Kentucky Derby pedigree analysis: McCraken
Kentucky Derby pedigree analysis: McCraken
Nicole RussoApr 26, 2017
Kentucky Derby pedigree analysis: McCraken
The Kentucky Derby's points system, which replaced graded stakes earnings as the method for sorting out contenders, completed its fifth year of prep races this spring. The system's half-decade in existence has provided an interesting snapshot of which stallions were most proficient in siring the archetypical Derby prospect.
Lady Foghorn, who concluded last season with a victory in the Grade 2 Falls City Handicap at Churchill Downs, has been named the Indiana Horse of the Year by the Indiana Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association.
Kendall Hansen has only one shot to win the Kentucky Derby with a son of his namesake stallion, and there is more on the line with Fast and Accurate's performance than the Hansen name.
Clearsky Farm has progressed farther and faster than many other major breeding and racing entities. In less than a decade, the operation has bred and raised several Grade 1 winners, including champion Arrogate, North America's richest racehorse.
Itsinthepost, winner of the Grade 2 Elkhorn Stakes at Keeneland on Saturday, is a gelding, and therefore will not have the opportunity to extend the line of his great-great grandsire Sea-Bird or sire, American Post.
Cape Cross, a Group 1 winner and prominent sire for Sheikh Mohammed al-Maktoum’s Godolphin operation, has been euthanized due to the infirmities of old age. He was 23.
Overanalyze, a Grade 1 winner, was represented by his first winner on the racetrack Thursday when Analyze the Odds drew clear to win a maiden special weight at Aqueduct by 4 1/2 lengths.
Leslie's Lady, dam of four-time Eclipse Award winner Beholder, has been named the 2016 Broodmare of the Year by the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association and Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders.
Freshman sire Violence was represented by his first winner from his first starter on Thursday, as Buy Sell Hold was a 4 1/2-length winner of a Keeneland maiden.