Volatile retired due to hairline fracture; will stand at Three Chimneys

Volatile, the top-rated sprinter in North America, has been retired from racing due to a hairline fracture of his right front cannon bone, according to a press release put out Monday by his owners Three Chimneys Farm and Phoenix Thoroughbreds.

Volatile will stand at stud at Three Chimneys for the 2021 breeding season. No stud fee has been announced.

Volatile, a son of Violence trained by Steve Asmussen, won five of six starts including, most recently, the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap at Saratoga. He also won the Aristides at Churchill Downs in June, a race in which he ran six furlongs in 1:07.57 -- just .02 of a second off the track record -- and earned a 112 Beyer Speed Figure, the highest figure earned by any horse in 2020.

In the press release, Asmussen compared Volatile to Mitole, last year’s champion sprinter who won four Grade 1 stakes including Metropolitan Handicap and the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

“He reminds me very much of Mitole in his championship season,” Asmussen said. “Volatile is as fast as any horse I have ever trained. His brilliant performances this year would have made him the likely favorite for the Breeders’ Cup Sprint. … You will not find a better looking individual than Volatile, nor one with as much speed and raw talent.”

Volatile is a grandson of Lady Tak, a multiple Grade 1 winner also trained by Asmussen.

“Volatile is a beautiful horse that breeders will like when they see him,” said Goncalo Torrealba, owner of Three Chimneys. “He exudes class and is a great physical. He was brilliant and that is what can make a stallion special. Three Chimneys will proudly support him with plenty of quality mares, I can guarantee that.”

The announcement of Volatile’s retirement comes two days before entries were to be taken for Saturday’s Grade 2, $150,000 Vosburgh at Belmont Park, a race in which Volatile was expected to be the heavy favorite. Before the news of Volatile’s retirement, the only other horses expected to run were Firenze Fire, T Loves a Fight, and Share the Ride. The race figures to draw more interest, with perhaps Stan the Man or Funny Guy, both trained by John Terranova joining the field.

The Vosburgh offers a fees-paid berth into the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.