Two-time Horse of the Year California Chrome will shuttle to Oussama Aboughazale’s Haras Sumaya in Chile for the Southern Hemisphere breeding season.
California Chrome, a 6-year-old son of Lucky Pulpit, is in the midst of his debut season at Taylor Made Stallions in Nicholasville, Ky., where he stands for an advertised fee of $40,000. Aboughazale stands his homebred Grade 2 winner Protonico at the same farm.
The unraced mare Churchita, with her owner and trainer, Ashley Gubich, earned honors as “Colorado’s Most Wanted Thoroughbred” last Saturday at the competition designed to showcase the trainability and versatility of local off-the-track Thoroughbreds.
The competition, now in its third year, is held during the Rocky Mountain Horse Expo at the National Western Complex in Denver and is presented by the Retired Racehorse Project, Arapahoe Park and Mile High Racing, and the Colorado chapter of the Communication Alliance to Network Thoroughbred Ex-Racehorses (CANTER).
The hard-knocking Mobile Bay was among the honorees as the Louisiana Thoroughbred Breeders Association announced the results of voting in various categories for the 2016 Accredited Louisiana-Bred Champions.
The state’s divisional champions and Broodmare of the Year award are selected by a vote of the membership, while honors for leading stallions and leading breeders are based on statistics. The winners will be honored at the organization’s annual meeting, June 10 at Evangeline Downs; Louisiana-bred Horse of the Year honors will also be revealed that night.
Several Florida-breds who have acquitted themselves well against open company, led by the promising colt Three Rules, were among the honorees as the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association recognized its Florida-bred champions for 2016 at its annual awards banquet and gala Monday night in Ocala.
Sadly, Mastery’s reign as the probable favorite for the 2017 Kentucky Derby favorite did not last as long as it took him to earn that position. His 6 3/4-length victory in the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes was easily the most impressive performance of any 3-year-old colt this year, but less than 30 seconds later, Mike Smith pulled him up and jumped off when he felt the muscular Candy Ride colt take a bad step about 10 strides past the wire.
Mastery had suffered a fracture to a front leg and underwent surgery on Monday, with an uncertain prognosis.
Danehill Dancer, a two-time Group 1 winner and leading sire in Ireland, was euthanized last weekend due to the infirmities of old age. He was 24.
The Irish-bred son of Danehill was purchased as a yearling by Michael Tabor of the Coolmore partnership, campaigned under his silks, and stood as a Coolmore stallion until his pensioning in 2014, at which point he was moved to the operation’s Irish base to live out the rest of his life.
Grade 3 winner Major Gain will relocate for the 2017 breeding season to Nicks Farm in Sellersburg, Ind., where he will stand for an advertised fee of $1,500, with considerations to Indiana-foaling mares.
The 9-year-old son of More Than Ready entered stud last year at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds in New York. His first foals arrive this year.
In August 2015, a colt by the continent’s leading sire and out of a Grade 1 winner stepped into the auction ring at Fasig-Tipton’s Humphrey S. Finney Sales Pavilion in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., and brought the hammer down for $1.2 million at the company’s boutique Saratoga selected yearling sale.
Grade 3 winner Eh Cumpari will begin his stallion career in Colombia after being purchased by the partnership of Haras Dormello and Haras la Herradura.
The deal to send the 5-year-old son of Elusive Quality to South America was brokered by bloodstock agent Ed Price, who bought the stallion prospect for $7,500 at this year’s Keeneland January horses of all ages sale.
