McKinzie climbs freshman sire ranks with big weekend

Among several young sires who recorded multiple 2-year-old stakes winners over the weekend, multiple Grade 1 winner McKinzie stood out, sweeping Aqueduct’s Grade 1 races for the division on Saturday with juveniles from his first crop.

McKinzie’s Chancer McPatrick earned the second Grade 1 win of his young career as he swept to victory in the Champagne Stakes, following the Hopeful Stakes at Saratoga. Earlier on the Aqueduct card, Scottish Lassie won her maiden in the Frizette Stakes.

In addition to his pair of Grade 1 winners, McKinzie, who stands at Gainesway Farm, was represented on the weekend by Quickick, second in the Grade 1 Alcibiades on Friday at Keeneland, and McKinzie Street, who picked up his second career Grade 1 placing when he was third in the American Pharoah on Saturday at Santa Anita.

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“McKinzie has really kicked off in a star fashion,” Tom Ryan of SF Racing said recently. “McKinzie was a great racehorse, and it looks like his stock is more precocious than he was himself. He has shown precocity with his 2-year-olds this year. Lots to look forward to with McKinzie.”

The strong weekend helped boost McKinzie into second on the North American freshman sire earnings list. Classic performer Tiz the Law, based at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud, leads with progeny earnings of $1,887,183, to McKinzie’s $1,655,988. Tiz the Law also had a strong weekend on both dirt and turf, with Non Compliant winning the Grade 2 Oak Leaf at Santa Anita and Scythian winning the Grade 2 Miss Grillo Sunday on the Aqueduct turf, giving him a class-leading four individual stakes winners.

Joining McKinzie and Tiz the Law with first-crop stakes winners in unrestricted stakes action this weekend were Vekoma (Spendthrift Farm), whose Mi Bago won the Algonquin at Woodbine; Instilled Regard (Taylor Made Farm), whose Minaret Station won the Grade 2 Bourbon at Keeneland; and late champion Improbable (WinStar Farm), whose Governor Sam won the Indian Summer.

The other stallion with a juvenile stakes double over the weekend was Collected (Airdrie Stud), from his third crop. Thought Process won the Grade 3 Surfer Girl at Santa Anita, and later in the day, his Iron Man Cal was elevated to victory in the Grade 3 Zuma Beach via disqualification.

The other non-restricted juvenile stakes victors in a busy few days of racing were Alcibiades winner Immersive, by Nyquist (Darley); Grade 2 Jessamine winner May Day Ready, by Tapit (Gainesway); Grade 3 Futurity winner Mentee, by City of Light (Lane’s End); American Pharoah winner Citizen Bull, by Into Mischief (Spendthrift); Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity winner East Avenue, by Medaglia d’Oro (Darley); Speakeasy winner Pali Kitten, by Vino Rosso (Spendthrift); and Grade 3 Matron winner Abientot, by Not This Time (Taylor Made).

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