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Claiborne Announces 2021 Stud Fees; War Front Dropped to $150K

Claiborne Farm has released stud fees for the majority of its stallions who will stand at the Paris, Ky.-based farm during the upcoming 2021 breeding season, which included a significant reduction in price for its international super-sire War Front.

Among Claiborne’s 13 stallions, War Front leads the charge with a stud fee of $150,000. The internationally acclaimed son of Danzig and emerging sire of sires is North America’s top sire by percentage of lifetime stakes winners, graded stakes winners, and Grade I winners. In 2020, War Front has added three new Grade I winners to his record, bringing his lifetime total to 23, second in North America behind only Tapit’s 27.

War Front’s most recent Grade I winners include Flower Bowl S. heroine Civil Union and GI Fourstardave H. victor Halladay, as well as classic winner War of Will, who will stand alongside his sire at Claiborne Farm for the upcoming breeding season. In the sales ring, he had a yearling filly sell to Mike Ryan at Keeneland September for $1.05 million and on the racetrack, no other sire in North America has more Grade I winners than War Front in 2020.

War Front previously stood for $250,000, which was the highest advertised fee in North America.

“In these unprecedented times, we felt it would be irresponsible to raise or keep some stud fees the same as last year, despite our stallions having outstanding success in the sales ring and on the racetrack,” said Claiborne President Walker Hancock. “It is now more important than ever that we do what is best for the sustainability of our industry.”

Eclipse champion and three-time Grade I winner Blame (Arch) will stand for $30,000. One of the leading sires of his crop with 63 stakes horses and 30 stakes winners lifetime, his 16 graded stakes winners include Nadal, winner of this year’s GI Arkansas Derby. Yearlings sired by Blame have sold for up to $400,000 this year.

Flatter, the prolific son of A.P. Indy, will stand for $35,000. He has sired more than 100 stakes horses and 50 stakes winners lifetime, including recent champions West Coast and Avie’s Flatter. This year, his 2-year-olds sold for up to $600,000, while his yearlings brought up to $330,000 in the sales ring.

Mastery, the undefeated Grade I-winning son of Candy Ride (Arg), will remain at $25,000. The much-anticipated first yearlings by Mastery sold for $510,000, $450,000 and $400,000 this year, with an average of $142,425.

Catholic Boy (More Than Ready) and Demarchelier (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who both stood their first seasons at Claiborne in 2020, will remain unchanged at $25,000 and $5,000, respectively. First Samurai (Giant’s Causeway), the sire of undefeated 2-year-old filly Plum Ali, a Breeders’ Cup hopeful and winner of the recent GII Miss Grillo S., will stand for $15,000. Stud fees for Eclipse Champion Runhappy (Super Saver) and War of Will will be announced following the Breeders’ Cup. GI Preakness S. hero War of Will added a score in the GI Maker’s Mark Mile S. at Keeneland this summer and is being pointed for the Breeders’ Cup.

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War Front Leads Claiborne Farm’s 2021 Stallion Roster

The Hancock family's Claiborne Farm announced stud fees Oct. 15 for a number of their stallions that will stand at the Paris, Ky-based farm during the upcoming 2021 breeding season.

Among 13 stallions, War Front leads the charge with a stud fee of $150,000. The internationally acclaimed son of Danzig and emerging sire of sires is North America's #1 sire by percentage of lifetime stakes winners, graded stakes winners, and Grade 1 winners. In 2020, War Front has added three new Grade 1 winners to his record, bringing his lifetime total to 23, the most of any stallion in North America behind only Tapit with 27.

War Front's most recent Grade 1 winners include Breeders' Cup hopefuls Civil Union and Halladay, as well as classic winner War of Will, who will stand alongside his sire at Claiborne Farm for the upcoming breeding season.

In the sales ring, War Front continued his reign among leading sires with yearlings commanding prices up to $1,050,000. On the racetrack, no other sire in North America has more Grade 1 winners than War Front in 2020.

“In these unprecedented times, we felt it would be irresponsible to raise or keep some stud fees the same as last year, despite our stallions having outstanding success in the sales ring and on the racetrack,” said Claiborne president Walker Hancock. “It is now more important than ever that we do what is best for the sustainability of our industry.”

Eclipse champion and three-time Grade 1 winner Blame will stand for $30,000. Ranked among the top of his crop with 63 stakes horses and 30 stakes winners lifetime, his 16 graded stakes winners include Nadal, winner of this year's Grade 1 Arkansas Derby. Yearlings sired by Blame have sold up to $400,000 this year.

Flatter, the prolific son of A.P. Indy, will stand for $35,000. He has sired more than 100 stakes horses and 50 stakes winners lifetime, including recent champions West Coast and Avie's Flatter. This year, his 2-year-olds sold for up to $600,000, while yearlings brought up to $330,000 in the sales ring.

Mastery, the undefeated Grade 1-winning son of Candy Ride (ARG), will remain at $25,000. The much-anticipated first yearlings by Mastery sold for $510,000, $450,000, and $400,000 this year, with an average of $142,425.

Catholic Boy and Demarchelier, who both stood their first seasons at Claiborne in 2020, will remain unchanged. Catholic Boy, one of only three North American 3-year-old colts in history to win Grade 1 events on both dirt and turf, will stand for $25,000. Demarchelier, the only son of top international sire Dubawi standing in Kentucky, will stand for $5,000.

First Samurai, the proven son of Giant's Causeway, will stand for $15,000. He is the sire of undefeated 2-year-old sensation Plum Ali, a Breeders' Cup hopeful and winner of the recent G2 Miss Grillo Stakes. Yearlings by First Samurai have sold for $260,000, $250,000, $240,000, etc. this year.

Stud fees for Eclipse champion Runhappy and War of Will will be announced following the Breeders' Cup.

Preakness Stakes hero War of Will, a classic-winning son of War Front, will join his sire at Claiborne Farm for stud duty in 2021. A Grade 1 winner on both dirt and turf, War of Will captured the G1 Maker's Mark Mile Stakes at Keeneland this summer and is pointed towards the Breeders' Cup.

See Claiborne's full stallion roster and 2021 stud fees below:

Algorithms
Bernardini—Ava Knowsthecode, by Cryptoclearance
Fee: $5,000

Blame
Arch—Liable, by Seeking the Gold
Fee: $30,000

Catholic Boy
More Than Ready – Song of Bernadette, by Bernardini
Fee: $25,000

Demarchelier (GB)
Dubawi (GB) – Loveisallyouneed, by Sadler's Wells
Fee: $5,000

First Samurai
Giant's Causeway—Freddie Frisson, by Dixieland Band
Fee: $15,000

Flatter
A.P. Indy—Praise, by Mr. Prospector
Fee: $35,000

Ironicus
Distorted Humor—Meghan's Joy, by A.P. Indy
Fee: $5,000

Lea
First Samurai—Greenery, by Galileo (IRE)
Fee: $5,000

Mastery
Candy Ride (ARG)—Steady Course, by Old Trieste
Fee: $25,000

Orb
Malibu Moon—Lady Liberty, by Unbridled
Fee: Private

Runhappy
Super Saver—Bella Jolie, by Broken Vow
Fee: TBA

War Front
Danzig—Starry Dreamer, by Rubiano
Fee: $150,000

War of Will
War Front – Visions of Clarity (IRE), by Sadler's Wells
Fee: TBA

(All stud fee payable Live Foal Stands & Nurses)

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Dual-Surface Colt War Of Will Likely To Make Final Career Start In Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile

Though War of Will has campaigned exclusively on the turf in 2020, including a victory in the Grade 1 Maker's Mark Mile in July, the 4-year-old son of War Front will return to the dirt next month at Keeneland in what is likely to be his final career start.

According to bloodhorse.com, trainer Mark Casse is planning to enter Gary Barber's colt in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile on Nov. 7.

“It would be nice—he's already a grade 1 winner on the turf this year—to win another grade 1 on the dirt,” Casse told bloodhorse.com. “This will probably be his last start I would say before he retires to stud.”

War of Will will stand at Claiborne Farm for the 2021 season.

As a 3-year-old, War of Will won the Grade 1 Preakness Stakes, the G2 Risen Star, and the G3 Lecomte, while also placing third in the G1 Pennsylvania Derby. He'd run on turf as a 2-year-old, finishing second in the G1 Summer Stakes at Woodbine and fifth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf.

Most recently, War of Will finished third in the G1 Woodbine Mile. Overall, the colt's record stands at 5-1-3 from 17 starts with earnings of $1,871,803.

Equibase Analysis: War Of Will, March To The Arch Stand Out In Woodbine Mile

The Grade 1, $1 million Ricoh Woodbine Mile is always a highly anticipated fixture as the northern hemisphere transitions from summer to fall and this year's edition is no exception. A “Win & You're In” for the Breeders' Cup Mile, this year's edition drew a strong field of eight, led by a pair of standouts from the barn of Mark Casse in War of Will and March to the Arch. War of Will is one of those, perhaps best remembered for winning the Grade 1 Preakness Stakes in 2019. However, the talented colt who leads the field in career earnings at $1.7 million, ran on turf in the first four races of his career and enters the race off a win on grass in the Grade 1 Maker's Mark Mile in July. March to the Arch proved he belonged in top company on grass when winning the Grade 2 Wise Dan Stakes in June, 2019 and renewed that form last month when victorious in the Grade 2 King Edward Stakes at Woodbine.

Admiralty Pier finished second in the King Edward and certainly fits in this field as a contender, as does recent Grade 3 Vigil Stakes runner-up Olympic Runner. Armistice Day won the Toronto Cup Stakes in 2019, the same race March to the Arch won the previous year, and makes his third start off a layoff so he may have a say in the outcome as well. Value Proposition (GB) has just five races under his belt but his third place effort in the Grade 3 Poker Stakes this summer suggests he has enough talent to be a factor. Even more lightly raced is Shirl's Speight, who has run two races to date. However, this three year old who was considered for the Kentucky Derby earlier this month is a perfect two-for-two in his career and has potential to surprise a few people with another top effort.

Last, but certainly not least, is the mare Starship Jubilee, who is second in career earnings at $1.6 million. Starship Jubilee has won 18 races in her career including six on the Woodbine turf. She enters the race off a fourth place effort in the Grade 1 Diana Stakes at Saratoga and won the Grade 2 Ballston Spa Stakes prior to that and a repeat of that effort, or when winning the Grade 1 E. P. Taylor Stakes last October at Woodbine, gives her a more than decent shot at being in the thick of the action at the finish in this year's Ricoh Woodbine Mile.

War of Will may be best known for winning the Preakness Stakes in 2019 but when considering his chances to win this year's Ricoh Woodbine Mile on turf one need look no further than his races before getting on the Road to the Derby last year, and his most recent starts. Being by a tremendous turf sire in War Front, War of Will began his career on turf in the fall of 2018, finishing third before entering the Summer Stakes still as a maiden in only the second start of his career. Nearly pulling off the upset at 10/1 in that race when leading late before settling for second, War of Will then nearly won the Bourbon Stakes at Keeneland when fourth in a blanket finish on the wire. After a fifth place finish in the 2018 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf and after breaking his maiden on dirt, War of Will set his sights on the Kentucky Derby, winning the Lecomte Stakes and Risen Star Stakes before poorer efforts in the Louisiana Derby and an eighth place finish in the Kentucky Derby. After rebounding to win the Preakness, War of Will finished third or worse in five races on dirt before returning to the turf. The first of those efforts came in the Shoemaker Mile in May in which he raced close up early before tiring to fifth in a ten horse field. A little of six weeks later, War of Will arguably ran his best race ever, gamely rallying in the stretch to win the Maker's Mark Mile by a nose and earning a 115 Equibase Speed Figure, the best winning figure of his career. The reason for that effort appears to be the removal of blinkers for that race so there is every reason to believe the effort, and its winning result, are repeatable, making War of Will the one to beat in this year's Ricoh Woodbine Mile.

March to the Arch is also a strong contender to win the Ricoh Woodbine Mile. On six occasions in 21 career turf races, March to the Arch has come out on top. The best of those came last year came when he won the Wise Dan Stakes with a strong 104  figure. However, as a five year old March to the Arch has run even better. In his second start of 2020, March to the Arch fought gamely and lost by a nose and a head in the Tampa Bay Stakes with a career-best 115 figure. Following a poor 10th place effort in this year's Shoemaker Mile, March to the Arch was only beaten two lengths although sixth when defending his title in the Wise Dan before returning to Woodbine last month, where he won the Toronto Cup Stakes in 2018. Prepping for the Ricoh Woodbine Mile last month in the King Edward Stakes, March to the Arch was quite impressive in rallying from last in the field of eight to assert himself late and win by two and one-quarter lengths. The 112 figure was the second best last race figure in the field, bettered only by that of War of Will, who is also trained by Mark Casse. Getting the ground saving rail for this race, March to the Arch appears to be the biggest challenge to War of Will and has every right to win his second straight graded stakes in a row at the distance of one mile on turf.

Admiralty Pier led from the start in the King Edward and although beaten by two and one-quarter lengths at the end by March to the Arch ran one of the best races of his career. Earning a 109 figure for in the King Edward, Admiralty Pier is likely to be the controlling speed in the Ricoh Woodbine Mile. He won the Tampa Bay Derby with a career-best 115 figure in February, defeating March to the Arch in the process, and he's on a pattern to get back to that type of effort as he earned a 103 figure when second in the Connaught Cup in July before a 109 figure in the King Edward. As such, we should not rule out the possibility Admiralty Pier could post the upset in this race.

The rest of the field, with their best Equibase Speed Figures, is Armistice Day (103), Olympic Runner (99), Shirl's Speight (97) Starship Jubilee (119 in 2018) and Value Proposition (GB) (99).

Win Contenders (in probability/preference order):
War of Will
March to the Arch
Admiralty Pier

Ricoh Woodbine Mile – Grade 1
Race 9 at Woodbine
Saturday, September 19 – Post Time 5:59 PM E.T.
One Mile on Turf
Three Years Olds and Upward
Purse: $1 Million

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