Better Than Honour, the Broodmare of the Year and the only mare to produce consecutive Belmont Stakes winners, will have no foal of 2008 and will be bred next in 2009.
John Sikura, who owns the mare in a partnership that also includes Southern Equine Stables principal Mike Moreno, said Tuesday that they have decided to give the 12-year-old Deputy Minister mare this year off. Distorted Humor covered Better Than Honour in May, but the mare did not conceive.
LEXINGTON, Ky. - Horse Greeley, a Grade 2-winning son of Mr. Greeley, is the latest addition to Claiborne Farm's stallion roster, the farm announced Wednesday.
The 4-year-old will enter stud in 2009 at the Paris, Ky., nursery. The farm will announce his fee at a later date.
Fillies by Cactus Ridge and Decarchy topped the eighth-mile work tab Monday at the under-tack show for the June 24 Barretts 2-year-old and racing-age sale.
Both fillies covered a furlong in 10.20 seconds as the day's fastest workers over the distance. Hip No. 131, a daughter of Cactus Ridge and Miz Riz, by Cox's Ridge, is in the L & R Bloodstock agency's consignment. Hip No. 163, consigned by Sam Hendricks, agent, is by Decarchy out of Cleverness, by Clever Trick.
The public workout session took place at Fairplex in Pomona, Calif.
The meet at Colonial Downs, which began June 9 and runs through Aug. 6, gives Thoroughbred breeders in Virginia not only an opportunity for a financial boost, but also a place to showcase their hard work. On opening weekend at the New Kent, Va., track, Frisky Thunder's dominating score in the John D. Marsh Stakes for Virginia-breds on June 14 satisfied on both counts for his Braeburn Farm connections.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s June sale this past Tuesday and Wednesday capped a stellar year for consignors to the company's 2-year-olds in training auctions. All the earlier sales had their share of positive numbers, and the negatives were slight. Last week's auction posted similar numbers to the corresponding sale of last year: 352 sold versus 308 in 2007. The average price of $21,934 was down only marginally from last year's $22,061 while the median price of $13,000 was down from $14,000 in 2007.
LEXINGTON, Ky. - Thoroughbreds are amazingly adaptable although some commentators talk about their ability to run on turf and dirt as though the difference between the two surfaces were the same as the diffence between six furlongs and 1 1/2 miles.
But whereas some horses cannot get 12 furlongs at racing speed without a van to carry them, all horses can run on turf. They grow up doing it. They mostly like it, and heck, some of them even eat the stuff.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - When McCann's Mojave won the Grade 3 Berkeley Stakes at Golden Gate Fields on May 26, trainer Steve Specht immediately knew his next goal - the $750,000 Hollywood Gold Cup at Hollywood Park next Saturday.
The margin of victory, 3 1/2 lengths, was the widest of McCann's Mojave's 34-race career, which includes 12 wins and earnings of $1,468,565.
"Specht was adamant that we need to take a shot," owner-breeder Mike Willman said. "He really ran well the other day."
New York-bred fillies brought two of the top three prices at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s June sale of 2-year-olds in training.
A New York-bred filly by Peace Rules was the sale topper at $250,000. A daughter of Exchange Rate sold for $170,000, the second-highest price on the second day of the two-day sale and third-highest overall.
Consigned as Hip No. 455 by Michael Yates's Shadybrook Farm Inc., the Peace Rules filly was purchased by Arch Bloodstock on behalf of John Wieczorek's Avalon Farm of Verdigris, Okla.
Fillies ruled Wednesday at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s June 2-year-old and racing-age sale, where a $250,000 Peace Rules daughter led the selling.
Consigned as Hip No. 455 by Michael Yates's Shadybrook Farm agency, the filly went to Arch Bloodstock on behalf of buyer Avalon Farm. Hip No. 455 is from the first crop of Peace Rules and is a half-sister to stakes-placed Britten's Beauty.
Ken and Sarah Ramsey stocked up on 2-year-olds at the session, purchasing four juveniles, including a $170,000 Exchange Rate-Infinity filly and a $135,000 Sky Mesa-French Line filly.
Haradasun, winner of the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot on Tuesday, has been retired to Coolmore Australia for the 2008 breeding season, the global breeding operation announced Tuesday.
The 4-year-old son of Coolmore stallion Fusaichi Pegasus will stand for $51,700.