Leading New York sires: Freud

As the calendar turns, the story remains the same. The durable Freud continues to thoroughly dominate his niche of the stallion market in New York, leading the state’s turf sire rankings for the eighth consecutive year.

Freud, who is based at Sequel Stallions in Hudson, N.Y., sired 32 winners on turf from 108 starters for earnings of $2,401,555. His totals far outpaced the runner-up, the late Disco Rico, who had 10 winners and progeny earnings of $858,062.

Freud, an 18-year-old Storm Cat horse, has finished first or second on New York’s general sire list among those with state-sired runners in each of the past eight years. In 2015, he was represented by 87 winners, the most by a stallion with state-conceived foals of racing age, and progeny earnings of $5,137,763. He was just edged in earnings by Big Brown, a newcomer in 2015 to Dutchess Views in Pine Plains, N.Y., who had 73 winners and $5,353,853 in earnings to lead the state’s general sire list. Big Brown finished third behind Freud and Disco Rico on the turf sire list.

Freud has become known for siring durable runners who compete creditably in the stakes ranks season after season. Perfectly embodying that is his all-time leading earner Lubash, who sports a bankroll of more than $1.35 million after a 2015 campaign that again helped propel his sire to the top of the charts, winning 4 of 7 starts and earning $346,650. Lubash has won 16 of 46 starts over six seasons of racing, with 11 stakes victories and placings in 13 other stakes. He completed some unfinished business in emphatic fashion in 2015, winning the Mohawk Stakes – a race he had finished second in the two prior years – in a Belmont course-record time of 1:39.08 for 1 1/16 miles. He also won the West Point Stakes at Saratoga for the second time after winning it in 2012 and finishing second in 2014, and he won the Kingston Stakes at Belmont after finishing second in 2011, 2012, and 2014 and third in 2013.

Freud is the sire of 44 stakes winners, led by Grade 1 winners Giant Ryan and Franny Freud, Grade 2 winner Future Prospect, and Grade 3 winners Lubash, Hessonite, and Mr. Vegas. His progeny have won more than $40 million.

Freud is out of the multiple Grade 2-winning Rahy mare Mariah’s Storm, making him a full brother to European Horse of the Year and perennial leading U.S. sire Giant’s Causeway. On the racetrack, Freud won 1 of 12 starts in England, Ireland, and France for earnings of $44,016. He finished third in the Group 2 Cork and Orrery Stakes at Ascot. He has stood in New York his entire stallion career.