Mark Toothaker | Horse Racing Free Tips

Spendthrift Attempting To ‘Repeat History’ With Champion Monomoy Girl

Mark Toothaker's first trip to Oaklawn was almost 35 years ago. But, he can still cite the details as if it happened yesterday and not March 6, 1982.

Toothaker was 15, too young in those days for legal admission, but he slipped through the gates with a group of family and friends and was immediately encouraged to make his first bet, which, in this case, was the daily double. Ditching any formal handicapping techniques like speed figures, class ratings or trip notes, Toothaker said he was advised to simply bet his age, meaning the numbers were 1 and 5.

“The very first race, I can remember it to this day,” Toothaker said. “Larry Snyder was on a huge favorite and wound up pulling up in the race and Don Von Hemel won it with a horse named Rimrod. He was the 1 horse. The very next race, Larry Snyder comes right back after having bad luck in the first race and rides Goldie's Son, the 5 horse, to win and it (daily double) paid $375. I've been ruined ever since.”

Toothaker will be returning to Oaklawn this weekend, not as a green handicapper, but still seeking another double of sorts. Toothaker is the stallion sales manager for Spendthrift Farm, Kentucky's famed racing and breeding operation that will be represented by Jackie's Warrior in Saturday's $750,000 Southwest Stakes (G3) for 3-year-olds and Monomoy Girl in Sunday's $250,000 Bayakoa Stakes (G3) for older fillies and mares.

Spendthrift owns the breeding rights to Jackie's Warrior, a multiple Grade 1 winner for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen. The stakes are much higher for Monomoy Girl, a Brad Cox trainee who will be making her first start since Spendthrift purchased the multiple Eclipse Award winner for an eye-popping $9.5 million in November at Fasig-Tipton's Kentucky Fall Mixed Sale.

“It'll be fun,” Toothaker said. “First start back. We'll see. But the way she's trained and everything Brad has said is she's sitting on go. It will be exciting to get her back to the races.”

Toothaker, 54, grew up in Van Buren, Ark., about 130 miles northwest of Oaklawn. After entering the game in 1986 walking hots for trainer Joe Cantey, Toothaker gradually climbed the industry ladder. He eventually owned a small breeding farm near Van Buren, migrated to Kentucky in 2004 to work for prominent breeder Allen Poindexter and has worked for Spendthrift since 2011.

Founded by B. Wayne Hughes, Spendthrift has campaigned, among others, four-time Eclipse Award winner Beholder and 2020 Horse of the Year Authentic solely or in partnership. Its breeding side features approximately 20 stallions, including Authentic, and 100 broodmares. One of those broodmares is Beholder, whose gaudy resume includes Eclipse Awards in 2012 (champion 2-year-old filly), 2013 (3-year-old filly), 2015 (older dirt female) and 2016 (older dirt female), 18 victories from 26 lifetime starts and earnings of $6,156,600. She won the Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) in 2013 and 2016, the latter as a 6-year-old.

Monomoy Girl, who will join Spendthrift's broodmare band upon retirement, has similar credentials. She was an Eclipse Award winner in 2018 (3-year-old filly) and 2020 (older dirt female), cementing championships in both years with victories in the Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1). Monomoy Girl is 13 of 15 overall and has lifetime earnings of $4,426,818. Spendthrift opted to keep Monomoy Girl in training with Cox after securing her for a price just short of the $10 million brought by Havre de Grace, a reported North American record for a broodmare sold at public auction, during the same sale in 2012.

“Eric did all the bidding,” Toothaker said, referring to Spendthrift owner Eric Gustavson. “We were just right there cheerleading with him as he was bidding. My heart was racing 90 miles an hour, hoping that we could get her because she's just a treasure. She's just one of those priceless fillies that you just dream about having a chance to be involved with.”

Monomoy Girl will be making her first start since a 1 ¾-length victory in the $2 million Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) Nov. 7 at Keeneland. Spendthrift purchased the now-6-year-old daughter of Tapizar the following day.

“I just think Mr. Hughes, since everything was good with her and that she was sound and everything, he wanted to be able to bring her back to the races,” Toothaker said. “We had so much fun with Beholder, her 6-year-old year, and just felt like we wanted to try to recapture that moment. See if we couldn't repeat history and do what Beholder did – put her out on top as a Breeders' Cup champion, back to back. It would be just amazing.”

The 1 1/16-mile Bayakoa is a major local prep for the $1 million Apple Blossom Handicap (G1) April 17, which is Monomoy Girl's major spring objective, Cox said.

“When I first saw that, the Bayakoa and the Apple Blossom, I was just thrilled to death,” Toothaker said. “I'm always rooting for everybody to make your path through Oaklawn, for sure.”

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Thousand Words A Veritable Picture at Spendthrift

It took just two words for Mark Toothaker to explain why he believes Thousand Words (Pioneerof the Nile) will excel in the Spendthrift stud barn: looks and pedigree.

Those same characteristics are what kept the Albaugh-Spendthrift partnership bidding at the Keeneland September Sale until they brought the colt home for $1 million.

It didn't take long to find an appropriate name for the youngster.

“Eric Gustavon, our president, named him,” Toothaker recalled. “He's such a beautiful horse that the name was easy to come by. A picture is worth a thousand words because there's so much that you could say about this horse with his looks and his pedigree. So it's a cool name for what we hope turns out to be a very good stallion.”

The new Spendthrift colorbearer embarks on his career at stud as a three-time stakes winner and will stand his first season for $7,500.

At the 2018 Keeneland September Sale, Spendthrift and the Albaugh Family Stables were on the lookout for a yearling they could partner on and, as Toothaker recalled, Thousand Words fit the bill.

“We had bought Brody's Cause and Free Drop Billy from the Albaughs and had talked about teaming up if we found something we both landed on,” he said. “The first time we saw Thousand Words, he was such a beautiful yearling and one that we were both definitely on. So it made for a great partnership and we were thrilled to get the horse purchased.”

A member of one of the last crops from the late top sire Pioneerof the Nile, the January foal was bred in Florida by Amy Tarrant's Hardacre Farm and produced by the farm's homebred sprinter Pomeroys Pistol (Pomeroy), a multiple graded stakes winner who was runner-up in both the GI Prioress S. and GI Test S. in 2011.

As the youngster began training with Bob Baffert, the team at Spendthrift anxiously awaited a report from the Hall of Fame trainer.

“When the lightbulb finally came on for Thousand Words, Bob called Flavien Prat and told him `this is your Derby horse for next year,'” Toothaker said. “When Bob starts talking Derby, you start listening, so there was a lot of excitement around here leading up to that.”

After a winning debut in October, the speedy bay next took the GII Los Alamitos Futurity for an undefeated juvenile season.

The colt's sire won the same race in 2008, and Toothaker spoke on other current stallions who have thrived in the Los Alamitos Futurity, which was just downgraded to a Grade II in 2019.

“It's the same race Into Mischief won,” Toothaker noted. “Horses like Mor Spirit and Violence had won that race as well. So there are a lot of really nice horses that have won this race and certainly gone on to make a name for themselves.”

The son of Pioneerof the Nile continued his winning streak in his sophomore debut in the GIII Robert B. Lewis S., but then ran unplaced in his next two starts.

After a short layoff, he gave a runner-up effort behind stablemate and 'TDN Rising Star' Uncle Chuck (Uncle Mo) in the GIII Los Alamitos Derby and then took on Del Mar for a gutsy score in the Shared Belief S. over Honor A. P. (Honor Code) in his final prep before the GI Kentucky Derby.

While he claimed the number four spot in the TDN's Derby Rankings leading up to the first Saturday in September, two slots ahead of stablemate and eventual winner Authentic (Into Mischief), the sophomore reared and fell in the paddock minutes before stepping onto the track and was subsequently a late defection.

Toothaker recalled the unfortunate events of the day. “When we left the backside with Authentic and Thousand Words, we really didn't know which one of the two was our best shot. We were just thrilled that we had two chances and both of the horses were coming into the race fantastic, so we thought, who knows what's going to happen here? And then of course, you know the rest of the story. We're devastated, the Albaughs are devastated, we were 20 minutes from post time for the Derby and now here we are scratched. So it was about as low as you can get at that point.”

While the colt returned for two more Grade I starts in 2020, he ran unplaced in both and Toothaker explained that since the horse had not been the same after the paddock incident, the decision was made for him to retire.

When the announcement was made that the new addition would be a part of Spendthrift's Share The Upside program, Toothaker said they sold out of the program's portion of his book in under an hour.

“It was unbelievable,” he said. “Our phones were just blowing up with texts and calls. We've probably got a waiting list of about 40 people for the Share the Upside portion. So his reception has been unbelievable.”

“He is that million-dollar yearling- he's gorgeous,” Toothaker continued. “He's just so correct. A beautiful head on him with a beautiful neck and shoulder. He's going to get a tremendous chance with the looks that he has and then with Pioneerof the Nile as a sire and out of a dam as good as Pomeroys Pistol. You could look up in a few years, and this horse could be right there at the top of the sire list.”

The post Thousand Words A Veritable Picture at Spendthrift appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Spendthrift Welcomes A Third Met Mile Winner

While there’s never one fool-proof indicator for determining stallion potential, Spendthrift Farm has found one race that they feel consistently produces winners who draw their attention.

In the past four years, they’ve welcomed a trio of GI Metropolitan H. victors to their stud barn.

First was Mor Spirit (Eskendereya), the first Grade I-winning two-year-old to later win the Met Mile since Holy Bull in 1994. Then came Mitole, another son of Eskendereya who would go on to be named the 2019 Eclipse Champion Male Sprinter. This year, they welcome a third winner in five-time stakes-winning millionaire Vekoma (Candy Ride {Arg}).

“The Met Mile, every year, seems to be one of the most competitive races that is run,” said Spendthrift’s Stallion Sales Manager Mark Toothaker. “Everybody seems to point to that race. It just is a race that everybody has circled on their calendars. To have three Met Mile winners here at Spendthrift, they’ve all be supported very well and all have gotten really big books of mares, so now they just have to go do the deal on the racetrack.”

This most recent Met Mile hero was a 2017 $135,000 Keeneland September purchase for R.A. Hill Stable. The late-May foal made his winning debut in September of his 2-year-old year before taking the GIII Nashua S. at Aqueduct for an undefeated juvenile season.

Campaigned by R.A. Hill Stable and Gatsas Stables, Vekoma ran third in his sophomore debut in the GII Fountain of Youth S. behind eventual dual Grade I winner Code of Honor (Noble Mission {GB}). He became a top consideration on the Derby Trail after taking the GII Blue Grass S. in his next start.

After failing to fire in the GI Kentucky Derby and staying on the sidelines for the remainder of his sophomore year, Vekoma returned for his best season yet in 2020.

The George Weaver trainee first took the Sir Shackleton S. in March, then followed that effort with an overwhelming 7 1/4-length victory in the GI Runhappy Cater H. to register a 110 Beyer in the Belmont slop. One month later, he faced off with fellow Grade I winners Code of Honor, McKinzie (Street Sense) and Hog Creek Hustle (Overanalyze) in the GI Runhappy Metropolitan H.

“He broke well and just sat right there and waited until it was his time,” Toothaker said, recalling the race. “He got his cue in the stretch and opened up and drew off in what was a very, very dominating performance. [The Metropolitan H.] is always a very difficult race to win and this year was no different. It was a very talented field that he was able to beat that day, and he beat them pretty soundly.”

Although Vekoma was set to be a top choice in the GI Breeders’ Cup Sprint, a fever days before the raced forced him to scratch.

“It was very unfortunate that Vekoma didn’t get to run in the Sprint,” Toothaker said. “He was going to be the heavy favorite against that field. No knock against anyone, but I feel like Vekoma would have had that bunch over a barrel.”

Over his three-year career, the speedy chestnut was well known for his unique way of going. Toothaker admitted that this delayed Spendthrift’s consideration of the stallion prospect.

“I’ve known George Weaver for a long time and he called me one day and he said ‘Tooth, you’ve got to come see this horse.’ I said, ‘George, he’s got to be really crooked’ but he replied, ‘How many crooked horses do you know that I buy? Listen, he walks really well. We had no idea he did that until we breezed him.'”

Toothaker made the trip to New York to see the prospect and sure enough, he was sold at first sight.

“George picked me up at the airport and we went and looked at him and I loved him,” he recalled. “I thought he looked like a rocket ship. I’m thrilled to death to be able to have him here at Spendthrift.”

Vekoma will be the first son of Candy Ride (Arg) to join the Spendthrift stallion roster.

“Spendthrift has been looking for a son of Candy Ride for a while and we had not been able to land one that we really liked,” Toothaker said. “This horse, when we had a chance to see him, we felt like he was the one we had been looking for. Candy Ride’s sons are doing extremely well and we were very happy to land Vekoma.”

The dual Grade I winner is out of the Speightstown mare Mona de Momma, winner of the 2010 GI Humana Distaff S. and GIII Las Flores H. and a $1.55 million Keeneland November purchase for Vekoma’s breeder, Alpha Delta Stables. While Mona de Momma died soon after foaling Vekoma, his half-sister Bloody Point (War Front) earned over $100,000 and is now a producer. Big names under his third dam include influential sire Mr. Greeley (Gone West), champion juvenile and sire Street Sense (Street Cry {Ire}) and dual Grade I winner Paradise Woods (Union Rags).

Toothaker said that Vekoma’s physical trends strongly towards his female side.

“Vekoma really looks a lot like Speightstown,” he said. “I mean, I’ve had people come out and say they see Candy Ride in him as well, but to me, he looks very much like a lot of the Speightstowns you see out there. He’s got good bone, he’s got a really strong body and a good hip.”

Already, Toothaker is imagining the first foals from Vekoma.

“I can foresee him having just absolutely beautiful, rocket ship-like weanlings down the road. I think he’ll be a very precocious sire- his body looks very precocious. He was so fast and hated to loose. So we’re looking forward to getting mares to him this year and then seeing what the foals look like in 2022.”

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In The Stud Presented By Kentucky Equine Research: Mor Spirit, First Weanlings Of 2020

Mor Spirit displayed speed and consistency on the racetrack, and he will look to instill both into his first crop of foals, born earlier this year.

On this week's episode of In The Stud, we head out to Spendthrift Farm to speak with Mark Toothaker about multiple Grade 1 winner Mor Spirit, the stallion's physical, and the parts of his family tree that are getting hot at the right time. We also get a special appearance from trainer Bob Baffert, who conditioned Mor Spirit, to go into more detail about how the stallion is put together.

Mor Spirit, a son of Eskendereya, won six of 14 starts during his on-track career for earnings of $1,668,400. He displayed his elite form early on, winning the Grade 1 Los Alamitos Futurity as a juvenile. Then, he proved his mettle against the handicap division at age four with a score in the G1 Metropolitan Handicap. Between those two efforts, he notched victories in the G3 Robert B. Lewis Stakes and G3 Steve Sexton Mile Stakes.

Mor Spirit is out of the Grade 3-placed stakes-winning Dixie Union mare Ima Dixie Girl. His extended family includes champion Stellar Wind, Grade 1 winner Great Hunter and multiple Grade 3 winner Owendale.

The In The Stud video series, put together by our friends at EquiSport Photos, features up-and-coming names in the stallion ranks, with a focus on those whose first foals are weanlings of 2020. Paulick Report bloodstock editor Joe Nevills interviews farm staff about the stallion's appealing qualities and what mares might work best with them, while giving viewers and potential breeders a chance to see the stallion on the walk and on the racetrack.

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