DRF Breeding Standout: Sweet Whiskey smooth in debut

Few things help build the résumé of a freshman sire like an impressive maiden winner at Saratoga Race Course. When that maiden winner just misses setting a track record in her first start, it’s that much better.

On Sunday, Sweet Whiskey giving her sire, first-cropper Old Fashioned, a notable boost, effortlessly winning a maiden special weight race at Saratoga by 5 1/4 lengths. The bay filly completed the 5 1/2-furlong race in 1:02.81 over a fast main track, threatening the track record of 1:02.52.

The result was even more impressive considering that rider John Velazquez never drew the whip on the filly, with a strong hand ride being his most aggressive method of encouragement.

Owned by Alto Racing, Sweet Whiskey is trained by Todd Pletcher. For her efforts, she earned an 86 Beyer Speed Figure, the third-fastest of the year among 2-year-old fillies through Aug. 11.

Old Fashioned stands at Taylor Made Stallions in Nicholasville, Ky., for an advertised fee of $8,000. His first crop consists of 82 juveniles, of which Sweet Whiskey is now the leading earner.

Sweet Whiskey was bred in Kentucky by Machmer Hall. She is out of the unraced El Corredor mare Baby Betty, who is the dam of three winners from as many foals to race, including stakes winner El Gaucho.

The filly was a $75,000 purchase by Bradley Thoroughbreds at the 2012 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky June selected yearling sale, then was pinhooked by Bradley via their associate Eddie Woods to agent Steve Young for $300,000 at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co. March selected sale of 2-year-olds in training earlier this year.

Sweet Whiskey’s female family includes stakes winners Heidi Maria and Doc’s Doll, the latter also a stakes producer. The filly’s pedigree also features a pair of stakes winners in Southeast Asia, where many foals out of third dam Bisque Doll were sold.

West Virginia-based marketing chairman H. Smoot Fahlgren purchased Bisque Doll, an unraced Quadrangle mare, for $70,000 at the 1980 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November selected mixed sale, and three of her first four foals to race were sold to run primarily in Malaysia and Singapore.

The most successful among them was Nostradamus, a stakes winner in both of the aforementioned countries, and Saugatuck, a stakes winner in Singapore.