Turfway Park: WinStar adds matings to Kentucky Cup Distaff rewards

WinStar Farm will give free matings to three of its young sires to the owners of the first three finishers in the Grade 3 Kentucky Cup Distaff at Turfway Park on Sept. 24.

Seasons to Super Saver, Colonel John, and Hold Me Back will be rewarded to those top finishers, in addition to earnings from the $100,000 purse.

Last month it was announced that WinStar, in Versailles, Ky., had become a major sponsor of the newly revived Kentucky Cup series at Turfway in Florence, Ky. The Grade 2, $200,000 anchor race, formerly the Kentucky Cup Classic, has been renamed the WinStar Kentucky Cup.

Super Saver, the 2010 Kentucky Derby winner, stood the 2011 breeding season for a listed stud fee of $20,000. The other fees were $15,000 for Colonel John and $6,000 for Hold Me Back.

Matings as bonuses is a concept occasionally implemented in racing, most notably the aptly named Matchmaker Stakes, first run at Atlantic City in 1967 and now an annual fixture at Monmouth Park.

– Marty McGee