Grade 1 sprint winner El Deal retired, stud plans pending

Grade 1 winner El Deal has been retired from racing, with future stud plans to be determined.

The 5-year-old son of Munnings ends his career with nine wins in 17 starts and earnings of $575,025, racing last for trainer Jorge Navarro and owners Al and Michelle Crawford, who bought the horse privately this spring.

El Deal’s career hit a crescendo with his victory in this year’s Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap at Saratoga, punctuating a resume that also includes wins in the Gold Fever Stakes at Belmont Park and Decathlon Stakes at Monmouth Park. His ontrack finale was a runner-up effort in the Grade 1 Vosburgh Stakes.

“We had a great ride with El Deal,” Michelle Crawford said. “Taking on and beating the best sprinters of his generation in such dramatic style at Saratoga was a testament to his sheer brilliance and the thrill of a lifetime for us.”

Bred in Kentucky by Martha Buckner, El Deal is out of the placed Out of Place mare Spirit of Wailea, whose four foals to race are all winners, also including stakes-placed Legacy Wildcat. He is from the family of Grade 2 winners Her Temper and Choctaw Nation.

“We’ve have had a few farms looking into his availability as a stallion and he has certainly earned that opportunity,” Crawford said. “We have not finalized any plans as of yet, but I am weighing all options for his future. In the meantime, immediate plans include shipping him to Hidden Brook Farm in Paris, Ky., for that team to field additional inquiries and potential stud opportunities.”

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