Some things are too obvious to require heavy interpretation. The winner of the Grade 2 Santa Ynez Stakes, Under the Stars, illustrates one of these. Three of the four stakes horses out of the Storm Cat mare Untouched Talent are by Belmont Stakes winner Empire Maker (by Unbridled), Empire Maker's best stallion son, Pioneerof the Nile, and his son, Triple Crown winner American Pharoah.
Untouched Talent's three stakes horses just mentioned are Grade 1 winner Bodemeister (Empire Maker), who won the Arkansas Derby, then finished second in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness; Under the Stars (Pioneerof the Nile), winner of the G2 Santa Ynez on Jan. 8; and Himiko, a $1-million weanling by American Pharoah, who ran third in the Iowa Distaff last year as a 4-year-old.
From the evidence of three quality black-type performers by sires from Mr. Prospector's Fappiano line out of 11 foals, Untouched Talent matches well with the aptitude and physical quality of this line, perhaps with Mr. Prospector sires overall. The mare's fourth stakes horse is Fascinating, a daughter of Mr. Prospector's very successful son Smart Strike, who ran second in the G1 Del Mar Debutante and third in the G1 Chandelier.
In addition to the quality that Untouched Talent is sharing with her offspring, the mare had plenty of talent herself. She won two of her four starts, including the G3 Sorrento Stakes at Del Mar, where she also placed second in the G1 Del Mar Debutante. Shipped across the country to Keeneland, Untouched Talent was second in the Alcibiades.
Untouched Talent is one of two stakes winners and several racers of ability from the A.P. Indy mare Parade Queen, winner of a pair of stakes at the Grade 3 level. She produced Grade 3 winner Untouched Talent; listed stakes winner King Gulch (Gulch); Top Billing (Curlin), third in the G2 Fountain of Youth; Kydd Gloves (Dubai Millennium), winner in two of three starts and dam of Grade 1 winner She's a Julie (Elusive Quality); and Obay (Kingmambo), who was a champion in Saudi Arabia.
Parade Queen was the only stakes winner from her dam, Spanish Parade, a stakes winner by English Derby winner Roberto. But Spanish Parade also foaled a full sister to Parade Queen, the A.P. Indy mare Post Parade, who produced four stakes winners, two here in the States and another pair in Japan.
From this material alone, this is clearly a very solid pedigree: wall to wall with quality sires, producers, and performers.
Generation after generation of the tabulated pedigree indicates that the genetic ancestry of excellence is proving out on the racecourse in athleticism and competitive ability. Ricked up like this in a five-cross or six-cross pedigree, we can see the volume of production and performance that results in true depth of family for a Thoroughbred.
Depth of family is the concept that superior racers are developed through repeated layerings of high-class sires onto dam lines of similar athleticism. The overarching principle is that if each generation has shown its ability to race effectively or produce stock that does, a breeder doesn't have to fill holes or compensate for weaknesses.
Under the Stars, for example, is by a sire of proven classic importance, and the succeeding sires include winners of the Belmont Stakes and English Derby, the American and the English Triple Crowns.
English Triple Crown winner Nijinsky is the sire of the Nijit, fourth dam of Under the Stars. On the racetrack, Nijit placed second in a couple of minor stakes and was third in the G2 Cotillion. Her full brother Beaudelaire did somewhat better, winning four of seven starts, including the G2 Prix Maurice de Gheest.
They are out of a mare named Bitty Girl, who showed herself one of the best juvenile fillies of 1973 in England, when she won the Queen Mary, Lowther, and Molecomb Stakes. Her successes helped to make her sire Habitat (Sir Gaylord) the leading freshman sire of 1973 in England, as well as the leading sire of juveniles overall. Habitat's son Habat was the highweighted colt of the crop; Bitty Girl was co-highweight among the fillies.
Sent to America and retired to stud, Bitty Girl was covered by Nijinsky and set this sequence of excellence in motion.
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