Daily Racing Form's annual special edition takes an in-depth look at the past year's leading stallions standing in Kentucky, the epicenter of the North American Thoroughbred industry, as well as surrounding states in the Midwest region.
City of Light has emerged as one of the commercial standouts of his class of sires early on, a run that continued at last week's Keeneland January horses of all ages sale.
Knicks Go and Harpers First Ride finished their respective 2020 seasons with momentum. They will look to keep up that momentum for their sire Paynter – a top 20 North American sire for the season – when they start in Saturday's Grade 1, $3 million Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park.
The nascent Maryland-based Determined Stud operation continued an active season of buying at the Keeneland January sale, where it was among the programs taking advantage of high-profile dispersals to bolster its stock.
The family of Prince Khalid bin Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, who died earlier this week, has announced that his Juddmonte Farms will continue its breeding and racing operations internationally.
Multiple graded stakes winner Thousand Words has been retired from racing and will enter stud at co-owner Spendthrift Farm, where he will be the latest offering under the farm’s innovative Share the Upside program.
Champion and classic winner Lemon Drop Kid, a consistently successful stallion who hails from some of the cornerstone families of Lane's End Farm, has been pensioned and will continue to live out his retirement at his longtime home on that farm. The son of former Lane's End sire Kingmambo is 25 this year.
Thoroughbred Charities of America's annual stallion season auction, its largest fundraiser, is underway with an altered format this season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Online bidding on over 200 seasons for stallions standing in 14 states began online Wednesday and will continue through Friday with staggered ending times.
Champion and Hall of Fame racemare Azeri has been pensioned from her broodmare career in Japan. Azeri has resided in Japan since she was purchased for $2.25 million by Katsumi Yoshida at the 2009 Keeneland November breeding stock sale, and has now moved into a new phase of her life in her adopted home.
The Korean Thoroughbred industry has built its foundation on American stock, as it is one of the other international jurisdictions with a predilection for dirt racing. While there may be a drop in the number of American-bred young horses racing in Korea in coming years, as that nation, like everywhere else, continues to struggle with the global COVID-19 pandemic, American stallions will continue to play a prominent role in the industry. That continued demand was seen with the recent purchase of multiple Grade 1 winner Dortmund to stand in South Korea beginning in 2021.
