Dad, a son of undefeated New Mexico-bred millionaire Peppers Pride, will attempt to win his maiden in the Sunland Park Festival of Racing Stakes on Sunday.
The 3-year-old Malibu Moon colt is trained by Joel Marr, who also conditioned his dam. He is winless in three starts, with his best finish being a fourth in the Mine That Bird overnight stakes last month at Sunland.
Plum Pretty will be honored with a race in her name Sunday at Sunland Park – and for good reason. She was the most impressive winner of the Sunland Oaks, coasting by 25 lengths in the track’s major event for 3-year-old fillies. She subsequently won the Kentucky Oaks and added the following year’s Apple Blossom Handicap, retiring with nine stakes wins or placings and earnings of more than $1.6 million.
Two-time champion female sprinter Groupie Doll delivered her second foal, a filly by reigning two-time leading sire Tapit, on Monday at Timber Town Farm near Lexington, Ky.
Both of Groupie Doll’s foals are by Tapit. Her first foal, a colt delivered last March, arrived ahead of his due date and spent a significant amount of time at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital near Lexington, where the staff was able to nurse him back to health before returning him to Timber Town. Groupie Doll showed no ill effects following that delivery and before being bred back to Tapit.
Grade 2 winner Vicar’s in Trouble was euthanized March 11 due to long-running complications from laminitis.
The 5-year-old son of Into Mischief last raced in the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Santa Anita, where he was vanned off after suffering a condylar fracture in his left front leg in a pace-pressing, then rapidly fading effort.
Owner Ken Ramsey said Vicar’s in Trouble underwent surgery shortly after the race, but the horse was plagued with complications during the recovery process.
Suddenbreakingnews
Mineshaft – Uchitel, by Afleet Alex
(Purchased for $72,000 by S.F. Henderson at the 2014 Keeneland September yearling sale)
The champion Mineshaft, standing just across the aisle from his great sire, A.P. Indy, in the Lane’s End stallion barn, has quietly fashioned a solid stud career for himself. Carrying the banner is his Grade 3 Southwest Stakes winner, Suddenbreakingnews, who will take the next step on the Kentucky Derby trail in Saturday’s Grade 2 Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park.
The Turkish-born Seventh Sense scored by 2 1/4 lengths in a maiden special weight race Saturday at Santa Anita.
Agent Omer Halim Aydin, who buys horses on behalf of the Turkish Jockey Club, picked up the colt’s dam, the winning Distorted Humor mare No Dress Code, for $100,000 out of the 2012 Keeneland November breeding stock sale. The following March, she delivered her City Zip colt, a full brother to multiple graded stakes winner Reneesgotzip, in Turkey.
For all he has achieved at stud, there are a few accomplishments that perennial leading sire Giant’s Causeway, based at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud in Kentucky, has yet to check off his list. Chief among those is siring a U.S. classic winner, with his best finish in the series the third-place finish by Creative Cause in the 2012 Preakness Stakes.
