Shadwell sending McLaughlin's horses to Pletcher

Todd Pletcher will take over many U.S.-based horses for Sheik Hamdan's Shadwell Farm following Kiaran McLaughlin’s upcoming exit from the training ranks.

McLaughlin said this week that he will give up training horses and will take over as agent for jockey Luis Saez beginning with the Keeneland meeting, which opens April 2. Richard DePass has been Saez's agent for eight years and is retiring.

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For Shadwell, McLaughlin trained Invasor, the 2006 Breeders' Cup Classic winner and Horse of the Year; Lahudood, the 2007 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf winner and Eclipse Award divisional champion; 2006 Belmont Stakes winner Jazil; 2016 Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile winner Tamarkuz; Grade 1 winner Takaful; and multiple graded stakes winners Mohaymen and Qurbaan.

The Shadwell horses in his barn who are now slated to go to Pletcher include Haikal, winner of last year's Grade 3 Gotham Stakes, who returned to the races in January off a long layoff, and Ajaweed, who owns seven points toward this year's Kentucky Derby after finishing second in the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes and, more recently, third in the Grade 3 Sam F. Davis Stakes on Feb. 8. Shadwell, which also employs trainers Chad Brown and Danny Gargan, said in a release issued on Thursday that Pletcher would receive McLaughlin’s current horses, as well as “future allocations” that would have gone to the trainer.

"We would like to thank Kiaran McLaughlin and his staff for all of the years of hard work and dedication to the horses we have given them to train for Shadwell," Shadwell vice president and general manager Rick Nichols said in the release. "Through their efforts, uncountable wonderful memories were created. We completely understand the move that he is making and we wish him well."

McLaughlin and Pletcher both are former assistants to Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas.