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“A Mix of Speed and Stamina,” Olympiad Attracts Breeders at Gainesway

It's not often that a runner-up effort translates into a key selling point for a new stallion, but when that second-place finish comes behind a horse like Flightline, people take notice. Such has been the case for Olympiad (Speightstown – Tokyo Time, by Medaglia d'Oro), whose career finale in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic made him a standout in the 2023 class of incoming stallions.

Ryan Norton, who joined Gainesway as the farm's new stallion director a few weeks before the Breeders' Cup, explained how Olympiad's performance at Keeneland over fellow Grade I-winning Classic contenders Taiba, Rich Strike, Life Is Good and others led to a busy stretch of open houses at Gainesway as breeders were eager to inspect the multi-millionaire.

“The Breeders' Cup was the pinnacle of Olympiad's career,” Norton said. “It was a race that had breeders look at him and say, 'This is a real-deal horse.' I think that was the reason why he was such a success when he retired here. He had hundreds of people coming to view him and he was booked full within three weeks of his arrival.”

Certainly the campaign that Olympiad put together throughout his 4-year-old season was further incentive for inquiring breeders. A lightly-raced winner at both two and three, the Bill Mott trainee strung together five graded stakes scores in 2022, starting with a track-record setting win in the GIII Mineshaft S. and then continuing on with further victories in the GII New Orleans Classic S., the GII Alysheba S., the GII Stephen Foster S. and the GI Jockey Club Gold Cup S.

“Olympiad had a mix of speed and stamina,” Norton explained. “He won at seven furlongs and he won at a mile and a quarter. He ran eight triple-digit Beyers up to 111, so he was definitely a very fast horse and he could carry his speed. He had six wins from eight starts at four, plus a second in the Breeders' Cup Classic. To do that in this day and age with such a deep field of older horses in 2022 really showed the quality and perseverance that this horse had.”

Norton said that the members of Olympiad's partnership – Robert Clay's Grandview Equine, Everett Dobson's Cheyenne Stable and LNJ Foxwoods – have all submitted some of their best mares to Olympiad and that the new Gainesway stallion will breed between 185 and 200 mares in 2023.

With an initial stud fee of $35,000, Olympiad is one of seven stallions by Speightstown standing in Kentucky, but Norton explained that this particular son of the WinStar stalwart offers a unique opportunity for breeders.

“One of the main things that breeders have been saying is that he has a lot more size and a lot more scope that the typical Speightstown. That was something that I think they were very intrigued with. The mating can produce something that's going to be a little bigger and a little rangier, a horse that is going to be able to run short or long. He's 16'1, so you see a lot of Medaglia d'Oro, his broodmare sire, coming out.”

The Speightstown-Medaglia d'Oro cross has been a rewarding mating. Along with Olympiad, Speightstown's Grade I winners out of Medaglia d'Oro mares include Rock Fall and Competitionofideas. The cross has also produced Grade III victors Strike Power and Souper Stonehenge.

“It works well because you get the speed of Speightstown with the stamina of Medaglia,” Norton noted.

With a pedigree tracing back to Emory Hamilton's foundation mare Too Chic, Olympiad's extended family features a host of Grade I winners including sires Preservationist, Keen Ice, and Verrazano. His dam Tokyo Time, herself a turf success with a runner-up placing in the GIII Herecomesthebride S., is a half to MGSW Hungry Island (More Than Ready) and GSW Soaring Empire (Empire Maker).

“It's a very deep family which is why, between his looks and that female family, he was a $700,000 Keeneland September yearling,” Norton said. “Solis/Litt Bloodstock bought him and they're known for picking out very attractive horses, so breeders are aware when they come here that he is going to have a certain look that they are going to like. He's a great walker. He drops his head, really extends and has a nice overreach. Looking at the horse and how he moves, you understand exactly how he was such a good racehorse.”

Along with Olympiad, Gainesway also welcomes Drain the Clock (Maclean's Music – Manki, by Arch) to their roster for 2023. The speedy sprinter earned three graded stakes wins over his three-year career, including a victory over champion Jackie's Warrior in the 2021 GI Woody Stephens S. He will stand for $10,000 in his debut season.

For more on this year's class of incoming stallions, click here.

The post “A Mix of Speed and Stamina,” Olympiad Attracts Breeders at Gainesway appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Letter to the Editor: Terence Collier Regarding the Passing of Dr. Billy Marrs

It seems that every tick of the clock marks the demise of another friend and colleague in my life. Word came in today of the passing on January 15th of Dr. Billy (Merritt William) Marrs, who died in Indio, California, close to his winter home in Palm Springs. Such news usually travels fast in our circles, but this veterinarian has spent more of the last few years on out-of-town golf courses than on the backside or at a horse sale. Nevertheless, there will be a few tears and many fond tales told among Thoroughbred people of this colorful and loveable character.

Billy Marrs was a Lexington native, born in 1946, a graduate of the University of Kentucky who went on to a degree in Veterinary Medicine from Ohio State in 1973. His early mentors have already left for that great clinic in the sky, but anybody around Thoroughbreds in central Kentucky from the 1980s on will remember 'Doc' Marrs pulling up in his Cadillac, enveloped in a cloud of cigar smoke. One short car ride as his passenger and you got out smelling like Winston Churchill! He eschewed the Suburbans, the Tahoes and the SUVs and worked from either the trunk or the back seat of his gray DeVille. There was much competition for space in the car and it took forever to get the ancient X-ray camera from under the sets of golf clubs. Because he was an independent veterinarian and not connected to the two or three large veterinary groups in town, I frequently put Billy on veterinary arbitration disputes at Fasig-Tipton sales. He would always be very late or very early and invariably had to ask if he could borrow a scope from one of the other panel members.

Billy and I had close mutual friends in Jack G. Jones, Jr. of Mineola Farm in Lexington and California bloodstock guru Rollin Baugh. Jack was his lawyer, golfing companion and client. In the late 1970s Billy and Jack scouted the sales together for Buckram Oak Farm's owner Mahmoud Fustok. Jack remembers with certainty that at the Saratoga Yearling Sales, both Danzig and De La Rose were passed by Billy and made Fustok's short list, only to be underbidders on both in successive years. For a few years, Rollin was accompanied by Billy at Royal Ascot. He would call me the week before the famous English racing festival and the conversation would always jokingly open, “Well, Lord Collier, where should I be dining this year in London?” or “Can I wear brown suede shoes in the Royal Enclosure?”

Without delving too deeply into Dr. Marrs's private life, in Lexington, there seem to be no close family members surviving him in his hometown. He was married twice–once, for 13 years, to the very popular and bubbly Eloise, a leading light in local banking circles. Since October last year, he was engaged to the equally attractive Karen Nielsen, to whom I extend my sincere condolences.

Dr. Marrs got out of the veterinary world before it left him behind. He was old school. And he never let an equine appointment stand in the way of a round of golf. His many friends, of which I was honored to be one, will miss a man who did it his way.

Terence Collier

PS: There will be a celebration of life in Lexington in April and details will follow.

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TDN Derby Top 12: Little Thaw in Early Winter Ranks

We're still in the early part of the season where the rankings are largely based on juvenile form and a hefty dose of speculation. As we segue into February, the forecast calls for “frost heaves” that will likely shift the balance of power just enough to keep things interesting. But at 15 weeks out, everyone on the GI Kentucky Derby trail is still allowed to dream big.

1) ARABIAN KNIGHT (c, Uncle Mo–Borealis Night, by Astrology) 'TDN Rising Star'. O-Zedan Racing Stables, Inc.; B-Corser Thoroughbreds LLC (KY); T-Bob Baffert. Sales history: $250,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP; $2,300,000 2yo '22 OBSAPR. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $86,025. Last start: 1st Keeneland Maiden Special Weight, Nov. 5. KY Derby Points: 0.

'TDN Rising Star' Arabian Knight (($250,000 KEESEP, $2.3 million OBSAPR sale-topper) is Oaklawn-bound. Trainer Bob Baffert disclosed to Daily Racing Form on Sunday that the

GIII Southwest S. on Saturday will be the 2023 coming-out party for the powerful colt who blitzed to a dominant (7 1/4 lengths with a 97 Beyer Speed Figure) victory on the Breeders' Cup undercard in his one and only start.

To put this son of Uncle Mo's 1:21.98 final clocking from that race into perspective, the only other seven-furlong race on Breeders' Cup Saturday, the GI Filly and Mare Sprint, which featured older, highly accomplished distaffers, was timed just .37 seconds faster.

“He's not speed-crazy,” jockey John Velazquez said after that scintillating win. “I put my hands down, he came right back to me. Settled really good on the turn, and when I asked him to go down the stretch, he was there for me.”

At this point we have to insert the usual disclaimer that's become standard in the Top 12 write-ups the past two years: Churchill Downs has banned Baffert from the Derby related to his under-appeal equine drug DQ from the 2021 Derby, and his trainees are prohibited from earning qualifying points and competing in the Derby itself. But while this issue plays out via litigation and at the racing commission level, the focus here will be on the talents of his horses and not courtroom drama.

Saturday's Southwest now looms as the most compelling stakes on the Derby trail that we've seen so far this year.

2) FORTE (c, Violence–Queen Caroline, by Blame) 'TDN Rising Star'. O-Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable; B-South Gate Farm (KY); T-Todd Pletcher. Sales history: $80,000 Wlg '20 KEENOV; $110,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: MGISW, 5-4-0-0, $1,595,150. Last start: 1st GI FanDuel Breeders' Cup Juvenile presented by TAA, Nov. 4. KY Derby Points: 40.

Beyond the gravitas of having won three straight Grade I stakes, including his 100-Beyer score in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile, Forte stands out among the Top 12 contenders for his ability to break well, settle willingly, and reel in targets.

Those traits were evident in both of his wins at 1 1/16 miles at Keeneland and his neck victory in the GI Breeders' Futurity S. (with the remainder of the field six lengths behind the top two) was in many ways a more powerful performance than his 1 1/2-length Juvenile tally.

This 'TDN Rising Star' was forwardly placed, but edged back to seventh in his Oct. 8 race, attained a nice cruising speed amongst traffic, then methodically worked his way up to a contending spot before being fully unleashed off the far turn to knock back multiple bids from a very game runner-up.

In the Juvenile, Forte again came out running, picked a prime stalking spot, waited patiently, then sliced off the inside while building up serious momentum to collar a wilting favorite before being kept to task through the final sixteenth.

The Mar. 4 GII Fountain of Youth S. at Gulfstream is slated as his sophomore debut, with the GI Florida Derby or the GI Toyota Blue Grass S. possibilities after that. An easy three-eighths breeze on Saturday marked his return to the work tab at Palm Beach Downs.

3) CAVE ROCK (c, Arrogate–Georgie's Angel, by Bellamy Road) 'TDN Rising Star'. O-Michael E. Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman; B-Anne and Ronnie Sheffer Racing LLC (KY); T-Bob Baffert. Sales history: $210,000 Wlg '20 KEENOV; $550,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: MGISW, 4-3-1-0, $748,000. Last start: 2nd GI FanDuel Breeders' Cup Juvenile presented by TAA, Nov. 4. KY Derby Points: 0.

Purely based on the way the Breeders' Cup Juvenile unfolded, 'TDN Rising Star' Cave Rock's beaten-fave second has a “lost the battle, but it could improve his chances in the overall war” type of flavor to it.

This strapping son of Arrogate got keyed up pre-race and exerted himself trying to fight free from a 70-1 long shot through an opening quarter of :22.90 (second-fastest opening split in the Juvenile since 2014), then had little left to stave off the onrushing Forte.

A bit of growing up so that his temperament matches the talent he displayed in getting off to a 3-for-3 start last summer (including two Grade I wins at Del Mar) will go a long way toward leveling his chances in a rematch–although he and his rival are unlikely to meet until the Derby itself considering Cave Rock is based in SoCal and Forte is wintering in Florida.

If you go by longer-term trends, losing the Juvy might also actually work in Cave Rock's favor: Since the advent of the Breeders' Cup, Juvenile winners have accounted for only two Derby wins (Nyquist in 2016 and Street Sense in 2007) from 38 runnings.

Then again, second- and third-place Juvenile finishers haven't fared much better. Those 76 horses have also accounted for only two Derby wins, by Alysheba in 1987 (third in the 1986 Juvenile) and Spend A Buck in 1985 (third in the 1984 Juvenile).

4) TAPIT TRICE (c, Tapit–Danzatrice, by Dunkirk) O-Whisper Hill Farm LLC and Gainesway Stable (Antony Beck); B-Gainesway Thoroughbreds Ltd. (KY); T-Todd Pletcher. Sales history: $1,300,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: 2-1-0-1, $56,950. Last start: 1st Aqueduct Maiden Special Weight, Dec. 17. KY Derby Points: 0.

Tapit Trice was a touch green at the start of his Nov. 6 debut, then split horses capably and finished with interest, justifying 17-10 favoritism in his Dec. 17 maiden-breaking win.

Both races were more visually impressive than their Beyers (73 and 89) suggest, and considering that Tapit Trice's one-turn-mile score came over a muddy, sealed Aqueduct surface, the suggestion here is to take those speed figures with a figurative grain of salt.

The vagaries of winter racing in New York can sometimes make it difficult to come up with accurate projections and final numbers, and as we saw last season on the Triple Crown trail (when eventual GI Preakness S. winner Early Voting got a winning 78 Beyer from February at Aqueduct retooled months later to a significantly higher 87), all figures are subject to revision when circumstances warrant it.

This gray son of Tapit who hammered for $1.3 million at KEESEP is now at Palm Beach Downs for trainer Todd Pletcher and has been breezing on a weekly basis for his first start against winners.

5) BANISHING (c, Ghostzapper–Dowager, by A.P. Indy) O/B-Godolphin (KY); T-Brendan Walsh. Lifetime Record: 2-1-0-0, $42,000. Last start: 1st Fair Grounds Maiden Special Weight, Dec. 26. KY Derby Points: 0.

Banishing had to scratch out of an allowance/optional claimer at Fair Grounds on Saturday after reportedly getting cast in his stall and scraping a hind leg. The abrasions aren't considered serious enough to derail him from long-term training.

This Godolphin homebred broke his maiden over 1 1/16 miles Dec. 26 in New Orleans, edging away on the lead while taking pace pressure before blasting the race open in deep stretch by 8 1/2 lengths (90 Beyer). That MSW route has already yielded one next-out winner, who popped at 18-1 odds on Saturday.

Banishing's Nov. 13 debut in a one-turn-mile at Churchill was also much better than it appears on paper: He raced in the 10 path early yet contested the pace, then rallied four wide into the turn before almost attaining the lead between calls. After it looked like he was fading from his mid-race efforts, he kicked in again and secured fourth.

6) FAUSTIN (c, Curlin–Hard Not to Like, by Hard Spun) 'TDN Rising Star' O-Michael L Petersen. B-DATTT Farm (Ky). T-Bob Baffert. Sales history: $285,000 RNA yrl '21 KEESEP; $800,000 2yo '22 OBSAPR. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $40,200. Last start: Maiden win at Santa Anita. Kentucky Derby Points: 0.

Faustin earned 'TDN Rising Star' status sprinting in his Dec. 26 debut, but you don't have to dig too deeply in his pedigree to uncover reliable stamina influences.

At 10 furlongs, sire Curlin ran third in the 2007 Derby and later won the GI Breeders' Cup Classic, while damsire Hard Spun was Curlin's rival that same season, finishing just ahead of him when second in the Derby and right behind him when second in the Classic. Faustin's dam, Hard Not to Like, was a three-time Grade I grass victress at distances up to nine furlongs. And his second dam on the female side, Like a Gem, scored in three grass routes in Canada, including one at 1 1/4 miles at age three.

Faustin ($285,000 RNA KEESEP; $800,000 OBSAPR after breezing an eighth in :10 flat), a high-energy gray, was unfazed by a slow start, a “busy” ride, and twice having to switch off heels turning for home in his 89-Beyer win.

7) SIGNATOR (c, Tapit–Pension, by Seeking the Gold) 'TDN Rising Star' O-West Point Thoroughbreds, Woodford Racing, Gainesway Stable, Phipps Stable, Ken Langone, Edward Hudson, Jr. and Lane's End Racing. B-Gainesway Thoroughbreds. T-Claude McGaughey III. Sales history: $1,700,000 2yo '22 OBSAPR. Lifetime Record: 2-1-1-0, $71,250. Last Start: Maiden win at BAQ Oct. 14. Kentucky Derby Points: 0.

Much like Tapit Trice ranked at No. 4, Signator is another son of Tapit who wasn't quite ready for prime time in his debut, but nevertheless raced with enough promise despite greenness to win as the deserving favorite in start number two.

And yes, just like it was mentioned in Tapit Trice's write-up, this could be a case in which the visual resonance of Signator's races rate higher than the two Beyers he received (73 in each race).

This $1.7 million OBSAPR colt was penciled in for a third start, in the Nov. 6 GIII Nashua S., but trainer Shug McGuaghey had to withdraw him because of a wrenched ankle that has since healed. After a Dec. 31 breeze at Payson Park, Signator was absent from the work tab until Jan. 18, so it looks like he's going to need a touch more time before we see him in the entries, most likely at either Gulfstream or Tampa.

8) VICTORY FORMATION (c, Tapwrit–Smart N Soft, by Smart Strike) 'TDN Rising Star' O-Spendthrift Farm & Frank Fletcher Racing Operations. B-Gainesway Thoroughbreds Ltd. (Ky). T-Brad Cox. Sales history: $100,000 wnlg '20 KEENOV; $150,000 yrl '21 FTKJUL; $340,000 2yo '22 FTMMAY. Lifetime Record: SW, 3-3-0-0, $282,285. Last Start: 1st Smarty Jones S., Jan.1 at OP. Kentucky Derby Points: 10.

Even though he's a 3-for-3 'TDN Rising Star,' Victory Formation flies a touch under the radar within the Top 12. But that's primarily because his connections have shaped his early-career progression arc without yet attempting a graded stakes.

This son of 2017 GI Belmont S. victor Tapwrit most recently coasted home unopposed by three lengths at 3-5 odds in Oaklawn's short-stretch Smarty Jones S. at one mile, and even though that field gave off a weak-on-paper vibe, the win still represented a capable, no-nonsense two-turn debut and it capped a trio of escalating Beyers that now reads 81, 85 and 91 without any numerical regression so far.

“He's a pretty smart horse,” trainer Brad Cox recently told the Oaklawn notes team. “I know I've said that several times, but he really is. He's a horse that doesn't overdo it. He's not too hard on himself and I think that's going to take him a long way and, hopefully, allow him to get more ground.”

The nine-furlong Feb. 18 GII Risen Star S. at Victory Formation's Fair Grounds training base could be next, with the following Saturday's 1 1/16-miles GII Rebel S. at Oaklawn a possible backup option.

9) HEJAZI (c, 3, Bernardini–G Note, by Medaglia d'Oro) O-Zedan Racing Stables, Inc. B-Chester & Mary Broman (NY); T-Bob Baffert. Sales history: $3,550,000 2yo '22 EASMAY. Lifetime Record: GISP, 4-1-2-1, $108,200. Last Start: Maiden win at SA Jan. 15. Kentucky Derby Points: 0.

With the exception of his sale-topping $3.55-million EASMAY price tag, Hejazi doesn't fit the mold of many of Bob Baffert's trainees who embark upon the Derby trail.

For starters, this colt is a New York-bred. His three older siblings own an aggregate record of 3-for-35, competing largely at the low end of the claiming echelon. Hejazi also required four starts to break his maiden.

But the experience he compiled at age two includes two runner-up tries (one behind a track-record winning stablemate at 5 1/2 furlongs), plus a third-place effort in a Grade I route when up against No. 3-ranked phenom Cave Rock.

“We gave him some time, gave him a chance to reboot,” said Baffert after this colt's 97-Beyer win as a first-time Lasix user going 6 1/2 furlongs at Santa Anita Jan. 15. “We wanted to get some weight back on him. We put him through a pretty ambitious [juvenile campaign].”

Sent for speed from post one, always under pressure, and shrugging off his two closest pursuers with aplomb inside the final sixteenth, Hejazi's “worth-the-wait” effort was athletically impressive enough to land him a berth within the Top 12.

10) INSTANT COFFEE (c, Bolt d'Oro–Follow No One, by Uncle Mo) O-Gold Square LLC. B-Sagamore Farm (Ky). T-Brad Cox. Sales history: $200,000 yrl '21 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW, 3-2-0-0, $322,815. Last Start: Won Jan. 21 GIII Lecomte S. Kentucky Derby Points: 32.

Instant Coffee has now taken the overland route from off the pace to win two consecutive graded stakes at 1 1/16 miles after his 92-Beyer score in the GIII Lecomte S. on Saturday.

There were six races at that distance Jan. 21 at Fair Grounds, and this son of Bolt d'Oro posted the fastest final clocking, running .19 seconds quicker than older Grade III stakes horses in the Louisiana S. a half-hour earlier.

When compared to his sophomore peers however, Instant Coffee's final times for the Lecomte and his win in the GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. represent the sixth- and seventh-slowest among the eight points-awarding Derby qualifying races run so far at 1 1/16 miles in 2022-23.

Trainer Brad Cox said Sunday that Instant Coffee is likely to keep racing in New Orleans, but he's undecided if the remainder of his prep campaign will include both the Risen Star S. and the GII Louisiana Derby, or just the Louisiana Derby itself.

11) JACE'S ROAD (c, Quality Road–Out Post, by Silver Deputy) 'TDN Rising Star' O-West Point Thoroughbreds & Albaugh Family Stables LLC. B-Colts Neck Stables (Ky). T-Brad Cox. Sales history: $510,000 yrl '21 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: SW & GSP, 4-2-0-1, $126,800. Last Start: Won Gun Runner S. at Fair Grounds Dec. 26. Kentucky Derby Points: 13

'TDN Rising Star' Jace's Road already has run three two-turn stakes. Even though one of them is a complete “put a line through it” type of race, the important thing is this $510,000 KEESEP son of Quality Road rebounded capably to win right back off what trainer Brad Cox described as a “meltdown” performance.

In the GIII Street Sense S .at Churchill Oct. 30, favorite Jace's Road dislodged his jockey at the gate, jogged off for a furlong, was remounted, then ran a lackluster eighth over a sealed, sloppy surface.

We'll still probably have to guess as to whether he'll be able handle another off track. But his rebound race in the Dec. 26 Gun Runner S. at Fair Grounds was a 90-Beyer wiring that underscored this colt's ability to put his head down, find the front, and take pressure while seeming unfazed by it en route to the winner's circle.

Jace's Road was projected to be the early favorite for Saturday's Southwest S. before word broke that No. 1-ranked Arabian Knight would be crashing the party.

12) DETERMINEDLY (c, Cairo Prince–Bailzee, by Grand Slam) O-John Oxley. B-Bedouin Bloodstock (Ky). T-Mark Casse. Sales history: $80,000 yrl '21 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: 8-2-2-1, $188,950. Last Start: AOC victory at Fair Grounds Jan. 21. Kentucky Derby Points: 3.

Determinedly, an $80,000 KEESEP gray by Cairo Prince, already has made eight starts. That's not a huge number by historical standards, but in this less-is-more era of prepping Derby prospects, his experience stands out.

True, it took him six tries to find the winner's circle. But he did race respectably against grass stakes company at Saratoga last summer while still a maiden, and his transition back to dirt has resulted in a maiden win, a trip-troubled third in the Gun Runner S., and a score on Saturday in an allowance/optional claimer (the one that No. 5-ranked Banishing scratched out of).

He shook free on the front end through moderate splits and did tire a bit late, but the effort bears watching as a stepping-stone type of race considering he showed a new dimension in seizing the lead.

The post TDN Derby Top 12: Little Thaw in Early Winter Ranks appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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2023 Mating Plans, Presented by Spendthrift: Coteau Grove Farms

As we approach the opening of the 2023 breeding sheds, the TDN staff is once again sitting down with leading breeders to find out what stallions they have chosen for their mares, and why. Andrew Cary of Cary Bloodstock, advisor to Coteau Grove Farms, took time to discuss which sires they have chosen for some of their top mares.

ARTISTIC DIVA (m, 8, Munnings-Diva N Disguise, by Mizzen Mast), booked to Not This Time
Artistic Diva was brilliantly fast, winning the Anoakia S. at Santa Anita as a 2-year-old. She was also second in the GIII Miss Preakness S. as a 3-year-old. Her first foal is a rocket-bodied filly by Justify that we will offer later this year and she's currently in-foal to Constitution. Not This Time's brilliant success from his early crops has been remarkable and he looks poised to be one of the leading sires for the next decade. He has already sired Grade I winner Just One Time from a Speightstown-line mare, so the cross made a lot of sense physically and on paper.

BAYERNESS (m, 6, Bayern-Weight No More, by Pure Prize), booked to to Flightline
Bayerness is a drop dead gorgeous young mare. We acquired her as a broodmare prospect at last year's Keeneland November sale. She was a SW and MGSP on the track and earned over $430,000. We are very excited to be part of the tremendous first book of mares heading to the superstar new sire Flightline, undoubtedly one of the most talented racehorses we have ever seen.

CALL TO SERVICE (m, 7, To Honor and Serve – Game for More, by More Than Ready), booked to Justify
Call to Service is a young half-sister to GSW Isotherm (Lonhro), GISP Gio Game (Gio Ponti) and GISP Giant Game (Giant's Causeway). We purchased her in-foal to HOY Authentic in January of last year and she had a beast of a colt that we will offer for sale later this year. We are hearing good things about her first foal, a 2-year-old by Vino Rosso, and she is currently in-foal to Curlin so this mare is definitely getting every chance. Justify is off to an excellent start at stud with MSW already, and they should only get better with time. Justify has already sired SW Justique and Justa Warrior from Bernardini mares and GIII winner Champions Dream from a Tapit mare, so he made sense for this mare being from the A.P. Indy-Bernardini line.

CILLA (m, 5, California Chrome – Sittin At the Bar, by Into Mischief), booked to Jackie's Warrior
We acquired Cilla at the Fasig-Tipton November sale last year. She won the Grade II Prioress S. at Saratoga among her stakes wins and placed in the GI Frizette S. at Belmont as a 2-year-old. She earned over $509,000 and was tough and genuine as a racehorse. I know her family well, having followed her dam Sittin At the Bar's career closely from the time she was a yearling (we also own Sittin at the Bar's half-sister, Lead Us to the Bar). Sittin at the Bar has produced three SW already in her career and looks sure to add more in the coming years. Jackie's Warrior was as brilliant, tough, and consistent as they come on the racetrack and we love him as a sire prospect. His performance in the GII Pat Day Mile, when he set blazing fractions, fought off multiple challengers and still found a way to win, is a race I'll never forget.

ELFIN QUEEN (m, 6, American Pharoah – Pretty 'n' Smart, by Beau Genius), booked to Life is Good
Elfin Queen is one of our most exciting long-term prospects as a potential foundation mare. She was a $1.2 million yearling and is a half-sister to GISW Cupid (Tapit), as well as GSW Heart Ashley (Lion Heart), GSW Ashley's Kitty (Tale of the Cat) and SW Indianapolis (Medaglia d'Oro). This is also the immediate family of recent GSW fillies Kathleen O. (Upstart) and Ain't Easy (Into Mischief). The first dam literally fills the page. Elfin Queen's first foal is an outstanding Justify filly and she's currently in-foal to leading sire Into Mischief. We felt that Life is Good was one of the most gifted horses of the past 10 or 15 years and he has the phenomenal looks to match his pedigree and racetrack performance. He has all the ingredients to make a future leading sire.

GOLD SOUK (6, m, Medaglia d'Oro – Glittering Tax by Artax), booked to Charlatan
Gold Souk is a half-sister to GISW Miss Temple City (Temple City), GSW Pricedtoperfection (Temple City) and SW Miss Mosaic (Verrazano). Her first foal is a Speightstown colt that will be selling as a 2-year-old later this spring and looks fast as lightning. She is in-foal to Munnings and we tripled down on the ultra-successful Speightstown-Medaglia cross by going to the popular young sire Charlatan this year. I thought on pure talent that Charlatan was up there with the likes of Life is Good and even Flightline. His first four starts were breathtaking and it took an outstanding horse to beat him in the G1 Saudi Cup in Mishriff. Speightstown has been a wonderful sire of sires and Charlatan had probably the most talent and ability of all of his sons. His first in-foal mares averaged over $344,000.

HOT AUTUMN (8, m, Tiz Wonderful – Shesoprovocative, by Orientate), booked to Constitution
Hot Autumn is another mare who had a high cruising speed-second in the GI La Brea S. at Santa Anita. She has a yearling filly by Authentic who is a monster and could be any kind. She is currently in-foal to Essential Quality. I liked Constitution for her this year as a proven, top-level sire who has had excellent results with Tiznow line mares, producing the likes of GISW Tiz the Law, GSW We the People and SW Never Surprised.

Golden Pal | Sara Gordon

LITTLE MS PROTOCOL (m, 14, El Corredor – Character Builder, by Coronado's Quest), booked to Golden Pal
Little Ms Protocol was the first horse ever bred by Coteau Grove, and remarkably, she developed into a top performer on the racetrack as a MSW of over $730,000. She has already produced two winners including The Great One (Nyquist), who was second beaten by a nose in the GII Los Alamitos Futurity and was on the Derby Trail in 2021. Little Ms Protocol foaled a full brother to The Great One in 2022 and we thought it made sense to return to the Uncle Mo sire line with the lightning-fast multiple Breeders' Cup winning Golden Pal this year.

LITTLE MISS ZAPP (m, 7, Ghostzapper – Little Ms Protocol, by El Corredor), booked to Corniche
Little Miss Zapp is the first foal out of Little Ms Protocol. She was unraced but we are excited about her broodmare potential with her pedigree and looks. Her first foal, a McKinzie colt, is a crackerjack and she is currently in-foal to the red-hot Good Magic. I'm intrigued by the potential of Corniche as he was a brilliant 2-year-old and has incredible strength and athleticism. His breeze at OBS when he topped the sale was sensational and I loved his dam Wasted Tears when she was racing. The Quality Road-Ghostzapper cross is a proven one as well.

MIDNIGHT FANTASY (7, m, Midnight Lute – St. Jean, by Macho Uno), booked to Uncle Mo
Midnight Fantasy is one of our newest purchases, we bought her at Keeneland November last year in-foal to Quality Road. Similar to Bayerness and Cilla, I followed her racing career very closely from the time she was a yearling and she always showed tremendous talent from the beginning. She was a MSW on the track and earned over $340,000, displaying terrific speed and ability. Uncle Mo is coming off another excellent season and has consistently shown he can get Grade I Saturday afternoon horses, year-in and year-out.

MISS HOT LEGS (7, m, Verrazano – Expo Gold, by Johannesburg), booked to Flightline
Miss Hot Legs is a SP half-sister to the champion 3-year-old filly Swiss Skydiver. She is an incredible physical and was very talented in her own right with tons of speed. Her first foal is a very athletic yearling colt by Curlin that we have very high hopes for both as a sales prospect later this year and then for his racing career. Miss Hot Legs is also booked to Flightline this year, we're hoping that foal can break the sound barrier!

MYLADY CURLIN (8, m, Curlin – Ladyledue, by Slewdledo), booked to Life is Good
We purchased Mylady Curlin at Fasig-Tipton November last year in-foal to the exciting first season sire Charlatan. Mylady Curlin was an excellent racemare, as MGSW and earner over $800,000. Her biggest score came in the GII Falls City H. at Churchill Downs for trainer Brad Cox. We have been trying to steadily upgrade our broodmare band the past few years and adding these types of mares really moves our program to a different level. She is another mare we have going to the brilliant Life is Good, whose elite speed is a great match for Mylady Curlin's stamina. Recent SW Dazzling Blue (Into Mischief) is also a successful product of the Into Mischief-Curlin cross.

PLUS ONE (14, m, Bluegrass Cat – License Free, by Miswaki), booked to Olympiad
Plus One is the dam of the brilliantly fast GISW No Parole (Violence), the first for that farm, and now a stallion we are standing in partnership with in Louisiana. We took at shot breeding to Gun Runner last year and thankfully it looks like that choice has turned out well! For 2023 we are going with Olympiad. He is a stunning horse physically ($700k yearling), big and stretchy and full of quality. He is much more reminiscent of his broodmare sire Medaglia d'Oro than Speightstown. Seeing as Violence is by Medaglia d'Oro, I thought that bringing that blood back to Plus One for this mating made a lot of sense and it's a great physical match as well.

TOUCH MAGIC (13, m, by Lion Heart – Unifier, by Deputy Minister), booked to Maxfield
Touch Magic had a big year in 2022, as her 3-year-old son Touchuponastar (Star Guitar) won four of sixth starts including the Louisiana Champions Day Classic at Fair Grounds by nearly five lengths. He is one of the most exciting Louisiana-breds currently in training. Touch Magic is booked back to Maxfield, who we think has a great shot at developing into a classic stallion in the mold of his sire Street Sense. This mating also creates 4×4 linebreeding to the influential mare La Affirmed, ancestress of such luminaries as Bernstein, Sky Mesa, Caress, Country Cat, Della Francesca, Good Samaritan, Wiseman's Ferry, Matareya and Maxfield himself. Maxfield also carries Quiet American blood through his broodmare sire Bernardini, an added bonus as Star Guitar, sire of Touchuponastar, is also by Quiet American.

Maxfield | Coady Photography

WILLFUL WOMAN (5, m, by Nyquist – Foxt Dansuer, by Mr. Greeley), booked to Life is Good
We acquired Willful Woman at Fasig-Tipton November last year, in-foal to Medaglia d'Oro. She is just an incredibly good-looking mare–big, fancy and powerful. She was a $400,000 Saratoga yearling purchase by Bo Hunt for the Lieblongs and certainly looked the part. She translated those good looks into top level performance as well, winning three of 10 starts and running a strong second to Army Wife in the GII Black-Eyed Susan S. Life is Good was another easy choice for this mare with his potential and pedigree-wise it makes a lot of sense too–Into Mischief has already sired GISW Dayoutoftheoffice and GSW Frank's Rockette out of Indian Charlie line mares.

YOU LAUGHIN (15, m, by Sharp Humor – Livermore Leslie, by Mt Livermore), booked to Mandaloun
You Laughin is the dam of GISW Zenden (Fed Biz) and she is a half-sister to GISW Sweet Reason (Street Sense), GSW Don't Forget Gil (Kafwain) and SW Battle Girl (Midshipman). We purchased her for $55k a couple years before he won his Grade I, so we got fortunate there that he fulfilled his potential. We sold her Audible yearling for $175,000 last Sept. and he will go to Steve Asmussen. I really like the Into Mischief-Distorted Humor cross that has been so effective with Life is Good and Practical Joke among others, so it was logical to go with the first-year sire Mandaloun. He is a big, beautiful stretchy horse for an Into Mischief and has one of those mesmerizing walks to him. I thought he was great value for his pedigree, looks and race record and I know he has proven popular at Juddmonte.

Interested in sharing your own mating plans? Email garyking@thetdn.com.

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