Successful Dan has been retired

Successful Dan, whose terrific racing career was overshadowed by his younger half-brother, Wise Dan, has been retired just shy of $1 million in earnings, trainer Charlie LoPresti said Friday.

LoPresti said he and owner-breeder Morton Fink decided to retire the 8-year-old gelding about two weeks ago. Successful Dan, by Successful Appeal out of Lisa Danielle, won 8 of 15 starts and earned $998,154, with his biggest wins coming in the Grade 2 Fayette Stakes in 2010 and the Grade 2 Alysheba Stakes in 2012. His final start resulted in a third-place finish in the Grade 1 Woodward Stakes last August.

“He’s been at my farm for the last 10 days or so,” said LoPresti. “He had that chronic inflammation in his ligament that made it too risky for us to race anymore. How much more did he have to do? He’ll make a good show horse or jumper prospect for somebody. I want to emphasize that he’s not hurt in any way. We just want to do right by him.”

Fink also is the owner-breeder and LoPresti the trainer of the 7-year-old Wise Dan, the reigning two-time Horse of the Year.