Jockey Club to continue consideration of stallion book limits

The Jockey Club announced in December that it is continuing consideration of its proposed rule to limit the annual breeding of individual stallions, a move that would have a major commercial impact on leading stallions.

The Jockey Club, the breed registry for Thoroughbreds in North America, announced in September that it was considering limiting the books of stallions to 140 mares, an unprecedented move in this industry. The limit would be phased in beginning in 2021, depending on the year in which a stallion first entered stud.

“We are grateful for the many thoughtful comments in response to our September proposal,” The Jockey Club said in a statement. “The stewards are considering those comments as we continue to study the cause and effects of decreasing diversity of the Thoroughbred gene pool and finalize a rule to protect the breed’s health and welfare.”

According to The Jockey Club’s Report of Mares Bred, Justify and Mendelssohn, both first-year stallions at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud, each covered 252 mares in 2019 to tie as the busiest stallions in North America. They were followed by Spendthrift’s Into Mischief and Ashford’s Uncle Mo, with 241 mares each. Rounding out the top 10 were Goldencents (Spendthrift) at 239, Bolt d’Oro (Spendthrift) at 214, Munnings (Ashford) at 202, Practical Joke (Ashford) at 200, Sharp Azteca (Three Chimneys) at 195, and Cross Traffic (Spendthrift) at 188.

According to the Report of Mares Bred, 44 stallions covered the proposed limit of 140 mares or more in 2019. All but three of those stand in Kentucky, representing 13 different farms.