Unbridled's Song | Horse Racing Free Tips

Bird Song Sold to Saudi Arabia

Multiple graded stakes winner Bird Song (Unbridled’s Song–Bird Town, by Cape Town) has been purchased to continue his stud career in Saudi Arabia in a deal brokered by Chad Schumer of Schumer Bloodstock. The 7-year-old previously stood at Gainesway Farm, with his oldest crop being yearlings of this year.

Trained by Ian Wilkes on behalf of Marylou Whitney, Bird Song won the GII Alysheba S. and GIII Fred W. Hooper S. as a 4-year-old in 2017 and finished his career with over $500,000 in earnings. His dam, who captured the GI Kentucky Oaks in 2013, is a half to 2004 GI Belmont S. and GI Travers S. hero Birdstone (Grindstone), who also stood at Gainesway until being pensioned to Old Friends last year.

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Taylor Made’s Stallion Program on the Rise

Since the loss of Taylor Made’s signature stallion Unbridled’s Song seven years ago, the farm has worked to regain its footing in the ever-evolving, ever-competitive business of stallion development. The first step, finding prospective stallions that fit a specific program, often proves to be the most difficult.

“What do you look for in a stallion?” asked Taylor Made’s Frank Taylor. “The one thing we know is nobody knows who is going to be a great stallion. If anybody tells you they do, they’re not telling the truth.”

Ben Taylor, Vice President of Taylor Made Stallions, added that once you find a good fit, the price tag behind the prospect can often make consideration unrealistic.

“We are constantly on the lookout, but the market has been so difficult in the last few years and the competition so fierce,” Ben said. “Everybody seems to be after the same ones and the payouts are just so astronomical that we haven’t been able to get some of the upper-end stallions. So we just pick our spots and try to be ready for opportunity when it presents itself and take advantage of it. We’re trying to get stallions that we believe in and can get behind, but it’s tough. We really needed a horse like Not This Time to come on.”

Not This Time (Giant’s Causeway), currently the leading first-crop sire by winners, has been an up-and-comer to watch all year with his offspring showing his precocity on the track while proving to be increasingly popular at the sales.

“They’re early, I think they’re going to go the distance and they’re running on both surfaces,” Ben said. “He reminds me of Unbridled’s Song in that he’s good-looking, his horses are talented and are all a pretty good size. In fact, I think he may be a little better than Unbridled’s Song from a physical standpoint because he gets the perfect-sized horse. He’s flawless and his babies resemble him.”

Not This Time already has the clout of having sired a GISW in ‘TDN Rising Star’ Princess Noor, who romped to victory in the GI Del Mar Debutante S. earlier this month.

“Princess Noor is unbelievable,” Ben said. “They really haven’t asked her to run yet, so they say, so it’ll be interesting to see what happens going forward. She’s an unbelievable talent for sure.”

Princess Noor takes the GI Del Mar Debutante S. | Benoit

Her sire had shown the same promise as a juvenile under Dale Romans, breaking his maiden by 10 lengths and then taking the GIII Iroquois S. by just under nine. After a close second in the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, a soft tissue injury forced the son of Giant’s Causeway to end his racing career.

“We’re very lucky to have Not This Time,” Ben admitted. “If he would have gone on and had the opportunity to compete as a 3-year-old, we probably wouldn’t have him.”

In the same year that Taylor Made welcomed Not This Time to their roster, they also added dual GISW Mshawish (Medaglia d’Oro).

“He’s a little bit under the radar, I think,” Ben said. “But he’s had a few horses run really well in major maiden races with quality fields. They’re horses that want to go longer, so a lot of them haven’t started yet, but they’re showing a lot of talent and I think you’re going to see more of them popping up.”

In the class following Not This Time and Mshawish, GISW Midnight Storm’s (Pioneerof the Nile) first yearlings are now hitting the sales ring.

Two Midnight Storm yearlings brought six figures at the Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase, and several dozen youngsters are catalogued to go through the ring in the following days at Keeneland. His headliner at Fasig-Tipton, a colt out of Chickasaw Gal (Indian Charlie), brought $200,000 off a $12,500 stud fee.

“The yearlings that have sold so far have sold well,” Ben said. “From day one, we’ve had reports from people who bred to him say, ‘Hey, I got a great one. I want to breed another mare.’ He’s from a sire line that I’m really excited about and I think is going to make a big impact going forward.”

On September 11, Taylor Made announced a new addition to their roster for 2021 in ‘TDN Rising Star’ Instagrand, a son of top sire Into Mischief who will stand for an initial fee of $7,500.

“I’m very excited about Instagrand because he is a powerful, strong, good-looking horse and he’s by Into Mischief, who is just dominating the business right now,” Frank said. “Instagrand’s first two starts were unbelievable. The greatest stallions, I think, have brilliance.”

A $1.2 million joint sale-topping purchase for Larry Best’s OXO Equine at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Sale, the flashy colt broke his maiden in near record-breaking fashion at Los Alamitos and then took the GII Best Pal S. at Del Mar by over 10 lengths. After a layoff, the sophomore placed in two graded stakes including the GI Santa Anita Derby.

Frank said he believes that one of the keys to Instagrand’s early success at stud will be the support he receives from first-time stallion owner Larry Best.

Instagrand named ‘TDN Rising Star’ after ten-length maiden win | Benoit

“Instagrand has OXO Stallions behind him and Larry is very excited,” he said. “He’s going to support him with a lot of mares, and he’s going to buy his weanlings and yearlings at the sales. So he believes in the horse fully and is going to put his power behind him, which is going to be a great thing for breeders. We think he’s got a really big shot.”

Frank reflected on the eventful season it has been for the Taylor Made Stallions program.

“We’ve been doing it for 20-some years and we’ve had great success. We’ve gotten really lucky and blessed now to have Not This Time and to have Midnight Storm and Mshawish coming up. We’re really excited to add Instagrand to the program.”

Ben agreed that in the game of making stallions, luck is always a major player.

“We’ve been very fortunate to have the success we have had with the limited number of stallions. We’ve had Saint Ballado, Unbridled’s Song and Forestry. Something I always ask to myself is ‘How many times are you going to be lucky?’ And it takes luck to have a stallion reach the top, no matter how good a job you do.”

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Arrogate Yearlings Keep the Torch Burning

Arrogate’s first book of 143 mares, a who’s who of some of the top breeding stock in the country, reflected the jaw-dropping career of North America’s richest racehorse. Dual Eclipse Champion Songbird (Medaglia d’Oro) was one of several champions sent to Arrogate during his first year at stud.

“Arrogate’s first book was incredibly special,” said Juddmonte’s Stallions Nominations Manager Leif Aaron. “Half of the book was graded stakes winners or graded stakes producers, and a quarter of it was Grade I winners or Grade I producers. Breeders brought their very best mares to Arrogate.”

That first book has now transformed into a formidable group of yearlings. No one could have predicted the circumstances in which Arrogate’s first offspring would enter the sales ring. Soon after they turned yearlings, a worldwide pandemic ensued, accompanied by an uncertain market. Then months later, the tragic death of their sire rocked the racing world.

“His death was an incredible loss for the breed,” lamented Tom Hinkle.

Hinkle Farms will have one member of each crop from Arrogate, with a yearling and weanling currently on the farm and a mare in foal to Arrogate.

“Of the two that we have, I couldn’t be more pleased. They’re very similar- strong, a lot of leg and a lot of bone,” Hinkle said.

The yearling, a colt out of the Storm Cat mare Crosswinds, is slated as Hip 116 in the Keeneland September Sale. The youngster is a half-brother to two graded stakes winners including GIW Weep No More (Mineshaft).

“He’s a really handsome colt,” Hinkle said. “He’s big and strong, and is very correct. From day one, he’s been a pleasure to be around. He was always very competitive in the paddock and is willing to do whatever we ask of him.”

An additional 54 Arrogate yearlings are set for the Keeneland sale, and 12 more are cataloged for the Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase.

“Arrogate is going to be well-represented,” Aaron said of the two upcoming sales. “This would be a great opportunity for buyers to go out and get what could possibly be a piece of history. At the end of the day, we’re only going to have three crops from him and who knows what he’ll be. He could be anything. I mean, he was one of the greatest racehorses of all time.”

Arrogate colt out of Crosswinds | EquiSport Photo

Aaron said he believes that the trends in Arrogate’s yearlings are representative of the physicals that buyers are looking for.

“We’re excited because right now, the two things everybody wants is scope and substance,” said Aaron. “With the Arrogates, we’re really seeing that. To me, it’s a good mixture of the scope and prettiness of Unbridled’s Song, but the substance that Distorted Humor throws in.”

The Juddmonte connections took notice of Arrogate’s physical at the Keeneland September Sale, where they purchased him as a yearling for $560,000.

“He was a very balanced horse,” Aaron noted. “He had a ton of bone as a yearling, which is something he’s really putting into his offspring, but he still had that stretch that Unbridled’s Song gives you– the two-turn, Classic-looking horse that covers a lot of ground. And then the Baffert secret ingredient was the speed and the ability to carry that speed over two turns.”

That ability was taken to the big stage on August 27, 2016, when Arrogate stormed to victory in the GI Travers in a 13-and-a-half-length, record-breaking performance.

“Arrogate’s Travers was absolutely a special day,” Aaron recalled. “When he came in that race and blew away the field and set a track record doing it, I think it was pretty obvious to everybody how good he was and what kind of star he could be.”

After clinching three more Grade I wins including a Breeder’s Cup Championship, Arrogate retired from racing and joined the roster at Juddmonte. That same year, Leif Aaron took on the role as Stallion Nominations Manager.

“Coming here with Arrogate was very exciting for me because my first job was at Juddmonte when I was 16, mucking stalls,” he remembered. “So to come back with Arrogate to help be a part of running his book was very special to me. I got to deal with a lot of top-class breeders and top-class mares.”

In meeting Arrogate’s offspring over the past two years, Aaron said he has found a common thread in the group.

“One of the traits that Arrogate possessed and that his offspring also possess is kind of an intangible trait, but it’s his personality,” he said. “They’re horses that want to be on the move. Arrogate was always tough to stand up for pictures because he wanted to be doing something. He absolutely had that will to win, and I’m glad to see his offspring showing some of that same trait.”

As the Arrogate yearlings make their way to the sales in the coming days, the next chapter begins in the champion’s story.

“This year with the yearling sales, it’s a little bittersweet,” Aaron admitted. “Losing Arrogate was a massive loss for the farm. It was a massive loss to the breeders that supported him, and it was a massive loss to the fans. I think the history books will show that it was a massive loss to the breed. He was such a talent and his offspring look absolutely special. He has every chance underneath him to keep the torch going, and we would love to see that happen.”

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