NEWS: BREEDING

Laoban sires first New York-bred winner

Monday, August 3rd, 2020

Simply Ravishing rolls in debut to become first NY-bred winner for Laoban. NYRA Photo.

By Melissa Bauer-Herzog

Simply Ravishing followed her sire’s lead Sunday, breaking her maiden at Saratoga Race Course to become Laoban’s first New York-bred winner.

While Simply Ravishing’s win came in an actual maiden race instead of the Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes like her sire, she showed a similar running style when racing second most of the way in the 1 1/16-mile turf race. Simply Ravishing proved a little green in the lane but with Luis Saez keeping her focused took over the lead at the top of the stretch. Saez stayed busy on the filly and she scored by a length over favorite Mrs Frankel in 1:44.76.

Simply Ravishing is the second winner for Laoban from eight runners, with half those runners placed in the top three in at least one of their starts. The filly is a third generation Saratoga winner, following the lead of her sire with grandsire Uncle Mo also winning on debut at this track in 2010.

Saratoga success runs on both sides of her family with damsire More Than Ready winning both his starts at Saratoga – including the Grade 1 King’s Bishop Stakes.

Standing at Sequel New York, Laoban finished in the top three in four of his nine starts with a pair of placings on the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby trail when third in the Grade 3 Sham Stakes at Santa Anita Park and second in the Grade 3 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct.

Laoban retired later that year with $526,250 in earnings and bred 122 mares in 2017 with 80 live foals according to The Jockey Club’s Live Foal Report. The stallion bred 91 mares in 2018 and 72 last year.

Bred in New York by Meg Levy, Simply Ravishing is the second foal for Four Wishes, who was purchased as a yearling for $28,000. Nearly doubling her dam’s purchase price, Simply Ravishing sold for $50,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October yearling sale.

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