TAKING STOCK: PERFORMANCE VS. STUD FEE FOR THE SMALL OWNER-BREEDER
By Sid Fernando
By the time a stallion has established himself at stud, his fee is usually determined by performance, not the hype that surrounds new horses when they first enter stud. There are, of course, many ways to measure performance, including progeny earnings (which determines placement on the General Sires list), percent of black-type winners to named foals, quality of runners, number of Grade l winners, etc.
There are seven thoroughly proven stallions that will stand for $150,000 or more in North America in 2021, and these elite horses--Into Mischief ($225,000), Tapit ($185,000), Uncle Mo ($175,000), Curlin ($175,000), Medaglia d'Oro ($150,000), War Front ($150,000), and Quality Road ($150,000)--more than make the grade whichever way you slice and dice statistics. For instance, this select group sires black-type winners from named foals at rates of between 7% to 12% (see accompanying charts), which is the gold standard nowadays in the era of big books. [Note: Younger stallions will have lower percentages because their 2-year-old crops will be a larger percentage of the whole.] Cont. p3
CHARLATAN COULD MEET NASHVILLE IN POTENTIAL MALIBU SHOWDOWN
by Steve Sherack
The GI Runhappy Malibu S. on Santa Anita’s opening day program could potentially feature a clash between two of the more exciting sophomores in training.
The immensely talented duo of Charlatan and Nashville, both ‘TDN Rising Stars’ and by leading sire Speightstown, are currently being aimed at the prestigious Dec. 26 seven-furlong contest.
The Bob Baffert-trained Charlatan most recently crossed the wire a dominating six-length, wire-to-wire winner in the split- division GI Arkansas Derby May 2, but was subsequently stripped of the victory and demoted to ninth after testing positive for the Class 2 drug lidocaine. He missed an intended start in the GI Belmont S. due to a minor ankle injury.
MIDNIGHT BISOU ARRIVES AT HILL ‘N’ DALE, TO VISIT CURLIN IN 2021
By Katie Ritz
Champion Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute) arrived at Hill ‘n’ Dale at Xalapa Thursday afternoon after completing her final phase of rehabilitation at WinStar Farm. The five-time Grade I winner will visit Hill ‘n’ Dale flagbearer Curlin.
Midnight Bisou was preparing for her Breeders’ Cup bid this fall when she incurred a sesamoid fracture during a work at the end of September that forced connections to retire the mare prematurely.
PEGASUS WORLD CUP SERIES RETURNS
The Pegasus World Cup Championship Invitational Series is returning to Gulfstream Park on Saturday, January 23, 2021. Launched in 2017 as part of 1/ST's mission to modernize the sport of Thoroughbred horse racing, the Pegasus World Cup has evolved into a Championship Invitational Series featuring two Grade I stakes races with a combined $4 million in purses.
The GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational, run on the dirt at 1 1/8 miles, offers a $3-million total purse. The GI Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational, run on the turf at 1 3/16 miles, offers a $1-million purse. 1/ST entirely provides the $4-million total purse contribution.
This year's event will provide opportunities in North American Thoroughbred racing for horse owners by showcasing their equine athletes competing free of medications on race day while providing the winner of the Pegasus World Cup Invitational with an automatic entry into the 2021 $20-million Saudi Cup.
