“He's getting more mature and he's gotten better every start,” said winning trainer Rob Atras of his charge. “He had beaten arguably some lesser competition and today was a tough test, and he really showed up today. Honestly, I just think [jockey] Reylu [Gutierrez] did a great job. He had a tough time going into the first turn with him and obviously causing some havoc on the backside. He got him settled down and relaxed and really finished strong.”

Coming off a daylight win after settling the pace in the Bob Bork Texas Turf Mile S. Jan. 27 at Sam Houston, Neat was in the first flight early in the Transylvania and just a head off the call at the first fraction–a quarter in :23.98–while rank and visibly fighting Reylu Gutierrez before settling.

Gutierrez was able to ease the chestnut back on the inside, opening it up for the well-traveled Musical Act (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), second Mar. 2 in Dubai in the Jumeirah Classic, to take control with Cugino joining him soon after. Turning for home, Neat found his share of traffic while still covered up in fifth. An eighth from home and still in search of a seam, he split horses, just collaring Cugino from the inside at the last possible second after Musical Act surrendered and Lagynos surged while wide.

“Sometimes these 3-year-olds go through the holes and sometimes they don't,” said Gutierrez. “From the three-eighths pole it was all the horse. It was really tight down there but we waited as long as we could and when he saw that little bit of space, I mean, he certainly overcame me. It was all the horse.”

After two victories at this distance on the turf at both Laurel and Fair Grounds last year at two, Neat closed out 2023 with his lone main track attempt in the Gun Runner S. in New Orleans. He finished well back in sixth that day behind Track Phantom (Quality Road), also dropping his Beyer figure by 24 points. It was back to grass for the Texas Turf Mile, making Neat unbeaten in two starts at three with a four-for-five career tally on the grass.

Last year's Transylvania winner, BBN Racing's Mo Stash (Mo Town), was back again for Keeneland's opening day, winning a 5 1/2-furlong turf allowance earlier on Friday's card in his first win since the race last year.

Pedigree Notes:

Hidden Brook Farm and Spruce Lane Farm together bred Neat in Kentucky and sold him to Andrew N. Warren as a Keeneland November weanling for $200,000. The colt returned to the same ring the next September, bringing the same price from Red White and Blue. Hidden Brook had purchased his unraced dam while she was carrying to Violence for $62,000 at Keeneland's 2015 November sale. That foal would become SW & MGSP Louder Than Bombs. The mare, who hails from the same family as 2010 GI Spinaway S. winner R Heat Lightning (Trippi), has a 2-year-old filly by Nyquist–sold for $80,000 to Hat Creek Racing at Keeneland September–and a yearling filly by Medaglia d'Oro. Orabella aborted her 2024 foal.

Neat becomes the 33rd graded winner for WinStar stallion Constitution, a MGISW and son of Tapit who also has 64 black-type winners and will send just his sixth crop to the races this year. The late More Than Ready, broodmare sire of the Transylvania winner, was also part of the WinStar stallion roster and has 174 stakes winners worldwide out of his daughters.

That finish was pretty neat! #4 NEAT ($28.82) squeezed between rivals in the final furlong, getting up in the last stride to win @keenelandracing's $400,000 Transylvania Stakes (G3)!

Reylu Gutierrez was aboard for trainer Rob Atras and Red White and Blue Racing. pic.twitter.com/uSwbO0h4gu

— TVG (@TVG) April 5, 2024

Friday, Keeneland
TRANSYLVANIA S. PRESENTED BY KEENELAND SELECT-GIII, $397,263, Keeneland, 4-5, 3yo, 1 1/16mT, 1:44.93, gd.
1–NEAT, 118, c, 3, by Constitution
                1st Dam: Orabella, by More Than Ready
                2nd Dam: Hot Trip, by Trippi
                3rd Dam: Yellow Heat, by Gold Fever
1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($200,000 Wlg '21 KEENOV;
$200,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP). O-Red White and Blue Racing LLC;
B-Hidden Brook Farm & Spruce Lane Farm (KY); T-Rob Atras;
J-Reylu Gutierrez. $226,300. Lifetime Record: 6-4-0-0,
$347,900. *1/2 to Louder Than Bombs (Violence), SW &
MGSP, $264,554. Werk Nick Rating: A.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Cugino, 118, c, 3, Twirling Candy–Adorable Miss, by Kitten's
Joy. 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($225,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP).
O-West Point Thoroughbreds and Jimmy Kahig LLC; B-Gage Hill
Stables, LLC & W. S. Farish (KY); T-Claude R. McGaughey III.
$73,000.
3–Lagynos, 118, c, 3, Kantharos–Steamy, by Speightstown.
1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($200,000 Ylg '22
KEESEP). O-HRH Prince Sultan Bin Mishal Al Saud; B-Robert
Spiegel (KY); T-Steven M. Asmussen. $36,500.
Margins: NO, HF, 1. Odds: 13.41, 5.23, 31.75.
Also Ran: Lord Bullingdon, Musical Act (Ire), Can Group, Depiction, Guy Named Joe, First World War, Full Nelson, Oscar's World, Tennessee. Scratched: Camaro Z, Royal Majesty (GB).
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

The post Neat Surges Up the Rail to Take Keeneland’s Transylvania appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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The second to race for La Titina (Distorted Humor), the 3-year-old filly's younger half-brother by Not This Time was purchased for $310,000 last September at Keeneland by Hartley/De Renzo Thoroughbreds.

Granddam and MGISW Ask the Moon (Malibu Moon), a $1.8 million acquisition by Stonestreet while carrying MSW Belgrano (War Front), also produced the stakes placed dam of recent Mucho Macho Man S. runner-up First World War (War Front). TJCIS PPS

5th-TAM, $53K, Msw, 3yo, 1m 40yds, 2:34 p.m. ET.
Atrocious (Ghostzapper) makes his first start for Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and their partner Stonestreet Stables, who also bred this colt. A $500,000 buy at the Fasig-Tipton Select Saratoga Yearling Sale, the Christophe Clement trainee is out of GII Black-Eyed Susan S. heroine Fiftyshadesofhay (Pulpit). She is also the dam of SW Locally Owned (Distorted Humor). TJCIS PPS 

6th-GP, $89K, Msw, 3yo, f, 6f, 2:38 p.m. ET.
The Phipps Stable sends out for her debut Mystifying (Curlin). The homebred is out of SP Puzzling (Ghostzapper) who is also responsible for a 2-year-old by Street Sense. That colt went to Centennial Farms for $500,000 at Keeneland September.

The Shug McGaughey runner hails from an extended female family which includes GI Manhattan H. hero Dancing Forever (Rahy), SW Miss Yearwood (Will Take Charge), GSW Carrumba (Bernardini), and deeper still under her third dam, the strong line of champion 3-year-old filly Heavenly Prize (Seeking the Gold). TJCIS PPS

The post Sunday’s Racing Insights: Leslie’s Humor Debuts At Gulfstream Park appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Plenty of horses in this bracket have recently relinquished their brief window of commercial opportunity, and are now hanging around to discover whether they might join the very small group whose first runners generate a fresh vogue. Even with the newcomers out of the equation–we gave them a separate assessment, to open the series–we're left with three groups still untested on the track: those expecting their first foals; those who have just sold their first weanlings; and those actually about to dip a toe in the water with their first runners.

Pending that crossroads, many find themselves somewhat adrift against a bunch of older sires who have survived that test. These fit this tier either because they are losing stature or, more cheerfully, because they have carved out a viable niche as an affordable source of winners.

First the young guns. Of those who sent their first yearlings to auction this year, the ones who really nailed it, unsurprisingly, vaunted the kind of speed that pinhookers crave.

VOLATILE burned brightly in a light career, not seen again after confirming his Grade I caliber against a small but select field in the Vanderbilt. His 112 Beyer in the Aristides S. (1:07.57) was the highest of 2020 and duly secured 181 mares the following spring. Himself an $850,000 yearling, with a GI Test/GI Ballerina winner as granddam, his $125,431 average was boosted by a spectacular $1.15 million docket for a Book 1 filly at Keeneland in September. Nudged back up to $15,000 (from $12,500), Volatile has three hefty books behind him and will be the horse to beat for the freshman title next year.

But not even his median yield of 4.3 on his opening fee ($75,000/ $17,500) could match that of COMPLEXITY, whose $65,000 median (never mind his average $90,400!) multiplied his $12,500 fee by 5.2. Complexity started with some serious volume by the restrained standards of his farm, and then followed through with another three-figure book in his second season. He was clearly in the same vicinity as Volatile as a mature horse (110 Beyer in the GII Kelso) but was the more accomplished juvenile, wiring a Saratoga maiden (90 Beyer) before a decisive success in the GI Champagne S. on his second start. His half-sister ran second in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, so their unraced dam is obviously channelling the good stuff.

VEKOMA is meanwhile working the Spendthrift system with remarkable efficiency, having started out (at $20,000) with staggering volume, entertaining at least 200 mares in each of his first three seasons. This year he processed 102 of his first yearlings at $98,432, albeit was unsurprisingly stretched somewhat thinner by a median of $60,000. Though confined to eight starts across three seasons, he was class from beginning to end, posting big numbers for his Grade I double in the Carter and Met Mile. From a stallion-producing family, he's a horse I've liked all the way through and everything is in place for him to look after many (albeit probably not all!) of his (very many!) clients at $15,000.

Knicks Go | Sarah Andrew

Among those in this intake offering rather more stretch, one or two suffered horrible yearling medians relative to conception fee. But one who made a solid start off $12,500 was Bolt d'Oro's half-brother GLOBAL CAMPAIGN: 74 yearlings sold at $63,195 (median $43,500). This was a more talented animal than generally appreciated and I can see him proving himself a bargain gateway to Curlin. A closer look at his family shows that it tends to produce faster types than are associated with the seeding sires, and Global Campaign's first crop of 126 live foals may surprise a few people with their dash.

Of those who sold their first weanlings this fall, meanwhile, the one that will sort out the sheep and the goats is KNICKS GO. No questioning his talent, it was just never quite obvious where it all came from–albeit his dam maintained stakes speed through four seasons. Those who didn't require a more familiar pedigree were delighted to see a Horse of the Year introduced at just $30,000. Well, now they can get him for half that, even though he's still nearly 18 months away from the opportunity to demonstrate whether or not he can replicate his brilliance! At this money, some people will surely want to roll the dice.

Even as it is, his weanlings sold a little better than those of SILVER STATE. But it's very early days for the latter, whose pedigree in contrast elucidates all the class he manifested as a runner. A friendly clip to $15,000 should hopefully keep him in the game because this horse equipped to prove a really wholesome influence.

The subsequent intake features some truly frightening books, but I will resist dwelling on that here. Suffice to say that those playing a longer game might quite like a filly by either SPEAKER'S CORNER or MYSTIC GUIDE. Both have taken an early trim at Darley, respectively to $17,500 and $12,500, and their pedigrees shout distaff influence.

We'll have to see how many of the youngsters will endure even in this relatively modest tier, a few years from now. Nor does a flying start bring any guarantees, as UNION RAGS could caution them. The halving of his fee to $15,000 acknowledges the way he has faltered, having stood at $60,000 between 2018 and 2020. Trade for his latest yearlings made this further cut imperative, but he's still the same horse that so quickly came up with five Grade I winners. Hopefully he will find a little oxygen now that he has descended to more accessible altitudes.

Studmate DAREDEVIL has taken his second cut since returning to the U.S., now down to $15,000, but of course it's only in 2024 that we'll get to assess the first juveniles conceived after Swiss Skydiver prompted his urgent repatriation. Their sales performance demanded a mild trim in fee, but he could easily be poised for fresh momentum.

MENDELSSOHN has also taken consecutive cuts, similarly now available at $15,000. He has so far been more about quantity than quality but his supporters will hope that he can still emulate four others, standing at the same fee, who have all done admirably to create a lasting foothold in this most slippery of markets.

The first of these, DIALED IN, is something of a blue-collar hero. He maintains such high volume–corralled 175 mares last spring, his 10th at stud–that it will always be hard, with the raw materials available at this level, to make his ratios “sing”. But Defunded has once again shown the caliber within his competence as his third elite scorer. Dialed In gets his work done at a fair tariff, and will keep plugging away to leave behind many of those now starting at multiples of his fee.

Cairo Prince | Sarah Andrew

CAIRO PRINCE has also created a sustainable brand for himself through six crops, as attested by a solid book of 129 mares last spring. A set-your-clock black-type producer throughout, he's now entering the territory where he can legitimately prove a mare–and of course he gets such a nice type, the average ($54,194) and median ($40,000) of his latest yearlings duly best among this proven quartet.

MIDSHIPMAN is a true yeoman and it's typical of this business that he should have had a quieter year (by his very special standards) both on the track and in the sales ring after finally doubling his fee to $20,000 last year–due recognition for having punched above weight for so long. His lifetime stats remain ridiculous for a stallion who has largely been a four-figure cover: 47 stakes winners at 6.4 percent of named foals, nine at graded stakes level; and 101 black-type performers overall, at 13.7 percent. The trim back to $15,000 brings him back towards the reach of breeders who most appreciate just what he can do for their mares.

KANTHAROS, who has really pulled himself up by his bootstraps, had another very solid year on the track. He has made the same slip in fee, reflecting a tepid book of mares last spring and a challenging yield on yearlings conceived at $30,000. But that was an experience shared by many sires exposed to a porous middle market, and the fact is that Kantharos lurks only just outside the top 10 in the 2023 general sires' list with a dozen stakes winners, including a couple at graded level. His lifetime ratio of stakes runners–11 percent of named foals–remains outstanding for a horse whose first five books were compiled in Florida at just $5,000.

He sired two Grade I winners at that fee, and now has another millionaire in Grade II winner Bay Storm. The first of his two $30,000 books were juveniles this year, and we know how they will keep thriving. That guarantees Kantharos imminently entry into the top 20 active sires on lifetime earnings. All he needs to do is supplant… Lookin At Lucky!

VALUE PODIUM

Bronze Medal: CONNECT
Curlin–Bullville Belle (Holy Bull)
Lane's End $15,000

Connect | Sarah Andrew

Amid all this talk about stud fees being too high, credit is overdue to Lane's End for anticipating the mood in the room. From Flightline down, the farm made 11 cuts across their 2024 roster. All were meaningful, and some nearly brutal, effectively conceding that one or two stallions were drifting into trouble and needed some decisive help. Bravo! The very opposite of burying your head in the sand, and in the present environment I hope it works out both for the farm and its clients.

One stallion who can certainly benefit is Connect, restored from $25,000 to his 2021 fee of $15,000 after the crop conceived that year returned a tepid median (albeit a perfectly acceptable $45,774 average) at the yearling sales. He'd also suffered a real slump in his book last spring, down to 45 from 172 in 2022! But we're accustomed to seeing horses treated like this, once they have served their commercial purpose, and should sooner marvel at the impression he must have made with his first crop to get such a big book (up from 93 in 2021) in his fifth year at stud.

Sure enough, only Gun Runner and Practical Joke banked more prizemoney as freshmen in 2021, and only Gun Runner had more winners. Unfortunately Connect did not then consolidate especially well, but he has made a timely return to form this year with eight stakes winners, three at graded level, plus a GI Kentucky Oaks third in The Alys Look. Moreover, his first-crop flagship, the juvenile Grade I winner Rattle N Roll, failed by just half a length to add another elite score in the GI Stephen Foster S. That horse was a $55,000 weanling but has now banked $1.7 million across three seasons.

Connect's pedigree is not without its challenges but he's another to bring Curlin within range and had real prowess as a racehorse, a blip in the Travers his only defeat in seven starts (four triple-digit Beyers) up the grades after debut. He outkicked none other than Gun Runner in the GII Pennsylvania Derby and, while he won't be doing that again any time soon, he's actually siring winners at a higher percentage of named foals.

With that bumper crop of weanlings in the pipeline, and now a lenient fee, this looks a good time to re-Connect.

Silver Medal: KARAKONTIE (Jpn)
Bernstein–Sun Is Up (Jpn) (Sunday Silence)
Gainesway $15,000

Karakontie | Sarah Andrew

How pleasing to see this undervalued stallion moving his book back up last year, up to 86 from 48. Perhaps his hour has come at last, now that the minority prepared to breed to a quality turf sire in the Bluegrass have been deprived of English Channel and Kitten's Joy.

If you're enlightened enough to see the growing need for turf quality in the U.S., then you might also recognize that you don't always have to fly first class to Tattersalls. With a fifth crop on the track, Karakontie has still only had 174 starters, but seven have won graded stakes. For the second year running, moreover, he had an elite scorer in She Feels Pretty, winner of the GI Natalma S. before failing by barely half a length to overcome a wide trip in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf. Karakontie's premier earner Princess Grace meanwhile continued to thrive in Australia, missing Group 1 scores by a neck and half a length.

Even after a hike from $10,000, Karakontie is an awful lot of horse for this fee. He converted some of the most regal blood in the book–his third dam is Miesque herself–into a turn of foot that won him a Group 1 at two and then a mile Classic, before doing all he could to endear the American market in the GI Breeders' Cup Mile. Don't forget that he restores Sunday Silence to the Bluegrass through his dam, herself out of a half-sister to Kingmambo. His international pedigree and participation alike are a measure of our debt to the program that produced him.

The American market has not really grasped its privilege, with this horse, but the elevation in his fee tells you everything you need to know: he's being used by people who want to breed a runner, whether in their own silks or to boost a mare. Actually, Karakontie is perfectly capable of a home run at the sales, including the $525,000 filly at Keeneland in September whose buyers will have been delighted to see her full-sister (who herself made $280,000 the previous year) win the Tepin S. last month. His lesser specimens may struggle commercially, until the environment improves, but that won't trouble those eccentrics who calculate value according to the odds of ending up with a runner.

Gold Medal: MITOLE
Eskendereya–Indian Miss (Indian Charlie)
Spendthrift $15,000

How naïve of me to imagine that all those commercial breeders who flocked to the new sires in 2020 wanted nothing more than to land on the champion freshman of 2023. Because Mitole, as he closes in on those laurels, finds himself the only one of the four Spendthrift sires dominating this table to remain on the same fee in 2024.

Mitole | Louise Reinagel

Now, clearly this farm needs no help in how to make their remarkable machine run smoothly. The Spendthrift team know that Mitole was the one who took the biggest slide of the quartet, in the inevitable slackening of demand for their second crop of yearlings. But they had already ensured that these were conceived more affordably, trimming him from $25,000 in his debut season to $15,000. That was partly a concession to the Covid market, but it also offered such obvious value about a champion sprinter that he maintained the enthusiastic support of 184 mares even last spring, after topping 200 in each of his three previous seasons.

In other words, the system is functioning smoothly and Mitole has played his part so well that he approaches the winning post with a narrow advantage over Maximus Mischief (my serial “gold” pick, I might add, after starting at $7,500!) by prizemoney and also a wafer-thin one by individual winners (32 from 79 starters).

Whether or not he holds out, Mitole is the only one of the four to have a graded stakes scorer–and so joins Flameaway and Solomini in what has been a weirdly unproductive group, by that measure-in GIII Pocahontas S. winner/GI Alcibiades runner-up V V's Dream.

The precocious Maximus Mischief has shown a lot more of his hand (77 starters from 122 named foals) and remember that Mitole (79 from 145) himself only squeezed in a single start at two, in late November. It was as a 4-year-old that he racked up his four Grade Is–including that resonant Met Mile/Breeders' Cup Sprint double, and a stakes record at the intermediate distance in the Forego. So it seems fair to suggest that he has only just got started.

By now Mitole has surely stifled misgivings about his sire, himself after all a brilliant performer and a conduit of corresponding genes. Eskendereya's fifth dam is Cosmah, and doubles up her half-sister's son Northern Dancer top and bottom. It was presumably his unfashionable sire that confined Mitole to $20,000 as a yearling–but then along came kid brother Hot Rod Charlie (Oxbow), himself a $17,000 short yearling, to reiterate the merit of a family cultivated by the late Edward A. Cox Jr.

Hot Rod Charlie has now followed Eskendereya to Japan, where they have made a habit of exposing crass commercial trends in Kentucky. But here's a horse making the family assets work even in this less imaginative environment, and his debut at the 2-year-old sales–behind only Omaha Beach in the key freshman medians–suggest that Mitole will be taking out a long lease on the attention of pinhookers.

Sires In The Teens: Breeder Selections

Aidan O'Meara, Stonehaven Steadings

Aidan O'Meara | Keeneland

Gold Medal: Volatile
One of the best angles for success in the commercial breeding field is identifying a future leading stallion in the early stages and this sometimes requires taking a leap of faith breeding when their first runners are about to run. Volatile has been the breakout star at the yearling sales this year, mirroring his sire's first crop results a few years back. He's a beautifully built horse himself and passed his physique on with remarkable consistency. He's been very well supported by breeders and will have plenty of ammo in his first few crops to give him every opportunity. If his offspring have legitimate ability, he will skyrocket up the stallion ranks and $15,000 will look like the deal of the decade.

Silver Medal: Connect
The crop of 2021 has all been overshadowed by Gun Runner's incredible achievements, but Connect has been quietly developing a very solid career for himself. He has shown consistency with three graded stakes winners again this year and a strong supporting cast of stakes horses. He has also shown the ability to get the all-important high-class horse with Rattle N Roll. He measures well in all statistical categories and looks to be a stallion that can establish himself long term in the mold of a Midshipman/First Samurai/Blame type.

Bronze Medal: Audible
The Spendthrift quartet has garnered most of the attention from this year's freshmen and rightly so but one horse is simmering just below these and that horse is Audible. His 14% stakes horses with his first 2-year-olds cannot be ignored and his own racing career suggests there is more improvement to be had as they mature. He's a beautiful horse that can throw the right kind as witnessed by his first crop of yearlings. $15,000 is very intriguing for a horse with some potential future upswing and worst-case scenario has shown plenty of ability for longer term success at this price point.

Peter O'Callaghan, Woods Edge Farm

Peter O'Callaghan | Fasig-Tipton

Gold Medal: Midshipman
This stallion has been very good to us both on the track and in the sales ring. We recently bred first-time-out 2-year-old winner Midshipman's Dance; pinhooked Grade II winner Special Reserve; bred Leucothea and co-bred Amidst Waves, both of whom are multiple stakes winning 2-year-olds. He is a very consistent and well-respected sire, standing for an affordable $15,000. You can sell one well at the sales and he produces winners every weekend at the track.

Silver Medal: Mitole
Obviously a brilliant racehorse and looks to be turning out some good 2-year-old winners this second half of the year. Must be a horse worth a punt at $15,000. We are breeding to him again this year.

Bronze Medal: Vekoma
A brilliant racehorse, a high class 2-year-old who trained on, winning some high-profile races in the GII Bluegrass S. going two turns at three. Then winning the GI Carter H. and GI Met Mile at four in impressive fashion. Furthermore, he is a very well-bred son of Candy Ride (Arg), out of the GISW Speightstown mare Mona De Momma from the family of Mr. Greeley.

He is a good-looking horse who seems to sire plenty of good-looking stock. We have bred to him each year and have bought foals by him in each crop, he has not let us down so far.

I think he is a horse with a legitimate shot to be a sire standing at an affordable fee of $15,000.

The post Value Sires For 2024, Part 4: Into The Teens appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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After making her first two starts of 2023 at Santa Anita, the 5-year-old came east and checked in a valiant second to GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint winner Caravel (Mizzen Mast) in the Unbridled Sidney S. at Churchill May 5. Fourth beaten just a length in Belmont's Intercontinental S. June 9, Bay Storm prepped for this spot with her aforementioned win as the favorite as Ellis Park Aug. 5.

Away in the front pack Saturday in a race impacted by the post-time scratch of Gal in a Rush (Ghostzapper), the 5-2 second choice broke clear of the field in the opening furlong but was quickly joined into the turn by Tony Ann (Cairo Prince). Hugging the rail around the sweeping bend through a half in :45.80, Bay Storm exchanged minor contact with Tony Ann and held off a host of challengers to her outside including the race favorite in Wakanaka who came flying from last but just missed as the three horses hit the line together.

When asked if this win took the sting out of last year's defeat, winning trainer Jonathan Thomas answered: “Without a doubt. She really deserves this. She's got a crazy good resume. I think that's her (17th) lifetime start and she's only been off the board twice. It's a real credit to her, a graded-stakes winner. George Isaacs and the Bridlewood team have been really patient with her. It's kind of like a bow on a present. It feels good to have gotten her that win.”

“She broke in the air,” added jockey Florent Geroux. “She recovered and came back on the inside of Tyler [Gaffalione aboard Tony Ann] and made the lead. She ran great here last year on this track [losing the Ladies Sprint by a nose to Campanelle]. It was a big advantage. She is a fighter. It's very simple here, they either like it or they don't. She fought today.”

Pedigree Note:

Out of a stakes winning and graded-stakes placed dam, Bay Storm brought $400,000 as a 2-year-old at the OBS Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale. Her winning 3-year-old half-brother, Pensacola (Into Mischief), was himself a $600,000 2-year-old out of last year's Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale. With the win, Bay Storm becomes the 39th graded-stakes winner for sire Kantharos. Stormy Regatta has a yearling American Pharoah filly, reported a colt by Essential Quality this spring and was bred back to Justify.

What a day for @flothejock!

He pilots #6 Bay Storm to victory in the G2 AGS Ladies Turf Sprint S. at Kentucky Downs for trainer Jonathan Thomas!

#TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/eLBqJlvQjR

— TwinSpires Racing (@TwinSpires) September 9, 2023

Saturday, Kentucky Downs
AGS LADIES TURF SPRINT S.-GII, $900,000, Kentucky Downs, 9-9, 3yo/up, f/m, 6 1/2fT, 1:17.06, fm.
1–BAY STORM, 123, m, 5, by Kantharos
                1st Dam: Stormy Regatta (MSW & GSP, $160,310),
                                  by Midshipman
                2nd Dam: Storm Front, by A.P. Indy
                3rd Dam: Storm Alert, by Storm Cat
1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($400,000 2yo '20 OBSAPR).
O-Bridlewood Farm; B-Candy Meadows LLC (KY); T-Jonathan
Thomas; J-Florent Geroux. $604,560. Lifetime Record:
17-6-6-3, $1,313,315. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree or free Equineline.com
catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Wakanaka (Ire), 121, m, 5, Power (GB)–Storyline (Ire), by
Kodiac (GB). (£3,500 Ylg '19 GOFFPR; $975,000 RNA 4yo '22
KEENOV). O-Team Valor International and Gary Barber; B-Mrs
Jean Brennan (IRE); T-William I. Mott. $117,600.
3–Tony Ann, 121, m, 5, Cairo Prince–Never Ever, by In Excess
(Ire). 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. O-A Venneri Racing, Inc. and
Anthony Fanticola; B-Alex Venneri Racing, LLC (KY); T-Philip
D'Amato. $98,800.
Margins: NK, HD, 2HF. Odds: 2.87, 2.75, 5.56.
Also Ran: Our Flash Drive, Train to Artemus, Quaria Comet, Fast and Feminine. Scratched: Gal in a Rush, Unbridled Mary.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPshttp://www.equineline.com/tdn/pedigree.cfm?tk=SAR&cy=USA&rd=09/07/2015&rn=9&de=D  &ref=9104432. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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“I would be less than honest if I said we weren't a little disappointed with the number of horses that we received,” Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning said at the conclusion of Wednesday's auction. “But I would also be less than honest if I didn't say we were very surprised at the strength of some of the results. I think it clearly demonstrated that there was a legitimate marketplace here for quality horses. There was significant demand and bidding well above reserves on the top-priced offerings.”

From a catalogue of 99 head, 79 juveniles went through the sales ring Wednesday with 59 selling for a gross of $2,541,000. The average was $43,068 and the median was $26,000. With 20 horses reported not sold, the buy-back rate was 25.3%.

“I thought it was a productive exercise,” Browning said of the final results. “I think the folks who came were generally rewarded, but it's like everything else in the marketplace, there is still fragmentation and segmentation. All in all, I would say it was a successful effort, but not an overwhelming, 'Oh, my god, it was fantastic' and there are going to be 400 horses here next year.”

Clovis Crane admitted the day before the auction that he expected a buyer's market at the first June sale in Timonium, but after selling the sale-topper Wednesday, the Pennsylvania-based horseman said he was pleasantly surprised by the market.

“In all honesty, I got fair market value for my horses,” Crane said. “Maybe there was a hole or two here or there, but the way the sales have been trending, it was pretty much business as usual. I was extremely tepid coming in here, but at the end of the day, after the smoke settled, I think the market was fair. I am saying that and I walked out with the sale topper, but I had a lot of other horses in here that I think they moved along plenty fair.”

Consignor Cary Frommer had the session's second-highest priced offering when she sold a daughter of Arrogate for $225,000. She admitted it was a tough market, but she has hopes that the June sale will gain traction once these graduates hit the track.

“It's very, very tough to get over about $30,000,” Frommer said. “I think there is a mindset with the buyers that this is just the last sale of the year type thing. When, in fact, we have all commented that there are some really nice horses in the sale. I think they are getting missed a little bit, but maybe it will get stronger by next year when these horses come out running.”

Although slim on numbers, the catalogue did attract plenty of attention from buyers off-site, who were active bidding over the internet and over the phone.

Boyd Browning | Fasig-Tipton

“There was a lot of internet activity,” Browning confirmed. “We are seeing an increasing comfort level of buyers to watch horses on the internet and to evaluate breezes. The most interesting thing from a technology standpoint was the amount of vetting that was done off-site. I am going to bet you that 90% of the vetting was probably done by veterinarians who weren't on the sales grounds who were able to access the repository and evaluate those X-rays. And maybe that's something that we look to grow and be strategic with–how do we increase the technology. That might be an angle that we look to in the future as well.”

One of those off-site buyers was Dennis O'Neill, who bid on three horses and walked away with a filly by Practical Joke (hip 46), who was purchased for $79,000. Consigned by Tom McCrocklin, the juvenile had RNA'd for $70,000 at the OBS March sale.

“I went through all the breezes and there were three of them that I really liked,” O'Neill said of his process in going through the June catalogue. “This filly was in the March sale. I had seen her there and I really liked her. She had some physical issues; I think shins and something else. I really liked her, I just couldn't get anyone to buy her with the physical issues. And then when I saw she showed up here, I thought her breeze was fantastic. And then she vetted perfect. Everything was good on her today.”

O'Neill admitted that seeing the horses he was bidding on at previous sales gave him confidence to move forward with them.

“This filly I knew. I had seen her before,” O'Neill said. “There were two others that I bid on and I had seen them before. They were both in the Maryland sale in May. It is a little stressful if there is something in there that I haven't seen. And then you kind of have to trust the vet. For me, I do like to put my eyes on them.”

O'Neill said he thinks the Midlantic June sale does have a spot on the calendar going forward.

“This sale almost took the place of the California sale,” O'Neill said. “There were always a couple of good horses out there at that sale. But my opinion, for 40 years, is that a good horse can come from anywhere. I bought Goldencents from the supplement of the [OBS] June sale and at the time they said no good horse could come out of the June sale. I am convinced that a good horse can come from anywhere.”

Asked about the prospect of returning to Timonium in June of 2024, Browning said, “I would think so. I never want to make any guarantees or promises until we go through and evaluate and see what happens through the yearling sales and make plans. But I think when you sell a horse for $500,000 and several others for over $100,000, there was good trade. My gut reaction is yes. But we don't make too many bold proclamations the day of the sale or the day after the sale. A lot of times you are better off catching your breath and evaluating and try to make an intelligent decision on how to best serve the marketplace. If we can serve the marketplace, it makes sense. If there isn't a need in the marketplace, we won't do it. If you are serving the marketplace, it will grow and it will prosper.”

After making the inaugural sale's top bid, Young admitted he hopes to be back again next year.

“This is a great place to buy 2-year-olds, it always has been,” Young said. “I hope [the sale returns next year] because Fasig-Tipton deserves it.”

Kantharos Filly Stands Out

Hip 47 | Fasig-Tipton

A filly by Kantharos (hip 47) stood out on the track with a bullet quarter-mile breeze in :20 4/5 and duly delivered in the sales ring when selling for $500,000 to the bid of bloodstock agent Steve Young Wednesday in Timonium. Young, who was bidding on behalf of an undisclosed client, said the filly will be joining the barn of trainer Todd Pletcher.

“She is a tremendous physical,” Young said. “When you buy horses at that number, they have to be able to stack up to the horses that were sold at other sales. And she does that. She had a terrific work and she is a very talented filly.”

The chestnut is out of La Titina (Distorted Humor), a daughter of multiple Grade I winner Ask the Moon (Malibu Moon). She was consigned by Crane Thoroughbred Services and was purchased by Clovis Crane for $125,000 at last year's Keeneland September Yearling Sale. She RNA'd for $110,000 following a :10 1/5 work at the OBS April sale.

After praising her breeze over the dirt this week, Young admitted, “I saw her breeze [at OBS], but I didn't see her up close.”

Following her bullet breeze Tuesday over the dirt surface at the Maryland State Fairgrounds, Crane said the filly had not liked the synthetic surface in Ocala and had only a handful of views before the April auction.

“The instant I stepped onto the synthetic with her, I knew I was in trouble,” Crane said Wednesday. “She just didn't like it at all. The extra month and a half gave me time to tighten her up and get her ready to go farther and prove that she could run. I had seen it several times at home, but when you can actually prove it in front of everybody, that's what matters.”

In addition to her bullet breeze this week, the filly also has a pair of published works at Penn National, most recently going four furlongs in :47.20 (1/21).

“We are going to send her to Todd at Saratoga and we like her enough that she'll tell us when to run her,” Young said. “The foot traffic here is light–if she was in a sale where she would have been looked at by 50-100 people, then we always like to give them some break. But she appears to be doing very good mentally and I think she can go straight on to the races.”

Charles Takes Home Arrogate Filly

Hip 78 | Fasig-Tipton

Ellen Charles of Hillwood Stables bought out her pinhooking partners to secure a filly by Arrogate (hip 78) for $225,000 during the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale Wednesday. Barry Berkelhammer signed the ticket on the juvenile, who was consigned by Cary Frommer. Frommer had purchased the gray filly for $170,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton New York-bred Yearling Sale. Following a :10 1/5 work at the OBS March sale, the filly was purchased by agent Mike Ryan, but was ultimately returned and came into the Midlantic sale with a :10 3/5 work.

“Mike bought her for $250,000 and there was a problem with the owner who decided not to keep her,” Frommer explained. “We took her back. She had a chip in an ankle, we took it out. We haven't done too much with her until this sale. She was back here for sale.”

The filly, the final juvenile by the late champion to sell at auction, is out of Summer Shade (Stephen Got Even) and is a half-sister to stakes-placed Harmon (Cairo Prince). The mare is a half-sister to multiple graded winner Hot Summer (Malibu Moon).

“I think she is destined to be a really nice horse,” Frommer said. “Mrs. Charles, who I deal with and who also pinhooks a little bit herself, she decided to stay in on her and just go ahead and buy us out. She probably got the nicest horse in the sale.”

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With a svelte catalogue of 99 head, the auction's under-tack show was held Tuesday morning. After a night of heavy rain and thunder storms, the first of five sets began at 8 a.m. under a light drizzle, but skies cleared throughout the show, which concluded under muggy and sunny conditions shortly before noon.

Clovis Crane, who will consign 16 horses to the one-session auction, got the under-tack show off to a fast start when the first horse over the track, a filly by Frosted (hip 79), worked her furlong in :10 flat.

Crane Thoroughbred Services ultimately sent out three of the day's five :10 flat bullet workers, with a filly by Social Inclusion (hip 69, video) working in the first set and a filly by Flatter (hip 86, video) working in the day's third set.

Crane also sent out the day's fastest quarter-mile worker, a filly by Kantharos (hip 47) who covered the distance in :20 4/5.

“I have been telling a lot of people all along that I had an unbelievable group and obviously, today, with the way they went, it showed,” Crane said. “We have had 21 graded stakes horses come off of our farm and I would suspect that there are a couple in this group that will add to that number.”

Asked to pick some highlights from his day, Crane said, “I put the Social Inclusion filly [out of Royal Aspen {Congrats}] in the first set because I thought she would be a star and she showed up today. The Flatter filly [out of stakes-winner Valued Strike {Smart Strike}] is crazy fast. And I have a Palace Malice filly [hip 73, :10 1/5] who appears to me like she can really run.”

The bullet worker by Kantharos, who was one of seven juveniles to work a quarter-mile Tuesday in Timonium, is out of La Titina (Distorted Humor), a daughter of multiple Grade I winner Ask the Moon (Malibu Moon).

A $125,000 Keeneland September purchase, she will be making her second trip through the sales ring this spring after RNA'ing for $110,000 following a :10 1/5 work at the OBS April sale. In addition to her work at OBS, the filly has a pair of published works at Penn National, most recently going four furlongs in :47.20 (1/21) June 9.

“I was telling everyone how awesome my Kantharos filly was,” Crane said. “She breezed in :47 1/5 in hand at the racetrack June 9. And she came out of it good then. We trained her lightly for the last two weeks and then we prepped her easy over here. We prepped her easy and she went in :21 4/5 and :35 1/5, so we knew she was sitting on go.”

Of the filly's trip south to Ocala, Crane said, “She just didn't like that track. I gallop everything myself the first couple of days when we go anywhere and I could feel it the first day. I said, 'Oh, boy, she doesn't like this.' She still breezed :10 1/5 and :21 1/5 and she went good, but didn't make anyone's short list. I literally only showed her eight times down there. She had done nothing wrong. She X-rayed clean, she came back out of it good. So I just went back to training her at home and, over the dirt, she moves great. She just didn't move good over the synthetic. She came to what I was thinking she was today.”

Also sharing the bullet furlong Tuesday was a filly by Enticed (hip 35, video) consigned by James Layden and a filly by Practical Joke (hip 56, video) consigned by Wes Carter on behalf of Crossed Sabres Farm.

Crane comes into the inaugural Midlantic June sale with the catalogue's largest consignment.

“[Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sales Director] Paget [Bennett] has always been wonderful to me and she asked me if I would save a couple of nice horses for here,” Crane said of his decision to target the auction. “So the Social Inclusion, we saved her for here on purpose and there are a couple of other horses we saved for here. The Kantharos filly, I didn't want to go back to OBS June because she didn't like the surface and I knew it. I am sure there are several horses here that would rather have the dirt surface. And I think buyers will like the dirt surface better. It's a truer representation of what you're going to get.”

While the June sale is slim on numbers, Crane sees potential for the auction's growth, but agreed this year's first sale might not have enough horses to attract a large buying bench.

“I don't see why it shouldn't gain momentum [in the future],” he said. “But if I were a buyer, I would be at this sale [this year] because I think there are bargains to be had. I have reached out to several top buyers and they aren't coming. So I think it will be a buyer's market and that's unfortunate because I've got a great group and I won't get rewarded in some spots. But at the end of the day, I am going to be in this business for a long time, so it will be all right. Hopefully they will buy runners from us now and then they'll buy from us again in the future.”

While many of the major Ocala operations have skipped this year's Midlantic June sale, the Central Florida horsemen were represented by a handful of consignments, including those of Tom McCrocklin and Raul Reyes's King's Equine.

“Fasig-Tipton, in a nutshell,” McCrocklin said when asked why he decided on a return trip to Timonium this year. “I know they wanted to try it. It's kind of walking the highwire the first time and maybe it's an opportunity to sell some horses. We will see how it goes.”

McCrocklin, who sold a $700,000 colt by Awesome Slew at last month's Midlantic May sale, brought 11 horses to the June sale. The auction comes some two weeks after the traditional end to the juvenile sales season in the OBS June sale, but McCrocklin thinks this later date shouldn't intimidate buyers.

“If you are trying to buy a nice racehorse, what's the big deal if you buy them a month ago or two weeks ago or right now,” McCrocklin said. “It's not like we have gone into the Twilight Zone because it's two or four weeks later. And there are some nice horses here. I have personally seen nice horses train here all week. I would invite people to take a look at them.”

Asked if he was concerned about a lack of buyers at the sale, McCrocklin said, “Yes. Absolutely. But look, so many of these horses are bought remotely now, you can get photos, walking videos, gallop-out times, breeze videos, bid online, bid on the phone. So if you don't want to come, I get it, but it's not a reason not to go through the process and buy a horse.”

Reyes brings six horses for his second trip to Timonium this year. The consignor, who was perennially a leading presence at the slimmed down–and now defunct–Barretts May sale, wasn't worried about the smaller catalogue.

“I always like the small sales,” Reyes said. “I used to go to California when they had those smaller sales and I did very well there.”

As always, Timonium's location at the crossroads of several racing venues will prove advantageous in attracting buyers, according to Reyes.

“There are so many racetracks that are so close and people need horses,” Reyes said. “They will be here tomorrow afternoon.”

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A $100,000 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic yearling turned $1.4-million Fasig-Tipton Florida juvenile, the Sabine Stable-bred Lion Heart was trained for the Coolmore connections by Patrick Biancone and capped a perfect 2-year-old campaign with a victory in the GI Hollywood Futurity. Second in the GII San Rafael S. and GI Toyota Blue Grass S., the chestnut filled the exacta underneath Smarty Jones (Elusive Quality) in the 2004 GI Kentucky Derby and added another top-level tally in that year's GI Haskell Invitational H. He retired to Ashford Stud with five wins from 10 starts and earnings of $1,390,800.

Lion Heart is the sire of 45 worldwide black-type winners, 15 of which have come at the graded level, led by elite scorers Bradester, GI Breeders' Cup Turf hero Dangerous Midge, Line of David and Tom's Tribute. Sold to the Turkish Jockey Club in 2010, his first foals in that country were born in 2012, and since then, he has accounted for 387 individual winners according to Turkish Jockey Club statistics, 11 of which have succeeded at stakes level.

Lion Heart has also gone on to become a respectable sire of sires. In addition to Dangerous Midge, whose produce have achieved considerable success in Chile, his son Uncaptured was among the leading sires in Florida prior to being sold to continue his stud career in Korea. Kantharos also got his start in the Sunshine State before moving to Hill 'n' Dale Farm in Kentucky.

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KANTHARI (c, 3, Kantharos–Ari the Adventurer, by Pioneerof the Nile), a $575,000 OBS March grad last year, was given the 6-5 nod in his afternoon debut but trailed the pace early in fourth. Allen Diggs set a determined pace up front but Kanthari rallied with a three-wide move midway around the turn to get himself into contention despite contact with Cajun Puzzler (Cajun Breeze) at the top of the lane. Showing a good turn of foot up the outside, he inhaled the leader past the sixteenth pole and gained separation late, crossing the line a length ahead of Allen Diggs. Ari the Adventurer, already responsible for Adventurous Lady, MSW, $143,876, produced an un-raced 2-year-old full-brother to Kanthari and saw her yearling colt by Good Magic bring $150,000 at this year's Keeneland September Sale. Sales History: $220,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP; $575,000 2yo '21 OBSMAR. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $36,000.Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

O-MyRacehorse & Spendthrift Farm LLC; B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher.

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For instance, despite examples showing otherwise, it remains tempting to box sires as 'dirt' and 'turf' and 'American' and 'European' when actually some of them will prove capable of crossing the differing racing jurisdictions quite easily. Had all breeders and buyers remained on 'the straight and narrow', the chance to appreciate the likes of Scat Daddy, Medaglia d'Oro, More Than Ready and Distorted Humor, as perfectly capable influences for Europe might have passed us by. Naturally, not every dirt horse will serve European investors well but as history has shown on countless occasions, there will be those that work and therefore sometimes the inclination to act with an open mind and experiment with bloodlines can benefit in the long run.

In some cases, the issue with these horses is that they will be quite often well into their stud career before they become fully appreciated by an international audience. Kitten's Joy was middle-aged by the time he came to be well regarded by Europeans, having made his name through the hard work of his owner-breeders Ken and Sarah Ramsey. He was part of a select group of older Kentucky stallions that consistently piqued the attention of turf-orientated breeders until his death earlier this year. Other such horses, More Than Ready and English Channel, have also died in the past 18 months while Distorted Humor has been pensioned.

That leaves a dwindling clutch of Kentucky-based sires who are proven at the highest level on turf. There is War Front (Claiborne Farm: $100,000), the sire of 24 Group/Grade 1 winners including this year's G1 Coolmore Turf Mile scorer Annapolis. He is rising 21 but the stats remain firmly in his corner, notably that 11% black-type winners to foals of racing age figure.

Medaglia d'Oro (Jonabell Farm: $100,000) has also long been a friend of the European breeder, with his stud record ranging from turf performers of the ilk of Golden Sixty (Aus) and Talismanic (GB) to iconic dirt runners such as Rachel Alexandra and Songbird. However, the Darley stalwart will be 24 years old next year while his studmate Hard Spun (Jonabell Farm: $35,000), another go-to horse for Europeans whose international stud career includes the turf Group 1 winners Hard Not To Like, Gatting (Aus) and Le Romain (Aus), will be 19. Similarly, WinStar Farm's venerable Speightstown ($80,000), another firm favourite with Europeans, will turn 25.

There is the trap of taking these horses for granted. They won't be around forever and for those looking to invest in American bloodlines, particularly pinhookers, there is value in pinpointing those younger stallions capable of perhaps following their example.

Quality Road (Lane's End Farm: $200,000) isn't young at 16 and is primarily a dirt sire. But like his sire Elusive Quality before him, he is also very capable of throwing turf runners as well; in fact, it was on British soil that he first came to attention as a potential sire of note when his first-crop son Hootenanny won the 2014 Windsor Castle S. at Royal Ascot.

The issue for European breeders is that when these elite stallions reach a certain level, they become almost out of reach. Quality Road will end 2022 as America's second leading sire behind Into Mischief and is set to command $200,000 in 2023, up from $150,000 in 2022. As such, he is very much the domain of American breeders.

Yet there is a subplot developing that will bring him to greater prominence in Europe, namely the handful of 2-year-olds housed at Ballydoyle. In 2019, Coolmore utilised Quality Road as an outlet for various Galileo (Ire) mares and are on the road to being well rewarded given that the five 2-year-olds to have run include G3 Killavullan S. winner Cairo (Ire) (out of Cuff {Ire}), Leopardstown maiden winner Mohawk Chief (out of Wedding Vow {Ire}) and Dundalk maiden winner Carracci (out of Butterflies {Ire}). The remaining duo, Canute and Time To Boogie, have both been placed.

War Front, of course, filled that role of clicking with Coolmore's broodmare band, many of them daughters of Galileo (Ire), for several years. With his resulting European success in mind, several of his sons should come under consideration.

As far as his proven sons are concerned, it doesn't cost the earth to use either The Factor (Lane's End Farm: $15,000), a proven Grade I sire who has been ably represented in recent years by the high-class, hardy turf sprinter Bound For Nowhere, or Summer Front (Airdrie Stud: $7,500). Both have served European pinhookers well over the years and in turn have had a smattering of representation over here, in particular Summer Front, who was represented only earlier this month by the Italian listed winner Tequila Picante. Also responsible for turf graded stakes winners such as Speaktomeofsummer and Fighting Seabee in the US, Tequila Picante maintains a successful association with Europe for the stallion that also includes the stakes-placed Summeronsevenhills and Ete Indien, a graduate of the Arqana May Breeze-Up Sale who won the GII Fountain Of Youth S. back on American soil.

Safe Option

Despite Speightstown's (WinStar Farm: $80,000) advanced age, his profile has not diminished. On home soil, he was represented by two Grade I winners in 2022–Shirl's Speight on turf and Olympiad on dirt–as well as yearlings that sold for up to $950,000. At the same time, he remains a safe option for Europeans, with his ability to throw fast turf runners and good-looking stock a particularly appealing attribute to the breeze-up community.

However, he won't be around forever. Currently, his legacy runs most strongly through Munnings (Ashford Stud: $100,000). Available early in his career for $10,000, his stud career has been one of a steady ascent to the top 10 American stallions, with this year's standing buoyed by the presence of 15 stakes winners led by the 10-length GI Woody Stephens S. winner Jack Christopher. That colt might have been an extremely gifted dirt runner but the ability to throw high-class runners on turf is also there as illustrated by Kimari, who ran second in the G1 Commonwealth Cup and G2 Queen Mary S. for Wesley Ward, and G2 Del Mar Derby winner Om.

The turf success of American Pharoah, himself a true dirt
performer with a pedigree steeped in dirt success, is living
proof of the dangers of pigeon-holing horses

Such is the versatility of this line that it would be folly for turf-orientated breeders to dismiss other Kentucky-based sons of Speightstown ranging from Charlatan ($50,000; Hill 'n' Dale Farm) and Olympiad ($35,000; Gainesway Farm) to Nashville ($15,000; WinStar Farm) and Lexitonian ($7,500; Lane's End Farm), for all they did all their racing on dirt. And given that speed was also the essence for a number of them, the scene is set for those horses to attract the attention of the European breeze-up pinhookers when the time comes.

Versatility has also been a striking element to the stud career of American Pharoah (Ashford Stud: $60,000). As befits a Triple Crown winner, the horse has never lacked for high-level support, particularly from high-profile international breeders. That in turn has allowed him the opportunity to be well represented on an international scale. In fact, his first ever winner arrived courtesy of the Aidan O'Brien-trained Monarch Of Egypt at Naas in April 2019 and, since then, he has continued to make his presence felt in these parts, notably as sire of the Group 1 winners Van Gogh and Above The Curve, both campaigned by the Coolmore partners.

The turf success of American Pharoah, himself a true dirt performer with a pedigree steeped in dirt success, is living proof of the dangers of pigeon-holing horses. As expected, his stock do enjoy dirt. But a willingness to experiment early on and cross him with turf mares and/or import a number of his progeny to Europe has helped build the horse as a major presence worldwide. Indeed, close to 10 yearlings by him were bought at the Keeneland September Sale to come back to Europe.

Fellow Ashford Stud stallion Uncle Mo ($150,000) is another with the ability to produce the goods on turf if given the right mare; for that, look no further than the top-class turf sprinter Golden Pal, himself an interesting new recruit to Ashford Stud, and the GI Hollywood Derby winners Mo Forza and Mo Town.

Uncle Mo has commanded six figures since 2017, making him likely out of reach for most European breeders. But it is probably worth keeping an eye on his son Mo Town (Ashford Stud), for whom a first crop includes five stakes horses on turf and dirt and the earners of nearly $1.5 million, enough to make him a top eight American first-crop sire. He stands for $5,000, quite a bit less than several of those who surround him on the table.

The key for breeders is to determine that stallion that could be on the way up. Not This Time (Taylor Made Stallions) is one such horse, having leapt from a fee of $12,500 to $135,000 within the space of three years. Much of his reputation is built on dirt performers of the calibre of Epicenter and Princess Noor but he is after all a son of Giant's Causeway and there has been enough action within his own stud career on grass–notably the 10 black-type turf horses of 2022–to make him interesting to the higher end of the European market.

Not This Time is the most successful American-based son of Giant's Causeway but that's not to say the others are not worth considering. The past season for Creative Cause (Airdrie Stud) was highlighted by the dual Grade III-winning grass 2-year-old Packs A Wahlop while Claiborne Farm's veteran First Samurai held his own as the sire of six stakes winners, among them the $800,000 turf earner Plum Ali. Both proven Grade I sires, neither is expensive at $7,500.

Storm Cat Speed

The Storm Cat sire line retains much of its popularity via Scat Daddy, whose sons Justify and Mendelssohn will be discussed in more depth in part two among the younger stallions available. But let's not forget Kantharos (Hill 'n' Dale Farm: $20,000), who descends from Storm Cat via Lion Heart, or Karakontie (Jpn) (Gainesway Farm: $10,000), a son of Bernstein (himself a high-class 2-year-old for Aidan O'Brien) who is now established one of Kentucky's most effective turf sires.

Grade II-winning juvenile Kantharos made his name out of Florida-bred crops that included the high-class speedsters World Of Trouble, X Y Jet and Bucchero. The latter was in fact deemed good enough to take his chance in the 2018 G1 King's Stand S., where he ran fifth behind Blue Point (Ire). Few Kantharos representatives have made their way to Europe but turf speed has been one of the elements to his success so far and thus he appeals as the type to click well with faster European-type mares if given the chance.

As a French Classic-winning miler owned and bred by the Niarchos family, Karakontie (Jpn) (Gainesway: $10,000) has understandably had plenty of exposure in Europe, notably as the sire of G3 Horris Hill S. winner Kenzai Warrior, Killarney listed winner Cigamia and Spendarella, who ran second in this year's G1 Coronation S. for Graham Motion. He is primarily a turf sire in the US but there has been the odd good dirt runner, notably Grade III winner Sole Volante.

Few Kantharos representatives have made their way to Europe but
turf speed has been one of the elements to his success so far

Both stallions are bred on a variation of the Storm Cat-Halo cross; Kantharos is out of a mare by Southern Halo while Karakontie's dam Sun Is Up (Jpn) provides a welcome strain of Sunday Silence.

For years, the Hail To Reason line more than held its own, renowned for its consistent ability to throw sound, durable horses. Sadly, as a sire-line it is now on the wane, its fortunes in Kentucky currently resting on Blame and Temple City, both proven Grade I sires but both also approaching the twilight of their careers.

Blame (Claiborne Farm: $25,000) sprang to attention in Europe as sire of the Niarchos family's G1 Prix de Diane heroine Senga out of his first crop. While he hasn't reached quite the same heights over here since then–although in fairness representation has been sparse enough–the son of Arch has forged a reputation as a very solid sire for his price point in the US, with his stud record ranging from a top-class dirt colt in Nadal to the Grade I turf winner Abscond. A 6% black-type winners to foals of racing age figure places him in a favourable light, especially for his price bracket. He is also rapidly developing into a broodmare sire of note: look no further than the outcome to the GI Breeders Futurity at Keeneland in which his daughters supplied the first two home in Forte (Violence) and Loggins (Ghostzapper). With that in mind, an accomplished Blame filly would be a worthy addition to any broodmare band worldwide, especially as he himself is related to Sadler's Wells and Nureyev on his dam side, allowing for some interesting inbreeding opportunities.

As for Temple City (Spendthrift Farm: $5,000), he is the sole son of Dynaformer at stud in Kentucky and doing that sire-line proud as North America's fourth leading active turf sire of 2022–a highly noteworthy feat given his lowly fee. A clutch of eight stakes winners in 2022, seven of them on turf, included the graded stakes winners Temple, Temple City Terror and Another Mystery to enhance a stud record already highlighted by the Grade I winners Miss Temple City, Bolo and Annals Of Time.

Part II of this feature will appear in Saturday's TDN and will take a closer look at some of the younger members of the American stallion ranks.

The post American Sires Through a European Lens: Part I appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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The average selling price of $9,396.00 was up significantly over 2021($4,251.64). The median this year was $6,250.00 versus ($2,000.00) last year.

“This year's sale offered a good selection of quality horses to meet the needs of the Ontario Breeders. On behalf of the Board of Directors and myself, I want to thank the Ontario Breeders, the Consignors and those who supported our Mixed Sale, commented Peter Berringer, President of the CTHS Ontario Division.”

The post Good Results at CTHS Ontario Mixed Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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