The Metropolitan Handicap has a history of being a stallion-making event because it showcases brilliance that is so desired in the American market in a top-class, competitive race. Vekoma will become the latest winner of the historic event to stand at Spendthrift Farm, and, with a pedigree that sports several successful sires, he has solid credentials to become a top sire himself.
Into Mischief, who has risen through the ranks to become North America’s reigning leading sire, will have a number of prominent sons with runners in the coming years, led by his Kentucky Derby and Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Authentic. But also entering stud this year in Kentucky is his Instagrand, who will get every opportunity to get off on a good foot, thanks to his owner, Larry Best
Champion Midnight Bisou will be bred to two-time Horse of the Year and perennial classic sire Curlin in her first season as a broodmare in 2021.
Grade 1 winners Global Campaign, Improbable, Promises Fulfulled, and Tom's d'Etat will all debut at stud in 2021 at WinStar. Joining them on the roster is Laoban, who WinStar brings in from Sequel New York after an outstanding freshman season in which the stallion was represented by Grade 1 winner Simply Ravishing and Grade 1-placed Keepmeinmind.
Fresh off claiming his first North American general sire title in 2019, Spendthrift Farm's Into Mischief continued to raise the bar higher and higher for himself in 2020.
War of Will gave War Front, a popular international stallion and one of Kentucky's biggest commercial standouts, a milestone first American classic winner in 2019. He later showcased his sire's versatility by becoming a dual-surface Grade 1 winner, and will now get a chance to build his own legacy while continuing to bolster War Front's reputation. This fall, War of Will took up residence alongside his sire at historic Claiborne Farm.
Country House and Maximum Security will forever be linked in racing history by their run down the stretch at Churchill Downs on May 4, 2019. Their storylines converge again, as both will be new stallions in Kentucky in 2021.
Lane’s End will introduce three new stallions for the 2021 season – Eclipse Award champion Game Winner, plus Grade 1 winners Gift Box and Honor A. P. All three are by current Lane’s End sires, as the farm continues the familiar strategy of reinvesting in its marquee sirelines.
Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile winner Tapizar, the sire of Eclipse Award champion Monomoy Girl, will stand in Japan in 2021. The stallion will arrive at Yushun Stallion Station on Hokkaido in mid-January, the Racing Post reported.
As the racing season winds down, stallion barns are opening their doors to welcome 2021's new stallions to their new homes. Our annual special edition, presented by WinStar Farm, takes a closer look at the standouts in this class.
