Leinster, Maxfield thriving as stallions

Leinster has found an adopted home at stud in Florida, but he had much of his racing success at Keeneland in Kentucky. He continued to build on his accomplishments there, as he sired the winner of this year’s first 2-year-old race in North America. His Florida-bred daughter Lennilu won the first race on opening day at the traditional 4 1/2-furlong distance.

Leinster raced for Amy Dunne, Brenda Miley, Westrock Stables, and Jean Wilkinson, and was based at Keeneland with Rusty Arnold. His four career graded stakes wins included the Grade 2 Shakertown and Grade 2 Woodford in 2020 at Keeneland. In between, he was third in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint, beaten just a length. In the Shakertown, he sizzled the 5 1/2 furlongs on turf in a course-record 1:00.86 that still stands.

Leinster, by Majestic Warrior, now stands at Joe and Helen Barbazon’s Pleasant Acres Stallions in Morriston, Fla. They bred Lennilu, who races for Amy Dunne.

Back in his home state, Leinster has eight first-crop juveniles cataloged for the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co.’s spring sale, all but two Florida-bred. One of those is a filly consigned by Ciaran and Amy Dunne’s Wavertree Stables, which he has brought into the stallion business.

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Maxfield ‘very exciting’

Multiple Grade 1 winner Maxfield, who has been a blockbuster commercial success in this freshman crop, has another 23 first-crop juveniles cataloged, prior to outs, at the OBS April sale.

Maxfield, who stands at Darley, first showed his hand at the 2023 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky fall selected mixed sale, as he was represented by a $500,000 colt who was the most expensive weanling sold for this first-crop sire class. That colt, a half-brother to champion turf horse Up to the Mark, was pinhooked for $1 million to Coolmore at the Keeneland September yearling sale, where Maxfield also was represented by a $1 million half-sister to Grade 1 winner Randomized, purchased by John Stewart’s Resolute Racing. Led by those two, Maxfield averaged $197,589 from his 84 yearlings sold at public auction last year, more than 4.9 times his advertised stud fee of $40,000 in his first season.

Maxfield’s average has jumped to $371,000 from eight juveniles sold thus far in 2025. Those are led by a $1.25 million filly and a $1 million colt at the OBS March sale.

“Maxfield is a very exciting horse,” said Ramiro Restrepo of Marquee Bloodstock, which purchased the filly.

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