Incentivizing
To change the breed, change the tracks, writes Jay Hovdey in his latest column (DRF+):
Remodeling the breed will be a slow process, but first it will be necessary to increase the incentive to produce a different product; otherwise, the cruel realities of the unfettered free market will lead to racing’s own version of the subprime mortgage disaster.
The solution is already out there, waiting to be spread. Perfecting and adopting the technology of engineered surfaces — a combination of natural and synthetic material built to drain moisture and cushion impact — is the only way to prompt a change in the breed.
Makes sense. For breeders to produce horses with qualities other than precocious speed, there must be a market …
And Yet They Continue
To take just one example, the racehorses that descend from the popular sire Mr. Prospector make, on average, 30 percent fewer starts in their careers than do horses from other sire lines…. The progeny of that other supersire, Storm Cat, show similar, if not quite so extreme, fragility.
A committee is at work on a durability stats database for breeders, but disagreements hinder its development.
Related: Superfecta asks, “Who would you geld today?”
Disingenuous Defined
“We need heroes,” Jackson said. “And since we need them so badly, we’ve decided to race Curlin this year. We want to give the fans and the industry what we need.”
Vanishing Lines
“Last year … saw what will almost certainly be the last graded-stakes winners descending tail-male from Secretariat (Take d’ Tour) and Affirmed (The Tin Man) … Since the turn of the century, several historic sire lines have produced what will likely be their last American-bred graded winners.”
$100M Reasons Not to Run
Estimated combined price Darley paid for Street Sense, Hard Spun and Any Given Saturday: $100 million (TDN). Sheikh Mohammed’s stable has also scooped up European runners Teofilo and Authorized, and this past weekend, Arc-bound Manduro and a percentage of Invincible Spirit. “The extent of his outlay in his quest for potent future stallions is unprecedented,” marvels Julian Muscat in the Times, “even in a bloodstock world fuelled by the petro-dollar.”
Another Fruitless Season
For War Emblem, standing at stud in Japan. The 2002 dual classic winner failed to cover a single mare during this year’s breeding season and Shadai Stallion Station officials are running out of patience with the fussy stallion. “We don’t have so much interest to improve him now. We have tried many things and we are tired of that” (Blood-Horse).
Smart Shopper
That’s one possible name for Smarty Jones’ first foal, a healthy filly born to Shoppingwithbetty shortly after midnight on Tuesday at Stone Farm in Kentucky. “She’s very well-made, very strong, very alert, very independent. She has tons of substance; she’s beautiful,” said farm president Dan Rosenberg. You can see how adorable the little filly is for yourself in this photo gallery (complete with audio commentary). Another 91 Smarty Jones foals are expected this winter; the 2004 Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner starts his second season at stud in February.
Ashado Sells for $9 Million
Fresh off her third place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, Ashado sold for a record-setting $9 million at Keeneland’s November Breeding Stock Sale this afternoon. The bidding came down to the two usual suspects, Coolmore and Sheikh Mohammed al Maktoum of Dubai (through his agent John Ferguson), with the sheikh winning out. “It’s very unusual to come across a mare with such an outstanding race record with such quality. She’s an absolute queen,” said Ferguson afterwards. “Sheikh Mohammed is especially keen to assemble an outstanding broodmare band in the United States. And, she’d fit into the paddock with the best of them.”
Afleet Alex Deal Pending
The Blood-Horse is reporting that a deal “is in the works” for the breeding rights to Afleet Alex. Cash Is King spokesman J.J. Graci confirmed this afternoon that Castleton Lyons of Kentucky was one of the farms bidding and that the stable still plans to run Alex as a four-year-old. “The sale is for the breeding rights only,” Graci said. “Chuck [managing partner Chuck Zacney] was emphatic that Alex will race next year under Cash Is King Stable.”
9/25 Tangent: Afleet Alex is scheduled to breeze this Friday at Belmont (New York Daily News).
Kentucky At Risk
Breeding programs in other states are threatening Kentucky’s dominance in the Thoroughbred industry: “Odds are Kentucky could be overtaken in its signature industry if somebody in the state doesn’t crack the whip, according to concerned industry leaders.” (Kentucky Post)
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Jessica Chapel writes and edits in Massachusetts. Railbird is a Thoroughbred horse racing blog published from June 2004 to July 2019. More / Contact
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