After the dust settled from Saturday’s Kentucky Oaks prep races, a pair of fillies by Midnight Lute sat tied atop the leaderboard, each with 60 points.
Midnight Bisou shed any doubt about her two-turn ability in the Grade 3 Santa Ysabel Stakes at Santa Anita, winning her first start beyond seven furlongs by 2 1/4 lengths. On the other side of the country, Midnight Disguise maintained her status as New York’s top Oaks contender, winning the listed Busher Stakes at Aqueduct by 1 3/4 lengths.
When the historic Phipps family racing operation made a rare buying appearance at the 2016 Keeneland September yearling sale as part of a plan to diversify its stock, one of its carefully selected purchases was a filly from one of the most active family trees in racing today, with roots in another vaunted program.
Good racehorses come in all shapes and sizes, but on average the breed tends toward the 16-hand average height. At the same time, though, buyers tend to prefer big, mature horses at yearling and 2-year-old sales, which can give the progeny of larger stallions an early advantage.
The freshman sire race came down to the line in 2017, with traditional earnings lists and winners lists decided by narrow margins. The class also spread the wealth when it came to the Beyer Sire Performance Standings, with a handful of stallions making an impact.
Violence, who stands at Hill ‘n’ Dale Farm, was represented by the most individuals from his first crop to meet or exceed the threshold figure of 80, with four. That group was led by Peace, who earned an 88 when finishing second in a maiden race at Del Mar. The colt came back to win his next outing.
Veteran sires Medaglia d’Oro and Speightstown recorded the highest Beyer Speed Figures of the year for juveniles, thanks to their sons Bolt d’Oro and Strike Power.
Curlin emerged as a source of classic stamina early in his stud career, with 2013 Belmont Stakes winner Palace Malice emerging from his first crop. The Smart Strike stallion, residing at Hill ‘n’ Dale Farm, has been represented by a classic winner or classic-placed runner in each of his crops to follow – and following his best crop of juveniles to date, he is taking dead aim on keeping that streak alive in 2018.
By almost any measure, Into Mischief again had a stellar year with his 2-year-old runners in 2017.
The Spendthrift Farm stallion leads Daily Racing Form’s exclusive Beyer Sire Performance Standings with 16 figures to meet or surpass the benchmark figure of 80 from juvenile action last season. Ten individuals were responsible for those figures, giving him a healthy 12 percent to reach that threshold from his juvenile starters.
Royal Mo, a Grade 3 winner, will begin his stallion career at Klawervlei Stud in South Africa during the 2018 Southern Hemisphere breeding season.
The 4-year-old son of Uncle Mo has been residing in Europe during a quarantine period, and will go through a separate quarantine once he arrives in South Africa. The stallion is still being syndicated, and a fee had not yet been announced.
Marconi
Tapit–Ponche de Leona, by Ponche
:: ROAD TO THE KENTUCKY DERBY: Prep races, point standings, replays, and analysis
Bred in Kentucky by Brushwood Stable ($2 million Keeneland September yearling purchase by Bridlewood Farm and Coolmore)
The Northern Hemisphere breeding season officially began in mid-February, and an accomplished class of first-year stallions have adjusted well to their second careers. Horse of the Year Gun Runner and multiple Grade 1 winner Lord Nelson had their first mares confirmed in foal this week, while champion and leading money-winner Arrogate has already had several prominent runners visit his court.
