MONTEROSSO PAYS TRIBUTE TO DUBAI MILLENNIUM IN WORLD CUP

  • Posted: April 6, 2012  by Alan Porter   -  
  • Comments Off on MONTEROSSO PAYS TRIBUTE TO DUBAI MILLENNIUM IN WORLD CUP

In 2000, the Dubai World Cup (gr. I) was won in devastating style by the appropriately named, Dubai Millennium (he had actually been renamed with the event in mind, when it was decided that he was the most promising among the Godolphin crop that year). A son of Seeking the Gold and the Shareef Dancer mare, Colorado

PARALLEL LINES – SUNLAND TRIALS REVEAL SIMILARLY-BRED CLASSIC PROSPECTS FOR SECOND SEASON SIRES

  • Posted: March 30, 2012  by Alan Porter   -  
  • Comments Off on PARALLEL LINES – SUNLAND TRIALS REVEAL SIMILARLY-BRED CLASSIC PROSPECTS FOR SECOND SEASON SIRES

Last weekend saw a pair of classic trials at Sunland Park in New Mexico, the $800,000 Sunland Derby (gr. III) and the Sunland Park Oaks (taken last year by subsequent Kentucky Oaks (gr. I) heroine, Plum Pretty). There were some interesting parallels between the two winners: both are by  horses from

CIRCLE GAME: GUESS HOW FAR HE’LL GO

  • Posted: March 24, 2012  by Alan Porter   -  
  • Comments Off on CIRCLE GAME: GUESS HOW FAR HE’LL GO

For us, from a standpoint of pedigree, physiology and genetics, one of the most interesting horses on the Triple Crown trail is Secret Circle, who won the Rebel Stakes (gr. II) last weekend. There certainly is no doubt about his speed and courage, but against the evidence of his pedigree page,

GIANT’S CAUSEWAY RUNNERS SHOWING CLASSIC POTENTIAL ON DIRT

  • Posted: March 18, 2012  by Alan Porter   -  
  • Comments Off on GIANT’S CAUSEWAY RUNNERS SHOWING CLASSIC POTENTIAL ON DIRT

We’ve always thought that—in retrospect—it would have been very interesting had Giant’s Causeway been sent from Ireland to challenge for the 2000 renewal of the Kentucky Derby (gr. I). The son of Storm Cat certainly demonstrated that he was very well-suited to ten furlongs at Churchill Downs when only narrowly-defeated in a Breeders’ Cup

SPEEDSTERS SMART MISSILE, TOORAK TOFF AMONG FIRST NEW AUSTRALIAN SIRES ANNOUNCED FOR 2012 BREEDING SEASON

  • Posted: March 10, 2012  by Alan Porter   -  
  • Comments Off on SPEEDSTERS SMART MISSILE, TOORAK TOFF AMONG FIRST NEW AUSTRALIAN SIRES ANNOUNCED FOR 2012 BREEDING SEASON

While we are only in the first few weeks of the Northern Hemisphere breeding season, stallion masters in Australia are already at work on recruiting new stallions to their rosters for the 2012 Southern Hemisphere breeding season, which is still some six months away. Among the first of these announced are Smart Missile, who

OFFSPRING OF FRESHMAN SIRES STRUT THEIR STUFF AT OBS

  • Posted: March 9, 2012  by Alan Porter   -  
  • Comments Off on OFFSPRING OF FRESHMAN SIRES STRUT THEIR STUFF AT OBS

The OBS March Two-Year-Old in Training Sales offers the first chance to get a preview of juveniles by many of the year’s freshman sire crop, so we ran a quick eye over some of those represented at next week’s sale. Two of the biggest names among the freshman, the classic

SO FAR, SO GOOD – BUT CAN UNION RAGS STAY THE DERBY DISTANCE?

  • Posted: March 2, 2012  by Alan Porter   -  
  • Comments Off on SO FAR, SO GOOD – BUT CAN UNION RAGS STAY THE DERBY DISTANCE?

The death of Dixie Union, who was euthanized in July 14, 2010, at the age of 13, due to a deteriorating neurologic problem, was a major loss, not only to his connections, but also to the industry at large. Standing at $35,000 in his final season, Dixie Union was a horse

RECENT STAKES POINT UP VALUE SIRES

  • Posted: March 1, 2012  by Alan Porter   -  
  • Comments Off on RECENT STAKES POINT UP VALUE SIRES

A few weeks back we noted Northern Afleet as a stallion who appeared to be great value at his current fee. Looking at last weekend’s results, we’re prompted to note a couple more. >Proud Citizen’s son, Mark Valeski, didn’t add to his sire’s total of stakes winners at the weekend, but he ran with

CLASSIC PEDIGREES TAKE CLASSIC RACES IN DUBAI

  • Posted: February 24, 2012  by Alan Porter   -  
  • Comments Off on CLASSIC PEDIGREES TAKE CLASSIC RACES IN DUBAI

Preps for the Dubai World Cup meeting continued at Meydan on February 23, with the UAE Oaks (gr. III) and Meydan Classic. A slowly-run Oaks saw Falls Of Lora (TrueNicks A++), who had good, but not outstanding form in Europe last year – she ended the year with a fifth of five

DECONSTRUCTING BLACK CAVIAR – WHAT WERE THE REASONS BEHIND THE MATING THAT LED TO THE CHAMPION?

The brilliant victory of Black Caviar in today’s MRC C.F. Orr Stakes (gr. I) – which took her record to 18 wins in 18 starts – gives as an excuse to post an article of her pedigree that ran in the Australian publication “Inside Breeding” last year, and explored the potential reasoning