Korean racing interests posted another milestone victory for their rising program Saturday at Saratoga, where KRA Stud Farm colorbearer Mr. Crow scored a convincing victory in a maiden special weight race.
The 3-year-old Tapizar colt, trained by Todd Pletcher, led at every call of the six-furlong race, powering away in the stretch to win by 11 1/2 lengths and stopping the clock in 1:09.44. He was assigned a Beyer Speed Figure of 109, the top number this year for a 3-year-old.
Coolmore Stud raised eyebrows early in 2007 when it announced that its top 2-year-old of 2006 Holy Roman Emperor would be retired to stud, even though he was perfectly sound and trainer Aidan O’Brien was optimistic about his chances to win the 2,000 Guineas. Coolmore’s rationale for the retirement, though, was understandable.
Hall of Famer Zenyatta is in foal to Grade 1 winner Into Mischief for the 2018 foaling season.
The 13-year-old Street Cry mare was covered June 3 to produce what would be her sixth foal. She delivered a Medaglia d’Oro filly on May 9.
WinStar Farm’s advertising slogan for Tiznow, “The big horse sire,” has always struck me as something of a double entendre. It is, of course, meant to highlight Tiznow’s proven ability to sire Grade 1 winners, but is a reminder that Tiznow himself is a very big horse, standing around 17 hands tall, and as a result his offspring tend to be larger than average.
Grade 1 winner Sidney’s Candy has been sold to stand in Turkey, less than a year after being announced as a full-time resident of Argentina.
The 10-year-old son of Candy Ride will in the coming weeks leave Haras La Pasion, where he had been a regular shuttle stallion from his Northern Hemisphere base at WinStar Farm in Versailles, Ky. Ricardo Benedicto, owner of Haras La Pasion, purchased a significant interest in Sidney’s Candy in 2011, and plans for the horse to remain in the Southern Hemisphere were announced last October.
Songbird’s challengers last Saturday in the Grade 1 Delaware Handicap were unremarkable in ontrack accomplishment, but the runner-up effort by Martini Glass did produce a long-awaited payoff to a globetrotting story.
Martini Glass is a 4-year-old filly from the last crop of Kitalpha, a full brother to French classic winner and top sire Kingmambo whose journey took him from the U.S. to Europe, Africa, and back to his native country. Kitalpha had sired high-level runners in Zimbabwe and South Africa, but the Delaware Handicap was his first Grade 1 black type earned in the U.S.
Four of the five entries in the $98,000 Rockville Centre Stakes last Saturday at Belmont Park hailed from the first crops of their sires, and three filled out the trifecta.
The six-furlong race for New York-bred juveniles was led at every point of call by What a Catch, a colt from the first crop of Grade 1 winner Justin Phillip, making him the first stakes winner for the sire.
Illuminant, a Grade 1 winner, has been retired from racing.
Trainer Michael McCarthy said the 5-year-old Quality Road mare displayed signs of minor discomfort coming out of a workout last week, and follow-up tests showed enough accumulated wear to convince owners Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, SF Bloodstock and Sol Kumin to retire her.
Grade 1 winner Connect has officially been retired and will enter stud in 2018, Lane's End Farm announced on Tuesday.
Connect injured a suspensory ligament while training toward last month's Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap, for which he likely would have been favored. At the time, his connections indicated the injury would likely prove career-ending. Owner Paul Pompa had previously inked a deal to stand the son of Curlin at Lane's End upon the conclusion of his racing career.
Zulu Magic, a young sire in Michigan, died suddenly on Monday. He was 12.
The son of Johannesburg stood at Davidson’s Tracks-N-Time in Midland, where he was advertised for $1,000 during the most recent breeding season.
“We are heartbroken,” said Cindy Davidson, owner of Davidson’s Tracks-N-Time. “His foals were just starting to race, the oldest being 3-year-olds. We’re hoping his future foals leave him a little legacy in the years to come.”
Zulu Magic has sired three winners from four starters, and sits 10th on Michigan’s sire list by progeny earnings.
