The lightly raced 4-year-old, a jaw-dropping winner while making his route debut in an optional claimer at Santa Anita Feb. 24, has been nominated to Oaklawn's $600,000 GIII Essex H. and the $500,000 GII New Orleans Classic at Fair Grounds. Both races will be contested at 1 1/8 miles and are slated for Saturday, Mar. 23.

“He's nominated to a couple of stakes coming up, but I don't know what we're doing with him yet for certain,” Glatt said.

“We're on the fence as to whether we take the next little step before we jump into the bigger stuff or whether or not it's time to go ahead and step into bigger and better things.”

Glatt added, “He's doing terrific.”

Judge Miller, a $550,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase by Muir Hut Stables and a full-brother to MGISW Clairiere, has been perfect in a pair of attempts since kicking off his career belatedly with a second-place finish as the 3-2 favorite going six furlongs at Del Mar Nov. 19.

The blaze-faced chestnut ran hard every step of the way and graduated in game fashion at second asking going seven furlongs at Santa Anita Dec. 26. He equaled the year's top Beyer Speed Figure of 105 (Nysos, National Treasure, Saudi Crown, Senor Buscador and Skelly) while putting on a show winning by 11 lengths going a two-turn mile in Arcadia last time.

The Stonestreet-bred Judge Miller, a son of leading sire Curlin produced by three-time Grade I winner Cavorting (Bernardini), returned to the worktab with a four-furlong move in :50.40 (88/102) Mar. 10.

“I think the sky's the limit,” Glatt said. “He would've gotten started earlier than he did had it not been for a foot abscess that took quite some time to get right last summer. He probably would've debuted in the summer at Del Mar versus the fall. For his age and everything, he's a little bit behind the eight ball from a seasoning standpoint, but he's a very talented horse that's gonna run as far as they ever want to go.”

The post ‘Sky’s the Limit’ – Clairiere’s Full-Brother Judge Miller Nominated to a Pair of Graded Stakes appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

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.

Source of original post

After topping the list in 2021 and 2022, this past year Godolphin bred 201 starters with 175 wins, 176 seconds, and 131 thirds out of 1,007 starts. Calumet Farm was second for the third consecutive year with earnings of $16,660,472 with 510 wins out of 3,435 starts.

Godolphin also led the breeders list that includes partners with $24,338,099 in earnings and 260 wins from 1,684 starts. Calumet Farm was second with $16,925,070 in earnings and 524 wins out of 3,517 starts.

Rounding out the top 10 individual breeders were:

• Brereton C. Jones, $12,372,560 (228 wins / 1,597 starts)
• Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC, $11,770,430 (148/798)
• WinStar Farm, LLC, $9,449,289 (202/1,201)
• Spendthrift Farm LLC, $8,785,519 (123/813)
• Don Alberto Corporation, $8,275,833 (119/854)
• Gary & Mary West Stables Inc., $7,237,300 (158/915)
• Kenneth L. Ramsey & Sarah K. Ramsey, $7,165,616 (186/1,358)

Completing the list of the top 10 breeders including partnerships were:

• Brereton C. Jones, $12,607,514 (235 wins /1,667 starts)
• Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC, $12,398,035 (158/870)
• WinStar Farm, LLC, $11,967,721 (283/1,569)
• Spendthrift Farm LLC, $8,788,859 (123/816)
• Don Alberto Corporation, $8,366,697 (120/868)
• Kenneth L. Ramsey, $7,312,363 (189/1,382)
• Sarah K. Ramsey, $7,312,363 (189/1,382)

The complete lists of the top 100 breeders of 2023 are accessible through Equineline.com.

The post Godolphin Tops 2023 North American Breeders List, Calumet Runner-Up appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

The post Friday Insights: $725k OBS Grad Debuts At Tampa Bay Downs appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

The post Daughter of Uncle Mo Rolls in Del Mar Unveiling appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

On a tour of midwest derbies, How Did He Do That was a dead-heat winner of the July 8 Iowa Derby. Sixth behind Tumbarumba in the Aug. 13 Ellis Park Derby, he was coming off a third-place effort in the Sept. 2 Super Derby.

How Did He Do That's dam Stormin Maggy is a half-sister to champion Afleet Alex (Northern Afleet). The mare, carrying a full-sibling to the winner, sold to Chris Nolan for $40,000 at the 2021 Keeneland November sale. That Good Magic filly RNA'd for $120,000 at the recently concluded Keeneland September sale.

How Did He Do That is the seventh graded stakes winner for Good Magic, whose son Mage took down this year's GI Kentucky Derby.

Sunday, Remington Park
OKLAHOMA DERBY-GIII, $400,000, Remington, 9-24, 3yo, 1 1/8m, 1:50.34, ft.
1–HOW DID HE DO THAT, 124, c, 3, by Good Magic
               1st Dam: Stormin Maggy (SP), by Storm Cat
                2nd Dam: Maggy Hawk, by Hawkster
                3rd Dam: Qualique, by Hawaii
   1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($190,000 Ylg '21 FTKOCT).
O-J Kirk & Judy Robison; B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings
LLC (KY); T-Steven M. Asmussen; J-Stewart Elliott. $240,000.
Lifetime Record: 14-4-1-1, $562,553. Werk Nick Rating: A+.
   Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the
   free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Red Route One, 124, c, 3, Gun Runner–Red House, by Tapit.
O/B-Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC (KY); T-Steven M. Asmussen.
$80,000.
3–Tumbarumba, 124, g, 3, Oscar Performance–Naive Enough,
by Street Sense. 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($30,000 Ylg '21
FTKOCT). O-Amerman Racing LLC; B-Coteau Grove Farms, LLC
(LA); T-Brian A. Lynch. $44,000.
Margins: NO, NO, 1. Odds: 44.60, 5.20, 6.40.
Also Ran: Raise Cain, Cagliostro, Hit Show, Heroic Move, Groveland, Gunflash, Ghost Hero, Pearl's Earl, Mor Lana Spirit. Scratched: West Coast Cowboy. Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuelTV.

The post Good Magic’s How Did He Do That Gets Best of Blanket Finish in Oklahoma Derby appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Off at 1-20 for this debut, the $950,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select graduate broke a touch awkwardly from his wide draw in this compact field, but soon seized the lead heading into the far turn. Opening up at the top of the lane, the dark bay colt cruised along and extended his margin to eight lengths under a hand ride by jockey Juan Hernandez. Lord Bullingdon (Lord Nelson) at 18-1 odds was second.

The winner is out of a female family which includes GISW Adieu (El Corredor) and MSW Necker Island (Hard Spun). MSW Laurie's Rocket (Bluegrass Cat) is a half-brother to Prince of Monaco's dam, who is responsible for a yearling filly by Munnings and she foaled a filly by Constitution Apr. 22. This is sire Speightstown's eighth 'Rising Star'.

2nd-Los Alamitos, $44,100, Msw, 7-9, 2yo, 5f, :57.21, ft, 8 lengths.
PRINCE OF MONACO, c, 2, Speightstown
                1st Dam: Rainier by Medaglia d'Oro
                2nd Dam: Clay's Rocket by American Chance
                3rd Dam: Irene's Talkin by At the Threshold
Sales History: $950,000 Ylg '22 FTSAUG. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $27,000.

Click for the Equibase.com chart, the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

O-SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Stonestreet Stables LLC, Dianne Bashor, Robert E. Masterson, Waves Edge Capital LLC, Catherine Donovan and Tom Ryan; B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY); T-Bob Baffert.

Cruising to the finish line, Jockey @JJHernandezS19 sits chilly aboard this 2-year-old colt by Speightstown #5 PRINCE OF MONACO ($2.10) to win Race 2 at @losalracing for trainer @BobBaffert. Congratulations to all of the connections! pic.twitter.com/vO5Tb49ZIC

— TVG (@TVG) July 9, 2023

The post Speightstown’s Prince of Monaco Drives Home As Latest ‘TDN Rising Star’ appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Moreover, both Good Magic and the two, star daughters of Dreaming Of Julia are by Curlin, the dual Horse of the Year co-owned by Jackson. And while Good Magic was sold as a $1 million yearling, Stonestreet immediately retrieved a stake and could accordingly celebrate his rise as a racetrack champion and now, in partnership with John Sikura, as an overnight success alongside his sire at Hill 'n' Dale.

It's been a fulfilling experience for all concerned, then, not least Stonestreet's bloodstock adviser John Moynihan–who came on board 18 years ago precisely on the premise that the project would share the same spirit of patient cultivation that had underpinned Jackson's success as a vintner. For just as a long journey divides the planting of a vineyard from the savoring of the wine, so with the sowing of these recent triumphs.

Nowadays, true, no such patience tends to be offered in the commercial judgement of new stallions. If the first sample of grapes don't measure up, they tend to be left to wither on the vine. Yet Good Magic, who had himself confounded the slow-burning Curlin stereotype as a champion juvenile, not only finished second in the freshman championship but is now consolidating with his maturing sophomores. Mage himself, remember, emulated his sire's Derby nemesis Justify in winning the Derby despite not having raced at two.

Mage | ThoroStride

Good Magic broke the mold along with his maiden in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

“Obviously, we'd had a lot of Curlins up to that point,” Moynihan recalls. “And the unique thing about Good Magic was that he was always extremely precocious. A lot of Curlins get better as they mature. But he already looked special at the training center, before we ever sent him to Chad [Brown]. He acted like he was going to be an extremely early horse, to the point where I thought he would start much earlier than he eventually did, in Saratoga.

“So, he was an anomaly that way, but he was also like so many other Curlins that you know will get even better the next year. Had he not run into Justify, we'd have had a Kentucky Derby winner and probably a Preakness winner too.”

To that school of thought, Good Magic has unfinished business at Pimlico on Saturday, in that he probably paid for squaring up so boldly to the Triple Crown winner, just run out of the places in the last strides.

“So, it feels kind of redeeming that he's turning out to be as good a stallion as he has,” Moynihan says. “We obviously bred a lot of nice mares to him, that first crop. And when the foals start hitting the ground, they looked just like he had: medium-sized, precocious-looking horses. And that's how they ran last year, too. But just as he went on to be a very good 3-year-old, so they're now making the same jump. And when a horse does that, in my eyes, they're usually on the road to becoming a very good stallion.”

One neat touch about Good Magic is that he's out of a Glinda the Good, a stakes-winning daughter of Curlin's hard-knocking rival Hard Spun.

“The two horses he kept running against were Street Sense and Hard Spun,” Moynihan reminds us. “And we had a ton of respect for Hard Spun, because he usually set the pace in all those races. Mr. Jackson really wanted to breed to that horse, and Good Magic is the culmination of that. Obviously, we love Curlin and now that he's getting older, to have one of his sons showing so much promise is a huge blessing.”

Glinda the Good's Curlin colt was always so highly regarded that prospectors at the 2016 Keeneland September Sale were advised that the vendors would be eager to retain a significant stake.

“We had put the word out,” confirms Moynihan. “And we talked with Bob Edwards [of E Five Racing] beforehand–we break horses for him at the training center–and said how much we liked the horse and would want to stay in. So, a deal was struck.”

As it happens, Glinda the Good's dam Magical Flash (Miswaki) marginally predates Moynihan's arrival, Jackson having included her among a bunch of mares acquired to support his first stud venture, Saarland. But a rather more focused agenda resulted in Dreaming Of Julia, who has made a remarkable start to her breeding career from just three named foals of racing age.

The first, a daughter of Medaglia d'Oro, was apparently sensational in pre-training but was lost in a starting gate accident. The other two (both, as noted, by Curlin) redressed that tragedy last year as GI Breeders' Cup Distaff winner Malathaat and GII Demoiselle S. scorer Julia Shining.

Dreaming of Julia | Coglianese

Dreaming Of Julia's dam Dream Rush (Wild Rush) had been top of Moynihan's list at Fasig-Tipton in November 2007, having won two Grade I sprints as a sophomore that summer, but the white flag had to be raised at $3.3 million. A couple of years later, however, her purchaser contacted Moynihan and asked whether they were still interested in the mare. Unbelievably, they had just bred her to A.P. Indy–which is just what Stonestreet had planned to do. And the result was Dreaming Of Julia, who won the GI Frizette S.

“You know, Dream Rush had a very light page,” Moynihan admits. “But she could fly. And we thought that if you bred a mare that fast to A.P. Indy, you could get a fast horse, you could also get a Classic horse.”

And from those days onwards, Stonestreet has put a distinctive hallmark on the breed: cycling back to a genetic core, whether cultivated or grafted, while admitting judicious transfusions of external blood and funds. (Malathaat, remember, made $1.05 million as a yearling and Shadwell, another elite program now assisting the family, have chosen Into Mischief for her first cover.)

“Broodmare of the Year felt like a huge accomplishment for us,” Moynihan says. “For an operation such as ours, that takes so much pride in doing things from the ground up, it's the pinnacle. I mean, her mother may have been the fourth or fifth mare that we bought.”

While Stonestreet must also trade, selling 80 to 90 percent of its yearling crop, even to maintain a breed-to-race core demands vision and courage.

“First time I ever met Mr. Jackson, he laid out was what his ambitions were,” Moynihan says. “Breeding to race on any kind of scale was in a massive decline in America. Still is. You just don't have the Mellons, the Phippses, the real sportsmen anymore. But Jess and Barbara had always been creators, in their wine business: they owned the land, they grew the grapes, the whole thing was vertically integrated.”

And that, to Moynihan, was key. He had found subsequent Derby winner Charismatic (Summer Squall) as a weanling for his first big clients, Robert and Beverly Lewis, but they were scaling down with the advancing years. Nor had they been quite so engaged by the breeding side anyway. Thinking on this kind of scale, then, was just what he wanted to hear.

“There's a lot of people out there buying yearlings,” Moynihan remarks. “They buy the yearling, the guy races his horse, they lose track. I've always been part of a program. You buy a weanling or yearling, and you manage that horse through its entire racing life, potentially its breeding life, and you see the fruits of a cyclical process. So, I'm always more interested in building something.”

Stonestreet silks | Coady Photography

As it was, Jackson and Banke brought him out to California, to the vineyards, and he saw for himself that these people would do things properly.

“Mr. Jackson knew, starting off, that we had to work our way up to what he'd call a critical mass of horses,” Moynihan recalls. “He showed me his wine operation, and I saw the best of practices within that, and the scale and the scope of what he did. But it's never just scale. A lot of people in the horse business have been big, but they haven't necessarily been great. But I saw straightaway that here was a person who was extremely passionate; and that a lot of his ideas lined up with the way I'd want to do things. And I thought, 'Well, here's an amazing opportunity to create something really great.'”

By the time he passed, in 2011, Jackson had been party to three consecutive Horse of the Year campaigns: Curlin in 2007 and 2008, and then Rachel Alexandra (Medaglia d'Oro). But it's this longer harvest that Moynihan feels would most please his late patron.

“He always said that one day we should be in a position where we can potentially produce better horses than we can buy on the marketplace,” he says. “And every year now, when we go to the yearling sales and see what's out there to purchase, a lot of times we end up saying, 'Well, we're not going to buy Hip 354 because we already have two of those.'”

That said, it's important that you also sell elite stock; that the market won't suspect you of holding back the cream. So, while two retained filles, Clairiere (Curlin) and Pauline's Pearl (Tapit), made it to the GI Kentucky Oaks in 2022-and have both since become Grade I winners-they could not beat Malathaat.

“No, you absolutely want that, for the people that buy them,” Moynihan emphasizes. “Apart from anything else, you sell the good ones because they tend to bring the most capital. If you think a yearling like Malathaat can bring a million, well, you know what, that's a lot of money. That's one horse doing a lot to fund the program.”

Obviously, we can't expect Moynihan to share too much methodology, but he plainly views racetrack excellence as evidence of a functional pedigree.

“The foundation here in America is speed,” he says. “And races like the Test and the Prioress, those are so difficult to win.  Winning them made Dream Rush the fastest of her generation. And from what I've experienced, that brilliance a lot of times gets passed down to the offspring.

“A lot of people have bought unraced mares with amazing pedigrees and done extremely well, but for me that's somewhat unfamiliar. I've been much more of a results person. If I see a filly go break her maiden by 10, and something happened with her and there's no stakes on the page, I know she had brilliance and that's what interests me.”

But affinity of pedigree emphatically enters the mating equation–where another vital piece of the armory is Moynihan's familiarity, through scouting the sales so thoroughly, with the trademark traits of every stallion.

John Moynihan, 2020 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November Sale

“We take everything into consideration,” Moynihan says. “Everything. It's like we put it all in a box, shake it up, pour it out, and find what gives us the best chance of producing a great racehorse. When we're doing matings, it's eight hours a day for 20, 30 days, locked in a room. And then you finally think yes, this is really going to work–only to come back and critique it maybe five more times before it gets finalized. A tremendous amount of intellectual property goes into mating a Stonestreet mare. That's not to say that it's always going to come out right. But when it does, with a great physical that we can either run or sell, then you feel like all the hard work has paid off; that the model works.”

It's a long road from the computer science degree taken by a young fellow from Frankfort, with a single strand to draw him into the horse business: Ryan Mahan, senior auctioneer at Keeneland, was a family friend. By stages Moynihan became intrigued, immersed. He read the trade press and figured: “You know what, with the securities business, you don't really have any control. But if you learn this business the right way, potentially you could have control.”

One decisive boon, on graduating to a first job at Fasig-Tipton, was being sent to spend time at Belmont Park. “You can't learn about racehorses at a yearling sale,” he was told. “You need to go to the track, look at the finished product. Go look at the sprinters in the Vanderbilt. Look at the two-turn horses in the Jockey Club Gold Cup. The 2-year-olds in the Spinaway, the Hopeful. Then come back to the unproven marketplace, and see what you should be trying to replicate.”

There was also some cherished mentorship from Johnny Jones at Walmac, before Moynihan landed running in his solo career with Lewis.

“I've been so blessed,” he says. “I've had amazing clients that have stuck with me through thick and thin. Bob gave me freedom to see the big picture. That way I really learned the business of procuring and racing a great colt, and coming full circle by being able to sell him to a stallion farm.”

An exciting new cycle for Stonestreet may have begun in the stunning Keeneland debut of American Rascal–yet another Curlin, and the first foal out of the brilliant Lady Aurelia (Scat Daddy).

“But it's such a finite number of these horses that get to the promised land,” Moynihan reflects. “Today, let's face it, everyone is after three or four stallion prospects [in each crop]. There's just a handful of races you have to win if you're trying to make a stallion. Luckily that's just what Good Magic did. But it's very hard to procure those horses today, because besides needing the racing luck, you're also going up against guys that might be spending $50 million on 120 yearlings.”

Moynihan emphasizes the contribution of Sikura to Good Magic. “He's done an amazing job with our stallions,” Moynihan says. “A lot of people think that we just stand our horses there. That's not the way it evolved. John put up his money and bought these horses, whether it be Charlatan off two races, or Maclean's Music off one.

Maclean's Music | Lee Thomas

“The only reason Maclean's Music is a stallion at all is John Sikura. I think a lot of stallion farms look at a resumé and say, 'Well, yeah, we can make money if we stand him for this fee and get paid out two or three years.' I don't think that's his model. I think he wants brilliance. The horses he has on that farm, they're there for a reason. Right or wrong, he believes in those horses and he's willing to put forth that passion to turn them into successful stallions.”

However big the business might become, then, it's nothing without that human spark. And that, evidently, has been no less essential to the evolution of the Stonestreet program under Banke, in the 12 years since the loss of her husband.

“It was always his passion, but Barbara became extremely interested with a horse called Curlin,” says Moynihan. “And when Mr. Jackson passed away, I think she wanted to continue his dream and see what we could accomplish. All credit to Barbara, if she's in town and we're foaling mares, she's there for the foaling. She's not saying, 'Hey, what kind of foal was it?' She's there. I mean, she really cares.

“When some of these things happen, I think all of us ask ourselves: 'How would he feel today?' And I think he would be over the moon, I really do. Because it's exactly what he set out to do. There are so many wealthy people that buy or breed horses: they're in wine, they're in real estate, they're in auto parts, they're a Sheikh from the Middle East. And a lot of them never have any luck. It doesn't necessarily matter how much money you have. It's how you spend it, and how you manage the horses. And so many of these processes were all Mr. Jackson's vision. I'm sure he looks down today and is very proud of what he created.”

The post Stonestreet Team Hoping For Some Good Magic In The Preakness appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

“When we first watched the race, we thought we won, but they kept showing the replay and it got closer each time,” winning trainer Todd Pletcher said with a laugh. “She had a lot of momentum and I was hoping she had enough time to get there. She got her head down at the right moment.”

John Velazquez, who had the best seat in the house, also thought his filly had gotten to the wire first.

“I thought I got the bob and then I wasn't sure,” Velazquez said. “When you have that much trust from a guy like Todd Pletcher who gives me the opportunity to ride these good horses, it makes it easy when you have to make adjustments during the race.”

Of Malathaat, who has now won 10 of 13 starts, Velazquez said, “Every race she runs, she shows up. She is a tough mare and I will miss her if they retire her.”

Connections of the second and third-place finishers were justifiably proud of the efforts of their charges.

“She ran absolutely great,” said Blue Stripe's trainer Marcelo Polanco, while trainer Steve Asmussen said of Clairiere, “She ran a fabulous race. It was just inches… inches…”

The 2022 renewal will join the 2016 battle royale between Beholder and Songbird and the epic 1988 showdown between Personal Ensign and Winning Colors in the annals of Distaff history.

Malathaat won last year's GI Kentucky Oaks and GI Alabama S. before ending her sophomore season with a third-place effort in the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff en route to earning year-end championship honors. Second behind Clairiere in the GI Ogden Phipps S. and GII Shuvee S. this past summer, the regally bred filly came into this year's championship weekend off wins in the Aug. 27 GI Personal Ensign S. and over the Distaff's track and trip in the Oct. 9 GI Spinster S.

Asked if Malathaat had run her last race, Shadwell manager Gregory Clarke said, “Wouldn't it be lovely if she stayed in training? But what she's accomplished is just incredible. We're just so blessed. We've gotten this far with her. She's at the top of her game. We'll see what Sheikha Hissa and the family want to do. But she's a machine. She really is. We're over the moon.”

Pedigree Notes:

Malathaat's victory gave Curlin his third winner on the Breeders' Cup card Saturday, following Elite Power's win in the Sprint and Cody's Wish's win in the Dirt Mile.

Dreaming of Julia, winner of the 2012 GI Frizette S., produced a filly by Medaglia d'Oro last year and a filly by Curlin this year. A daughter of 2007 GI Test S. winner Dream Rush and a half-sister to graded winner Dream Pauline (Tapit), she was bred back to Into Mischief.

Saturday, Keeneland
LONGINES BREEDERS' CUP DISTAFF-GI, $1,800,000, Keeneland, 11-5, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/8m, 1:49.07, ft.
1–MALATHAAT, 124, f, 4, by Curlin
           1st Dam: Dreaming of Julia (GISW, $874,500), by A.P. Indy
           2nd Dam: Dream Rush, by Wild Rush
           3rd Dam: Turbo Dream, by Unbridled
($1,050,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). 'TDN Rising Star'. O-Shadwell Stable; B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY); T-Todd Pletcher; J-John R. Velazquez. $1,040,000. Lifetime Record: Ch. 3yo Filly, 14-10-3-1, $3,790,825. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree or free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Blue Stripe (Arg), 124, m, 5, by Equal Stripes (Arg)
           1st Dam: Blues for Sale (Arg) (MGSW-Arg), by Not For Sale (Arg)
           2nd Dam: Key Cure, by Cure the Blues
           3rd Dam: Dancer's Key, by Key to the Mint
O-Pozo de Luna, Inc.; B-La Manija (ARG); T-Marcelo Polanco. $340,000.
3–Clairiere, 124, f, 4, by Curlin
           1st Dam: Cavorting (MGISW, $2,063,000), by Bernardini
           2nd Dam: Promenade Girl, by Carson City
           3rd Dam: Promenade Colony, by Pleasant Colony
O-Stonestreet Stables LLC; B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY); T-Steven M. Asmussen. $180,000.
Margins: NO, NO, 3 1/4. Odds: 2.88, 24.02, 6.13.
Also Ran: Nest, Secret Oath, Search Results, Society, Awake At Midnyte.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs.

The post No Maybe About It: Malathaat Wins as Distaff Delivers Again appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

“By the quarter pole, I saw Tyler [Gaffalione] was tapping on [Letruska], and I thought, 'You know what, I'm going to pass him and hopefully that discourages him,'” said winning rider John Velazquez. “Malathaat kept running today. Normally when she gets to the lead she slows down, and she did, but at the same time she was running a little bit. Right at the wire, she [moved sideways] and she almost left me at the wire. But she was much the best today.”

Malathaat is now three-for-three over the Keeneland strip where she will attempt to win the Distaff–a race she was third in at Del Mar last year–Nov. 5.

Looking ahead to the Breeders 'Cup, trainer Todd Pletcher said, “She seems to love the track here. She's three for three here now, so that's always encouraging, to know one handles the surface well.”

Among Malathaat's challengers at Keeneland next month will be another daughter of Curlin who romped to a graded victory Sunday; the 3-year-old Nest bested her elders with an effortless victory in the GII Beldame S. at Aqueduct.

Last year's champion 3-year-old filly with wins in the GI Kentucky Oaks, GI Alabama S. and GI Ashland S., Malathaat looks to only be getting better at four. She opened 2022 with a win in the GIII Doubledogdare S. and, following runner-up efforts behind Clairiere (Curlin) in the June 11 GI Ogden Phipps S. and July 24 GII Shuvee S., she returned to the winner's circle in the Aug. 27 GI Personal Ensign S. last time out.

“It's great when you have one in their third year of training and you get to know them pretty well and kind of know what they like,” said Pletcher. “You could tell that this year she's a bigger, stronger version of last year's self and needed a little more training. That's why last year we opted to go from the GI Alabama to the Breeders' Cup. But this year we thought with an older, more mature filly that's carrying more condition, that a prep race in between was more appropriate.”

Pedigree Notes:

Dreaming of Julia, winner of the 2013 GI Frizette S., has a yearling filly by Medaglia d'Oro and a weanling filly by Curlin. She was bred back to Into Mischief this year.

In addition to Malathaat's win Sunday, Curlin was represented over the weekend by Elite Power, who captured the GII Vosburgh S. Saturday and Nest, who won the GII Beldame S. Sunday.

Sunday, Keeneland
JUDDMONTE SPINSTER S.-GI, $600,000, Keeneland, 10-9, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/8m, 1:51.05, ft.
1–MALATHAAT, 124, f, 4, by Curlin
               1st Dam: Dreaming of Julia (GISW, $874,500), by A.P. Indy
               2nd Dam: Dream Rush, by Wild Rush
               3rd Dam: Turbo Dream, by Unbridled
($1,050,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-Shadwell Stable;
B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY); T-Todd A.
Pletcher; J-John R. Velazquez. $372,000. 'TDN Rising Star'
Lifetime Record: Ch. 3-year-old filly, 13-9-3-1, $2,750,825.
Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree or the
free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Army Wife, 124, f, 4, by Declaration of War
               1st Dam: Tread, by Arch
               2nd Dam: Scoot Yer Boots, by Seeking the Gold
               3rd Dam: Whirl Series, by Roberto
($50,000 Ylg '19 FTKFEB; $190,000 2yo '20 OBSAPR).
O-Three Diamonds Farm; B-J D Stuart & AR Enterprises, Inc.
(KY); T-Michael J. Maker. $120,000.
3–Played Hard, 124, f, 4, by Into Mischief
               1st Dam: Well Lived, by Tiznow
               2nd Dam: Well Dressed, by Notebook
               3rd Dam: Trithenia, by Gold Meridian
1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($280,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-Rigney
Racing, LLC; B-Susan Casner (KY); T-Philip A. Bauer. $60,000.
Margins: 5 1/4, 3 1/4, 8 1/4. Odds: 0.44, 22.27, 4.14.
Also Ran: Letruska, Princess of Cairo.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post Malathaat Cruises to Spinster Victory appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post