By Reg Lansberry

Frank Stella, an artist of the postwar era whose seminal talent encompassed multiple genres, propelling him to worldwide prominence for more than six decades, and which was abetted by a passion for thoroughbred racing and breeding, died at his home in the West Village of Manhattan on May 4. He was 87.

Stella’s modest racing and breeding operation at his 120-acre Delehanty Stock Farm, located in Dutchess County near Amenia, New York, produced a slew of accomplished New York-breds over several decades. His finest was multiple graded stakes winner Perfect Arc, a daughter of stallion Brown Arc, by the immortal Alleged, who captured the 1977 and 1978 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. Stella bred, raced and co-owned the filly with the late Paul K. Sorren (Brazil Stable). Out of the Argentine mare Podeica (Petronisi-Indian Order, by Ovid), who won the 1987 Polla de Potrancas (Arg-G1) (Argentine One Thousand Guineas), defeating 1998 Racing Hall of Fame inductee Bayakoa (Arg), Podeica won at the allowance level in the U.S. before retiring due to injury.

Conceived and subsequently foaled at Delehanty on March 7, 1992, Perfect Arc was trained by Angel Penna Jr. Competing from age two through four, at three she was a perfect 7-for-7, all on turf. With Hall of Fame rider John Velasquez in the irons, Perfect Arc won the 1995 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes (G1) at Keeneland Race Course, leaving Auriette (Ire) in her wake by two lengths on good turf in 1:49 4/5. At season’s end, she was named 1995 New York-bred Horse of the Year, champion three-year-old filly and champion turf female. Her perfect turf season included triumphs in the Rare Perfume Handicap (G2) at Belmont Park and Diana Handicap (then-Grade 3) at Saratoga Race Course.

In an abbreviated 1996 campaign, Perfect Arc added two wins in four starts, all on grass. She won the Noble Damsel Handicap (G3) at Belmont Park and finished second to champion Possibly Perfect in the Beverly D. Stakes (G1) at Arlington International Race Course. At year’s end, Perfect Arc was named 1996 N.Y. champion female. She finished her career with 10 victories in 13 starts (six stakes wins) and purse earnings of $668,230.

Retired to Delehanty, Perfect Arc’s broodmare career produced three winners from seven runners, though nothing remotely approaching her class. She is granddam of 2013 foal Starship Jubilee (Indy Wind—Perfectly Wild, by Forest Wildcat), a Grade-1 winner with earnings topping $1.6 million. Named Canada’s 2019 Horse of the Year and three-time champion female from 2017-2019, her initial eight runners were all winners.

Other homebreds raced by Stella, each of whom were retired to his broodmare band, were Southern Tradition ($379,125), Very True ($329,452), Island Sun ($316,804), and Fortunate Faith ($251,635), by Fortunate Prospect.

Stella was breeder of record for Fortunate Faith’s 2005 foal, Z Fortune, by Siphon (BRZ), who captured the 2008 Lecomte Stakes (G3) at Fair Grounds Race Track. Sold to Big Apple Racing for $80,000 out of the 2006 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky July Yearling Sale by Eaton Sales, agent, Z Fortune was trained by Hall of Fame conditioner Steve Asmussen for Zayat Stable (who would realize Triple Crown glory in 2015 with American Pharoah). At odds of 19.20-to-1 with Robby Albarado aboard, the multiple graded stakes-placed runner finished 10^th to Big Brown in the 2008 Kentucky Derby (G1). His stablemate, Z Humor, finished 14^th at odds of 63.60-to-1.

Z Fortune raced from age two through five (15-3-2-2) and amassed $432,942 in prize money.

Smitten by the racing bug in the early 1970s during a visit with Sorren to Hollywood Park, fully in keeping with the history of the turf, Stella was resolutely dedicated to breeding and racing on that surface. For that reason, his association with trainer Christophe Clement over the past dozen or so years proved ideal for both.

“Mr. Stella was a great owner and a very simple man. You would never have known that he was this great artist,” Clement said. “In fact, he and my wife shared the same birthday (May 12)! He never put any pressure on his trainer and always put the horse first.”

Delehanty’s newest foal, a colt by the Street Sense stallion Maxfield, out of Tent City, by Desert Party, was foaled on Derby Eve according to farm manager Jim Cassidy, who worked for Stella for nearly 50 years.

In 2009, Stella was among ten recipients of the National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama in a White House ceremony. His renown through the decades and work exhibited in galleries and museums around the globe as well as in private collections aside, however, Stella relished the inherent challenge of studying pedigrees, planning matings for his mares, and naming foals. As he noted in a 1999 interview, despite the vagaries of commercial success and “fashionable opinions” about what constitutes art, he never wearied of the adrenaline-fueled rush unique to the Sport of Kings. He also appreciated that racing’s finish line provides the ultimate arbiter of success.

After saying there is “no level of success in the art world that can compare with success in racing,” Stella added, “There’s a kind of refreshing directness to the finish line, which I like. You don’t have that in the art world.”

Survivors include his wife, Dr. Harriet McGurk, their sons Patrick and Peter, three children from prior relationships, and five grandchildren. As of press time, funeral arrangements had not been announced.

Photo courtesy Old Tavern Farm

(Press Release courtesy of NYRA)

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) is expanding the highly popular Saratoga Breakfast and Breeding Farm tour program this summer with the addition of a third participant, Sugar Plum Farm, to complement incumbents Old Tavern Farm and Song Hill Thoroughbreds.

Thanks to overwhelming interest from fans, Saratoga Breakfast and Breeding Farm tours will now be offered Wednesday through most Saturdays, plus select Sundays, beginning Friday, July 12 through Saturday, August 31.

Tickets are $95 for adults and $35 for children 12 years of age and under and are available on a first-come, first-served basis at NYRA.com. Each tour accommodates up to 52 guests.

Tours will be available weekly as follows: Wednesdays and Thursdays at Song Hill Thoroughbreds, 290 County Road 75 in Mechanicville; Fridays at Old Tavern Farm, 45 Brown Road in Stillwater; and, new this year, six Saturdays and two Sundays at Sugar Plum Farm, 96 Gilbert Road in Saratoga Springs.

The all-inclusive experience begins with a buffet-style breakfast at Saratoga Race Course from 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. against the backdrop of world-class thoroughbreds during morning training. At 9:45 a.m., fans board a CDTA trolley at the Clubhouse entrance for a short ride to the day’s breeding farm. Upon arrival, fans will enjoy a 60-minute guided tour with the farm’s owners and expert staff before returning to the track for an afternoon of live racing.

“Thanks to our friends at NYRA and CDTA, the Saratoga Breakfast and Breeding Farm tours have quickly become an important part of the complete Saratoga experience for racing fans and newcomers to the sport alike,” said Najja Thompson, Executive Director of New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. “These tours showcase the importance of the New York State breeding industry, and also demonstrate the care, dedication and passion that breeders bring to their craft. Each of these three farms embodies the spirit of New York’s thoroughbred breeding community.”

War Dancer meets one of his sons at Sugar Plum Farm in Saratoga Springs. Barbara Livingston photo

Photo courtesy of Song Hill Thoroughbreds

“We are thrilled with the opportunity to be involved with NYRA’s breeding farm tours. They give us a chance to meet new people and introduce them to another facet of the thoroughbred world,” said Robin Malatino, Sugar Plum Farm Owner and Breeder. “Everyone loves to see where a racing career begins and following a tour, people leave with a greater appreciation and a more holistic understanding of the thoroughbred industry.”

Located just minutes from Saratoga Race Course, owners Robin and Tony Malatino have operated Sugar Plum Farm since 2005. More information is available at sugarplumfarmsaratoga.com.

Song Hill Thoroughbreds, owned by Jim and Tina Bond, was established in Mechanicville in 2005. Song Hill joined the Breakfast and Breeding Farm Tours in 2023. More information about the expansive 100-acre horse farm can be found at jamesbondracing.com/song-hill-thoroughbreds.

Old Tavern Farm is a private boutique thoroughbred-breeding operation in nearby Stillwater that was founded in 2016 by Walt and Michelle Borisenok. The farm helped launch the Breakfast and Breeding Farm program in 2022. More information is available at oldtavernfarms.com.

Highlighted by the 155th renewal of the Grade 1, $1.25 million DraftKings Travers on August 24 and the Grade 1, $1 million Whitney on August 3, the annual 40-day summer meet will open Thursday, July 11 and continue through Monday, September 2.

Following the four-day opening week, racing will be conducted five days a week, Wednesdays through Sundays, apart from closing week, when the 2024 summer meet will conclude on Labor Day.

For more information about Saratoga Race Course visit NYRA.com/Saratoga.

Michael Spielman, as at home watching a race from the backstretch at Saratoga as an owner’s box in the clubhouse, passed away in early April.

By Tom Law

Longtime successful New York owner and breeder Michael Spielman, who made the shrewd purchase of Compliance out of a horses of racing age sale and played a key role in the stallion becoming a leader in the Empire State, died in early April in South Florida at the age of 83.

A native of Brooklyn who grew up in Cedarhurst, New York, Spielman attended Lawrence High School and Union College. He met his wife Alix during those years and the couple later had three daughters – Amy, Wendy and Stacey.

A longtime resident of Oyster Bay, New York, Spielman ran a manufacturing company in Hudson. Spielman stayed in touch with his many friends from childhood throughout his life and joined with one of those friends, the late owner and breeder Richard Bomze, in 1982 to purchase Compliance as a stallion prospect for $125,000 out of the Windfields Farm dispersal at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga horses of racing age sale.

A stakes-placed son of Northern Dancer and full-brother to eventual European classic winner El Gran Senor and Group 1 winner Try My Best, Compliance started his stallion career in New York at Keane Stud in Amenia. He later stood at The Stallion Park in Millbrook. One of the Empire State’s leading sires of all-time, Compliance is perhaps best known for siring full brothers Fourstardave and Fourstars Allstar.

“He loved the early morning workouts, talking with the trainers, going back to the barn and chatting and sharing stories with other horse people,” Spielman’s family said. “As much as he enjoyed the owner’s box, he equally if not more loved watching a race from the backstretch in Saratoga. He would take everyone there.”

Top horses bred by Spielman include multiple graded stakes winner Casa Eire and stakes winners Seminole Spirt and Dreamboat Annie.

Casa Eire and Seminole Spirt were foaled at Tom and Dr. Mia Gallo’s Blue Stone Farm in Cambridge. Tom Gallo, former president of the New York Thoroughbred Breeders Inc., remembered Spielman as relaxed and savvy.

“I knew him for years and years. We did a lot of business, not lately, but for a long time,” Gallo said. “He was a real, super, easy-going guy, but he was game. He put his money where his mouth was.”

Casa Eire, a daughter of Compliance out of the Upper Case mare Casarette, went 4-4-3 in 30 starts and earned $279,778. She won the Grade 3 Astoria Breeders’ Cup Stakes as a 2-year-old on the dirt at Belmont Park and defeated males in the Grade 3 Saranac Stakes as a 3-year-old on the turf at Belmont. Casa Eire also won the Egret Stakes at the Meadowlands, placed in the Grade 2 Adirondack and Grade 3 Miss Grillo and placed in five other stakes.

Seminole Spirt compiled a record of 6-9-9 in 61 starts, over eight seasons and including a lengthy stint over jumps, and earned $198,320. Third in the Empire Stakes and fourth in the Grade 3 Pilgrim, the son of Compliance out of the Hasty Flyer mare Hello Poppy won the Damon Runyon in 1993.

Dreamboat Annie, a daughter of Freud out of the Honour and Glory mare Extra Impact, won the 2015 Cupecoy’s Joy division of the New York Stallion Series Stakes at Belmont. She won four of 17 starts with five placings and earned $195,645.

Spielman also teamed with Bomze to purchase Morning Bob for a price reported to be more than $1 million in May 1984 and before making a run at the 116th running of the Belmont Stakes.

Previously trained by Woody Stephens and in the same barn as the likes of Swale and Devil’s Bag, Morning Bob won the Grade 2 Pennsylvania Derby in late May for his prior connections and started for Mike-Rich Stable in the Belmont 11 days later. Supplemented for $7,500, Morning Bob finished third and 7 lengths behind Swale in the Belmont.

“He loved the excitement of owning and racing horses, especially taking Morning Bob to the Belmont, but the real joy to him was being around the stables, especially in Saratoga,” Spielman’s family said. “Of course he loved Belmont, and later Gulfstream, but our summers in Saratoga were the highlight of his love for racing.”

Morning Bob made 25 additional starts for Spielman and Bomze after the Belmont and through the end of the 1985 season, winning the Grade 2 Excelsior Handicap and placing in six other stakes, including the 1984 Travers at Saratoga.

“I had mares on my farm for him for years and years,” Gallo said. “He was the nicest guy in the world, always had a smile on his face and never had a bad word to say about anybody. He invested a lot, had a farm in Hudson and at one time owned like 20 something mares.”

Sanford Bacon, who bred New York-bred superstars Say Florida Sandy and Dancin Renee, passed away last week. NYRA Photo.

Successful and longtime New York owner and breeder Sanford Bacon passed away April 12 at a rehabilitation facility in South Florida. Bacon’s death at age 95 was first reported by Daily Racing Form.

Bacon bred and raced New York-bred champions Say Florida Sandy and Dancin Renee – half out of the Sweet Candy mare Lolli Lucka Lolli who have stakes named in their honor on the NYRA circuit – along with stakes winners Ricky Rachel and Ete Indien.

Say Florida Sandy, campaigned by Bacon for his first 15 starts, earned New York-bred Horse of the Year and champion sprinter honors in 2000 and 2001. Also honored as champion New York-bred 4-year-old and up male in 2001 and champion New York-bred 2-year-old in 1996, Say Florida Sandy won 33 of 98 starts, including five graded stakes, and earned $2,085,408.

Dancin Renee also earned New York-bred Horse of the Year honors, in 1997, along with champion sprinter and 4-year-old and up female honors that season. She won 14 of 21 starts and earned $490,258 racing for her owner and breeder Bacon. Dancin Renee is the dam of Risky Rachel, who won nine of 27 starts and earned $493,736 for Bacon.

Lolli Lucka Lolli was a multiple winner campaigned by Bacon’s Bacon Barn. She was named New York-bred Broodmare of the Year in 1997 and 2001.

Bacon campaigned Ete Indien in partnership with several other owners including trainer Patrick Biancone. The son of Summer Front won three of eight starts, including the Grade 2 Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth Stakes in 2020 at Gulfstream Park, and finished third in the Grade 1 Curlin Florida Derby.

Bacon’s breeding program earned national headlines in 2018 when a New York-bred colt by Scat Daddy out of Risky Rachel – later named Yale and campaigned by Coolmore in Ireland – sold for $1 million at the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream 2-year-olds in training sale.

Bacon is survived by his daughter Jill Brookner and granddaughters Erin and Rachael.

Graveside services will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Montefiore Cemetery, 121-83 Springfield Boulevard, St. Albans, New York. Funeral arrangement are being directed by Hellman Memorial Chapels in Spring Valley, New York.

Juddmonte homebred Mullion, a son of Into Mischief and full brother to Mandaloun, stands at Sequel Stallions New York. Coady Photography

Press release distributed on behalf of Sequel New York

Mullion, TDN Rising-Star and full-brother to Mandaloun, has first mares confirmed in foal. Mullion is by 4-Time Champion Sire, Into Mischief and out of

the multiple group winning Empire Maker mare, Brooch. Mullion stands at Sequel New York in partnership with Juddmonte Farm. STILLNESS, by Constitution, is a half-sister to G2 Pat O’Brien S. Winner, LAUREL RIVER (Into Mischief), was the first to be reported in-foal for Breeder, Juddmonte Farm. This report was immediately followed by a second confirmed mare in foal. ROCKIN EMMZY, by Tale of the Cat, and half-sister to black-type winner, OCEANIC, was also reported in foal for Richard Kern’s All In The Family Racing.

A full-brother to 2021 G1 Kentucky Derby winner, Mandaloun, Mullion’s speed exceeded even the highest of expectations. In only his second career start, after a 14-month layoff, Mullion showed absolute brilliance when breaking his maiden going a mile at Churchill Downs by 10 lengths. The performance garnered national recognition, a TDN Rising-Star title and an impressive

Mullion blasted a field of maidens off a more than 14-month layoff in early November at Churchill Downs. Coady Photography.

“Mullion is a beast to look at,” trainer Brad Cox said. “He showed freakish brilliance, so much so that we were pointing him to the Grade 1 Malibu after his 10-length romp at Churchill. He was a rare talent.”

The eye-catching performance garnered national recognition, a TDN Rising-Star title and an impressive 4- Ragozin number, faster than Cody’s Wish’s 2023 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile figure.

Press release distributed on behalf of Saddle Up NY!

According to the New York State Equine Economic Impact Study (a ‘breakout study’ from the American Horse Council National study), the New York equine industry contributes $7 billion to the state’s economy and has a total employment impact of 52,319 jobs. These figures document growth in both economic and employment impact since the prior study conducted in 2016 ($5.3 billion and 42,400 jobs). The economic impact figures land New York in the top 10 states for equine economic impact and reinforce the importance of the New York equine industry as a significant contributor to the overall economy of the state.

Economic impact comes from spending on the horse itself (including feed, veterinary care, training costs, boarding costs, riding supplies, etc.) as well as spending related to involvement with equines. Those related expenditures include land, buildings, tractors, trucks, fuel oil and taxes. The economic impact goes further and includes horse owner and enthusiast spending on travel, dining and lodging while attending and/or participating in events – to the tune of $2.4 billion. Much of that spending is felt in the communities hosting events and competitions.

Demonstrating the variety of equine engagement in the state, the Thoroughbred and Standardbred breeds remain the top breeds in NY while the Quarter Horse Breed showed the most growth in the state. Trail riding landed at the top of household equine participation with just under 10% of households in New York participating in trail riding. The vast majority (87%) do so on public lands.

In terms of number of equines, the American Horse Council report identifies a decline both Nationally and in New York. Nationally, the figure moved from 7.2 Million to 6.7 Million for a 6.9% decline. In NY, the decline was smaller at 4.7% moving the figure from 154,000 to 146,700. New York ranks 16th nationally in total equine population.

Overall, the findings in the New York State Equine Economic Impact Study provide insights useful in understanding the state’s equine industry and the myriad of ways that equines are important to the overall economy and the lives and livelihood of many households in New York.

The New York State Economic Impact study was commissioned by SaddleUpNY! Industry Partners and made possible through the generous contributions of the following Industry Partners and friends: New York Thoroughbred Breeding and Development Fund, New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Old Field Farm, Ltd, Blue Chip Farm, John Madden Sales, Cornell University Hospital for Animals, New York Farm Bureau, New York State Horse Council, Karin Bump and Timothy Williams, Sally Lynch, Kent Nutrition, and Triple Crown Nutrition. In addition, a linked GoFundMe campaign was also utilized for essential broader support from individuals across the state.

This is the first of a series of press releases focusing on the results of the study. Additional highlights of the New York State Economic Impact study will be released in the coming weeks. Questions can be directed to Dr. Karin Bump, executive director of SaddleUpNY! at Dr.kbump@gmail.com

Fire At Will’s first reported foal, a colt out of Marital Joy. Photo courtesy of Sequel Stallions/Kate Stephenson Photography.

The first reported foal by Sequel Stallions’ Fire At Will was born last week at Fort Christopher’s Thoroughbreds in Fort Edward.

Bred by Horse Haven Racing, the colt is the first foal out of the unraced 4-year-old Practical Joke mare Marital Joy. Marital Joy comes from the family of Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf winner Shared Account, dam of Eclipse Award finalist Sharing, the TDN Rising Star and winner of the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.

Fire At Will, a 6-year-old son of Declaration of War out of the Kitten’s Joy mare Flirt, stands for $5,000 at Sequel New York in Hudson. He bred 42 mares in his first season at Sequel.

“The colt has a lot of scope to him. He has a good hind end, like his sire, and is overall very well balanced. This is exactly what we were hoping to see out of the first crop for Fire At Will,” said Sequel’s Becky Thomas

Campaigned by Three Diamonds Farm and trained by Mike Maker, Fire At Will won three of six starts and earned $675,932. Fire At Will won the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf in 2020 at Keeneland Race Course and the off-the-turf With Anticipation Stakes at Saratoga Race Course and Grade 3 Pilgrim on the turf at Belmont Park that same season.

Fire At Will’s dam, Flirt, sold in foal to Lemon Drop Kid for $500,000 at the 2020 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November mixed sale. He’s the first foal out of the mare, who is a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Decorated Invader (by Declaration of War), stakes winner Jubliant Girl and stakes-placed Cabral.

Keepmeinmind’s first foal, a filly out of the Carpe Diem mare Wintrily, born Saturday at Sequel New York. Photo courtesy of Sequel New York.

The first foal for Grade 2 winner Keepmeinmind was born Saturday at Sequel New York in Hudson. Bred by Sequel Thoroughbreds LLC and Lakland Farm, the filly is the third foal out of the unraced Carpe Diem mare Wintrily.

“We couldn’t be happier with how this foal is built,” said Sequel’s Becky Thomas. “She has a great size and shape to her, plenty of leg and has all the parts and pedigree to be a great racehorse.”

Keepmeinmind, a 6-year-old son of the late and former leading New York-based freshman sire Laoban, stands for $5,000 at Sequel New York. A major player on the 2021 Triple Crown trail, Keepmeinmind retired with a record of 2-3-3 in 14 starts and $903,237. He won the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at 2, finished fourth in the 2021 Preakness Stakes and placed in two other graded events at 3 and finished third in the Grade 1 Woodward Stakes at 3.

Wintrily is out of the stakes-winning Any Given Saturday mare Winter Book, who is also the dam of New York-bred stakes winner Tricky Temper. Winner of the Key Cents Stakes last year at Aqueduct, Tricky Temper finished third in the recent Franklin Square Stakes at Aqueduct.

Bred by Sequel and Lakland, Wintrily is the dam of two other New York-bred foals. Her first foal, the 3-year-old Audible colt Burkan, sold for $57,000 at the 2022 Keeneland September yearling sale. Burkan is placed in two starts.

Wintrily third foal, an unnamed 2-year-old New York-bred son of Omaha Beach, sold for $110,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale.

Help us celebrate your newest arrivals

The New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. encourages breeders and owners to submit photos and information on their new foals. Click here to use our form or email info@nytbreeders.org or nytbfoals@yahoo.com. Please include useful information such as foaling farm, foal’s breeder, sire, dam, foal’s gender, email and a photo.

Juddmonte homebred Mullion, a son of Into Mischief and full brother to Mandaloun, will stand the 2024 season at Sequel Stallions New York. Coady Photography

Mullion, a full-brother to 2021 Kentucky Derby winner Mandaloun, will stand the 2024 season at Sequel New York in Hudson in partnership with Juddmonte. Bred and raced by Juddmonte, the 4-year-old Mullion is by four-time leading sire Into Mischief out of the multiple group stakes-winning Empire Maker mare Brooch.

“We are incredibly fortunate and excited to be partnering with Juddmonte on such an incredible stallion prospect,” said Sequel’s Becky Thomas. “There is no denying the strength of the Into Mischief sire line and the brilliance of his progeny on the track and at stud.

“Mullion is exactly what Sequel and the New York breeders were looking for. He is a big, strong son of Into Mischief standing at nearly 16.3. He was astonishingly fast running a 4- Rag in only his second start and was so brilliant as a young horse exceeding the highest of expectations.”

Mullion will be available for inspection at Sequel New York’s Stallion Open House from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, January 27 at 167 Maple Lane in Hudson.

Mullion comes from one of the great families of the English and American Stud Books with 11 generations of black-type producers. Of the 12 generations of broodmares back to Ballantrae, only one in the female line of Mullion did not earn black type.

Mullion blasted a field of maidens off a more than 14-month layoff in early November at Churchill Downs. Coady Photography.

Mullion’s speed exceeded even the highest of expectations. In only his second start and after a 14-month layoff November 5, Mullion showed absolute brilliance when breaking his maiden going 1 mile at Churchill Downs by 10 lengths.

“Mullion is a beast to look at,” trainer Brad Cox said. “He showed freakish brilliance, so much so that we were pointing him to the Grade 1 Malibu after his 10-length romp at Churchill. He was a rare talent.”

The eye-catching performance garnered national recognition, a TDN Rising-Star title and an impressive 4- Ragozin number, faster than Cody’s Wish’s 2023 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile figure.

To put the significance of the number into proper context, below are Ragozin numbers posted by the leading 3-year-olds of 2023:

• Mage / Kentucky Derby (G1) / 5 Rag
• Forte / Florida Derby (G1) / 6+ Rag
• Arcangelo / Travers (G1) – Belmont (G1) / 7 Rag
• Geaux Rocket Ride / Haskell (G1) / 7″ Rag
• Saudi Crown / Pennsylvania Derby (G1) / 8 Rag
• Angel of Empire / Arkansas Derby (G1) / 8 Rag
• Tapit Trice / Blue Grass (G1) / 8 Rag
• Practical Move / Santa Anita Derby (G1) / 9 Rag
• National Treasure / Preakness (G1) / 10- Rag

“I believe that this horse has the kind of credentials that can make him a successful stallion which is why Juddmonte is supporting him,” said Garrett O’Rourke, Juddmonte USA general manager.