Expectations can be deadly – especially when combined with a high price tag.
When Fusaichi Pegasus went to stud in 2001, his $100,000 initial stud fee made it imperative that he sire a string of high-class horses right from the get-go. That did not happen, and when his progeny developed a reputation for having inherited their sire’s combustible temperament, buyers and breeders quickly soured on the 2000 Kentucky Derby winner.
Grade 1 winner Bobby’s Kitten will become the first son of Kitten’s Joy to stand in Europe, as it was recently announced that the 5-year-old horse has been retired to Lanwades Stud in Newmarket, England, for the 2017 season.
The month of September in Pennsylvania racing began with a visit by Kentucky Oaks winner Cathryn Sophia, who dominated the newly created Princess of Sylmar Stakes at Parx. Later this month, the Grade 2 Pennsylvania Derby is expected to get a purse hike as it draws Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist and Preakness Stakes winner Exaggerator.
On September 10, Zayat Stables was named owner of the year in 2015 by the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association at its annual awards dinner. Held at Stonestreet Farm in Lexington, Ky., the dinner honored the previously announced state and regional award winners, as well as honoring Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum’s Godolphin as national breeder of the year and Richard and Karen Papiese’s Midwest Thoroughbreds as national small breeder of the year.
Although California Chrome made it look easy, Del Mar’s Grade 1 Pacific Classic drew perhaps the most competitive field of any race in the world so far this year. The 2016 European equivalent in degree of difficulty to date occurred last Saturday at Leopardstown, where no less than eight Group 1 winners broke from the starting gate for the Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes.
Spendthrift Farm will put forth another incentive for Thoroughbred breeders by sponsoring a stakes race for the progeny of its stallions during the fall meet at Churchill Downs.
The $300,000 Spendthrift Stallion Stakes, open to 2-year-olds of both sexes by current and past Spendthrift stallions nationwide, will be held Oct. 30 at Churchill. The seven-furlong event falls on the track's first of two "Stars of Tomorrow" programs, focusing on 2-year-old racing, and will be co-featured with a pair of $70,000 stakes, the Street Sense and the Rags to Riches.
Grade 2 winner Kantharos will relocate to Hill ‘n’ Dale Farm in Lexington, Ky., for the 2017 breeding season.
The 8-year-old son of Lion Heart previously stood at Ocala Stud in Ocala, Fla., where he was advertised in 2016 for $5,000. He debuted at stud in 2011 at Vinery Florida, then moved to Ocala Stud for the 2013 season.
The Indiana Breeders Alliance will host its inaugural Indiana Breeders Seminar on Saturday, Nov. 19, to educate breeders in the region and help them book mares to stallions in and out of the state.
The expo-style event will take place at Indiana Grand in Shelbyville. Attendance to the seminar is free, while admission to the dinner afterward will be paid admission for non-members.
Stallion farms will have booths set up to discuss their rosters with breeders and sign breeding contracts.
Grade 1 winner Offlee Wild is reported to have died at Celikoglu Stud Farm in Turkey from a massive heart attack.
The 16-year-old son of Wild Again moved to Turkey for the 2015 breeding season after previously standing at Pin Oak Lane Farm in Pennsylvania and beginning his stud career at Darley in Lexington, Ky.
