Blame gets first Group 1 winner in French classic

Eclipse Award champion Blame, standing at historic Claiborne Farm in Kentucky, has flirted with progeny victories in major Grade 1 events, as one might expect. Blameitonthelaw was third behind champion Nyquist in the 2015 Del Mar Futurity, and Going for Broke was second to champion Songbird in the 2016 Alabama Stakes. But Blame’s first Grade/Group 1 winner came in a classic on turf in France, as Senga scored in the Prix de Diane, or French Oaks, over the weekend.

Blame, a Grade 2 winner on Polytrack who never raced on turf, has 11 stakes winners, seven on turf. Senga is joined by Grade 3 winner Onus, a multiple course record setter, as well as stakes winners Exaggerated, Firsthand Report, Nobody’s Fault, Queen Caroline, and Sweet Victory. The stallion’s dirt runners are led by graded winners Far From Over and March.

Blame has lived up to a versatile sire line. Arch is best known for his dirt runners, with champion Blame joined by Grade 1 winners Archarcharch, Hymn Book, and Pine Island. But his standouts also included Canadian Horse of the Year Arravale, a multiple Grade 1 winner on turf, as well as turf Grade/Group 1 winners Grand Arch, Les Arcs, and Prince Arch.

Arch was one of several main-track Grade 1 winners for Kris S., a group led by Eclipse Award winners Action This Day and Hollywood Wildcat. But the Roberto stallion’s best runner was two-time Japanese Horse of the Year Symboli Kris S. He also sired Eclipse Award champion turf mare Soaring Softly, Breeders’ Cup Turf winner Prized, Epsom Derby winner Kris Kin, and Grade/Group 1 winners Dr Fong, Kicken Kris, and Whitmore’s Conn.