you want to see.”

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Mighty Heart, Sir Winston Among Field Of Eight For Sunday’s Autumn Stakes At Woodbine

Eight hopefuls, including multiple graded stakes winner Special Forces, reigning Canadian Horse of the Year Mighty Heart, and 2019 Belmont Stakes champ Sir Winston, are set to contest the Grade 2 $175,000 Autumn Stakes, Sunday at Woodbine.

A 6-year-old son of Candy Ride (ARG) trained by Kevin Attard, who co-owns with Soli Mehta, Special Forces will chase his second Autumn score, having won the 1 1/16-mile Tapeta event for three-year-olds and upward two years ago.

Sporting a record of 6-6-2 from 20 starts, the chestnut, bred in Kentucky by Machmer Hall and Carrie and Craig Brogden, has finished in the top three in 12 straight starts and heads into Sunday's race off a win in the Grade 3 Durham Cup on Oct. 10.

Sent off at 6-1, the gelding, under Justin Stein, rallied strongly down the lane to secure a half-length victory in the 1 1/16-mile race stopping the clock in 1:42.36. Sir Winston was second, Halo Again finished third and Mighty Heart was fourth. All four are set to square off in the Autumn.

Claimed by Attard for $40,000 just over three years ago, the Durham Cup was the first trip to the winner's circle for Special Forces since taking the 2019 Autumn.

“I think he's always been a good horse,” said Attard. “Up until he got injured he was running against the best older horses on the grounds at Woodbine and was competing right with them. Any time you have to stop a horse for an extended period of time you always wonder, 'Have they lost a step?' or consider what level they'll be able to come back at. I think he's obviously put that to rest after his last race.”

Attard, three wins shy of 570 for his career, continues to be impressed by his consistent and resilient performer.

“Before we ran him the first time this year, I knew he was good and back to himself. I was eagerly awaiting him getting back to the races. There aren't many times you come back and hook a Belmont winner (Sir Winston, on August 19). We ran a good second. I was happy with the race that my horse ran.”

Special Forces made his debut on May 25, 2017, at Churchill, finishing sixth. He broke his maiden in his seventh start on August 5, 2018 in a maiden optional claiming race at Woodbine.

“He just has a great turn of foot,” raved Attard. “He really closes hard down the lane. He's an exciting horse to watch and a horse we claimed which makes it even more special just to see the improvement in him. He likes to sit at the back of the pack and come with a big run. Those ones are always exciting to watch.”

Are You Kidding Me won consecutive (2015-16) editions of the Autumn. Starting in 1920, Kentucky Derby champion and U.S. Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee, Exterminator, won the race three straight years.

The Autumn goes as race eight. First post for the 11-race card is 12:55 p.m. Fans can watch and wager on all the action through HPIbet.com and the Dark Horse Bets app.

$175,000 AUTUMN STAKES

Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – Special Forces – Justin Stein – Kevin Attard

2 – Vanzzy – Rafael Hernandez – Michael Pino

3 – Primo Touch (S) – Eswan Flores – Harold Ladouceur

4 – Sir Winston – Antonio Gallardo – Mark Casse

5 – Faraway Kitten – Luis Contreras – Denyse McClachrie

6 – Halo Again – Shaun Bridgmohan – Steve Asmussen

7 – Embolden – Mauricio Malvaez – Sandra Dominguez

8 – Mighty Heart – Patrick Husbands – Josie Carroll

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Small But Mighty: Runaway Rumour Faces Loaded Field In Winter Memories

Lawrence Goichman's New York homebred Runaway Rumour seeks a return to winning form as part of a deep field assembled for Sunday's $150,000 Winter Memories for sophomore fillies going 1 1/16 miles over the inner turf at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Trained by Jorge Abreu, the bay daughter of Flintshire enters off a closing second in the Grade 2 Sands Point on October 16 at Belmont Park, where she made up nearly six lengths from the first point of call to miss by a neck to Fluffy Socks.

Runaway Rumour captured her first three lifetime starts, all at Belmont Park. Following a triumph in a state-bred maiden going six furlongs over Belmont's inner turf in May, she defeated New York-bred winners going one mile on the Widener turf five weeks later. She made her stakes debut a winning one, when besting open company in the Wild Applause on June 26 at Belmont.

Abreu said he is hoping for firm footing for Sunday's race.

“I'm more concerned about the weather than anything else. We're supposed to get some rain,” Abreu said. “The horse is doing great though. She came out of her last race in really good shape and had a nice breeze at Belmont the other day. She doesn't need much done with her, she's a small horse.”

Runaway Rumour is out of the multiple stakes-placed Elusive Quality mare Elusive Rumour, who produced stakes-winner Myhartblongstodady who also is trained by Abreu.

Jose Lezcano returns to the irons aboard Runaway Rumour from post 11.

Trainer Graham Motion will be represented by a trio of fillies, including Michael Ryan, Jeff Drown and Team Hanley's Invincible Gal who arrives off a close fourth in the Glen Cove on October 15 at Belmont.

The five-time stakes-placed daughter of Invincible Spirit returns to Aqueduct for the first time since finishing a late-closing second in the Tepin in November 2020. She built on a productive juvenile campaign when picking up second-place finishes in the Grade 3 Soaring Softly on May 15 at Belmont Park and the Virginia Oaks two starts back on August 31 at Colonial Downs.

“She's obviously a very hard-knocking horse,” Motion said. “I'm a little torn with her. I'm almost leaning toward thinking she wants to go short, but she ran so well in the Virginia Oaks going a mile and an eighth.”

Invincible Gal will be piloted by Hall of Famer John Velazquez from post 10.

Earle I. Mack's Batyah will attempt to shake off 13 months' worth of rust when making her first start since finishing fifth in the Grade 2 Jessamine in October 2020 at Keeneland. The dark bay or brown daughter of Pioneerof the Nile displayed a devastating late kick on debut last September at Belmont, rallying from ten lengths off the pace in ninth to win by 2 ¼ lengths over the Widener turf.

“She's been ready to run for a while,” Motion said. “I entered her a few times and got a little unlucky with the weather and races coming off the grass, but from a fitness point she should be ready.”

Hall of Famer Javier Castellano has the call from post 5.

Rounding out Motion's contingent is Fortune Racing's Bipartisanship who makes her North American stakes debut off a sharp maiden triumph over the Laurel Park turf on October 10. Following a third-place finish at Belmont in her first stateside start, the Bated Breath chestnut made up 13 lengths last out to win at sixth asking by 3 ¾ lengths.

Initially campaigned in Ireland, Bipartisanship earned black type when finishing third at 80-1 odds in the Group 3 Brownstown in July at Fairyhouse to Group 3 winner Pearls Galore, who finished sixth in last Saturday's Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Mile.

“The first time I ran her at Belmont she just walked out of the gate but ran respectfully. I took her to Laurel and she won very comfortably that day,” Motion said. “I thought the effort warranted a try against stakes company. It's one of the last chances to run against straight 3-year-olds. She acts like she can be pretty useful.”

Jevian Toledo will retain the mount from post 8.

Gainesway Stable homebred White Frost will make her first start since January 30 when she captured the Grade 3 Sweetest Chant at Gulfstream Park over next out winners Con Lima and Domain Expertise.

The dark bay daughter of Candy Ride, out of stakes-winner Miss Frost, returns to the Big A for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott after breaking her maiden over the inner turf last November.

Breaking from post 6, White Frost will be ridden by Junior Alvarado.

Trainer Cherie DeVaux will saddle Lazy F Ranch homebred Gam's Mission, who has not raced since finishing fifth in the Grade 3 Saratoga Oaks Invitational on August 8. The Noble Mission bay captured the Grade 3 Regret on May 29 at Churchill Downs three starts back ahead of a close fourth in the Grade 1 Belmont Oaks Invitational on July 10.

Luis Saez will ride from post 4.

Trainer Christophe Clement will saddle graded stakes winner Plum Ali, who boasts the highest field bankroll with $593,500.

The First Samurai chestnut captured Grade 2 Miss Grillo in her most recent victory. Despite being winless in six starts this season, Plum Ali garnered black type twice this year when finishing third in the Grade 2 Appalachian on April 3 at Keeneland and second in the Grade 3 Wonder Again on June 3 at Belmont Park. She arrives off a fifth beaten 1 ¾ lengths in the Grade 2 Sands Point.

Manny Franco will ride from post 3.

Completing the field are Quinevere [post 1, Kendrick Carmouche], Bleecker Street [post 2, Irad Ortiz, Jr.], Miss Dracarys [post 7, Dylan Davis], Out of Sorts [post 9, Jorge Vargas, Jr.], and Flown [post 12, Jose Ortiz].

The Winter Memories honors Phillips Racing Partnership's turf distaffer, who captured the Grade 1 Garden City Handicap in 2011 and the Grade 1 Diana the following year. The Jimmy Toner trained daughter of El Prado, out of fellow Grade 1-winning millionaire Memories of Silver, won seven graded stakes throughout her career and boasts earnings in excess of $1.2 million.
The Winter Memories is carded as Race 8 on Aqueduct's nine-race program. First post is 12:20 p.m.

America's Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the fall meet at Aqueduct Racetrack on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule.

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MATCH Series: Off Topic Back For Second Off The Layoff In Saturday’s Thirty Eight Go Go

Before she heads off to the breeding shed at the end of the year, D Hatman Thoroughbreds' Grade 1-placed Off Topic will continue her quest to become a stakes winner in Saturday's $100,000 Thirty Eight Go Go at Laurel Park.

The 1 1/16-mile Thirty Eight Go Go for fillies and mares 3 and up, part of the Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championship (MATCH) Series, joins the $100,000 James F. Lewis III for 2-year-olds and $100,000 Smart Halo for 2-year-old fillies on the nine-race program. First race post time is 12:25 p.m.

Initially purchased for $160,00 as a yearling in 2017, Off Topic raced 13 times for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher with two wins, two seconds and three thirds, most notably finishing third in both the Coaching Club American Oaks (G1) and Gazelle (G2) and fourth in the Alabama (G1) in 2019. In between, she ran fifth in the Black-Eyed Susan (G2) at historic Pimlico Race Course.

As part of the dispersal of late owner Paul Pompa Jr., who passed away last October, Off Topic was sold at Keeneland's Horses of All Ages sale in January, where D Hatman's Matt Dorman paid $575,000 for the 5-year-old daughter of Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Street Sense and sent him to trainer Phil Schoenthal.

“She was being sold as a racing or broodmare prospect. She had kind of gone off form last year and we felt like maybe there was some opportunities there if she got some time off,” Schoenthal said. “We bought her as a broodmare prospect, really. He's trying to build a broodmare band and she's a great big, huge, beautiful Street Sense filly who's Grade 1 stakes placed. So, we were buying her with the end goal of putting her into the broodmare band.

“We discussed at that time just going ahead and retiring her and getting her bred, but he'd been on a buying spree of building his broodmare band and we had 20 mares in foal,” he added. “He said, 'Look, we've got 20 mares about to have foals, let's go ahead and take her back to the races and see if we can have some fun this year and go ahead and breed her next year.' That was just fine with me, of course.”

Off Topic began working her way back at the Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Md. in March and was under consideration for the Allaire du Pont (G3) on the eve of the Preakness Stakes (G1) in mid-May but missed time following a freak training mishap.

“We gave her the winter off and brought her back in the spring, and she was getting ready to run. We were kind of pointing for that race on Preakness weekend with her and were really excited about it,” Schoenthal said. “One day in training she was galloping along, and she's a real strong horse, difficult to gallop, and the rein broke in half. It just snapped right in half while she was galloping. The rider came off and she got loose and ran around the racetrack.

“As luck would have it she tried to make the gap and jumped the fence and scraped her knee all up real bad. It got into the joint so we had to take her off to New Bolton and she had to have surgery and get that all cleaned up,” he added. “That kind of set her back a couple more months. That was really disappointing. It took us a little while to get her over that and get her back to the races.”

Off Topic launched her comeback in the one-mile Twixt Sept. 18 at Laurel, just 16 days shy of one year since her prior start, running seventh. She finished behind Artful Splatter (second), Josie (third), Miss Leslie (fourth) and Lookin Dynamic (sixth) and ahead of Villanelle (eighth) – all of whom return in the Thirty Eight Go Go.

“We were hoping to run her in a two-other than and we just couldn't get one to go. I probably entered her four or five times looking for two-other-thans on the dirt all over the East Coast going long and just didn't have much luck getting her in,” Schoenthal said. “Talking to the owner we decided she's going to go be a broodmare. The goal with her is not to win a $50,000 two-other-than pot. We're trying to enhance her resume a little bit and add some more black type or maybe make her a stakes winner. So we said lets go ahead and put her in these stakes and see if we get lucky.

“She's a great big, huge filly who's a long-striding, grind it out kind of filly. A mile and an eighth, a mile and a quarter is really what she wants, as evidenced by her grade 1 placing at Saratoga going long. We knew that the one-turn mile was not going to be in her favor,” he added. “She was closer to the pace than I expected and then at the quarter pole I think she just got tired and backed out of the fight. I didn't think it was a bad race for the first one back in a long time. She's come back since then and she's breezed three or four times and is training really well. We're really pleased with her and I'm expecting her to move forward and run a better race now.”

Off Topic drew Post 4 under jockey Victor Carrasco and is the longest shot on the morning line in a field of nine at 30-1. Pending the result, she may have one more start in the $100,000 Carousel Dec. 26 at Laurel, the finale in the MATCH Series fillies and mares 3 and up long dirt division.

“Obviously she's a long way removed from her better form and there's some question as to whether she still has it or if she even wants to do it,” Schoenthal said. “I am hopeful. She is one of the nicest horses I've ever been around. She's just as classy as they come. Really more so for her sake, I hope she runs well just because I have such a high opinion of her that I want everybody else to see it, too.

“There's that race in the series next month going a mile and an eighth so I'm hoping to use this race and then run her in that spot at a distance I know she's going to relish,” he added. “After that, I'm sure she'll be retired and off to the breeding shed. I think we have her penciled in to get bred to Charlatan this year. Let's put her on the right track and give her a shot.”

Josie, trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, is the 9-5 program favorite. Winner of the Iowa Distaff July 3 at Prairie Meadows, she was beaten less than a length in the Twixt, her most recent start.

Multiple stakes winner Artful Splatter came up a head short of Dreamalildreamofyou after setting the pace in the Twixt, and is back on the dirt after running seventh in the Maryland Million Ladies Oct. 23.

Completing the field are fellow stakes winners Trolley Ride, third in the 2019 Thirty Eight Go Go for trainer Bernie Houghton, and Miss Leslie, along with Scatrattleandroll, Sosua and Villanelle.

The Thirty Eight Go Go honors the two-time Maryland-bred champion bred and trained by Hall of Famer King Leatherbury. Eight of her 10 career wins came in stakes including the Gardenia (G2), Tempted (G3) and Maryland Million Lassie in 1987 and three consecutive runnings of the Geisha (1988-90).

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