Candy Boy retires from racing, will stand in Russia

Grade 2 winner Candy Boy has been retired from racing, and will begin his stallion career in Russia, trainer Doug Watson told Michael Adolphson of the Meydan Group on Thursday.

The 7-year-old Candy Ride horse has raced exclusively in the U.A.E. since being purchased by Ramzan Kadyrov in 2015. Kadyrov is head of the Chechen Republic, a federal subject of Russia, bordering the country of Georgia.

Candy Boy retired with two wins in 15 career starts for earnings of $1,286,800. He began his career in the barn of trainer John Sadler for owner C R K Stable, and he finished second in the Grade 1 CashCall Futurity at age 2. The colt became a classic contender the following year with a win in the Grade 2 Robert B. Lewis Stakes and a third in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby, before finishing 13th in the 2014 Kentucky Derby.

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The second half of Candy Boy’s 3-year-old campaign saw him finish second in the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Derby and West Virginia Derby, and third in the Grade 2 Pennsylvania Derby, before finishing the year with a start in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita Park.

Candy Boy was then sent to Dubai, where he finished fourth in his debut and lone start of 2015, the Dubai World Cup. He finished seventh in the 2016 World Cup, and came back in December of that year to run in a stakes race at Meydan for what would be his final start. He was training toward a return in this year’s World Cup before the decision was made to retire him.

Bred in Kentucky by Lee and Susan Searing, Candy Boy is out of the stakes-winning In Excess mare She’s an Eleven, who is the dam of three winners from five foals to race. His extended family includes Grade 1 winner Leave Me Alone, Grade 1-placed Tap to It, and Grade 2-placed All Out Blitz.